The Rise of Christianity
In his book “The Rise of Christianity,” Rodney Stark (1997) “introduces historians and biblical scholars to real social science, including formal rational choice theory, theories of the firm, the role of social networks and in interpersonal attachments in conversion, dynamic population models, social epidemiology and models of religious economies.” As a sociologist, he considered it relevant that authors establish an agreeable conclusion on Christianity’s growth from year 40 to 350. He concludes that the average growth was 40% per decade with an estimated average population of sixty million through research.
My purpose in generating these numbers was not to discover ‘facts,’ but to impose needed discipline on the subject. By restoring to simple arithmetic, I believe I have demonstrated adequately that the rise of Christianity required no miraculous rates of conversion. (Stark, 1997, p. 12)
He attributes this growth to conversion and uses other quantitative and qualitative analysis methods to portray the religion’s rise. Quantitative analysis involves assessing “the arithmetic of growth,” He considers works from various authors on the estimated rate of early Christian growth. His need to “formulate new social scientific propositions about conversion” led to an estimation of the growth rate based on the numbers and conclusions made by the authors (Stark, 1997, p. 4). While what he provides is not accurate, he uses other estimates to find a much more reasonable sum within the lowest and highest ranges given. For the qualitative aspect of analysis, Stark establishes that “an essential factor in the religion’s success was what Christians believed” (1997:p. 4). While there is a specific definition of a Christian, he believed that the people’s acts determined which religions they subscribed to because they practiced that religion’s teachings. He further credits women for the growth of the religion, articulating that exogamous marriage may have led to Christianity’s rise. Therefore, while there was a constant increase in the number of Christians, the rate was influenced by practices and beliefs.
Still, conversion plays a significant role in establishing the growth of Christianity. According to Stark, many Romans converted to Christianity, and because “the emperor Galerius switched tactics and excused the Christians from praying to Roman gods, and asked only that they pray to their own god for security and that of the state,” more Romans converted to the religion (1997:p. 11). The emperor’s tactic to allow Christianity among his people was due to the increased population of Christians, and he recognized that resisting conversion could jeopardize his government. Stark also recognizes that the rate of growth due to conversion reduced “following the execution of James and the subsequent destruction of Jerusalem” (1997:P. 11). Therefore, personal attributes and what the people believed in were the foundation of conversion. When the people no longer believed in the religion due to such acts as James’s execution, conversion slowed down, reducing the rate of growth of the religion. Moreover, Stark suggests that “the empire would have begun to run out of potential converts,” explaining why the Christian population dropped during the fourth century (1997: p. 13). Therefore, while it did not need miraculous conversion to increase the number of Christians, the conversion was essential to religion’s spread.
On “The Class Basis of Early Christianity,” Stark agrees with previous research indicating that “in its formative days, Christianity was a movement of the dispossessed-a haven for Rome’s slaves and impoverished masses” (1997: p. 29). Christianity allowed the people to be kind to each other regardless of social status. It also emphasized caring for the ill creating popularity among the slaves and other unfortunate groups that found hope in having faith. Stark suggests that communism through religion among lower and upper strata further succeeded due to Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians denoting that “many of the wise, mighty or noble are called to the faith” (1997: p. 29). In the beginning, the conversion was popular among those of lower strata. Still, after his letter, more people across all social classes began to convert to the religion, breeding a sense of communism.
Stark also credits Jewish Christianity to the success of the rise of Christianity, identifying that it “played a central role” because “the Jews of the diaspora provided the initial basis for Church growth during the first and early second centuries and continued as a significant source of Christian converts until the fourth and fifth century” (1997, p. 49). This accreditation is based on the belief that people often associate with the people they surround themselves with. “Whatever one does or does not believe about the divine, obviously God did not cause the world to become Christian, since that remains to be achieved. Rather, the New Testament recounts human efforts to spread the faith” (Stark, 1997). The Jews promoted the religion’s growth through their faith, making others more susceptible to its teachings. “For the fact is that typically people do not seek a faith; they encounter one through their ties to other people who already accept this faith” (Stark, 1997, p. 56). As the first believers and converters, the Jews contributed to Christian growth as they continued to believe in its teachings and share their knowledge with others.
Further, Stark suggests that women also contributed to the rise of Christianity due to sex ratios, “the Christian doctrines prohibiting infanticide and abortion,” and recruiting women (1997: p. 95). He uses research to identify women’s role in the early Church and the increased intermarriages between Christians and pagans, leading to Christianity’s secondary conversions. “People are more willing to adopt a new religion to the extent that it remains cultural continuity with conventional religion(s) with which they are already familiar” (Stark, 1997, p. 137). Since pagans also had gods whom they prayed to and worshiped, it was easier to adapt to Christianity through intermarriages and through conversion to a faith that was not that different from their own. Therefore, because women were more adamant about their faith, their pagan men often converted t Christianity, and their children became Christians as well.
Like most people, my belief about the rise of Christianity was centered on the notation of conversion as the only explanation. However, Stark’s effective and persuasive research on the topic enabled me to further understand Christian growth from the first century to the fourth. Stark’s use of quantitative and qualitative analysis methods, such as the arithmetic method of analyzing previous research and biblical context to derive into a conclusion that is inclusive of all assumptions and conclusions, shines a light on the exact rate of growth and other factors that contributed to its success including conversion, Jewish Christianity, the role of women in the growth of the religion and basic Christian teachings of kindness, and inclusivity regardless of social status. Stark also recognizes that conversion was easier because the people already held similar beliefs. Christianity provided a sense of community by being inclusive to all making it more popular. Therefore, the book effectively understands the rise of Christianity through the earlier centuries, and I believe the audience researching the topic would appreciate the book.
Reference
Stark, R. (1997). The rise of Christianity: A sociologist reconsiders history.
HarperOne.