The Growth of the Eastern Church

When the institutions around us crumble, we have a choice: reach for security or embrace the opportunities to build the Church in the chaos. Early Christians in the eastern Roman Empire faced this choice. Rather than retreat into timidity, however, these Christians took the troubles of their world as an opportunity to spread the gospel in new cultures and regions. In this course, we trace the progress of these churches of the East, a story featuring ascetic monks, fiery bishops, Persian shahs, and Arab sheikhs. As we encounter their energy, their mistakes, and their success, we will ask: how might the disruptive events of our own time prepare us to live boldly?