Between Luke and Marcion: Hypothesis Testing in the History of Christian Origins
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| Year of publication | 2016 |
| Type | Appeared in Conference without Proceedings |
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| Description | The paper reconsiders the dynamics of Jewish and non-Jewish networks in the spread of early Christianity. For the mathematical modeling of complex processes like these it uses the Lukan and Marcionite Christianities as a strictly coded test case. While the Lukan Christianity, which remained open to the Jewish tradition, might still utilize Jewish Mediterranean networks, the Marcionite Christianity, which rejected the Jewish heritage, probably preferred trade maritime networks which might use the infrastructure provided by its founder’s shipping company. The model tests two hypotheses of spreading dynamics based on different historical presuppositions (central role of Jerusalem versus decentralized networks, long-lasting importance of Jewish versus non-Jewish networks, etc.). |
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