Church History I Mid-Term Study Guide Outline Fall 2024 PDF

**Church History I** **Mid-Term Study Guide Outline** Dr. Burton, Fall 2024 **Tips (Guidelines):** - "Show your work" on how this impact or doctrine came about, or this person's influence - How did they get the position they did? What are the important things they did while in Power...

**Church History I** **Mid-Term Study Guide Outline** Dr. Burton, Fall 2024 **Tips (Guidelines):** - "Show your work" on how this impact or doctrine came about, or this person's influence - How did they get the position they did? What are the important things they did while in Power? How does this affect us today? - Focus much energy on specific dates and places - How did we get to the place that we are today? (as western catholic, augustinian, reformed, Christians) I. Story of Christianity -- Gonzalez A. Know well enough to summarize to your mother over dinner: 1. Chapter Seven: The Defense of the Faith 2. Chapter Eight: The Deposit of the Faith 3. Chapter Nine: The Teachers of the Church 4. Chapter Ten: Persecution in the Third Century 5. Chapter Thirteen: Constantine 6. Chapter Fifteen: The Monastic Reaction 7. Chapter Seventeen: The Arian Controversy and the Council of Nicaea 8. Chapter Nineteen: Athanasius of Alexandria 9. Chapter Twenty: The Great Cappadocians 10. Chapter Twenty-Four: *Augustine of Hippo (354 -- 430)* i. [Tortuous Path to Faith:] Born in poor Tagaste, North Africa. Parents were Roman Pagan Official and St. Monica. Licentious living during his youthful years. Boasted of sexual adventures. Funded to study rhetoric at Carthage. Studied hard, but also engaged in wild living. Concubine bore him a son, when he was over 17 years old. Cicero inspired him to pursue truth beyond just prose. Led him to Manichaeism (dualism universalist religion) mocking Christianity. Two intellectual blocks kept him from the faith, the crude or awkward style of scripture and the problem of evil. Eventually moves to Milan, meets Simplicianus who tutors him, first in Neoplatonism as a steppingstone to be open to the faith. This disarms him in the problem of evil. Hears Ambrose's preaching and, amazed at his rhetoric-style and understanding, takes interest in the scriptures. Biggest obstacle is the awareness that he'd have to give his whole life to the service of God. Wrestles with God under a fig tree, hears child say "tolle lege," and reads portion in Romans that inwardly converts him. Receives baptism together with son. Settles in Cassiciacum and engages in monastic life. Goes to Hippo to recruit friend but ends up getting recruited and ordained by bishop Valerius. Presbyter for four years, and quickly made Bishop of Hippo per Valerius' request. He stays as bishop and semi-monastic contemplative life. ii. [Minister and Theologian of the Western Church:] Easily the most influential figure in all Western Christianity, Augustine wrote scores of treatises that helped to clarify the faith. He wrote against the Manicheans, in his work "On the Free Choice of the Will." In his famous autobiography "Confessions" he prayerfully reflects on the sinful past of his adolescence and articulates the doctrine of original sin and the necessity of divine grace. He refutes Pelagius who claimed that salvation was possible from the will alone, and apart from grace. He creates the category and premises for predestination and sovereign grace. In his refute of the Donatists, he establishes the doctrine of the Church. B. Know well enough to convince Dr. Duncan that you are in CH1: 11. Chapter Three: The Church in Jerusalem 12. Chapter Five: First Conflicts with the State 13. Chapter Six: Persecution in the Second Century 14. Chapter Eleven: Christian Life 15. Chapter Twelve: The Great Persecution and the Final Victory 16. Chapter Fourteen: Official Theology: Eusebius of Caesarea 17. Chapter Sixteen: The Schismatic Reaction: Donatism 18. Chapter Eighteen: The Pagan Reaction: Julian the Apostate 19. Chapter Twenty-One: *Ambrose of Milan (339 - 397)* Originally governor of Milan, in the year \_\_\_\_\_ the emperor pressured Ambrose to take the bishop's seat after the unexpected death of Auxentius. There was the threat of riot between the Arians and the Orthodox who would be fighting for their next bishop. Ambrose trained in rhetoric, used his prose to calm the crowd down, to which a child in the crowd started a chant "Ambrose, bishop." He reluctantly gave into pressure and went from catechumen to baptized bishop in merely eight days. He promoted orthodox Christianity, led by example in social justice, resisted Arian power threats, and acted prophetically against Theodosius. His preaching led to Augustine's conversion in \_\_\_\_. 