1. Apostolic Church Fathers The Church from 100-325AD
A Guided Overview
REVISION SPECIAL

2. Overview Christian History Overview of Period (100A.D. – 325 A.D.)
From Apostolic age to Constantine
Age of the Martyrs
Also called the Ante-Nicene period
Apostolic Fathers
Polycarp
Ignatius
Persecution of the Church
The blood of the martyrs  seed of the church
Lessons for today

3. Church History Christian faith is rooted in history
Resurrection of Christ was preached as an historical event
Story of Jesus, his disciples, the apostolic fathers, and the rest of the early church is recorded in many documents
New Testament literature
Literature of the apostolic fathers
Writings of Roman historians
Writings of Church fathers (after Constantine)
History tells us how doctrine was formed, how heresies were combated, and demonstrates the incredible faith of the early church
Nothing is new – many things which we face have been faced before

4. Timeline 100 – 300 A.D. Trajan Hadrian Marcus Aurelius Decius Gallus
Valerian
Polycarp
Diocletian
Origen
Ignatius
Justin
Tertullian
Cyprian
St. Anthony
Christian Persecution
Tolerance
Local Persecutions
Intense Persecution

5. Spread of the Gospel

6. Spread of the Gospel
Churches in 100 A.D.

7. Spread of the Gospel
Churches in 200 A.D.

8. Spread of the Gospel
Churches in 300 A.D.

9. Early Church Leaders
Ignatius (~55 A.D. – 115 A.D.) - Bishop of Antioch
Possibly a disciple of one John
Polycarp (~70-156A.D.) - Bishop of Smyrna
Disciple of John
Justin Martyr (~150 A.D.) – Philosopher; First of the apologists
Wrote Apology to the Emperor Antonius Pius
Irenaeus (~177 A.D.) - Bishop of Lyons
Disciple of Polycarp
Wrote Against Heresies to combat Gnosticism
Tertullian (~196 A.D.) – powerful thinker, philosopher in Carthage; helped formalize the Trinity
Origen (185A.D. – 254 A.D.) - perhaps the greatest scholar of early church
Cyprian (~250A.D.) - wrote The Unity of the Church
St. Anthony (~270) – started monastic living

10. Early Church Leaders

11. Ignatius Bishop of Antioch (Syria) Possibly was a disciple of John
Martyred in Rome in ~115A.D. under the Emperor Trajan
Wrote 7 letters during his trip from Antioch to Rome to churches at Ephesus, Magnesia, Tralles, Rome, Philadelphia, and Smyrna and to Polycarp
Strongly argued that each congregation needed a bishop to maintain correct doctrine and prevent splits
Fought Docetism (The belief that Christ was a spirit being and only appeared to be a man.)
Emphasized the Eucharist since it stressed the reality of Christ’s humanity
Welcomed his sacrifice for Christ

12. Ignatius
Emperor Trajan visited Antioch in 115 A.D. and heard about the Christians there and their Bishop Ignatius.
Trajan decided that he wanted to meet him.
Trajan: “There you are, wicked devil, deceiver of men!’
Ignatius: “Not an ‘evil spirit’, but I have Jesus Christ in my heart.”
Trajan: “Jesus Christ within you? Do you mean him who was crucified by Pontius Pilate?”
Ignatius: “Yes, he was crucified for my sins”
The Emperor immediately sentenced him to be transferred to Rome and to be thrown to the wild beasts.

13. Ignatius – Trip to Rome He was martyred in Rome Known route
Ignatius was arrested in Antioch where he was bishop
Known route
Conjectured route

14. Typical Leadership Structure Bishop
Presbyter Presbyter
Deacons Deacons Deacons

15. Polycarp ~70A.D. - ~156 A.D. Disciple of the Apostle John
Bishop of Smyrna
Martyred in Smyrna
His letter to Philippians has been preserved
Story of his martyrdom preserved in “The Martyrdom of Polycarp” written by Smyrnaean church
Burned at the stake for refusing to worship Caesar and deny Christ

16. Polycarp Letter to the Philippians
Quoted freely from the gospels, Paul’s epistles, and I Peter.
While officially the New Testament was not canonized, certain writings were recognized as authentic and authoritative.
Not particularly scholarly or original, but held fast to the teachings of the apostles.
Also fought with Marcion over Docetism and Gnosticism.
Contemporary and friend of Ignatius
Visited with him on his trip to Rome for execution.

