MODULE 1: HISTORICAL DEVELOPMENT OF THE CHURCH

BIBLICAL FOUNDATION

after the christ’s death the apostles feared for their lives, their hopes crumpled all around them, through christ’s resurrection the apostles found new hope.

THE FIRST PENTECOST

peter told those who asked that they had to repent and be baptized in the name of jesus for the forgiveness of sins; then they would receive the holy spirit

Pentecost

Celebrates the descent of the Holy Spirit and the birthday of the Church, occurring 50 days after an important religious event.

Resurrection

Starting point of Christian faith, the belief in Jesus rising from the dead, leading to the spread of Christianity.

Ascension of Jesus

Refers to Jesus' visible departure to heaven, commanding disciples to make more disciples and baptize them.

Persecution of Early Church

From the 1st century until 313, early Christians faced oppression under Roman emperors like Nero and Decius.

Apostles

Early church leaders like St. Peter and St. Paul who played a significant role in interpreting Christ's message and establishing the church.

Simon peter

crucified up-side down

Andrew

crucified - st. andrew’s cross

James the greater

beheaded

John

boiled in oil then imprisoned in the island of patmos

Matthias (replaced judas iscariot)

stoned then beheaded

Judas iscariot

suicide by hanging

jude/judas/thaddeus

crucified jude

Simon the zealot

crucified simon

Philip

crucified philip

bartholomew /nathanael

beaten and crucified

matthew/levi

mortally wounded with a sword

Thomas

stabbed with a spear

James the lesser

thrown from the temple pinnacle then beaten with a fuller’s club

Edict of Milan

Issued in 313 by Constantine and Licinius, granting legal status to Christianity and ending the persecution of early Christians.

Christological Heresies

Arianism, Apollinarianism, Nestorianism, and Monothelitism were false teachings about Christ's nature, combated by early church councils.

CAESAR NERO

EMPEROR (54-68 A.D)
Fire rome in 64 AD

Blamed the christians (they had a reputation for starting upheavals in jewish synagogues)

Nero executed the christians publicly in his gardens and in the circus

CAESAR DECIUS

EMPEROR (249-251 A.D)
Empire -wide persecution

Required libelli (certificates)

LIBELLI

were documents notarized by roman authorities to certify that someone had offered sacrifice to the gods

CONFESSORS

were christians who confessed their faith

CAESAR DECIUS EMPEROR (249-251 AD)

Emperor Caesar Decius ruled from 249 to 251 AD. He implemented the first empire-wide persecution of Christians, known as the Decian persecution.

TERTULLIAN

A famous apologist had said “the blood of martyrs is the seed of christianity”

(155-220 AD) was a prolific early Christian author from Carthage, known for his theological writings defending orthodox Christianity and his contributions to Latin Christian literature.

APOLOGETICS

the study of the defense of faith by the used of reason

APOLOGIST

a person who is an expert in defending the faith by using reason

EDICT OF MILAN (313) AND EDICT OF THESSALONICA (380)

issued by Constantine, granted religious tolerance to Christians. ________ by Theodosius I, declared Christianity the official religion of the Roman Empire.

NICAEA (325)

formulation of the Nicene creed (against arianism)

CONSTANTINOPLE (381)

dogmatically define the divinity of God the Holy Spirit (against apollinarianism)

EPHESUS (431)

mary as mother of god (against nestorianism)

CHALCEDON (451)

christ had two natures, divine and human except sin and true god

ARIANISM

derives from its founder, arius
The Son was created by God the Father, before time and from nothing, therefore, the Son be pre-existent or eternal; he is a creature but not one of the creatures. It denied that the Son was of one essence with the Father.

ARIUS (256 - 336)

a presbyter (pastor) at alexandria

ARIANS

opposed by council of nicaea in 325

Who led the fight against the arian heresy?

St. athanasius never gave up despite five times being exiled

APOLLINARIANISM

combated by diodore of tarsus, gregory of nyssa, gregory nazianzen and various orthodox bishops

NESTORIANISM

Nestorius taught against the prevailing use of the title ‘Theotokos’ for Mary as the ‘Mother of God’ as being loose thinking, and thus entered into controversy with powerful leaders. He suggested a better title was ‘Christ-bearing’ (Christotokos).

