I'm a christian - Chapter 4

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Chapter 4 Church History

            No study of Christianity would be complete without some discussion of the history of the church and specifically the denominational branch that you belong to. Much of what we know about the history of the church comes to us from the earliest of writers of the Gospels, writers of Roman histories like Josephus, and the continuation of the historical writings throughout the ages. It all begins in Jerusalem around the Common Era period between 27 AD and 33 AD. Why the discrepancy? When the current calendar was established there was an error that could have been as much as 6 years. So year 0 in the current Gregorian calendar may have been as much as 6 years off from the start. We will assume for the sake of this discussion that the crucifixion which marks the starting point for this discussion occurred somewhere between 30 AD and 33 AD. That would set the stage for the Pentecost story in Acts in the years between 30 AD and 33 AD. Some believe that the date may be earlier than that based on the original calendar error. All of this to confuse you and yet make sure you have the facts when someone wants to argue dates with you. What is important is that after the death of Jesus, the early Christian movement took place primarily around Jerusalem and spread quickly from that point. It was in Jerusalem that the original remaining disciples received the Holy Spirit and began a systematic creation of the church. Some scholars suggest that James rather than Peter was its head, with Peter focusing on evangelistic work. Regardless of what you believe in that category, the first real test of the church comes in 49 AD at the Council of Jerusalem when Paul and Peter argue for the rights of Gentiles to practice their faith without the encumbrance of the Jewish law. They were successful and we were born. We know that they created writings concerning the establishment of churches, worship, and baptism and this work was known as the Didache. This is the earliest record we have of early church. It was during this time period that the original movement, simply called, “The Way” became known as “Christianity”. Most of the early Christians would have simply called themselves “followers of Jesus” or “followers of Christ”. All of the Gospels and the Revelation of John were written by 70 AD. The early Christian movement spread throughout the known civilized world of the Mediterranean, including all of North Africa, Middle East and the Roman Empire. Around 150 AD the historian Justin describes the liturgical worship of the church; centered on the Table focused on the original Hebrew writings we now call the Old Testament and the New Gospels that were prevalent in his day. During this time, three groups dominate the landscape, the Jewish Christians who practice their Jewish traditions while following Christ, the Gentile Christians who follow the teachings of Jesus without Hebrew restrictions, and the Gnostics who believe Jesus to be magical in his divinity. But all Christians suffered the persecution of the ruling bodies of the world and many of the earliest Christians met their death proclaiming their faith.

The first major schism comes from the arguments between the Gnostics and the Christian followers. The Gnostics flourished in what are now Egypt, Ethiopia and the Middle East. Their belief was that the soul was “of God” and therefore what the body did or did not do was of little matter. Christians believed that the essence of who we are is the soul. That is a pretty simple and limited discussion of the difference but should suffice for this classes understanding.

            The next major event that occurs is the Battle of the Milvian Bridge. At that battle Emperor Constantine and Emperor Maxentius on October 28^th, 312 fought a decisive battle over control of the Roman Empire. Constantine reportedly received a vision of God of a cross in the sky. He then commanded all his troops to carry that cross on their armor. Constantine’s mother was a Christian or at least followed the Christian movement in Rome. Constantine would have been exposed to Christian thought from an early age. He is victorious and credits his victory to God. Shortly thereafter he decrees that Christianity is to be allowed and accepted and becomes the religion of political choice. This is a major decisive point in church history because at this point the church becomes associated with the ruling body of Rome, has credibility and power, and begins to grow a life of its own. In 325 AD the Council of Nicea meets to discuss the idea of the Trinity and the divinity of Jesus. From these meetings we have the Nicene Creed as we recite it today and the churches doctrine of belief is established. But it was not an easy thing; it would take seven councils from 325 AD to 787 AD for the final draft to become doctrine. It is also during this period that the bible as we know it also comes to be.

The first great split comes in 1054 AD when the Orthodox Church argues whether or not we should be subject to the concept of Papal supremacy. This concept focused the power of the church on the supreme divine right of the Pope to speak for God in the world. From this point forward we have two churches in the world, the Roman Catholic Church and the Orthodox Church. Regardless of argumentative authority, these two are the only ones who can legitimately claim to the first church. As a side note in history, the Crusades start in 1095 AD.

Since my focus is on the history of the church in summary, the next great event for the church comes in 1517 AD. Martin Luther, a catholic priest argues 95 points of disapproval over doctrine and practices of the Catholic Church. Writings indicate that he never intended to start a new path, rather to create change in the existing path. Regardless, his thesis sets off a furor in the world we now know as the Protestant Reformation. From this point we see several denominations appear. First the Lutherans split and they move away from the Roman Catholic Church in 1517 AD. The Reformed church appears in 1520 AD. The Anabaptist movement appears around 1525 AD and they become the present day Amish and Mennonite faiths and certain Baptist faiths. Then in 1529 Henry the VIII wants to divorce his present wife. She also happens to be the cousin of the current Pope causing the Pope to refuse his request. Henry the VIII responds by creating the Church of England with himself as the head. We know this church by several names, The Church of England, The Anglican Church or The Episcopal Church. I have included some of the more well known denominations in the appendix to this chapter. A discussion of the Methodist movement will be in the next chapter. From the earliest breaks, numerous schisms or splits have occurred in every denomination as well as reconciliations and mergers. Present day denominational churches all hold their origins to the Orthodox or Catholic movement in and around Rome during the 1^st through 7^th centuries.  

Questions:

1.    How does the history of the church help you understand the differences, similarities in denominations throughout the world?

2.    How does the story of the Milevan Bridge change your view of Constantine?

3.    Do you feel that Henry VIII’s decision created a relevant church?

4.    History shapes the traditions of the church. How does our history shape our traditions and how the world sees us?