Christianity in the 3rd century

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Christianity in the 3rd century is largely the time of the Ante-Nicene Fathers who wrote after the Apostolic Fathers of the 1st and 2nd centuries but before the First Nice Council in 325 ( ante -nicene which means before Nicaea ).

When the Roman Empire experienced a Third-Century Crisis, the emperor Decius enacted measures intended to restore stability and unity, including the requirement that Roman citizens affirm their loyalty through religious ceremonies relating to the Imperial cult. In 212, universal citizenship has been granted to all inhabitants of the free empire, and with Decius's decree enforcing religious conformation at 250, Christians face an unresolvable conflict: any citizen who refuses to participate in the death penalty. Although it lasted only one year, the Decian persecution was a heavy escape from previous imperial policies that Christians were not sought and prosecuted as inherently unfaithful. Even under Decius, orthodox Christians were subjected to arrest only because of their refusal to participate in Roman civil religion, and were not forbidden to gather for worship. The Gnostics do not seem to be persecuted.

Christianity developed over four decades known as the "Small Church Peace", beginning with the reign of Gallienus (253-268), who issued the first official decree of tolerance on Christianity. The era of coexistence ended when Diocletian launched the last Persecution and "Great" in 303.

Video Christianity in the 3rd century

Early Christianity

Define the scriptures

The canon of the Bible begins with the officially accepted Koine Greek Old Testament books. The Septuagint or seventy are accepted as the foundation of the Christian faith along with the Gospel, Revelation and the Apostles (including Acts and the Letter to the Hebrews) from the New Testament.

In the early 200's, Origen from Alexandria may have used the same 27 books as in the modern New Testament, although there is still a dispute over the canonical Hebrew, James, II Peter, II John and III John, and Revelation, referred to as Antilegomena.

Heresies

The letters received by many Christians as part of the Holy Scriptures warn of the mixing of Judaism with Christianity, leading to the decisions reached in the first ecumenical council, which was affirmed by Emperor Constantine in Nicaea in 325 in response to the polemical controversy disturbing in the Christian community, in that case the Arian debates the nature of the Trinity. Prior to 325, the "misguided" nature of some beliefs was a matter of much debate within the churches. After 325, some opinions were formulated as dogma through the canons promulgated by the council.

Initial iconography

Christian art appears only relatively late. According to art historian AndrÃÆ'Ã… Grabar, the first known Christian images appear from about 200 AD, although there is some literary evidence that small domestic images were used before. Although many Jewish-occupied Jews look, as in the Dura-Europos synagogue, to have a picture of a religious figure, the ban of the traditional Moses "picture of the statue" undoubtedly retains some effect. The initial rejection of these images, though never proclaimed by theologians, and the need to hide the Christian practice from persecution, left behind some archaeological records of early Christianity and its evolution. The oldest Christian painting is from the Roman Catacomb, dating about 200, and the oldest Christian statues are from the sarcophagus, dating from the early 3rd century.

Monasticism

Institutional Christian monasticism seems to have begun in the desert in third century Egypt as a kind of martyrdom of life. Anthony of Egypt (251-356) is the most famous of these early hermit monks. Anthony the Great and Pachomius were early monastic innovators in Egypt, although Paul the Hermit was the first Christian who historically was known to have lived as a monk. The Eastern Orthodox viewed Basil of Caesarea as an established monastic legislator, as well as an example of the Fathers of the Desert. Shortly after 360 Martin of Tours introduced monasticism to the west. Benedict Nursia, who lived a century later, established a Rule that caused him to be credited with the title of the father of western monasticism. Experts such as Lester K. Little link the emergence of monasticism to the present with the great change in the church brought by Constantine's legalization of Constantine. Further Christian transformation became the primary religion of the Romans to end the position of Christians as a small group. In response, a new, more advanced form of dedication was developed. The long-term "Martyrdom" of the ascetic replaces the physical martyrdom of the persecution. Others point to the historical evidence that people lived a life that became known as monasticism before the legalization of Christianity. In fact it is believed by Carmelite that they were initiated by the Jewish prophet, Elias.

