Book Critique: Destroyer of the Gods

Summary

In his book Destroyer of the Gods: Early Christian Distinctiveness in the Roman World, Larry Hurtado dives into a succinct study of the beginnings of early Christianity in the Roman world. As the author states, this book is to be accessible to “a wide spectrum of readers” (p. xiii). It demonstrates a short yet in-depth study of the Greco-Roman surroundings in which Christianity took root and how the pagan religions differed from the early stages of the rise of Christianity in the Roman era. Hurtado separates his book into five chapters, beginning with various critiques from pagan scholars to the distinctive facets of the Christian movement. The author details how Christianity arose in a world that was rife with multiple cultural and religious influences, along with how those features influenced the ethics and philosophy of the early Christian faith.

The first chapter of Hurtado’s book details various critiques of early Christianity from a Jewish perspective and pagan criticisms. From the Jewish perspective, he dives into the response of the former Pharisee Saul before his conversion to the Way, quoting how his religious zeal for true Judaism provoked his response to the new sect. Hurtado primarily highlights pagan critics in this chapter, where many saw Christianity as a dangerous intrusion on the religious norm during the Roman era. The author notes how Tacitus described the abhorrence towards Christians and how they were convicted of “hatred of the human race” in his description of Christians during the reign of the emperor Nero (p. 21). Though some pagan critics took a more intellectual approach to early Christianity (i.e., Galen), others strongly disdained the sect (i.e., Pliny, Marcus Aurelius, Lucian, and Celsus). Collectively, the responses from the pagans demonstrate how strange the early Christian movement was in contrast to the religious culture of the Roman era.

Chapter two focuses on defining religion during the Roman era and the nature of the belief in that day. This chapter highlights how the monotheistic concept of early Christianity differed entirely from the polytheistic ideology of the time. Even though Jews also held to the monotheistic view, early Christianity crossed ethnic lines to the Gentiles without requiring them to convert to Judaism before believing. Hurtado also quotes the apostle Paul when he mentions that the new members of the church must not become Jewish proselytes, emphasizing that Gentiles renounced idolatry to embrace the true God (p. 55). Images and idols were not part of the cultic imagery for worship, unlike the Roman religious practices. The Christians believed in the transcendence of God and thus did not need an image to represent His presence in a particular place.

The third chapter dives deeper into how Christianity crossed ethnic and cultural lines throughout its voluntary nature. While the pagan population was entrapped by the gods of the religious identities they were born into, they were not forbidden to worship gods from other cultures. On the other hand, Christianity was exclusive to the worship of one God and the rejection of all others without the need to convert to a whole different sect. Instead of the voluntary nature of pagan religion, early Christianity was an exchange of identity from pagan deities to God. Early Christianity was a religion that separated politics from religious practice, taking a stance of religious liberty. Hurtado quotes Tertullian when he wrote that the religion allowed everyone to “worship according to one’s own convictions” (p. 103).

In chapter four, the author delves into the textual differences between Roman-era religion and early Christianity. He calls Christianity a “bookish” religion because it emphasizes a central collection of holy writings (p. 105). Christianity differed heavily from the Roman cult, which did not have a centralized set of sacred writing that everyone had access to read. In First Apology, Justin Martyr wrote how “the memoirs of the apostles or the writings of the prophets” were used in worship gatherings and communal settings (p. 106). Hurtado provides an excellent example of the bookish nature of Christianity when comparing the works of some Roman writers to the letters of Paul. The longest letter between Cicero and Seneca was 4,134 words. However, Paul himself wrote several lengthy letters like 2 Corinthians (4,448 words), 1 Corinthians (6,807 words), and Romans (7,101 words). Thus, the written word was crucial to the early Christian church.

The final chapter details the ethical standards of Christianity compared to the religion of the Roman era. The pagan religion had various aspects of double standards, such as how women should act versus men in society (i.e., sexual relations). There were further notes of depravity in the Roman world, such as the letter from Hilarion and the topic of infant exposure (p. 145). Christianity proposed the behavioral requirements for the corporate body of believers. Matters such as infant exposure, sex, marriage, and the sexual exploitation of children were of great concern to the early church to the bewilderment of the pagans. The ethics of Christianity contrasted sharply with the Roman era, causing them to stand out in society as a whole.