20. Chapter Twenty-Two: *John Chrysostom (347 - 407)* Raised by his mother to have a great education, to know the Lord, and never leave his mother's side, John was trained in the art of rhetoric and law by his teacher Libanius, a pagan orator. He was an exceptional apprentice but, much to Libanius' grief, converted to the faith and was baptized, per his mother's prayers. He pursued the monastic life, first at home with a few friends, and then far away as a monk learning the ascetic way of life and memorizing the scriptures. He returned to Antioch and ordained a deacon, presbyter, and then eventually became the Bishop of Constantinople, where he preached fiery sermons that rebuked injustice, called for gospel social action, and humbled the powerful. His gospel proclamation eventually got him exiled and killed, not without a great clamor from his supporters. His persecution sets the stage for how the Eastern Church would suffer under the state. 21. Chapter Twenty-Three: *Jerome (347 - 420)* Certainly one of the more stranger personalities of saints in the 3^rd^ century, God used Jerome's scrupulous and rough-going sensibilities to complete the Latin Vulgate. The Vulgate was an endeavor to translate the Hebrew OT and Greek NT into the unifying language of the West. Instead of relying on the LXX, he believed the Hebrew OT was inspired because it was the original language of the OT. This was counter cultural as most people believed the LXX was an inspired translation. Among his biggest critics was Augustine of Hippo. His friends Paula and Eustochium were his biggest supporters. 22. Chapter Twenty-Five: Beyond the Borders of the Empire II. Be able to define, give broad dates, and identify key people in order to answer essay questions like: C. What were the main challenges facing second and third century Christians and assess some common arguments the Apologists used to respond to them? D. Critically assess the achievements of Tertullian, Origen, *or* Jerome. E. Discuss the first four ecumenical church councils, paying particular attention to Trinitarian and/or Christological errors addressed in these councils. F. Discuss the relationship of the Church from AD 64 to AD 350 with that of the Roman Empire. G. Discuss some of Augustine's historical/exegetical/theological arguments against the Donatists or the Pelagians. Assess Augustine's success in dealing with the controversies. H. Discuss the rise of the monastic movement and discuss at least two important early figures in monasticism. III. Be able to define with some accuracy and roughly date the origins of: I. [Early Heresies]: 23. **Marcionism**: *2^nd^ century heresy. Named after Marcion himself, who very much despised Judaism, believed that the Old Testament God was evil and separate from the New Testament in Jesus, he compiled a first cannon that was composed of portions of the gospel of Luke and all of the Pauline epistles, it\'s not rejected the entire Old Testament and the rest of the books we know today. He prompted the early church to respond by affirming the books of the Old Testament and the New Testament writings that were being read in worship services on Sunday. Tertullian was the main proponent against Marcionism protecting the faith once delivered to the Saints.* 24. **Gnosticism**: *2nd century heresy. A threat to the early church, that claimed to have secret knowledge of the scriptures and the apostles teaching. There were all sorts of apocryphal writings that came from this select: Gospel of Thomas, Gospel of Peter, Gospel of Truth, etc. They believed that the material world was evil, and that Yahweh was a lesser being who accidentally made the created world. Everything was supposed to return to the spiritual realm, so a savior was necessary to reveal the secret path of gnosis that would free us from the bodies we are trapped in. Jesus only appeared to be human but was purely spiritual, because being physical would make him evil and lesser in the order of being. The early church fathers such as Irenaeus of Lyon and Hippolytus of Rome, fiercely combated this heresy with the doctrines of creation, and the Incarnate "Logos" of God. They also appealed to the Canon, Creed, and Apostolic succession to debunk their false claims to having received secret apostolic knowledge. If the apostles taught anything, they would have made it known to the churches they planted.* 25. **Modalism/Sabellianism:** The Godhead is only differentiated by modes or operations (a mere succession). All just one person in God. Sabellius (AD 215) was a presbyter under Praxeas who insisted that there was only one distinct reality within God. Tertullian rebuked Praxeas accusing them of patripassianism, because with their theology, the Father suffered and died on the cross. 26. **Arianism:** (AD 256--336), rich, powerful, divinized flesh, achieve status of "Jesus." 