From the earliest days there may have been hermits of individuals who lived life separately in mimicking Jesus' 40 days in the desert. They leave no traces of archeology confirmed and only clues in written notes. The community of virgins who have consecrated themselves to Christ have been found since at least the second century. There are also individual hermits, known as "pious," who usually live not in the desert but on the edge of the inhabited places, still remain in the world but practice the ascetic and strive to unite with God. Anthony the Great was the first to specifically leave the world and live in the desert as a monk. Anthony lived as a hermit in the desert and gradually gained a follower who lived as a nearby hermit but not in the real community with him. Such a person, Paul the Hermit, lives in absolute solitude not far from Anthony and is seen even by Anthony as a perfect monk. This type of monasticism is called eremitis or "like a hermit."

When monasticism spread in the East from the ascetic who lived in the Egyptian desert to Palestine, Syria, and ascended to Asia Minor and so on, the words (apophthegmata) and acts (praxeis ) The Desert Fathers came to be recorded and circulated, first among their fellow monks and then among the laity as well. Among the earliest recorded accounts are Paradise, by Palladius of Galatia, Bishop of Helenopolis (also known as Lausiac History, after Lausus prefectus, to whom it was handled). Athanasius of Alexandria (whose life of the Life of Saint Anthony the Great sets the pattern for monastic hagiography), Jerome, and other anonymous compilers is also responsible for assigning highly influential accounts. Also very important are the writings surrounding the communities founded by Pachomius, the father of cenobiticism, and his disciple Theodorus of Tabennese, the founder of the form of monasticism.

Maps Christianity in the 3rd century

Ante-Nicene Fathers

As Christianity spread, he gained certain members of the well-educated Helenist world; they sometimes become bishops but not always. They produce two types of work: theological and "apologetic", the last being working with the purpose of defending the faith with the common sense to reject arguments against the truth of Christianity. These writers are known as the Father of the Church, and the study of them is called Patristic. Famous Early Fathers included Justin Martyr, Irenaeus, Tertullian, Clement of Alexandria, and Origen

Many theological reflections emerged in the early centuries of the Christian church - in various genres, in various contexts, and in several languages ​​- most of the product attempts to discuss how the Christian faith should live in a very different culture. from the one in which he was born. Thus, for example, much of the Greek literature can be read as an attempt to make peace with the Hellenistic culture. An example is the emergence of orthodoxy (an idea apparently arising from the conflict between Proto-orthodox Christianity and Gnosticism and Marcionism), the formation of the canon of the Bible, the debate on the doctrine of the Trinity (especially between the councils of Nicaea in 325 and Constantinople in 381), of Christology (especially between the councils of Constantinople in 381 and Chalcedon in 451), of the purity of the Church (eg, in the Donatist debate), and of mercy, free will and predestination (eg in the debate between Augustine of Hippo and Pelagius).

Church Fathers, Early Church Fathers, or Church Fathers are the early and influential theologians and writers of the Christian Church, especially those of the first five centuries of Christian history. This term is used for Church writers and teachers, not necessarily saints. Teachers in particular are also known as Church doctors, though Athanasius calls them people with little intelligence.

Greek fathers

Those who write in Greek are called the Greek Father (Church).

Clement of Alexandria

Clement of Alexandria (Titus Flavius ​​- Clemens) was the first member of the Alexandria Church to be more than just a name, and one of its most prominent teachers. He unites the tradition of Greek philosophy with Christian doctrine and appreciates gnosis that with alliances for everyone can be held by general Christians. He developed Christian Platonism. Like Origenes, he rose from the Catalanese Alexandria School and was fluent in pagan literature.

Origen from Alexandria

Origen was an early Christian scholar and theologian. According to tradition, he was an Egyptian who taught in Alexandria, reviving the School of Catechesis where Clement had taught. The Patriarch of Alexandria initially supported Origen but later expelled him for being ordained without patriarchal permission. He moved to Caesarea Maritima and died there after being tortured during the persecution.

Using his knowledge of Hebrew, he produced a corrected Septuagint. He wrote comments about all the books in the Bible. In the Elf Archon ( First Principle ), he articulates the first philosophical exposition of Christian doctrine. He interprets scripture allegory and shows himself as a Stoic, Neo-Pythagoras, and Platonist. Like Plotinus, he writes that the soul passes successive stages before the incarnation as a human and after death, finally reaching God. He imagined that even Satan was reunited with God. For Origen, God is not Yahweh but the First Principle, and Christ, the Logos, is under it. His view of the hierarchical structure of the Trinity, the temporality of matter, "the existence of the extraordinary soul," and the "great restoration that follows from it" were expressed as anathema in the sixth century.

