As volume two opens, persecution of Christians is coming to an end with the triumph of Constantine. Soon legal measures protected church interests. Clergy are exempted from taxation; Christian pastors are appointed as military chaplains. But inclusion brings its own dangers as the temptations to compromise grow stronger. The following centuries will see painful heart-searching as church and state grow closer, and the doctrinal wrangles of the early church continue.
Author Biography
Dr Ivor J. Davidson is Senior Lecturer in Systematic Theology at the University of Otago, New Zealand, though he tends his roots in his native Scotland. He has degrees in classics and theology. His publications include a major two-volume study of the De Officiis of Ambrose of Milan (Oxford University Press 2002). His current research is concentrated in Christology.