Strengths

One of the great strengths of Hurtado’s book is the ability to take a vast topic and narrow it down to an easily understandable read. Many volumes have been written on this topic, and the author was able to cover the basic backgrounds of early Christianity in the Roman era. Hurtado states well that the book is intended to address the “cultural amnesia” of the modern-day church (p. 1). He not only addresses the religious and cultural differences between paganism and Christianity but also demonstrates how there were various similarities between the two. Hurtado provides a quick yet in-depth analysis of many of the cultural and religious norms of the Roman era, such as infant exposure and child sexual exploitation. He then addresses the vast differences the Christian ideology presented that made them odd to those around them.

Another strength is how the author describes the reliance upon the written word. In the modern world, there has been a de-emphasis on the written Scriptures among many Christian circles, moving toward a more seeker-friendly rendering and focus on the resurrection. Unfortunately, this seeker-friendly direction has watered down the gospel of Christ to accommodate the ever-changing world, such as views on sexual ethics. On the other hand, the textual nature of Christianity might cloud some judgments about ancient religious writings, where some may think that the emphasis on the written aspects of religion was common. This was also not the case in the Greco-Roman world. Hurtado goes back to the reliance on the written books by the early Christians to solidify the foundations of Christianity in contrast to the absence of this textual reliance in pagan religions. He rightly states that early Christianity was a “bookish” religion, where writing and circulation had a prominent place in the establishment of Christian ethics and living.

A third strength of Hurtado’s book is the balance in piecing together the various facets of history. Within the topic of history and historical documents, there is a need for creativity to bring the entire picture together. There are obviously many factors that would play a role in why an individual would choose to become a Christian (i.e., political, cultural, and theological aspects) despite all the opposition that would follow. It then becomes an art to combine creative inference with the historical facts and evidence. Hurtado does an excellent job at this reconstruction behind early Christianity in the Greco-Roman world. The book definitely becomes a reflective piece concerning the cost of becoming a Christian in the years of the early church while addressing some of the general assumptions that individuals have about the foundations of Christianity.

Weaknesses

Although the book does an excellent job of demonstrating how the roots of early Christianity dug deep into the existing Greco-Roman religious culture of that day, it seems as though it is incomplete in thought. The title itself possibly alludes to the displacement of pagan religion and idols. However, the book only details the initial success of Christianity. Granted, this addition to the thriving community of early Christianity would need to be addressed in a separate volume, but continuing the conversation of Christianity in the Roman world would be of great benefit. This is especially true when the author details the quite successful mystery cults like that of Isis, going as far as to say that it influenced later artistic Christian depictions of the Madonna and the infant Jesus (p. 85). Hurtado alludes to the eventual success of Christianity in the Roman world when touching on the movement during the reign of Constantine. Rather than a triumph that Christianity had imperial approval, Hurtado states that it was more likely that Christianity “had already become so successful despite earlier efforts to destroy the movement” (p. 5). This direction would take more space to elaborate on but would provide a continuation needed to account for the thriving Christian community in the Greco-Roman world.

Another aspect that would have been of great benefit to explore would be how the emphasis on love and grace in early Christianity related to the furthering of the gospel message. Grace itself was lightly touched on as a benediction rather than a major component of the gospel that would have a profound impact on individuals coming to the early Christian faith. The link between the “love-ethic” (p. 65) of Christianity and the death and resurrection of Jesus could have been a natural extension of how Christians were to live and spread the gospel throughout the Roman world. Along that same string of thought, a reflection on the death and resurrection of Jesus would have aided in the distinctive factors of early Christianity from pagan religion. It would also further explain the reasons why Christians were willing to be persecuted, suffer, and die for their faith. Clearly, a crucified deity would have boggled the minds of the pagans of the day, making them view Christians as blasphemous or impious. The ideas of suffering in Christianity could be an excellent topic to explore among all the other distinctive features described by Hurtado.

Conclusion

Overall, Destroyer of the Gods presents a concise look at the roots of early Christianity and the counter-cultural ideology it presented in the Greco-Roman world. It is often easy to miss how different early Christianity was from the religious climate of the ancient world. The new movement was not just sacred writings, but rather it was a call to righteous and ethical living to present a different and better way of life. Hurtado does an excellent job of providing the background of Christianity. It is not only a very in-depth analysis of history for the biblical scholar. The book is also an excellent resource for the beginner who wants to learn more about the background of the Greco-Roman world where early Christianity began. This book is a valuable reference for anyone wanting to know a brief history of the early Christian church.

Bibliography

Hurtado, Larry W. Destroyer of the Gods: Early Christian Distinctiveness in the Roman World. Waco: Baylor University Press, 2016.

* This critique was originally an assignment for NBST800: New Testament Backgrounds submitted on June 30, 2023.