Catholic Church History 312

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Catholic Church History312 900 AD

• Ann T. Orlando
• 13 Jan. 2005

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Lecture 2Introduction

• Review of Third Century
• Importance of Constantine
• Early Church Councils
• Great Theologians
• Augustine
• Fifth and Sixth Century Events
• Rise of Islam
• Christian Response
• Charlemagne
• Ninth Century and Looking Forward to Middle Ages
  

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Review of Third Century

• Increased pressure on Rome from Persia and
  northern barbarians
• Political instability murder and succession of
  generals as emperors
• Empire-wide persecution of Christians
• Martyrs
• Greek for witness
• Do not need to die to be considered a martyr,
  rather someone who suffered (imprisonment,
  slavery, torture) for faith
• Martyrs were popularly considered people who
  could forgive sins, especially the sin of
  apostasy
• Commemorative meals and liturgies held at tombs
  of martyrs (catacombs in Rome)

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Political Situation at Beginning of Fourth
Century

• Diocletian becomes emperor in 284.
• Very strong ruler
• Decides that best way to protect Empire is to
  divide it between two Augusti (East and West)
  supported by two Caesars (Augusti in waiting)
• Although some of his family members were
  Christians, unleashes worst persecution of all
• Manages to retire and force his co-Augutus,
  Maximian, to retire with him(305) and die in his
  own bed of natural causes
• A few problems with Diocletians plan
• Both Augusti and both Caesars headed their own
  armies and areas of influence
• Except for Diocletian himself, the three other
  members of this tetrarchy saw this scheme as a
  stepping stone for them to take over the Empire
  when Diocletian died
• When Diocletian retires, political intrigues and
  battles break about among the successors
• Constantius, Augustus, controlled England and
  Gaul, father of Constantine
• Severus, Caesar, ruled Rome
• Maximius, Caesar in Greece
• Galerius, Augustus, in East
• When Constantius dies, his troops proclaim his
  son, Constantine, Augustus

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Constantine the Great

• Key battle in Constantines take over of entire
  Empire was battle of Milvian bridge over Tiber in
  Rome against Maxentius, son of Maximian in 312.
• Constantine credits his victory to a vision he
  had in which he was told to go into battle with
  the Christian symbol
• Troops carry chi-rho on their shields
• By 314 Constantine has captured all of the Empire
  and officially declared that Christianity was to
  be tolerated (Edict of Milan)
• Gives most of Rome to the Catholic Church
  (Vatican, St. Paul outside the Walls, Lateran)
• Establishes Constantinople (on site of ancient
  Byzantium) as his new capitol
• Builds Churches, with his mother Helen, in Holy
  Land (Church of Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem,
  Church of Nativity in Bethlehem)
• Moves against the Donatists in North Africa
• Calls Council of Nicea to decide between
  Athanasius and Arius on relation between Father
  and Son Council supports Athanasius and Son as
  one in being with the Father The Nicene Creed
• Dies in 337 (after murdering his wife several of
  his sons whom he considered treacherous)
  baptized by an Arian bishop shortly before he
  dies

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The Ecumenical Councils

• Nicea I, 325, called by Constantine the Great
• Condemned Arianism
• Son of one substance with the Father
• Nicene Creed
• Constantinople I, 381, Called by Theodosius the
  Great
• Affirmed divinity of Holy Spirit
• Modified Creed what we have now
• Ephesus, 431, called by Valentinian III
• Condemned Nestorius, Patriarch of Constantinople
• Jesus was not two separate persons, but one
  person both human and divine
• Mary as Theotokos Mother of God
• Chalcedon, 450, called by Empress Pulcharia at
  request of Pope Leo I (the Great)
• Condemned monophysites single nature
• Christ has two natures human and divine
• Note Both Nestorianism and Monophysitism are
  still present in a few Eastern churches

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Key Historical Events in 4th and 5th Centuries
after Constantine

• Some of Constantine's successors in 4th C were
  Arians sent missionaries to barbarians north of
  Danube
• Some of those barbarians attacked and sacked Rome
  in 410 AD
• Center of power in Empire moved East to
  Constantinople
• Increasingly West was under pressure from
  northern tribes last Roman emperor in Rome
  abdicated in 476
• Note There was a Roman Emperor in East until
  1453
• Church in West becomes only source of learning,
  order, justice

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Great Theologians of 4th and 5th Centuries

