Books by Alfred Loisy

Sometime around 180 AD, a biblical canon became necessary for the survival of the Church. Serious Gnostic threats already had gospels of their own, including Marcion, Valentinus, and Basilides. Alfred Loisy shows how the Canon was put together and how it evolved from there. He was a respected Roman Catholic priest in France until the age of 51, so few can match his knowledge on this subject. He was, however, excommunicated in 1908, having been a leader of a movement known as "Catholic Modernism." They believed that truth could not be changed, but the representations of this truth could be changed, as done by the Church in some areas. They believed doctrine is not the same as history-which is why Loisy wrote this book. Some may claim it was written in response to his expulsion, but it more accurately freed him to share the research that he had found. The goal of the book is to map out the progressive evolution of the New Testament and, according to the author, show how the formation of the literature "was conditioned by the evolution of Christian propaganda." Loisy was foremost a Christian, who considered the New Testament to be a great achievement of humanity-but criticizes the chain of miracles it portrays. Because the New Testament is spiritual in essence, it has mistakenly caused us in the modern world to believe that certain supernatural "events" played a real part in history. He asserts that some later additions were required by "the needs of the moment," and closely examines the work of editors in each gospel. This scholarly work was written to complement his other book, The Birth of the Christian Religion, also brought back into print by The Book Tree.

WORK IS IN FRENCH This book is a reproduction of a work published before 1920 and is part of a collection of books reprinted and edited by Hachette Livre, in the framework of a partnership with the National Library of France, providing the opportunity to access old and often rare books from the BnF's heritage funds.

This book is an enormous piece of scholarship. It is arguably the most thorough and masterful book on the formation of Christianity because it attempts to put all theological considerations aside. It presents historical facts without many of the standard, Christian preconceived notions or beliefs attached. The author, Alfred Loisy, was a Roman Catholic priest in France until the age of 51. He was excommunicated from the Church in 1908, having been an acknowledged leader of a movement within the Church known as "Catholic Modernism." They considered Christianity to be a living faith that changed with history and the growth in knowledge. They believed that truth could not be changed, but the representations of this truth could be changed, as done by the Church in some areas. They believed doctrine is not the same as history-which is why Loisy wrote this book. Some may claim it was written out of "sour grapes," or revenge, after being excommunicated, but the expulsion merely freed him to explain the truth accurately. Scholars outside the control of the Church generally share Loisy's opinion. His most famous quote was that "Jesus came preaching the Kingdom, and what arrived was the Church." He was so esteemed as a scholar, that he was appointed chair of history of religions in the Collège de France, where he served until 1931. He passed away in 1940, at the age of 83.

Les mythes babyloniens et les premiers chapitres de la Genèse / par Alfred LoisyDate de l'édition originale: 1901Le présent ouvrage s'inscrit dans une politique de conservation patrimoniale des ouvrages de la littérature Française mise en place avec la BNF.HACHETTE LIVRE et la BNF proposent ainsi un catalogue de titres indisponibles, la BNF ayant numérisé ces oeuvres et HACHETTE LIVRE les imprimant à la demande.Certains de ces ouvrages reflètent des courants de pensée caractéristiques de leur époque, mais qui seraient aujourd'hui jugés condamnables.Ils n'en appartiennent pas moins à l'histoire des idées en France et sont susceptibles de présenter un intérêt scientifique ou historique.Le sens de notre démarche éditoriale consiste ainsi à permettre l'accès à ces oeuvres sans pour autant que nous en cautionnions en aucune façon le contenu.Pour plus d'informations, rendez-vous sur www.hachettebnf.fr