MONOTHELITISM

means ‘one will’ in Greek (hen thelema).

Condemned by chalcedon in 451

MONOTHELITES

were Monophysites who particularly opposed the idea of two wills in Christ, as well as two natures. They taught that Christ only had one will.

Theocracy

A system where God is recognized as the supreme ruler, prevalent in medieval Europe where Church and State were closely intertwined.

Theocracy in Europe

Church and the State are one and Feudalism was the order of the day. The worldview of this period.

FEUDALISM

a social system that existed in Europe during the Middle Ages in which people worked and fought for nobles who gave them protection and the use of land in return.

POPE

the head of the Church

CARDINALS

advisors to the Pope; administrators of the Church

BISHOPS/ARCHBISHOPS

ecclesiastical superiors over a cathedral or region

PRIESTS

ecclesiastical authorities over a parish, village, or town church

MONASTIC ORDERS

religious adherents in monasteries supervised by an abbot/abbess.

EDUCATION

in the middle ages, monasteries conserved and copied ancient manuscripts in their scriptoria

MEDICINE

Monastic pharmacies stored and studied medicaments, wine, beer, chocolates, coffee, agriculture among others.

Middle Ages

Period from the 5th to 15th centuries, divided into Early, High, and Late Middle Ages, marked by social, political, and religious changes.

Monasticism

Flourished during the Middle Ages, with thousands of monasteries across Europe contributing to education, medicine, and the arts.

MARTIN LUTHER AND COMPANIONS

(protestant churches) religious issues turned into political issues

KING HENRY VIII (CHURCH OF ENGLAND OR ANGLICAN)

political issues to religious issues

COUNCIL OF TRENT (1545 - 1563)

it began here and largely ended with the conclusion of the european wars of religion in 1648

REFORMS

the foundation of seminars for the proper training of priests in the spiritual life and the theological traditions of the church

Monastic and Cathedral Schools

Institutions that laid the foundation for university learning systems in the 16th century.

Protestant Reformation

A pan-European movement in the 16th century calling for reform of the Roman Catholic Church and Christian society, led by figures like Martin Luther and John Calvin.

Council of Trent

A council from 1545 to 1563 that initiated reforms in the Catholic Church, focusing on priest training, returning orders to spiritual roots, and making Latin the official language.

First Vatican Council

Convened in 1869-1870, it addressed contemporary issues and defended faith's reasonableness, condemning various ideologies.

Second Vatican Council

Also known as Vatican II, proclaimed in 1959, aimed at spiritual renewal and Christian unity, emphasizing the role of the laity in the Church.

St Augustine (354-430)

Father and Doctor of the Church, known for his teachings on the Church's origins, the threefold "visitation" of God, and the Church's historical development.

Doctor of the Universal Church

Title given to saints who made significant contributions to theology or doctrine, like St. Augustine, through research, study, or writing.

Catechism of the Catholic Church

Contains rich elaboration on the Church's origins and historical development, drawing from St. Augustine's teachings.

Donatism

St. Augustine's response to the belief that only individuals in a state of grace constituted the true Church, emphasizing the Church's visible and invisible aspects.

Church as a spiritual reality

First members of the church were the first man and woman created

Sin entered the picture and shattered adam and eve’s initial communion with God

God did not abandon them

God promised to save them right then and there

GOD’S THREE-FOLD “VISITATION”

First age, before the law (ante legem); time before the Mosaic Law was given to the people of Israel

Second age, under the law (in lege); the time of the Old Testament governed by the Mosaic Law

Third is now, which is the age of grace (tempus gratiae).” the time inaugurated by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.

1st AGE: ante legem (before the law)

Refers to actions that occurred before a law was established, often used in legal contexts to describe events or behaviors that took place prior to a specific legal regulation.

2nd AGE: sub lege (under the law) in terms of the church

refers to the period when the church operated under strict adherence to religious laws and regulations.

3rd age: tempus gratiae (age of grace)

A period in medieval history characterized by a focus on religious salvation and the belief in divine forgiveness and redemption.

DONATISM

He taught that there is only one Church, but within that Church, there are two realities:

Pelagianism

A heresy denying original sin and emphasizing human moral ability, countered by Augustine's belief in humanity's reliance on God's grace and the concept of "working grace" and "co-operating grace."