Christian Origins in Ephesus and Asia Minor, 2nd ed.

In a region where many ancient cities have never been excavated and where most artifacts remain in the field, the enormous work of documenting and analyzing the early history of Christianity is open to original research. Often one of the first scholars to reach ancient sites in remote parts of Turkey, Dr. Fairchild has taken over 300,000 photographs capturing the remains of churches, temples, and city structures in remote locations. This second edition of Christian Origins in Ephesus and Asia Minor adds to the current research underway on the cities of Priene and Tripolis in western Turkey to Fairchild’s work, documenting recent archaeological and historical research at several cities where the earliest Christian communities existed in Asia.

In the first two centuries after Christ, the cradle of the Early Church was in Asia Minor, modern day Turkey. This area was home to Paul’s early churches in Ephesus, Colossae and Galatia in addition to all seven churches addressed in the book of Revelation. The ancient city of Ephesus was the largest city in Asia Minor, where the gospel was first shared in the middle of the first century. According to Luke, from Ephesus “all of Asia heard the word of the Lord.”

Gathering together a wealth of information, original photographs, and detailed maps of the region, Christian Origins in Ephesus and Asia Minor describes the progress and perils of the developing Christian community as it struggled to find its way in a hostile world. This volume provides crucial context for the biblical account with historical information gathered from ancient literary sources, archaeological discoveries, and a variety of early Christian sources, charting the growth and development of the early Christian church as it progressed and expanded throughout the Roman province of Asia.