27. **Novatianism**: During the persecution of the first half of the 3^rd^ Century (AD 200s), Christianity spread because of the witness of brave martyrs throughout the Roman Empire. But once Decius came to power in AD249 -- 25, martyrdom was replaced by apostacy due to the systematic persecution that Decius enforced. He wanted to see the former glory of the empire restored and he believed straying away from the Pagan gods, syncretism, and emperor worship was the reason why the empire was losing its luster. Christianity needed to stop spreading. So he sought to de-convert Christians by torturing and forcing them to renounce their faith. Those who caved into his policies were let off the hook, while the confessors of the church suffered mightily. In figuring out how to restore the "lapsed," there were heated disagreements and even schisms because of them. Some believed the confessors should decide who could be reconciled, while official bishops like Cyprian of Carthage believed this right was reserved to the hierarchy of the church, and rigorously sought the purity of the church. Novatian in Rome was even more rigorous than Cyprian and disagreed with Cornelius (bishop of Rome at the time) to the point of usurping authority and causing a schism that lasted for several generations. 28. **Donatism**: The same concern for purity arose again in north Africa, as a reaction against the power shift in the Church after Constantine ceased the persecution of Christianity in 313. Their solution to the corruption of the church was to claim that any bishop that was a "traditor," and handed over the scriptures or names of other Christians during the great persecutions, was no longer a valid bishop and any sacraments they performed were no longer valid. Any church or bishop that was in communion was a "traditor" also disqualified them from being part of the true church. This meant that the efficacy of a sacrament came from the personal holiness of the one presiding over it, as opposed to the efficacy coming from virtue of the office itself. Caecilian, the catholic church, Constantine, and Augustine later all opposed this view, because it meant that no one could ever be certain of their baptism if it depended on the holiness of the priest as opposed to the holiness of the chief priest, being the Lord Jesus himself. Throughout the history of the church, numerous groups have been accused of committing the same error towards the larger body of believers. Augustine believed the efficacy came from God himself in the sacrament, not the individual. J. [Christology] 29. **Docetism**: *Christ only appeared to be human but really was only spiritual. In one form or another he borrowed the likeness of a human but was never* truly *human or physical.* 30. **Apollinarianism**: argues that Jesus had a human body and sensitive human soul, but a divine mind and not a human rational mind, the Divine Logos taking the place of the latter. It was deemed heretical in 381 and virtually died out within the following decades. A form of monophysitism. 31. **Nestorianism**: condemned at the council of Chalcedon. Taught that Jesus' human and divine nature were loosely united, enough to prefer to call Mary the Christotokos, as opposed to the Theotokos. "Christ-bearer" instead of "God-bearer." In Mary's Womb was the fullness of divinity and of Jesus' humanity. Two separate natures joined in one person. 32. **Monophysitism**: (\"one nature\") the doctrine that Christ had only one nature, as opposed to two. 33. **Monothelitism**: doctrine that was proposed in the 7th century, but ultimately rejected by the sixth ecumenical council. It held Christ as having only one will and was thus contrary to dyothelitism, the Christological doctrine accepted by most Christian denominations, which holds Christ as having two wills (divine and human).  K. [Trinity] 34. **Monarchianism**: can be a form of modalism, or lead to adoptionism. (From the Greek *monarkhia*, meaning \"ruling of one,\" and *-ismos*, meaning \"practice or teaching\") stresses the absolute, uncompromising unity of God (being only one) in contrast to the doctrine of the Trinity 35. **Tritheism**: *there are three separate gods, of different substances, these three work together in unity.* 36. **Subordinationism**: *the son or the spirit are subordinate to the father, or inferior to the father simply yielding to his will.* IV. Be able to date and identify the significance of: L. The Persecution of Nero M. The Persecution of Decius N. The Persecution of Diocletian O. Th Edict of Milan P. **The** **First Council of Nicaea** Q. Athanasius' Festal Letter R. 1^st^ Council of Constantinople S. The Council of Ephesus T. **The Council of Chalcedon** V. Be able to identify the following people by century and significance: U. **The Apostolic Fathers:** 1^st^ and 2^nd^ centuries, these figures were the next generation of disciples that were connected to the apostles themselves. They help us know where the apostles planted churches and what the church following Acts believed and practiced. To them are attributed early literature like the Didache, Shephard of Hermas, 1 & 2 Clement, Martyrdom of Polycarp, and others. V. **Ignatius** **of Antioch:** Born in 1^st^ century and dying around year 108, Ignatius was the first bishop (leader) of Antioch. He was well known and respected among the Christians, enough to be granted the title "Bearer of God." Under Trajan