Church History 11 – 'Opportunity and Danger'

Purple Cone Flower

If we recall, early converts to Christianity were rigorously prepared sometimes taking three years of study before being allowed full participation in communion.  Moreover, a life application test was applied.  In other words, one was tested to see if one acted like a Christian when one wasn't in church.   These same standards didn’t apply to Constantine. 

After his vision at Milvian Bridge, where he said he believed the Christian God spoke to him, Constantine didn’t receive the direct tutelage ordinary converts would have gotten.  He sort of played both ends against the middle.

On the one hand, he brought images of gods into the new capitol of Constantinople.  He did this to appease the old guard.  Perhaps, even like us, he had a hard time letting go of his own image of God.  On the other hand, he clearly had a hand in the development of the church.

Gonzalez:  ‘Constantine reserved the right to determine his own religious practices and even to intervene in the life of the church, for he considered himself ‘bishop of bishops.’  Repeatedly, even after his conversion, he took part in pagan rites in which no Christian would participate, and the bishops raised no voice of condemnation….The reason for this was not only that the emperor was both powerful and irascible, but also that, in spite of his policies favoring Christianity, and his repeated confession of the power of Christ, he was not technically a Christian, for he had not been baptized.  In fact, it was only on his deathbed that he was baptized.’

‘Such a person could receive the advice and even the support of the church, but not its direction.’

Does this sound like us in many ways?  Is this the point in history that the purity of the early church was lost forever?

To move forward with our story, Gonzalez states that Constantine though ‘cannot be seen as a mere opportunist who declared himself in favor of Christianity in order to court the support of Christians.’

Christians in fact had nothing to offer Constantine in terms of helping him.  We know that the early Christians subsisted predominately from the bottom of the economic totem pole.  They didn't hold high government positions and didn't have military leaders among them.

Gonzalez:  ‘The truth is probably that Constantine was a sincere believer in the power of Christ.  But this does not mean that he understood that power in the same way in which it had been experienced by those Christians who had died for it.  For him, the Christian God was a very powerful being who would support him as long as he favored the faithful.  Therefore,, when Constantine enacted laws in favor of Christianity, and when he had churches built, what he sought was not the goodwill of Christians, but rather the goodwill of their God.’

Constantine was not an immediate convert but it does appear he began to leave behind the pagan ways as he became more familiar with Christian ways.  Still he presided over festivals and high days associated with the pagan gods for some time.

Even though he allowed the worship of pagan gods to continue, Constantine had an enormous impact on Christianity.  The most obvious impact was the cessation of persecution.  But not all of the imperial support was for the betterment of the faith.  During this early period of favor, many Christians sought to capitalize on the idea that God was on the side of Constantinople now.  A church state if you will.

Gonzalez:  ‘Others took the opposite tack.  For them, the fact that the emperors declared themselves Christians, and that for this reason people were flocking to the church, was not a blessing, but rather a great apostasy.  Some who tended to look at matters under this light, but did not wish to break communion with the rest of the church, withdrew to the desert, there to lead a life of meditation and asceticism.’

Still, there were a number of Christians who tried to remain mainstream faithful.  They did not fall hook, line and sinker for all things imperial.  Nor did they feel it necessary to ditch the church and head to the desert.  These folks had to stay and do battle with ideas.  It seems that every time in history when there was relative peace for Christians, some group or another came along to distort the original teachings.  This period was no different.  This time it was Arianism.  Arianism was essentially false doctrine about the Trinity…more on this to follow in latter posts.

Another big change for the church was that big churches began to be built.  Thus the nature of the worship service began to change.

Gonzalez: ‘Christian worship began to be influenced by imperial protocol.  Incense, which was used as a sign of respect for the emperor, began appearing in Christian churches.  Officiating ministers, who until then had worm everyday clothes, began dressing in more luxurious garments….the custom was also introduced of beginning services with a procession.  Choirs were developed…the congregation came to have a less active role in worship.’

Gonzalez summarizes this time for Christian leaders as a time of opportunity and a time of danger.  ‘Since both danger and opportunity were great, these leaders faced a difficult task.  Perhaps not all their decisions and attitudes were correct; but in any case, this was an age of giants who would shape the church for centuries to come.’

Source:  Justo L. Gonzalez from ‘The Story of Christianity, Volume 1, the Early Church to the Dawn of the Reformation’

Church History 10 – Constantine Bests His Rival

Canna and Day Lilly

‘Ambition often puts Men upon doing the meanest offices; so climbing is performed in the same position with creeping.’ A. C. Benson

Constantine didn’t just win the battle at Milvian Bridge and was suddenly crowned as sole emperor over the Roman Empire.  But with the battle won, he controlled the west.  Eventually, Licinius gained sole control in the east.  Game on.   Constantine made some moves.

