Why Christianity Happened

James Crossley is telling us why Christianity happened from a secular perspective, and in a "socio-historical context as part of an explanation for the emergence of Christianity from John the Baptist and Jesus to the Jerusalem conference (c. 26-50 CE)". I had the privilege of looking over parts of this book before it went to the press. James is now providing overviews of the book's chapters; I'll update this post as they appear.

Chapter One: Social History and Secular Approaches
Chapter Two: The Origin of Jesus' View of the Law
Chapter Three: Sinners
Chapter Four: From Jewish to Gentile Sinners
Chapter Five: Networks, Recruitment, and Conversion