Wk. 1 - Introduction & 2nd Century Flashcards
Why is studying church history important?
God, Bible, & History are linked
Christian History is our History
We make history when we study history
Studying history can help us respond to similar situations today
Describe Palestine
Where Christianity first appeared.
Land of strife and suffering
Trade Crossroads for Egypt, Mesopotamia, Asia Minor & Arabia
When did Alexander the Great defeat Persia?
4th Century BCE. He died shortly after
What is Hellenism?
Alexander sought to spread Greek culture by mixing it with conquered cultures.
How did Hellenism threaten Jewish & Christian Faith?
Challenged faith in a single god
Who are the Maccabees
Led a rebellion in the 2nd century BCE & Gained some measure of religious and political independence
Who did the successors of the Maccabees give way to?
The Seleucids, successors of Alexander in Syria
When did Rome (Pompey) conquer Jerusalem?
63 BCE
How did Rome treat conquered religions & cultures?
Generally tolerant. Mixed religions like Alexander
Who is Herod the Great?
Appointed King of Judea by Romans in 40 BCE
Why did the Jews rebel against Herod the Great?
He put a Roman Eagle on the Temple. He suppressed this uprising with force.
When did Rome intervene and how?
70 CE, Destruction of the Temple
Who are the Pharisees?
Jewish sect that were faithful to the law & tried to make it relevant to new circumstances
Who were the Sadducees?
More conservative Jewish sect. Generally aristocratic & interest primarily on the Temple
What were the two fundamentals of all Jews?
Ethical Monotheism - One God that cared about Proper Worship & proper Relations with other humans
Eschatological Hope - God would one day intervene for Israel
Why did Jewish Diaspora result in biblical translations?
Jews outside of Israel forgot the Hebrew language
What is the Septuagint
Original translation of the Hebrew Bible into Greek
Why is it called the Septuagint?
Myth is that 70 Jewish scholars charged with translating the Hebrew Bible independently all came up with the same translation.
Who is Philo of Alexandria
Contemporary of Jesus who tried to show that Pagan philosophy agreed with Hebrew scriptures
Who believed that the God of Scriptures was the same supreme being espoused by philosophers?
Philo of Alexandria
How did Philo of Alexandria help early Christians?
They could use his teachings to give their faith credibility to the pagan cultures
How did Roman culture create tension with Jewish/Christian faith?
Mixed religions and Emperor worship
What is Syncretism
mixing of elements from various religions
How were the Jews and Christians viewed by Romans?
Unbending fanatics
What two philosophies did Christians use to combat views of fanaticism?
Platonism & Stocism
What is Platonism?
Philosophy of Plato and his teacher Socrates that criticized the ancient gods, believed in a single supreme being and immortality of the soul
What is Stocism
Philosophy that held to high moral standards which sought to understand nature, obey it and adjust to it
What are the four virtues of stoicism?
Moral Insight, Courage, Self-control, & Justice
What were the two Jewish/Christian sects discussed in the Book of Acts?
Hellenists & Hebrews
Who were the Hellenists
Those who showed openness to Hellenistic culture
Who were the Hebrews?
Those who kept the customs and language of their ancestors
What claims were the earliest Christians making regarding Judaism?
That fulfillment had come in the Messiah
Where was authority vested in the early Church?
Primarily in the 12 Apostles, also in James brother of Jesus
What church was James, brother of Christ, the leader of?
Church of Jerusalem
Who ordered the death of James brother of John and Peter?
Herod Agrippa, Grandson to Herod the Great
What year was James the Brother of Jesus killed?
62CE
Who contributed most to earliest Christian expansion Hellenists or Hebrews? & Why?
Hellenists, they were the first to be persecuted and thus scattered
Who primarily spread Christianity?
Regular folk. Merchants, Slaves, and other travelers
Where did early Christians primarily worship?
Home churches
Why was worship divided into Word and Table?
All could be present for the Word, only baptized could be present for the Table
How did Jews initially view Christians?
Heretical sect of Judaism
Who became Emperor in October 54CE?
Nero
How was Nero viewed
Initially okay but later rumored to be Mad & Power Hungry
What was the Fire in Rome
A large fire broke out that lasted many days and destroyed much of the city. Many thought Nero caused it but Nero blamed Christians
When was Nero deposed?
68 CE
Who Succeeded Nero?
Vespasian then his son Titus?
Which emperor sought the money Jews would normally send to Jerusalem?
Domitian
Who was appointed Governor of Bithynia in 111 CE?
Pliny the Younger
What would Pliny do to Christians?
Bring them in and ask them if they were Christian. Those who said No were asked to pray to the gods, burn incense to an image of the Emperor and curse Christ.
Those who said yes were given 3 chances to renounce the faith then were executed
Who did Pliny write to & why?
