Wow. Forgive me for what I already see will be a long comment.
a) As a teen - many decades ago - I came up with an idea for a novel that included a character who was a Christian from the Galilee and I became interested in the history of the various streams of Christianity Israel and the general area (Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, etc.). I tried then and at later times to research this topic using the internet and got nowhere, finding only political sites and not historical ones. I didn't know who to ask. Over the years I had opportunities to learn more about the history of Christianity in general, but not about the Christian communities of this region in particular.
So first question - can you refer me to reliable sources and resources to learn about these histories? In what context did they form, how and when did they interact with the wider world of Christianity and with one another and how did they develop through the always active general history of the region?
b) Serendipity. I am a violin teacher. The summer of 2010 I was asked to teach a young girl whose family was renting my parents' neighbor's apartment in Jerusalem over the summer. Although I didn't live in Jerusalem, I was spending more time there than usual because my father was ill. A year or so later, the family spent a year in Israel - the father was doing something at TEI and they were living at Tantur. That was the first time I discovered it was there. It was a bit nerve-wracking to drive into (and out of!) but I wound up teaching that same girl for that academic year as well. I see that UND officially opened its branch there in 2018 - way after my time visiting the place - but it was interesting to read your post, discover someone else with an interest in the history of at least one Christian group in the area, and to find out how Tantur - a beautiful place - was faring. No second question... :-)
Hi Judith - thanks for sharing! As a point of clarity, Notre Dame has been responsible for Tantur since 1972, though over the years the responsibility of managing the property has shifted from different university offices, which has translated into a diversification of the university's activities. It remains a beautiful place.
Regarding your question about Christians in the Middle East - it is a fantastic one that unfortunately I don't think I'm best equipped to answer. The Christian story in the Middle East is 2000+ years old and stretches a vast geographic space I think the challenge is focusing on an exact period and/or region to learn about. I read Dalrymple's "From the Holy Mountain: A Journey Among the Christians of the Middle East" and flipped through
"Who Are the Christians of the Middle East" by the Baileys but both books are dated at this point and have their imperfections.
Re Notre Dame U and Tantur - of course, that makes perfect sense as the parents of my student were studying somewhere in the Chicago area... I'm sure there's a more direct connection to the home university that I've forgotten over the years.
I'd be happy to read more detailed books about the history of the early church(es) or follow the history of one particular denomination. In the past I was a teaching assistant for an "Intro to Christianity" course at Indiana Univ./Bloomington so I have a fairly good grounding in the overall (but again, as you say, tumultuous 2000+ years) history.
Despite their imperfections, I will start with the books you recommend and go from there. And if you come across a person with expertise in the field who can recommend others, I'd be grateful for them as well... Many thanks!
Wow. Forgive me for what I already see will be a long comment.
a) As a teen - many decades ago - I came up with an idea for a novel that included a character who was a Christian from the Galilee and I became interested in the history of the various streams of Christianity Israel and the general area (Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, etc.). I tried then and at later times to research this topic using the internet and got nowhere, finding only political sites and not historical ones. I didn't know who to ask. Over the years I had opportunities to learn more about the history of Christianity in general, but not about the Christian communities of this region in particular.
So first question - can you refer me to reliable sources and resources to learn about these histories? In what context did they form, how and when did they interact with the wider world of Christianity and with one another and how did they develop through the always active general history of the region?
b) Serendipity. I am a violin teacher. The summer of 2010 I was asked to teach a young girl whose family was renting my parents' neighbor's apartment in Jerusalem over the summer. Although I didn't live in Jerusalem, I was spending more time there than usual because my father was ill. A year or so later, the family spent a year in Israel - the father was doing something at TEI and they were living at Tantur. That was the first time I discovered it was there. It was a bit nerve-wracking to drive into (and out of!) but I wound up teaching that same girl for that academic year as well. I see that UND officially opened its branch there in 2018 - way after my time visiting the place - but it was interesting to read your post, discover someone else with an interest in the history of at least one Christian group in the area, and to find out how Tantur - a beautiful place - was faring. No second question... :-)
Hi Judith - thanks for sharing! As a point of clarity, Notre Dame has been responsible for Tantur since 1972, though over the years the responsibility of managing the property has shifted from different university offices, which has translated into a diversification of the university's activities. It remains a beautiful place.
Regarding your question about Christians in the Middle East - it is a fantastic one that unfortunately I don't think I'm best equipped to answer. The Christian story in the Middle East is 2000+ years old and stretches a vast geographic space I think the challenge is focusing on an exact period and/or region to learn about. I read Dalrymple's "From the Holy Mountain: A Journey Among the Christians of the Middle East" and flipped through
"Who Are the Christians of the Middle East" by the Baileys but both books are dated at this point and have their imperfections.
Re Notre Dame U and Tantur - of course, that makes perfect sense as the parents of my student were studying somewhere in the Chicago area... I'm sure there's a more direct connection to the home university that I've forgotten over the years.
I'd be happy to read more detailed books about the history of the early church(es) or follow the history of one particular denomination. In the past I was a teaching assistant for an "Intro to Christianity" course at Indiana Univ./Bloomington so I have a fairly good grounding in the overall (but again, as you say, tumultuous 2000+ years) history.
Despite their imperfections, I will start with the books you recommend and go from there. And if you come across a person with expertise in the field who can recommend others, I'd be grateful for them as well... Many thanks!
PS Just started listening to the podcast from the beginning. It will take me a while to get through it, but thank you.
Request: any chance of adding a video version in youtube?
In the future we will be including video versions, but not for this particular series.