Great Books II Study Questions for Assignment 25, Eusebius, The History of the Church, pgs 1-85 (bk 1- bk 3, section 23)
- Intro. pg. ix When was Eusebius born? Pg. xi When did he die?
- Intro. pg. xix What is the basic structure of the work? (also see pg. 428ff)
- Pg. 1 What are the five things Eusebius tells us he intends to cover in his book?
- Pg. 2 Why is Eusebius's undertaking so ambitious? What obstacle does he face in writing a history of the church?
- Pg. 3 What two things does Eusebius wish to demonstrate about Christian origins, and to whom, and why? (For the "why", see top of pg. xxxiv of Introduction)
- Pg. 8 What was the effect on the world of the spread of the Jewish Law, and what role did this play in preparing the world for the gospel?
- Pg. 15 Why does E. want to call the patriarchs Christians?
- Pg. 17 In what year of Augustus's reign does E. say Christ was born? In what year B.C. do histories usually date the beginning of Augustus's reign?
- Pg. 31 Where was the correspondence between Jesus and the King Agbar found?
- Pg. 35 What four things does E. say he discussed in book 1? Summarize, briefly, what he said in book 1 about each of the first three of these items.
- Pgs. 38-39 What was Tiberius's reaction to the report of Jesus's resurrection and divinity, and what effect did that have on the growth of the new church?
- Pg. 50-54 How would you characterize the ascetic community described by Philo?
- Pgs 58-60 How was James, the Lord's brother, killed?
- Pg. 68 After Jesus, what other three men did the Jews kill? Pg. 75 What was the effect on Jerusalem of the presence of these godly men?
- What evidence does E. give for the apostle John still being alive in Domitian's time?
- Given what he focuses on most, what seems to interest Eusebius most in his history so far?
|
