apostolic fathers Flashcards
what are the apostolic fathers
name used to refer to a collection of early christian writings
why have the apostolic fathers been criticised
poor style of writing, departing from superior apostolic teachings but these writings should be appreciated for what they are as a collection of the earliest christian writings outside NT
who was Ignatius of Antioch
was the bishop of the church in Antioch
was arrested for being christian on his way to roman amphitheatre he was met with various church representatives to which he wrote letters to
who where the 7 letters sent to
Ephesus
magnesia
tralles
rome
Philadelphia
smyrna
personal letter to polycarp
what are the three main themes throughout the letters
heresy
unity/authority
martyrdom
why was Ignatius concerned about heresy
concerned that false teachers were disrupting and deceiving the churches at that time the church was having problems from two areas
judaizers and docetists
what are judaizers
were gentile christians who had probably converted to Judaism they believed in OT laws in the church at Philadelphia a group of christians disagreed with the bishop because they believed the OT laws had supreme authority over the gospel
what are docetists
believed Jesus only appeared to be human he was more like a phantom for them christ didn’t assume flesh he had no body and had never been born, died or raised again
the three churches that had this problem where ephesus, Tralles and smyrna
what did Ignatius write to these churches
wrote to them advising them on what to do - he insisted on the reality of Jesus’ incarnation and humanity as being essential for our salvation
in Ignatius letter to smyrna he explained the implications of following docetism what where they?
denied the reality of Jesus’ blood and flesh in the eucharist so abstained from it
by denying Jesus’ humanity they are also unconcerned about the human psychical needs of others such as orphans, the poor etc
why was Ignatius concerned about unity/authority
Ignatius solution to the heresy was to insist on the authority of each churches bishop as the focus of unity the bishop was to be assisted by presbyters and they assisted by deacons
why was Ignatius concerned about martyrdom
Ignatius looked forward to his impending martyrdom in Rome with enthusiasm and urged the roman catholic church not to intervene
what did Ignatius say about his martyrdom
“I am writing to all the churches and assuring everyone that I am willing to die for God”
later goes onto say “then I will truly be a disciple of Jesus Christ” therefor he felt by imitating Christs suffering he would become a true disciple
are any of the issues that Ignatius dealt with evident in the church today
yes today Christianity is highly fragmented, with thousands of denominations and internal divisions over theology, worship styles, leadership, and social issues proving issues over authority
The Church still grapples with doctrinal disputes and non-traditional interpretations of Scripture today we see this with mormonism and protestantism that don’t value the importance of christian ceremonies in which the early church fathers put great emphasis on being important
what are issues the church faces today and how does it deal with them
lgbtq issues - general assembly in Scotland voted to overturn a standing church law that prohibited the right to conduct same sex marriage
abortion - the church remains a pro life stance and find abortion to be an evil act
divorce - Catholic Church does not recognise divorce and will not let the person re-marry in the church without an annulment
woman having role in the church - most traditional churches still align with the views on the apostle Paul in which women should remain silent in the church this law then also forbids women preaching