• Most of them were Bishops
• All of them had important intellectual and
  spiritual relationships with women
• Eastern (Greek) Theologians
• Athanasius Bishop of Alexandria, On the
  Incarnate Word
• Basil (Caesaria), Gregory Nazianzus
  (Constantinople), Gregory of Nyssa (Nyssa) the
  Cappadocians Basils Monastic Rule Theology of
  Trinity Gregory Nyssas Spiritual steps
• John Chrysostom, Bishop of Constantinople
  Liturgy, preaching for poor rules for clergy
• Western (Latin) Theologians
• Ambrose, Bishop of Milan, established priority of
  Church over State with Theodosius translated
  many Greek works into Latin
• Jerome, translated Bible from Greek and Hebrew
  into authoritative Latin version (Vulgate)
• Pope Leo I the Great Two natures of Christ
  stopped Attila the Hun at gates of Rome
• Patrick of Ireland established unique type of
  Christianity in Ireland monasteries, not
  bishops, provided Church leadership encouraged
  regular private confession

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The Greatest of All in West Augustine (363 - 430)

• Impact and authority that has lasted to today
  Doctor of Grace
• In confronting three heresies, he set the
  direction for much of Western Christianity
• His mother (Monica) was a devout Christian
  father baptized at the end of his life
• Bishop of Hippo in North Africa
• Dies in 430 with Vandals laying siege to Hippo
• Please find time to read Augustines The
  Confessions

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Augustine and Manichaeism

• A type of gnosticism developed by Mani (Persian)
  mid-third century
• Two gods,
• OT associated with evil god
• Created world evil
• Believers have access to secret knowledge
• Jesus not really human, did not really suffer on
  cross
• Augustines response
• Actually, he was a Manichean hearer
  (catechumen) for about 5 years see Book 3 of
  Confessions
• The OT should be read on multiple levels,
  including allegorically
• Neo-Platonism is the correct way to view evil
  the absence of good this preserves the goodness
  of all creation
• Everyone has access to the good news

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Augustine and Donatism

• Donatists believed
• Church of the pure
• No penance
• Efficacy of sacraments depended upon the purity
  of the minister
• Augustine's response
• Church is made of saints and sinners (mostly
  sinners)
• The grace of Jesus grace is mediated by His
  Church, not individual ministers

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Augustine and Pelagianism

• Pelagius
• English monk who believed that grace was the
  reward for our good works
• By proper training of free will, we can save
  ourselves
• Original sin did not fundamentally disrupt our
  relationship to God
• Augustines response
• Grace is Gods free gift
• We cannot perform good works without Gods grace
• Original sin fundamentally disrupted out relation
  with God that tear was repaired by Jesus Christ
• Baptism is a necessary condition for salvation
  but not sufficient condition
• God decides who will be saved or not
  (predestination) our of justice, God condemns
  most of us to hell
• Church rejected Augustines view that people are
  predestined to hell at council of Orange,529

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After Augustine in West

• Retreat to monasticism
• Benedict
• Wrote rule for monks at Monte Cassino (c. 530)
• Based on monastic rules developed by desert
  fathers in Egypt
• Became the basis for Western monasticism
• Pope Gregory the Great (d. 604)
• Benedictine monk
• Reformed clergy along monastic lines required
  priests to have some training encouraged
  celibacy encourage work with poor
• Sent Augustine of Kent to England other
  missionaries to Germany to evangelize the
  northern barbarians

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Rise of Islam

• Muhammed was born 570 in 622 fled Mecca for
  Medina, died 632
• Founded a religious and political movement aimed
  at uniting all Arab tribes.
• By 716 all of North Africa, Sicily and the
  Iberian peninsula was under Muslim control
• By 730 France and Constantinople were threatened

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Western Christian Response

• Charles Martel (Charles the Hammer) stopped the
  Muslim army at Tours in 732
• Charles was ruler of tribe of the Franks,
  Catholics
• Pope asked Charles and his son, Pippin, for
  assistance against Muslims and Lombards (another
  German tribe)
• Pippin gave central Italy to the Pope in 754
  beginning of Papal States (lasted until 1848)

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Charlemagne

• Pippins son
• Conquered much of northern Spain from Muslims
  (Song of Roland)
• Defeated Saxons and forced their conversion to
  Catholicism
• United Western Europe
• Crowned Holy Roman Emperor by Pope in Rome
  Christmas Day 800
• Note a problem there was already a Holy Roman
  Emperor in Constantinople

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Impact of Charlemagnes Rule

• Enforced Latin, Roman liturgy
• Established centers of learning for clergy and
  monks (although he could not read)
• Setup European-wide system of administration
• Establish precedent of Western Holy Roman Empire
• Special relationship between Pope and France

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Next Week

• Middle Ages
• Monasticism
• Scholasticism
• Crusades
• Relationship between Popes and Secular Rulers
• Beginning of Reformation