Gonzalez:  ‘Constantine offered his half-sister Constance in marriage to Licinius, and he may also have made a secret agreement with his future brother-in-law.  This would seem to cover his flank….The Empire was then divided between Licinius, who ruled over the entire area east of Italy, including Egypt, and Constantine, who controlled Italy as well as Western Europe and North Africa.  Since the two emperors were related by marriage, there was hope that the civil wars had come to an end.  But the truth was that both Licinius and Constantine sought to rule the whole Empire, which, in spire of its vastness, was too small for both of them.  For awhile, each of the two rivals devoted himself to consolidate his power and to prepare for the inevitable conflict.’

Constantine and Licinius barbed back and forth for many years.  In 314AD, Constantine won a big battle against Licinius garnering more territory.  The main reason the two guys didn’t get along was ambition according to Gonzalez.  Apparently, Constantine had more ambition and more savvy because in 322AD he finally defeated Licinius and became the sole Roman Emperor.

I am struck by some similarities between the lives of Constantine and King Solomon of the Hebrew Scriptures.  Once Solomon was named King, he had his rival Adonijah killed.  It is conspicuous that even after Constantine had defeated Licinius in battle and his sister Constance pleaded for her husband’s life, Licinius was murdered.

‘Ambition breaks the ties of blood, and forgets the obligations of gratitude.’ Sallust

Constantine at once went on a building spree like King Solomon.  Constantine decided to make a new capitol of the Roman Empire. 

Gonzalez:  ‘Now, as absolute master of the Empire, he set out on a bold course; he would build a ‘New Rome’ an impregnable and monumental city, which would be called Constantinople- that is, ‘city of Constantine.’

Constantine diverted resources from everywhere in the empire to build the ‘New Rome.’

‘King Solomon conscripted forced labor out of all Israel...at the king’s command; they quarried out great, costly stones in order to lay the foundation of the house with dressed stones.’  1 Kings 5:13, 17

Gonzalez: ‘Years later, Jerome would say that Constantinople was dressed in the nakedness of the rest of the Empire.  A number of statues of pagan gods were taken from their ancient temples and placed in such public places as the hippodrome, the public baths, or the squares.

On of the most ornate items was a statue chiseled by Phidias that stood over 125 tall.  Originally this statue was of Apollo but it was reconfigured so that the head was now in Constantine’s likeness.

‘In the fourth year the foundation of the house of the Lord was laid…He was seven years in building it….Solomon was building his own house thirteen years.   1 Kings 6:37 – 7:1

For when Solomon was old, his wives turned his heart after other gods.’ 1 Kings 11:4

Not long after Constantine settled on the ‘New Rome’ the old one was sacked by barbarians.  The ‘New Rome’ and territories under Constantine became known as the Byzantine Empire and was a world power broker for 1000 years.

Source:  Justo L. Gonzalez from ‘The Story of Christianity, Volume 1, the Early Church to the Dawn of the Reformation’

Church History 9 - Power sharing, then the grab

Mimosa Tree

Rome was in trouble late in the 3^rd century.  Civil wars were breaking out throughout the empire.  The Emperor Diocletian decided to deploy a power sharing tactic.  Instead of one big guy in charge, he installed two with the title of Augustus and two underlings with the title of Caesar.  The idea was much like the new coach in waiting policy that is being used in college football today.  (Jumbo Fisher knew he would get the top Florida State job when Bobby Bowden retired.) The empire was divided this way.

Gonzalez:  ‘Diocletian himself in the East, and Maximian in the West.  Under each of them were a junior emperor…Galerius under Diocletian, and Constantius Chlorus under Maximian.’

This worked well for a little while and Christians had a peaceful existence.  But because there were constant battles being fought in some quarter of the empire to keep out the Barbarians and the Persians, the empire needed a steady supply of soldiers.  Many Christians didn’t feel obliged to serve in the emperor’s army.  Galerius convinced Diocletian to put a new edict in place to remove Christians from any responsible position in the government.  This set in motion another period of trouble for our old brothers and sisters.  Churches and sacred writings were burned.  Similar to the time when Nero was in power, a great fire broke out in the imperial palace and Christians were blamed again. 

‘Gonzalez:  ‘Thus was unleashed the most cruel of all the persecutions that the ancient church had to endure. Following the example of Decius, efforts were made to encourage Christians to abandon their faith.  Accustomed as there were to the relative ease of several decades, many Christians succumbed.  The rest were tortured with refined cruelty, and eventually killed in a variety of ways.’

Around 304AD, Diocletian and Maximian lost power.  The underlings, Galerius and Constantius Chlorus took charge.  They promoted two ‘inept creatures’ to become Caesars below them.

Soon the power sharing tactic began to weaken.  I saw a story in the news today that illustrates why the best laid plans don’t always go according to plan. 

‘West Virginia football coach Bill Stewart resigned and coach-in-waiting Dana Holgorsen will take over, the school confirmed Friday.

The parting ends a week-long saga that saw Stewart investigated for trying to undermine coach-in-waiting Dana Holgorsen.’  USA Today

The emperors began to undermine one another.  In what would be monumental for the future of Christianity, the son of Constantius Chlorus, Constantine began to attract a following.  With civil wars all over the empire, Constantine began to plotting to do battle against his foes.

