The Early Church (The Penguin History of the Church) (v. 1)
Language: English
Pages: 320
ISBN: 0140231994
Format: PDF / Kindle (mobi) / ePub
Examines the beginning of the Christian movement during the first centureis AD, and the explosive force of its expansion throughout the Roman world.
simply non-existent; so it was a matter of complete indifference whether one ate meat that had been offered in sacrifice to idols (cf. 1 Corinthians, viii) or if one offered incense in honour of the emperor. It was a mere formality, and merely external acts did not affect the inner devotion of the mind. One’s conscience could not be held to be polluted by a mere act of respect and loyalty. In the second century most of those who thus argued belonged to gnostic sects. But in Spain by A.D. 300
celebrations taken by presbyters in suburban parish churches, which in fourth-century Rome were called ‘title-churches’ because they bore the names of the original donors of the title to the property and provided for the maintenance of the clergy by their endowments. Beside the main Sunday eucharist it was customary by 400, at least in important cities, for the eucharist to be celebrated daily. From the third century the anniversary of a martyr’s death, called his ‘birthday’, was commemorated at
to have done (above, p. 110), it must have given a bitter-sweet gratification to his Christian subjects. Yet before the end of the second century Christians were freely expressing their faith in artistic terms. Tertullian mentions cups on which there were representations of the Good Shepherd carrying his sheep. Clement of Alexandria gives instruction about the picture appropriate for a Christian’s signet ring. In antiquity signet rings were not a luxury, but indispensable for correspondence.
that the zealous monks were unmolested in their demolitions by providing military units to keep the angry peasants at bay. The great temple of Serapis at Alexandria was dismantled in 391 under the direction of bishop Theophilus of Alexandria. The temple of the city’s Genius, which George had regretted (p. 155), became a tavern. Theodosius did not order these incidents, but it must have been tacitly understood that no grave penalties were likely to be inflicted. Special directions were given that
devised an eirenic formula of union, called the Henoticon, to reconcile the Monophysite Egyptians and Syrians. The Henoticon condemned both Nestorius and Eutyches, explicitly approved Cyril’s Twelve Anathemas, declared that ‘one of the Trinity was incarnate’, avoided any mention of either one nature or two, and concluded by condemning any heresy ‘whether advanced at Chalcedon or at any synod whatever’. This was promulgated on the authority of the emperor without a council of bishops. It was