Foundations of Early Christianity PDF

Foundations of Early Christianity Four Foundations of Early Christianity ​ The early Christian Church was built on four major foundation stones: 1.​ Keeping alive the memory of Jesus: the Gospels and Letters of St. Paul 2.​ Professing the one faith: the Creeds 3....

Foundations of Early Christianity Four Foundations of Early Christianity ​ The early Christian Church was built on four major foundation stones: 1.​ Keeping alive the memory of Jesus: the Gospels and Letters of St. Paul 2.​ Professing the one faith: the Creeds 3.​ The ministers of the Church: the role of bishops 4.​ Ecumenical Councils ​ These foundations have enabled the Church to develop and spread while remaining faithful to the teachings of Jesus 1.​ Keeping Alive the Memory of Jesus ​ Jesus did not write down his teachings ​ Sometime during the first century, the Apostles wrote down these memories, which became the New Testament. ​ The New Testament consists of 27 books, being added to the books accepted by Judaism (now known as the Old Testament) to become the Christian Bible ​ The New Testament contain the Gospels, the Acts of the Apostles, Thirteen Letters from Paul, Catholic Letters, Letter to the Hebrews and the Book of Revelation ​ The Gospels are history-like, faith stories about Jesus. Each Evangelist (Mark, Matthew, Luke and John) wrote about Jesus from a different perspective. The Church has accepted four Gospels as being authentic accounts of Jesus. ​ Letters of St. Paul are written mostly in the 50s CE prior to the Gospels. On his journeys throughout the Mediterranean, Paul wrote letters to the various churches he visited. The letters also document his life and his faith in Jesus Christ. 2.​ Professing the One Faith ​ The Creed is a brief statement that profess faith ​ Begin by saying “I believe….” ​ Using the same formula ensured that wherever Christians went, they professed the same faith 3.​ The Ministers of the Church ​ The Church was structured in the same way. Within 30 years of the death of Jesus, churches had been established in Jerusalem, Syria, Turkey, Greece, Italy, and Spain. ​ Each one had a bishop (an episcopos) at its head. Bishops are the successors of the Apostles ​ They were responsible for preaching the Gospel and keeping people faithful to the creeds. This structure still exists today. ​ A number of bishops and famous teachers (theologians) gradually won over many people to Christian faith, they became known as the Church Fathers. ​ Ex. St. Justin (100–165 CE) 4.​ Ecumenical Councils ​ In the history of Christianity, there have been occasional disagreements and conflicts -​ The Arian controversy led to the establishment of Ecumenical Councils ​ In the 4th century, a man named Arius proclaimed that Jesus was not God, but only the first and highest creature of God -​ Emperor Constantine feared for the unity of his empire due to this issue and called the Council of Nicaea in 325 CE to deal with this -​ He called the bishops together to decide on wording that would clarify the divinity of Jesus -​ This became the Nicene Creed, which is still prayed today ​ These gatherings of bishops have become known as Ecumenical Councils (“ecumenical” because they bring together bishops of all churches) ​ In the history of the Church, there have been 21 Ecumenical Councils. Each one is named after the place where it was held