persecution, he was selected to die in the Roman Coliseum for amusement, so he was transported from Antioch all the way to Rome. Along the way, he wrote seven letters to churches that give us valuable insight on the early church. Legend says he was the child that Jesus held in his lap, when he said "let the children come to me." Knew John personally. W. **Justin Martyr:** 2^nd^ century apologist, he writes to defend the church from persecution and to ward off the false perceptions and accusations of the pagan romans. Christians were accused of eating babies, orgies, cannibalism, and other immoral behaviors at their worship gathering, so Justin sought to refute these false notions in *First Apology*. Through him we know how early church services looked like. He also writes *Dialogue with Trypho* to defend the faith from the Jews. He also starts his own school in Rome teaching the "true philosophy" to students like Tatian, equipping them to refute cynics like Crescens. X. **Clement of Rome:** 1^st^ Century, co-laborer of Paul, acquaintance of the apostles, Peter consecrated him as bishop of the church in Rome. It may be he was the next Roman leader after Linus and Anacletus, or directly the second bishop. His writings, *1 & 2 Clement*, are very Pauline in nature with even having sola fide themes in them. He drowns in the sea with anchor tied around him. Y. **Polycarp:** (AD 69 -- 155) Bishop of Smyrna, was the disciple of John the Beloved. He loved his congregation with great pastoral care. We know extensive details of his death on account of *Martyrdom of Polycarp,* where he witnesses boldly for his flock. "Eighty-six years I have served the Lord who has loved me, how could I know curse my King who saved me?" "The fire you prepare for me will last only but a moment, but the fires prepared for those who do not repent are eternal" We know the nature of 1^st^ & 2^nd^ century persecutions through Polycarp. Z. **Irenaeus of Lyon:** (AD 130-202) Mainly 2^nd^ century. He wrote *Against Heresies*, as a refutation to the Gnostic claims that were deceiving Christians. Gnostics were claiming to have "secret" knowledge that the apostles passed down to them, and special revelation from their interpretation of the scriptures. Irenaeus defeats them by steel manning their arguments, to expose their logical fallacies. He points out their bad exegesis and is the first to appeal to three authorities of retaining orthodoxy: the scriptures, rule of faith, and apostolic succession. His recapitulation theory and focus on the incarnation, destroy the gnostic notion of the inferiority of the material world. A. **Origen of Alexandria:** End of 2^nd^ Century to mid 3^rd^ century. Clement of Alexandria's greatest disciple. He went in great depth with philosophy and Platonism to relate the Christian faith to others. He founded a school in Alexandria of Christian philosophy, much in the style of the classic philosophers. Although he taught that nothing at variant with the apostolic tradition should be accepted, he still went to great speculative flights that proved to be risky. He is the first to form a systematic theology of the *First Principles* of Christianity, but with platonic undertones that resemble the Gnostics. He believed in the pre-existence of souls, and that the fall produced the physical world where our bodies are temporary homes for fallen spirits. He is among the most brilliant and influential minds of the Greek-speaking east, but also the most controversial. B. **Tertullian of Carthage:** (AD 155-220) Mid 2^nd^ century to early 3^rd^ century. The "Father of Latin Christianity" and "Founder of Western theology," his approach and interests were opposite to Origen and Clement. Tertullian believed there was no use for further speculation once confronted with the truth of the faith, found in the scriptures and handed down to us from the apostolic-authoritative churches. He condemned it, and despised philosophy that led believers away from Christian doctrine. His apologetic against heretics was simple, saying that they have no right to interpret scripture, and arguing with them is out of place, since only the church is the rightful owner of scripture. He gives the West that categories and language for the Trinity and for the two natures of Christ. "Three persons, one substance" and "one person, two natures." He is never titled a saint, because of his joining of a heterodox group called the Montanists. C. **Hippolytus of Rome:** (AD 170- 235) late 2^nd^ century to early 3^rd^ century. D. **Cyprian of Carthage:** (AD 210-258) entirely 3^rd^ century. E. **Clement of Alexandria:** (AD 150- 215) mid 2^nd^ century to early 3^rd^ century. F. **St. Anthony of Egypt:** (AD 251- 356) mid 3^rd^ century to mid 4^th^ century. G. **Perpetua:** (AD 182 -203) H. **Ambrose of Milan:** (AD 339- 397) I. **Eusebius of** **Caesarea:** (AD 260- 339) mid 3^rd^ century to mid 4^th^ century. The mouthpiece of official theology, one of the church's reactions to Constantine