Hippolytus Roma

Hippolytus Rome was one of the most prolific writers of early Christianity. Hippolytus was born in the second half of the second century, probably in Rome. Photius describes it in his book Bibliotheca (cod. 121) as a disciple of Irenaeus, who is said to be a disciple of Polycarp, and from the context of this passage he should suggest that Hippolytus be so self-organizing. However, this statement is in doubt. He came to conflict with the Pope in his day and for some time led a separate group. For that reason he is sometimes considered the first Antipope. But he died in 235 or 236 reconciled with the Church and as a martyr.

Latin Father

The fathers who write in Latin are called the Latin Father (Church).

Tertullian

Tertullian, who was converted to Christianity before 197, was the prolific writer of apologetic, theological, controversial and ascetic works. He was the son of a Roman centurion.

Tertullian denounced the Christian doctrines he considered heretical, but it has been claimed that he later moved to Montanism, a heretical sect that drew his attention. He wrote three books in Greek and was the first major writer of Latin Christianity, thus sometimes known as the "Father of the Latin Church". He is clearly a lawyer in Rome. He is said to have introduced the Latin term "trinity" with respect to the Divine with the Christian vocabulary (but Theophilus of Antioch has written of "the Trinity, God, and His Word, and His wisdom," similar but not identical to the word ), and possibly the formula "three Persons, one Substance" (from Koine Greek treis Hypostases, Homoousios), and also the term "vetus testamentum" (Old Testament) and "novum testamentum" (New Testament).

In his book Apologeticus he was the first Latin writer to make Christianity a "religio vera" and systematically alienate the classical Roman Empire and other cultures into a superstitious "superstition."

Cyprian of Carthage

Cyprian was the bishop of Carthage and an important early Christian writer. He may have been born at the beginning of the 3rd century in North Africa, perhaps at Carthage, where he received excellent classical education. After converting to Christianity, he became a bishop in 249 and eventually died a martyr at Carthage.

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The spread of Christianity

Goths

In the 3rd century, the East Germans migrated to Scythia. Culture and gothic identity emerged from various Eastern-German, local, and Roman influences. In the same period, Gothic robbers took prisoners among the Romans, including many Christians.

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Precursors to the Great Schism

Leading to the Great Schism, Western and Eastern Mediterranean Christians have a history of differences and disagreements that occurred in the second century. Among the most significant disputes are the controversies of Rebaptism at the time of Stephen of Rome and Cyprian of Carthage (250s).

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Timeline

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See also

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Note

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References

• Noll, Mark A., Turning Point , Baker Academic, 1997

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Further reading

• Edwards, Mark (2009). Catholicism and the Tongue in the Early Church . Ashgate.
• Esler, Philip F. Early Christian World . Routledge (2004). ISBNÃ, 0-415-33312-1.
• Fletcher, Richard. European Conversions. From Paganism to Christian 371-1386 AD . University of California Press (1997).
• MacMullen, Ramsay. Christianize the Roman Empire, 100-400 AD . Yale University Press (1986). ISBNÃ, 0-300-03642-6
• von Padberg, Lutz E. Die Christianisierung Europas im Mittelalter . Reclam (2008).
• Pelikan, Jaroslav Jan. Christian Tradition, Volume One: The Emergence of the Catholic Tradition (100-600) . University of Chicago Press (1975). ISBN: 0-226-65371-4.
• Russell, James C. Germanization of Early Medieval Christianity: A Sociohistorical Approach to Religious Transformation . Oxford University Press (1994). ISBN: 0-19-510466-8.
• Trombley, Frank R. Religion Helenen and Christianization c. 370-529 . Brill (1995). ISBNÃ, 90-04-09691-4
• White, L. Michael. From Jesus to Christianity . HarperCollins (2004). ISBN: 0-06-052655-6.

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External links

• Internet Ancient History Sourcebook: Christian Origins
• Guidelines for Early Church Documents
• List of Church Fathers at ReligionFacts.com
• The Church Fathers work in English edited by Philip Schaff, in the Christian Classic Ethereal Library
• Church Fathers at Newadvent.org
• The Faulkner University Patristic Project A collection of patristic and high-resolution translation translations of comprehensive Patrologia compiled by J. P. Migne.
• Primary to the Church Fathers in Corunum

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