ROSE BOOK OF BIBLE & CHRISTIAN HISTORY TIME LINES
by Timothy Paul Jones
A comprehensive illustrated time line of biblical events and church history.
Constructed as a single, 20-foot-long, accordion-folded panel, this time line begins with a chart illustrating the lifelines of early Genesis characters from Adam to Abraham, then follows the biblical story beginning with Abraham circa 2166 B.C.E. The work is comprised of two parallel portions: The upper part follows biblical and Christian history, while the bottom covers a wide-ranging and representative set of dates and events for corresponding world history from both the East and West. Thankfully, the authors give fairly equal attention to Christianity’s many expressions: Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy, Protestant forms, etc. Graphics and symbols highlight especially important points and significant people, who are denoted by red squares, and the illustrations add interest and visual appeal without cluttering the time line. But while it invites close study and concentrated browsing, the book can become cumbersome. The amount of data is almost overwhelming–one page alone examines Wilberforce to Darwin and the Opium Wars to influenza, with dozens of persons and events in between. An index would have been helpful. Nonetheless, the authors offer a feast of information for the church-history buff. Without commentary or agenda, the book stands as an objective resource for personal or group study.
A useful tool.