rising to power. For Eusebius, Constantine was God's instrument to confirm what all of the persecutions and empire ideologies were pointing to, the fulfillment of history in Christianity. He believed all of history would culminate in Christianity, much like how previous figures saw Greek Philosophy and the Hebrew OT as the precursor to the Gospel. Christianity was the "true empire" in his view, and Constantine was the agent to bring it about. Eusebius was also a great historian who wrote *Ecclesiastical History* by which we know most of what the early church was like. His beliefs led him to be very passive and compromising, especially during the Arian controversies. It was his Caesarean creed that was presented at Nicaea to form the first Nicene Creed that would exclude Arianism with the word homoousios. J. **Basil the Great:** (AD 330- 379) K. **Augustine of Hippo**: (AD 354- 430) mid 4^th^ century to 5^th^ century. Arguably the most influential figure in Western Christianity. He formulated the doctrine of original sin, and the absolute necessity of grace for salvation. He wrote famous works of Christian literature such as *Confessions*, *City of God*, *On Christian Doctrine*. Pelagius L. **John** **Chrysostom:** (AD 347- 407) M. **Jerome:** (AD 342- 420) N. **Patrick of Ireland:** 5^th^ century O. **Leo the Great:** (AD 400- 461) P. **St. Benedict\*:** (AD 480 - 547) Q. **Gregory the Great\*: (**AD 540- 604) R. **Boniface I:** (AD- 422) S. **Athanasius:** (AD 296- 373) T. **The Cappadocian Fathers:** 4^th^ century U. **Constantine** V. **Marcion:** *heretic in the 2nd century who believed that the God of the Old Testament, Yahweh, was different than the God of the New Testament, the supreme father of Jesus. He saw Yahweh as vindictive and punitive, which stemmed from his hatred of the Jews. He also saw the material world as evil, so the purpose of Jesus, coming from the supreme father but not of Mary, was to liberate us from the reign of Yahweh into absolute love. Marcion compiled the first list of a canon that only included portions of the Gospel of Luke and all the Pauline epistles, he rejected the Old Testament entirely as coming from Yahweh. Tertullian combated Marcion in particular, together with other early church fathers who appealed to the Septuagint and New Testament literature, that was being read on the Lord's Day during worship. We start to get our first articulation of a catholic canon as a response to Marcion's heresy.* W. **Pelagius:** *contemporary of Augustine, Pelagius was a monk from Britain who heard of Augustine's "confessions" which articulated to the world the doctrine of original sin. He was deeply troubled by Augustine's claim that one can only be saved by divine grace, and that we are powerless without it. Pelagius lived a very popular pious life and thought that this doctrine would cause for immoral living. He rejected the notion of original sin and said that grace was only necessary after someone failed morally. He believed that people retained their free will, and didn\'t need grace to obey God and overcome temptation. He believed salvation could simply be attained by moral effort.* X. Arius Y. Ulphilas (Ulfila/Wulfila) VI. Memorization: Z. Bible Verses 37. Psalm 103:1 -\"Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me, bless His holy name." 38. Proverbs 19:21 -"Many are the plans in the mind of a man, but it is the purposes of the LORD that will stand" 39. Proverbs 21:2- "Every way of a man is right in his own eyes, but the LORD weighs the heart." 40. Galatians 5:22-23 --"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control, against such things there is now law." A. Shorter Catechism: 41. Q4 What is God? iii. God is a spirit, infinite, eternal, and unchangeable, in his being, wisdom, power, holiness, justice, goodness, and truth 42. Q5 Are there more Gods than one? iv. There is but one, only, the living and true God 43. Q6 How many Persons are there in the Godhead? v. There are three persons in the Godhead; the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost, and these are one God, the same in substance, equal in power and glory. 44. Q21 Who is redeemer of God's elect? vi. The only redeemer of God's elect is the Lord Jesus Christ, who, being the eternal Son of God, became man, and so was, and continueth to be, God and man in two distinct natures, and one person, forever. 