The Routledge Handbook of Early Christian Philosophy

"For a modern intellectual culture that distrusts trust and prefers analysis to exegesis, the very notion of early Christian philosophy is apt to be an uncomfortable stretch. But Mark Edwards and company do not retreat to the safe, if vacuous, conjunction: early Christianity and philosophy, as if one were a prosthesis for the other. This volume's concise forays into a still surprisingly unfamiliar intellectual landscape bring ancient philosophy into the heart of early Christian exegesis. The introduction by Edwards brilliantly articulates the stakes of following along." - James Wetzel, Villanova University, USA

"This well-conceived collection of studies makes a powerful case that ancient Christians took philosophy seriously and historians of ancient philosophy need to take Christians seriously." - George Boys-Stones, University of Toronto, Canada

"The Routledge Handbook of Early Christian Philosophy is a much welcome tool for students and researchers alike. Thanks to the excellent work of an international scholarly team of the highest calibre, the volume rightly moves away from the simplistic dualism of 'reason versus faith' that still hinders a sophisticated understanding of Early Christianity's complex ties to pagan philosophy, and it showcases, in a truly comprehensive fashion, their substantial areas of intersection in the first centuries of our era. The contributors demonstrate that the Christians' engagement with the tools, tropes, and themes of pagan philosophy was not just considerably more constructive and dynamic than is often recognized, but that this very engagement was also a necessary enterprise for Christians." - Alberto Rigolio, University of Durham, UK

"This handbook is an important contribution to scholarship on early Christian thought. But that is only half its contribution. It is in equal measure a formidable argument for situating what is usually called 'early Christian theology' within the larger domain of 'ancient philosophy', most broadly conceived... Edwards is to be commended for bringing together such a substantial collection (in both size and importance) and for producing an edited handbook that sustains a particular (and much needed) thesis about Christianity and ancient philosophy across the whole of the volume." - The Classical Review