Books by Author David Gwynn

David M. Gwynn, 2007

My first book is based on my Oxford doctoral thesis. The argument is extremely dense, as is often true of doctoral monographs, and offers a historical and theological re-evaluation of the polemical writings of Athanasius of Alexandria (bishop 328-73). Athanasius was remembered as a hero of orthodoxy who defended the original Nicene Creed of 325 against the “Arian heresy.” For much of his lifetime, however, Athanasius was an extremely controversial figure, and my thesis explored how his ultimately successful efforts to condemn his opponents as heretics have distorted our understanding of the crucial period when the Roman Empire became increasingly a Christian empire. I still stand behind the argument of The Eusebians, but for a more balanced and accessible study of Athanasius I recommend the next book in this list.

David M. Gwynn, 2012

I began work on this book almost immediately after completing The Eusebians. Athanasius is one of the greatest and most controversial figures of early Christian history, and his life spanned the period of fundamental change that followed the conversion of Constantine, the first Christian Roman emperor. This book set out to explore the different ways in which Athanasius helped to shape Christianity in these crucial formative years. He was bishop of an important city, a profoundly influential theologian, a champion of Christian asceticism, and a pastoral father who united the Egyptian church. All those roles continually intertwined, as I set out to demonstrate in each chapter of the book, and the analysis is supported by extensive quotations from Athanasius’ many writings in an effort to make his life and legacy more accessible to modern readers.

David M. Gwynn, 2012

The Oxford University Press Very Short Introductions have a well-deserved reputation for providing accessible and inexpensive guides to important subjects, so I was very happy to contribute to the series. The Roman Republic is the stuff of legends, from Hannibal crossing the Alps to Julius Caesar and the Ides of March, as Rome grew from humble beginnings to dominate the ancient Mediterranean world. Yet the same pressures that drove Rome to expand plunged the Republic into a descending spiral of crisis and civil war. Power eventually passed into the sole hands of Augustus, the first Roman emperor, but we can still trace the Republic’s influence from early Christianity and the Renaissance to the American and French Revolutions and down to our modern times.