"This volume fills a major desideratum in historical scholarship on the religious history of the Holy Land. It presents a synthesis of our knowledge of the history of Christianity and the various churches that coexisted there from the beginnings of Christianity to the fall of the Crusader Kingdoms. It also offers analytical studies of major topics and problems. While the first part is organized chronologically, the second follows a thematic plan, dealing with the major themes pertaining to the topic, from various points of view and covering several disciplinary fields: history, theology, archaeology, and art history. The volume represents the outcome of an international project initiated by Yad Izhak Ben-Zvi of Jerusalem, and the contributors are experts in their fields."--Jacket.