Origins[edit] Western depiction of the Pentecost, painted by Jean II Restout, 1732 Catholic tradition holds that the Catholic Church was founded by Jesus Christ. The New Testament records Jesus activities and teaching, his appointment of the twelve Apostles, and his instructions to them to continue his work.[10][11] The Catholic Church teaches that the coming of the Holy Spirit upon the apostles, in an event known as Pentecost, signaled the beginning of the public ministry of the Church.[12] Peter is also thought by some to be Romes first bishop and the consecrator of Linus as its next bishop, thus starting the line which includes the most current pontiff, Pope Francis. The Catholic Church considers the Bishop of Rome, the Pope, to be the successor to Saint Peter.[13] In the account of the Confession of Peter found in the Gospel of Matthew, Christ designates Peter as the rock upon which Christs church will be built.[14][15] While some scholars do state Peter was the first Bishop of Rome,[16][a] others say that the institution of the papacy is not dependent on the idea that Peter was Bishop of Rome or even on his ever having been in Rome.[17] Many scholars hold that a church structure of plural presbyters/bishops persisted in Rome until the mid-2nd century, when the structure of a single bishop and plural presbyters was adopted,[18][b] and that later writers retrospectively applied the term bishop of Rome to the most prominent members of the clergy in the earlier period and also to Peter himself.[18] On this basis, Oscar Cullmann[20] and Henry Chadwick[21] question whether there was a formal link between Peter and the modern papacy, and Raymond E. Brown says that, while it is anachronistic to speak of Peter in terms of local bishop of Rome, Christians of that period would have looked on Peter as having roles that would contribute in an essential way to the development of the role of the papacy in the subsequent church. These roles, Brown says, contributed enormously to seeing the bishop of Rome, the bishop of the city where Peter died, and where Paul witnessed to the truth of Christ, as the successor of Peter in care for the church universal.[18] Early organization[edit] Conditions in the Roman Empire facilitated the spread of new ideas. The empires well-defined network of roads and waterways allowed easier travel, while the Pax Romana made it safe to travel from one region to another. The government had encouraged inhabitants, especially those in urban areas, to learn Greek, and the common language allowed ideas to be more easily expressed and understood.[22] Jesuss apostles gained converts in Jewish communities around the Mediterranean Sea,[23] and over 40 Christian communities had been established by 100.[24] Although most of these were in the Roman Empire, notable Christian communities were also established in Armenia, Iran and along the Indian Malabar Coast.[25][26] The new religion was most successful in urban areas, spreading first among slaves and people of low social standing, and then among aristocratic women.[27] At first, Christians continued to worship alongside Jewish believers, which historians refer to as Jewish Christianity, but within twenty years of Jesuss death, Sunday was being regarded as the primary day of worship.[28] As preachers such as Paul of Tarsus began converting Gentiles, Christianity began growing away from Jewish practices[23] to establish itself as a separate religion,[29] though the issue of Paul of Tarsus and Judaism is still debated today. To resolve doctrinal differences among the competing factions within the Church, in or around the year 50, the apostles convened the first Church council, the Council of Jerusalem. This council affirmed that Gentiles could become Christians without adopting all of the Mosaic Law.[7] Growing tensions soon led to a starker separation that was virtually complete by the time Christians refused to join in the Bar Kokhba Jewish revolt of 132,[30] however some groups of Christians retained elements of Jewish practice.[31] The early Christian Church was very loosely organized, resulting in diverse interpretations of Christian beliefs.[5] In part to ensure a greater consistency in their teachings, by the end of the 2nd century Christian communities had evolved a more structured hierarchy, with a central bishop having authority over the clergy in his city,[6] leading to the development of the Metropolitan bishop. The organization of the Church began to mimic that of the Empire; bishops in politically important cities exerted greater authority over bishops in nearby cities.[32] The churches in Antioch, Alexandria, and Rome held the highest positions.[33] Beginning in the 2nd century, bishops often congregated in regional synods to resolve doctrinal and policy issues.[7] Duffy claims that by the 3rd century, the bishop of Rome began to act as a court of appeals for problems that other bishops could not resolve.[8] Doctrine was further refined by a series of influential theologians and teachers, known collectively as the Church Fathers.[34] From the year 100 onward, proto-orthodox teachers like Ignatius of Antioch and Irenaeus defined Catholic teaching in stark opposition to other things, such as Gnosticism.[35] In the first few centuries of its existence, the Church formed its teachings and traditions into a systematic whole under the influence of theological apologists such as Pope Clement I, Justin Martyr and Augustine of Hippo.[36] Persecutions[edit] Unlike most religions in the Roman Empire, Christianity required its adherents to renounce all other gods, a practice adopted from Judaism, see Idolatry. Christians refusal to join pagan celebrations meant they were unable to participate in much of public life, which caused non-Christians–including government authorities–to fear that the Christians were angering the gods and thereby threatening the peace and prosperity of the Empire. In addition, the peculiar intimacy of Christian society and its secrecy about its religious practices spawned rumors that Christians were guilty of incest and cannibalism; the resulting persecutions, although usually local and sporadic, were a defining feature of Christian self-understanding until Christianity was legalized in the 4th century.