Moreover, such journals often give outlines or critical reviews
of new books published in the field. As such, they are essential
tools for advanced study of a particular topic, and this is as true
for early Christianity as for any other area of enquiry. And yet,
academic journals often fill the uninitiated reader with appre-
hension. Journals are often found only in university libraries, and
even then they tend to be read more frequently by academic staff
and research postgraduates than by the undergraduates who make
up the greater mass of any university’s population. But because
journals are the main venues for academic debate, anyone inter-
ested in a particular academic discipline should be encouraged to
consult and read them. Recognizing that journals can be intimi-
dating creatures, my aim here is to demystify them. I aim to
indicate which ones are most important for the student of the
early Christian world, and give an outline of their scope and the
sort of articles that they contain. At the risk of being accused of
cultural myopia, I have limited my selection to journals that
publish articles in English (whether exclusively, frequently, or
occasionally). For this my only apology is that this book is meant
primarily for beginners and is intended to whet their appetite: that
is not something that a densely argued article in technical German
is likely to do. I will also note the abbreviations used to refer to
them by scholars. Scholars like abbreviations, and not just for
periodicals: it is so much easier to type out, or even say, some-
thing like ANRW rather than Aufstieg und Niedergang der
römischen Welt. For ease of reference, it seemed best to me to
list these journals alphabetically.
Church History(CH): covers a variety of topics in Christian
history, from the ancient world to the modern period; it also
includes book reviews.
Harvard Theological Review(HTR orHThR): published
under the auspices of the Faculty of Divinity, Harvard
University, this is one of the leading American journals. The
range of articles is quite wide, but early Christian topics
frequently receive coverage.DISCOVERING EARLY CHRISTIANITY1
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