17. Smyrna Ruins of Marketplace in Smyrna
Church established in Smyrna from early time.
Bishops succeeded Polycarp until 20th century.
Maintained strong Christian presence despite Moslem invasions until 1922.
Turks destroyed Christian quarter in 1922 and massacred all Christians. Last bishop crucified.
Now part of Turkey
Ruins of Marketplace in Smyrna

18. Persecution Romans were typically tolerant of foreign religions
However, there was no ‘right’ to religion
Government reserved the right to persecute religious practice
State religion was way of assuring allegiance to State
Judaism was legal religion which provided some protection for Christians during early years
Fall of Jerusalem put permanent rift between Jews and Christians
Romans began to see Christian was its own religion
For first 300 years Christians could be legally persecuted for their beliefs
General, severe persecutions were sporadic but local persecution was common and always a possibility

19. Reasons for Roman Persecution
Popular opinion was against Christians
Separated themselves from immorality and idolatry
This particularly angered those who prospered from idolatry
Refused to worship Roman Gods
Had no idols or temples  brought charge of atheism
Claimed to have absolute religion in pluralistic society
Somewhat secretive – breeds suspicion
Accused of many ludicrous fabrications
Blamed for earthquakes, floods, etc.
Tertullian – “We have a reputation for living aloof from crowds”
Government saw them as somewhat dangerous
Refused to worship Caesar – questionable loyalty
Threat to state religion and thus unity of empire
Unified group that proclaimed their own king (Christ)
Proselytized

20. Persecution Christians weren’t sought, but could be charged.
Laws permitted persecution of Christians but didn’t demand it.
Christians weren’t sought, but could be charged.
They would be released by simply denying Christ or sacrificing to the Emperor.
Persecution was typically restricted to local inflammations.
There were occasional intense outbreaks due to certain emperors.
Nero being the first
When put to death, Christians were often subjected to incredible cruelty including:
Thrown to lions
Burned at stake
Used as torches
Beheaded
Tortured
Crucified

21. Persecutions
Nero (64 A.D.) blamed Christians for fire which destroyed large part of Rome. First severe persecution.
Domitian (81-96) second emperor to intensify persecution.
Trajan (99-117) intensified persecution in an attempt to stamp out secret associations.
Hadrian (117 – 138) briefly intensified persecution of Christians when Jews revolted and were subsequently slaughtered
Decius ( ) made the thorough repression of Christianity a key part of his reign. Had Origen tortured and imprisoned leading to his death.
Valerian ( ) initially spared Christians but eventually led an attempt to execute or banish all bishops (incl Cyprian).
Diocletian ( ) resumed general persecution
Roman Coliseum

22. Lessons for Today
Early Christians could have avoided persecution by simply incorporating pagan worship (e.g., worshiping Caesar) into Christian practice
However, they didn’t. Unlike the society around them, they believed in truth and were prepared to defend it with their lives.
Greek philosophy had eroded confidence in Gods which led to religious pluralism.
Today Christians are in an analogous situation
We are pressured by society to accept religious pluralism
We are seen as foolish and narrow-minded to think we have the truth
Society has tacitly excepted religious pluralism
We must be willing to stand up for truth in the face of more benign adversity.

23. Lessons for Today
While there were rumours that Christians did immoral things, educated people in the Ante-Nicean period understood that Christians stood out for their morality
Pliny the Younger – Christians “bound themselves by a solemn oath not to commit any wicked deed, but to abstain from all fraud, theft and adultery, never to break their word, or deny a trust when called upon to honor it.”
Do we stand out in our society today ?

24. References
K.S. Latourette, A History of Christianity, Prince Press 1975
B.L. Shelley, Church History in Plain Language, Nelson 1995.
H.C. Sheldon, History of the Christian Church, Hendrickson Publishers 1994.
C.P.S. Clarke, St. Ignatius and St. Polycarp, Church History Publishing 2001.
H. Von Campenhausen, The Fathers of the Church, Hendrickson Publishers 1998.
T. Dowley Ed., Erdman’s Handbook to The History of Christianity, W.B. Erdmans Publishing Co
E.E. Cairns, Christianity Through the Ages, 3rd Ed., Zondervan Publishing 1996.
A.K. Curtis, J.S. Lang, and R. Peterson, The 100 Most Important Events in Christian History, Fleming H. Revell 1991.
S.M. Houghton, Sketches from Church History, Banner of Truth 1980.