[37][38] A series of more centrally organized persecutions of Christians emerged in the late 3rd century, when emperors decreed that the Empires military, political, and economic crises were caused by angry gods. All residents were ordered to give sacrifices or be punished.[39] Jews were exempted as long as they paid the Jewish Tax. Estimates of the number of Christians who were executed ranges from a few hundred to 50,000.[40] Many fled[41] or renounced their beliefs. Disagreements over what role, if any, these apostates should have in the Church led to the Donatist and Novatianist schisms.[42] Relations between the Church and the Empire were not consistent: Tiberius wanted to have Christ placed in the Pantheon and refused first of all to persecute the Christians. Later on his attitude changed. [-] How are we to explain the fact that men like Trajan and above all Marcus Aurelius should have so relentlessly persecuted the Christians? On the other hand Commodus and other villainous emperors rather favoured them.[43] In spite of these persecutions, evangelization efforts persisted, leading to the Edict of Milan which legalized Christianity in 313.[44] By 380, Christianity had become the state religion of the Roman Empire.[45] Religious philosopher Simone Weil wrote: By the time of Constantine, the state of apocalyptic expectation must have worn rather thin. [The imminent coming of Christ, expectation of the Last Day - constituted a very great social danger.] Besides , the spirit of the old law, so widely separated from all mysticism, was not so very different from the Roman spirit itself. Rome could come to terms with the God of Hosts.[46] Late antiquity[edit] Main article: History of late ancient Christianity See also: First seven Ecumenical Councils, Rise of Christianity during the Fall of Rome, Constantine I and Christianity and State church of the Roman Empire Emperor Constantine I established the rights of the Church in the year 315 When Constantine became emperor of the Western Roman Empire in 312, he attributed his victory to the Christian God. Many soldiers in his army were Christians, and his army was his base of power. With Licinius, (Eastern Roman emperor), he issued the Edict of Milan which mandated toleration of all religions in the empire. The edict had little effect on the attitudes of the people.[47] New laws were crafted to codify some Christian beliefs and practices.[c][48] Constantines biggest effect on Christianity was his patronage. He gave large gifts of land and money to the Church and offered tax exemptions and other special legal status to Church property and personnel.[49] These gifts and later ones combined to make the Church the largest landowner in the West by the 6th century.[50] Many of these gifts were funded through severe taxation of pagan cults.[49] Some pagan cults were forced to disband for lack of funds; when this happened the Church took over the cults previous role of caring for the poor.[51] In a reflection of their increased standing in the Empire, clergy began to adopt the dress of the royal household, including the cope.[52] Acts 8:9-21 During Constantines reign, approximately half of those who identified themselves as Christian did not subscribe to the mainstream version of the faith.[53] Constantine feared that disunity would displease God and lead to trouble for the Empire, so he took military and judicial measures to eliminate some sects.[54] To resolve other disputes, Constantine began the practice of calling ecumenical councils to determine binding interpretations of Church doctrine.[55] Decisions made at the Council of Nicea (325) about the divinity of Christ led to a schism; the new religion, Arianism flourished outside the Roman Empire.[56] Partially to distinguish themselves from Arians, Catholic devotion to Mary became more prominent. This led to further schisms.[57][58] In 380, mainstream Christianity–as opposed to Arianism–became the official religion of the Roman Empire.[59] Christianity became more associated with the Empire, resulting in persecution for Christians living outside of the empire, as their rulers feared Christians would revolt in favor of the Emperor.[60] In 385, this new legal authority of the Church resulted in the first use of capital punishment being pronounced as a sentence upon a Christian heretic, namely Priscillian. [61] During this period, the Bible as it has come down to the 21st century was first officially laid out in Church Councils or Synods through the process of official canonization. Prior to these Councils or Synods, the Bible had already reached a form that was nearly identical to the form in which it is now found. According to some accounts, in 382 the Council of Rome first officially recognized the Biblical canon, listing the accepted books of the Old and New Testament, and in 391 the Vulgate Latin translation of the Bible was made. [62] Other accounts list the Council of Carthage of 397 as the Council that finalized the Biblical canon as it is known today. [63] The Council of Ephesus in 431 clarified the nature of Jesus incarnation, declaring that he was both fully man and fully God. [64] Two decades later, the Council of Chalcedon solidified Roman papal primacy which added to continuing breakdown in relations between Rome and Constantinople, the see of the Eastern Church. [65] Also sparked were the Monophysite disagreements over the precise nature of the incarnation of Jesus which led to the first of the various Oriental Orthodox Churches breaking away from the Catholic Church.[66]
Posted on: Sat, 13 Dec 2014 16:49:49 +0000
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