Title: Constantine and the Christian Empire

Author: Charles M. Odahl

Format: Hardback, 424 pages

Publisher: Routledge; September, 2004

ISBN: 0415174856

Review Date: August 20, 2004

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Keen readers may be wondering how I can be reviewing a book that has not even been released by the publisher yet. Well, let me tell you. While in college I had the opportunity to take several classes as Mr. Odahl is a professor at my old university. As he had just finished working on his book, he basically taught through it for his class on Early Christianity. As a professor he is enjoyable and has a dry-witty sense of humor (that most people do not get). He also has a passion for early Christian and Roman history that is evident in his teaching and in what I have seen of his book.

Being a Christian of Lutheran persuasion, Prof. Odahl gives us a book that is a welcome antidote to "Constantine the Boogieman" that is so prevalent amongst conspiracy theorists, ignorant Christians (*cough, cough* Jack Chick), ignorant Skeptics and a certain New York Times Best Seller, (*cough, cough* Da Vinci Code).

So if you have heard the Constantine changed the Christian cannon, sat like a dictator over the Council of Nicea, made poodles jump through flaming hoops and ate small children alive and are wondering how much of these stories (I use the word lightly) are true, you need to check this book out.