Gonzalez:  ‘Constantine gathered his armies in Gaul, crossed the Alps and marched on Rome….According to two Christian chroniclers who knew Constantine, on the eve of the battle he had a revelation.  One of the sources, Lactantius, says that it was in a dream that Constantine received the command to place a Christian symbol on the shields of his soldiers.  The other chronicler, Eusebius, says that the vision appeared in the sky, with the words, ‘in this you shall conquer.’

Many think that Constantine had an instant conversion to Christianity.  But the evidence is that Constantine still worshipped the gods for some time after this.  His faith came like ours, over time.

Constantine facilitated the ‘Edict of Milan in 313 AD which put an end to Christian persecution in the Roman Empire.   As we will learn, after Constantine came to power, Christians would have access to power for the first time in its history.

Gonzalez:  ‘Whether this was in truth a victory, or the beginning of new and perhaps greater difficulties, will be the theme of many of the chapters to follow…What would happen when those who called themselves servants of a carpenter, and whose great heroes were fisherfolk, slaves, and criminals condemned to death by the state, suddenly saw themselves surrounded by imperial pomp and power?  Would they remain firm in their faith?  Or would it be that those who had stood before tortures and before beasts would give way to the temptation of an easy life and of social prestige?

‘Do not pray for easy lives. Pray to be stronger men.’ John F. Kennedy

Source:  Justo L. Gonzalez from ‘The Story of Christianity, Volume 1, the Early Church to the Dawn of the Reformation’

They'll know you by your love

Hydrangea in full splendor

Gonzalez reminds us that while we don't have church bulletins from second and third century church services, there is still enough information to get a good picture of early Christian worship.

It is clear that while we have learned about a few early scholars like Irenaeus, most early Christians were regular working folks who were not part of the power structures. Interesting too, is the tone of early worship services and that every week communion was served.  They must not have had to be done in under an hour! 

Gonzalez:  ‘Those early communion services did not focus their attention on Good Friday, but rather on Easter.  A new reality had dawned and Christians gathered to celebrate that dawning and to become participants in it.’

It is also interesting to note that the primary event around the early worship service was communion and not a sermon.  Preaching did not take hold until much later.  So what was a typical worship service like?

Gonzalez:  ‘The most remarkable characteristic of those early communion services was that they were celebrations.  The tone was one of joy and gratitude, rather than sorrow and repentance.’

The services would likely been hosted in somebody’s house.  They consisted generally of scripture readings, prayers and communion.  Folks didn’t have bibles back then, so a communal copy of the gospel letters or epistles would have been read to the congregation.  Participants would have passed each other a kiss of peace and then shared in the communion meal which would have consisted of what participants were able to bring.  The communion would have been bookended by prayers of thanksgiving.

Gonzalez notes that only those who had been baptized were allowed as full participants in the services.  We can see here also a place of division among Christians.  The Methodist church which I attend hosts open communion.  Many other traditions, especially Catholics are rigid in their service of the Lord’s Supper.

The Christian calendar has been another area of tense debate within the church.  Early on, we have noted that Christians treated each Sunday as Easter.  Friday was a day of penance and sorrow.  As to the actual date the resurrection was to be remembered, this too has often caused division in our history.  Another date causing division was Christmas.  Early on Christians celebrated Jesus’ birth on January 6^th.  Later, the western church changed this to December 25^th.

It is also interesting to note, the significance that early Christians placed on being ready to be baptized.  Participants in baptism had a long road to travel.

Gonzalez:  ‘…As the church became increasingly Gentile, it was necessary to require a period of preparation, trial and instruction prior to baptism.  This was the ‘catechumenate,’ which, by the beginning of the third century, lasted three years.  During this time, catechumens received instruction on Christian doctrine, and were to give signs in their daily lives of the depth of their conviction.’

I’m glad our church offers open communion but at the same time, I wonder if we are not too lenient in that some may infer that just showing up to church once in awhile is good enough.  What if the pastoral staff inspected our daily lives to determine our conviction?  Would we prove good enough?

"You don't think your way into a new kind of living. You live your way into a new kind of thinking." — Henri J.M. Nouwen

It was also during the second and third century that the structure and organization of the church started to take hold.    The main leadership positions were bishop, elder and deacon.  While we know from the New Testament that women were indeed leaders in some congregations, during the late second century the leadership of the church came to be dominated by men.

Gonzalez: ‘What actually seems to have taken place is that during the second century, in its efforts to combat heresy, the church centralized its authority, and a by-product of that process was that women were excluded from positions of leadership.

Still women played an important part in church life.  Widows were looked after by the church.   Many of these widows made vows to dedicate themselves fully to the care of the church and congregation as a result. 

Gonzalez:  ‘Eventually, this would give rise to feminine monasticism, which developed earlier than its masculine counterpart.’

Finally during the second and third centuries, there does not appear to have been a formal system for converting others to Christianity like the missionaries our churches support today. 

Gonzalez:  ‘…the fact remains that most converts were made by anonymous Christians who witness led others to their faith.’

"By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another." (John 13:35)

Source:  Justo L. Gonzalez from ‘The Story of Christianity, Volume 1, the Early Church to the Dawn of the Reformation’