E.A. Judge's third collection of essays moves on from Rome and the New Testament to the interaction of the classical and biblical traditions, to the cultural transformation of late antiquity, and to the contested heritage of Athens and Jerusalem in the modern West. A lifelong interest in Rome bridges this range. Christianity emerges as essentially a movement of ideas, opposed at first to the cultic practice of ancient religion which had been meant to secure the existing order of things. The new message with its demanding morality laid the foundations for our radically different sense of 'religion' as the quest for the ideal life.The 'Judge method' tackles such momentous questions by starting with textual detail, translated from Latin and Greek. Inspired by the project of the Dolger-Institut in Bonn (the interaction of antiquity and Christianity), he brings to it a particular focus on those documents of the times retrieved from stone or papyrus. The collection reflects the more holistic approach to history, starting with the ancient world, that has been developed at Macquarie University in Sydney, where diverse interests are now drawn together from as far back as ancient Egypt or China in an attractive approach to the modern world.

Locke has iconic status as the 'founder of Western liberalism'. His 'Two Treatises of Government' (1689) is a classic discussion of liberty, rights, constitutionalism and revolution. He is heralded as an honorary 'founding father' of the American Constitution, and has been deployed by liberationist movements in many lands. Yet there is a bitter quarrel between conservatives and liberals who dispute Locke's legacy. Locke also wrote about property and the market, and many hail him as the original philosopher of capitalism. It has been said the Cold War was about whether the ideas of Locke or Marx should prevail. But his legacy is contested here also. Social democrats claim that free marketeers have misread him. These controversies were embedded in Locke's reception from the outset. These volumes contain over 60 important texts that debated Locke's political ideas. Full scholarly annotation, explanatory headnotes and a comprehensive index are included for each text. The introduction reviews the impact of Locke's political thought and modern debates surrounding his legacy. Also included is a checklist of early references to Locke's 'Two Treatises'. Many rare texts not otherwise easily accessible are included.