Peter Brown and Larry Hurtado have both written pieces on the immersion of early Christianity in the Greco-Roman world. “The Conversion of Christianity, 300-363,” a chapter from Peter Brown’s The World of Late Antiquity, and “The Early Christian Preference for the Codex,” a chapter from Larry Hurtado’s book The Earliest Christian Artifacts, present two very different approaches to a similar topic. While Brown presents his opinion on the conversion of Christianity to the Roman world and of Constantine to Christianity, Hurtado focuses on the use of codices in the spread of Christianity. Despite related subjects, Brown and Hurtado seemingly address two different audiences.

In “The Conversion of Christianity, 300-363,” Brown uses uncommon words and offers little background information to readers. The lack of explanations and definitions suggest that Brown may be addressing fellow historians, or people, as well-educated on the subject as his audience. Throughout the chapter, Brown presents his opinions firmly, as though they were facts. His writing is formatted similar to a textbook, with factual evidence, but his sentences are rooted in his personal opinion, which disagrees with Edward Gibbon’s theory on the “fall” of the Roman Empire. Brown describes the conversion of Christianity as the Roman Empire transitioned into a period of “Late Antiquity,” and although they did experience political decline in what has commonly been referred to as the “Dark Ages,” there was vast cultural growth through Christianity. Brown’s evidence appears to be personal, as he limits the use of footnotes and citations, but he does use pictures to provide a visual historical context.

Hurtado uses evidence in a different manner than Brown. “The Early Christian Preference for the Codex,” discusses potential reasons to explain why early Christians transitioned from using scrolls to using codices. Hurtado explains that there was a definite preference for the use of the codex over scrolls, but rather than supporting his views solely through his own opinions, he uses outside sources, such as historians and the Leuven Database of Ancient Books. In contrast to Brown, Hurtado seems to have a less personal relationship to his data, as he analyzes and sometimes debunks the theories of other writers and historians in search of a definite reason for the codex transition. Additionally, Hurtado’s writing is tailored for a wider audience than Brown’s; Hurtado’s piece is mostly statistical and explanatory, and it does not require much background or contextual information.

Although Peter Brown and Larry Hurtado both present detailed discussions on the methods and diffusion of Christianity in the early Greco-Roman world, the two men have different pedagogies which are very evident in their work. “The Conversion of Christianity, 300-363,” and “The Early Christian Preference for the Codex” are both informative on a related topic, yet they both present information in different ways.