The introduction series begins on the homepage and explains how and why we construct the lens we are using to search the scripture in this project.
In 251 CE, Cyprian's church cared for plague victims and buried the dead - including their former persecutors - at the cost of their own lives. This site proposes a directed reading of scripture to trace a line from Genesis to the early church's radical way of life.
Through the story of Polycarp's martyrdom in 155 CE, this essay introduces the biblical theme of 'two ways' - life and death. The early church neither feared death as power over them nor wielded it as power over others, and this is the first distinguishing marker of the way of life.
Through the story of Ephrem's care for the starving in 372 CE, this essay explores the early church's participation in defending the poor from the power of death. This is the second distinguishing marker of the way of life.
Through the story of Marcellus the Centurion in 298 CE, this essay traces the biblical roots of the early church's allegiance to Jesus as king. from Israel's demand for a human monarch, to Jesus as heir to both the Davidic and cosmic thrones. This is the third distinguishing marker of the way of life.