Conclusion

This chapter sums up the chapters in this book to show that the process by which Christianity and Buddhism became established in their respective regions was much more complex than the language of conquest or triumph would suggest. In neither China nor Rome did the new religions simply sweep away the beliefs and customs of the old society; rather, over centuries of interaction and dialogue, the old societies changed the new religions as much as the religions changed the old societies. The chapters contain a mixture of traditional themes, methodologies, and problematics. Topics include justice, morality, mortality, rhetoric, and the history of narratives of authority; religious, political, and social importance of suffering, danger, and risk; the importance of popular narratives; the role of magic; and the importance of images and material culture. But these case studies can do little more than indicate the rich rewards that await further research.