Emperor Trajan. To ask if he should be persecuting Christians just because they were Christian
What did Trajan say regarding persecuting Christians?
Do it if they are accused and brought before authorities but dont go to the trouble of seeking them out.
When did Marcus Aurelius become emperor?
161 CE
How did Marcus treat Christians
Continued the persecution
What did Christian safety depend on in the 2nd century?
Largely the good-will of their neighbors
What was the name of the Christians who sought to clear up misconceptions about the faith?
The Apologists
What were some rumors about Christian Faith?
Love Feasts were Incetious Drunken orgies
Communion was child sacrifice and cannibalism
What were the two ways Christians tried to approach pagan culture in the 2nd Century?
Radical Opposition and Reconciliation
How did Tatian view pagan culture
Attacked Greek Culture
What is the Doctrine of the Logos
Justin Martyrs doctrine that Classical Wisdom had some truth because wisdom comes from God.
What heretical sect believed all matter was evil?
Gnosticism
What is Docetism?
The heretical believe that Jesus was only divine but put on the appearance of human.
Did Marcion like the Jews?
Nope
What did Marcion believe about God?
The God of the OT was evil and different than the God of the NT.
How did the church respond to heresy?
Canon, Creeds, and Apostolic Succession
What was the core NT Canon at the end of the 2nd Century?
Gospels, Acts, Epistles of Paul
What was the Apostles Creed called initially?
The Symbol of the Faith
What is Apostolic Succession
Church’s response to heresy stating that they have direct lines to the Apostles.
Where did the earliest non-scripture Christian writings come from?
The Apostolic Fathers
What did the Catechumines teach
Moral life, Prayer, and Doctrine
When did Baptism usually happen
At Easter
What three questions were asked of those joining the church?
Do you believe in God? Do you believe in Jesus? Do you believe in the Holy Ghost, Church, and Resurrection?
Summarize Baptism according to the Apostolic Fathers
Dying of sin, rising in Christ
What is a notable writing of the Apostolic Fathers?
The Didache
What is Apology in the context of Christian Apologetics?
Rebutting false claims & Arguing the truth.
What were three notable things about Justin Martyer
God as Transcendent “Other”
God begot the Logos (God’s Thought/The Word)
Exegetical Method (Typological/OT points to NT)
Who formed the first canon?
Marcion. Attempted to remove Jewish influences
What provoked the church to begin putting together a list of authoritative writings?
Marcion’s canon
What did Gnostic Christians believe was necessary
Freeing immortal spirit from physical world through gaining secrete knowledge
Who wrote “Against Heresies?”
Irenaeus of Lyon
Who was Irenaeus a disciple of?
Polycarp
What is the Doctrine of Apostolic Succession?
The Norm that error was distinguished from truth was the doctrine received from the Apostles.
What did Irenaeus believe about Gnostic claims of “Secret Knowledge?”
If Jesus did pass down secret knowledge he would have passed it to his disciples, who would have passed it to those they put in charge of the church (Bishops and elders)
Why does Irenaeus (And Christians) believe Apostolic Succession is more trustworthy than Gnostic “Secret Knowledge?”
Church tradition was passed down publicly and openly from Apostle to bishop to bishop…..
Did a church need a direct link to an apostle to be apostolic?
No, their teachings just needed to be in line with the apostolic teachings. Since some had a direct link, if we agree with them, we’re apostolic too…..
What was Irenaeus’ criteria for a New Testament?
Apostolicity - Written by an apostle or their followers or relied upon to contain apostolic testimony
Who was the first to speak of a New Testament
Irenaeus
Why did Irenaeus think heretics misunderstood the structure of the Bible?
They could quote it but they change the pattern to fit their views.
What does Irenaeus claim is the underlying structure?
The Rule of Truth
What is the Rule of Truth
Summary of universal teachings of the church derived from the Apostles
What are 4 parts of the Rule of Truth
God, Word, Humanity, & Incarnation
Explain the Incarnation according to Irenaeus
God always intended the incarnation to unite humanity with God. After the Fall it took on the added purpose of redeeming humanity. God participates in human life so we can participate in God’s life.
What is Divinization
God became what we are (Through incarnation of Jesus) so that we can become what God is (not literally, but to grow)
What is Irenaeus’ Doctrine of Recapitulation
Christ becomes the New Adam, the head of the New Humanity. Succeeds where Adam failed
Compare Adam & Jesus according to the Doctrine of Recapitulation
Adam born of virgin soil, Jesus born of Virgin Mary. Adam “died” from the fruit of the tree, Jesus died on the tree of the cross. Adam alienated humanity from God, Christ unified humanity with God.
What is the role of the church in the work of Recapitulation
The church carries out this work but only if it is truly Christ’s body. Heretics were a threat to this.
What was Irenaeus’ main argument against the Gnostics in Against Heresies?
The Doctrine of Apostolic Succession.