45. Q22 How did Christ being the Son of God, become man? vii. Christ, the Son of God, became man, by taking to himself a true body and a reasonable soul, being conceived by the power of the Holy Ghost in the womb of the virgin Mary, and born of her, yet without sin. 46. Q23 What offices doth Christ execute as our redeemer? viii. Christ, as our redeemer, executeth the offices of a prophet, of a priest, and of a king, both in his estate of humiliation and exaltation. B. Reproduce Following Table: ***Year*** ***Council*** ***Bishops present*** ***Topic:*** ------------------ -------------------- ----------------------- -------------------------------------- *Trinitarian* 325 Nicaea I 318 Arianism & ecumenical matters 381 Constantinople I 150 Arianism *Christological* 431 Ephesus 225 Nestorianism, Theotokos, Pelagianism 451 Chalcedon 520 The Robber Synod of 449 553 Constantinople II 152 Monophysitism 681 Constantinople III 300 Monothelitism 787 Nicaea II 350 Iconoclasm VII. Other Tips and Hints: C. **Pelagius = Morgan of Whales** D. **Ecumenical Councils** 47. Always to solve a crisis 48. Always to seek the Scriptures and: 49. Always to find the Consensus of the Church 50. Always to determine doctrine of Xn Practice 51. Creeds Clarify or Limit Language E. **Good Test Essay is 500-750 words** 52. Strong Thesis 53. Examples: ix. Three Kinds of Pressure x. Three Kinds of Responses 54. 4-5 Dates (in every class) 55. 4-5 Names (in every class) F. **General Complaints towards Christians**: 56. They were anti-social 57. They were atheist 58. They were incestuous 59. They were poor class 60. They were anti-political, and anti-patriotic 61. They were simple-minded, and anti-philosophical xi. Resurrection was silly, and judegment 62. They embraced immoral people 63. Bible written by Jews 64. Worshipped an incarnate God G. **Philosophical Schools of Thought**: 65. [Epicureans]: good wine and a good time, sensory experience is the only criteria for truth... materialist. Goal of human conduct was pleasure (freedom from pain and fear). 66. [Platonism]: Idealism. The perfect or the "realist" form is elsewhere. The soul belongs to a world other than this one and needs to return to the world of the forms through an exercise of the mind. The material world is a result of the Fall, you ascend a latter of being to get out. 67. [Stoicism]: Materialist Pantheism. Monism. Law of Nature lives in conformity of the Monad. Fatalistic but not passive. Law Logos. 68. Political Religious Philosophical Contexts are all unstable. H. **Persecutions:** 69. 1st: Under Nero A.D. 67 70. 2nd: Under Domitian A.D. 81 71. 3rd Under Trajan A.D. 108 72. 4th: Under Marcus Aurelius A.D. 162 73. 5th: Commencing with Severus A.D. 192 74. 6th: Under Maximus A.D. 235 75. 7th: Under Decius A.D. 249 76. 8th: Under Valerian A.D. 257 77. 9th: Under Aurelian A.D. 274 78. 10th: Under Diocletian A.D. 303 I. Greek Latin English Ousia Substantia Substance/Being Hypostasis Persona Person(al) [Left to do:] ~~Fill out highlighted peeps and concepts~~ Persecution descriptions Constantine Do one of the extended responses The witness of the Christian Church of the 2nd and 3rd centuries was one of the most fragile, yet pure times of the body. These two centuries were filled with all kinds of persecutions and oppressions, that forced the early christians to put their full hope in the new kingdom that was being ushered in by King Jesus. Along with persecutions, there were those also that wanted to take advantage of the flock, by mixing their own ideas and platonic influences to lead the church astray in ramped heresy. The witness of the Christian Church of the 2nd and 3rd centuries was one of the most fragile, yet pure times of the body. These two centuries were filled with all kinds of persecutions and oppressions, that forced the early christians to put their full hope in the new kingdom that was being ushered in by King Jesus. Along with persecutions, there were those also that wanted to take advantage of the flock, by mixing their own ideas and platonic influences to lead the church astray in ramped heresy. Although there were great difficulties, the church produced apologist and martyrs that embodied both the character of Christ and the truth of the scriptures. The main challenges that faced these christians were that of accusations from pagan Rome, accusations from the Jews, and ideas circulating from heretical groups.  The first of these challenges was the accusation from pagan Rome. The Romans would accuse christians of being atheists, of not caring about the well-being of the empire and of the stability of society. Syncretism was the default way of pursing unity within the empire, but christian refused to worship other gods or to worship the emperor. Things got particularly heated when Emperor Nero blamed the Christians for the great fire of AD 64. Christians would also be accused of cannibalism and of orgies in their worship services. This was because the early church would rescue many abandoned infant daughters and raise them, but the outside world would hear of the christians eating \"the body and blood of the Lord\" and would be confused by what this meant. Especially because un-baptized visitors would be asked to leave once the celebration of the Eucharist started. Minor details like these were heavily exploited by the pagans to give Christianity a bad rep. One of the apologist that rose up to defend the church was Justin Martyr from whom we know a great deal of what the early church\'s services looked like. He sought to explain these details in his work *First Apology, *written in