Development of Christianity

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Development of Christianity

• Gnostic Gospels and Holidays, too!

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The Gnostic Gospels

• Part 1

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The Gnostic Gospels

• Gnostic of or relating to knowledge
• Not discovered at a single time, but rather as a
  series of finds
• The Nag Hammadi Library - discovered accidentally
  by two farmers in December 1945
• Named for the area in Egypt where it had been
  hidden for centuries

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Why hidden?

• Irenaeus, one of the first great Christian
  theologians
• Emphasized the traditional elements in the Church
• The authority of bishops (he was one), Scripture,
  and tradition
• Vocally against Gnosticism
• A serious threat to the Church
• Reliance on oral tradition and the varied
  emphases on the values of Christianity
• The only way for Christians to retain unity was
  to humbly accept one doctrinal authority
• Gnostics said that they possessed a secret oral
  tradition from Jesus himself
• Irenaeus maintained that the bishops provided
  the only safe guide to the interpretation of
  Scripture

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Nag Hammadi Library

• Over 40 Codices classified by 6 Categories
• Writings of creative and redemptive mythology
• On the Origins of the World, The Apocalypse of
  Adam
• Observations and commentaries on diverse
  Gnostic themes
• The Gospel of Truth, The Testimony of Truth 
• Liturgical and initiatory texts
• The Prayer of Thanksgiving, The Prayer of the
  Apostle Paul
• Writings dealing primarily with the feminine 
• The Thunder, Perfect Mind, The Sophia of Jesus
  Christ
• Writings pertaining to the lives and experiences
  of some of the apostles
• The Acts of Peter and the Twelve Apostles, The
  Apocalypse of Peter
• Scriptures which contain sayings of Jesus as well
  as descriptions of incidents in His life
• The Gospel of Philip, The Gospel of Thomas

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Gospel of Judas

• Leaders like Tertullian were accusing people who
  avoided martyrdom by fleeing of being faithless
  cowards
• Judas seems to be angry at church leaders for
  encouraging Christians to accept martyrdom as
  Gods will
• Judas tone is angry he portrays Jesus mocking
  his disciples

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Gospel of Thomas

• Where Matt, Mark, and Luke say that Jesus warned
  about the coming of the end of time, John and
  Thomas say that Jesus directed his disciples
  instead toward the beginning of time (the
  creation account) and identify Jesus as the
  divine light that came into being in the
  beginning

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The Gospel of Mary Magdala

• Presents a radical interpretation of Jesus'
  teachings as a path to inner spiritual knowledge
• It exposes the erroneous view that Mary of
  Magdala was a prostitute for what it is - a piece
  of theological fiction
• It presents an argument for the legitimacy of
  women's leadership
• It asks us to rethink the basis for church
  authority

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Important Historical Figures

• Part 2

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Christianity Spreads 46-62 AD

• Paul's (Saul) missionary journeys spread
  Christianity significantly
• His speech to the Greeks on Mars Hill
  (Aereopagus)

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Christianity in Rome

• To the Romans, Christians were a strange and
  subversive group, meeting in catacombs, sewers
  and dark alleys, done only for their own safety,
  but perpetuating the idea that the religion was
  odd, shameful and secretive.

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Christians as Scapegoats

• 64 AD
• A fire ravaged Rome, and the subsequent building
  of Emperor Nero's golden palace on the destroyed
  property, was wildly unpopular in Rome.
• Many thought Nero started the fire
• Nero blamed Christians, playing on people's fears
  that their intention was the complete destruction
  of the Roman world as they waited for the
  judgment day.

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First Pope St. Peter

• Jesus gave a new name to Simon, saying, You are
  Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church
  and I will give you the keys of the kingdom of
  heaven.
• In these words Catholic Church recognizes the
  creation of the papacy (recognition of a Pope).
• Peter was active as the head of the Church in
  different locations. The last was Rome.
• Peter was martyred (at the time of Neros fire)
  on June 29, year 67, head downward on his own
  request, as he considered it unworthy of him to
  die as Christ did
• Peter was buried on Vatican hill, where St.
  Peter's now stands.

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Christians Organize Themselves

• 150-450 AD
• The People
• Congregations formed Jewish and other converts
• Evangelical Involved in the world
• Deacon Local leader, teacher
• Bishop Elected by city, selected priests
• Leaders Originally 4 Tetrarchs (joint rulers)
• Antioch (Syria)
• Alexandria (Egypt)
• Jerusalem
• Rome
• After Constantine conquered Byzantium and created
  Constantinople, this and Rome were the East and
  West Centers

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The Wandering Christian

• Wandering holy men monks and hermits
• Models of martyrdom who battled against wealth,
  sexuality, appetite, and temptations.
• Lives of self-denial brought them closer to
  perfection.
• Martyrs graves became holy sites, and relics
  (bones, teeth, clothes, etc.) were housed under
  altars.

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Importance of Constantine

• St. Helena
• Constantines mother
• May not have always been Christian
• If not, she converted
• Credited with finding the cross on which Jesus
  was crucified during her lengthy pilgrimage to
  Palestine from 327-328 AD

• Other Contributions
• 327 AD Constantinople becomes the capital to
  replace pagan Rome.
• Funds building of churches
• Makes Sunday a public holiday
• Exempts clergy from taxes

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313 AD Edict of Milan

• Legalized Christianity
• Probably for political gain

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• Jerusalem
• Created the Church of the Holy Sepulchre on what
  was supposedly the site of the crucifixion

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325 AD The First Council of Nicea

• 300 bishops called by Constantine
• Addresses the role of the Father, Son, Holy Ghost
• To contradict Arius of Alexandria's teaching that
  Christ was subordinate to God

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Nicene Creed

• The Nicene Creed is the most widely accepted and
  used statement of the Christian Faith.
• Said every Sunday as part of the Liturgy.
• Common Ground to East Orthodox, Roman Catholics,
  Anglicans, Lutherans, Calvinists, and many other
  Christian groups.

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337 AD

• Constantine was baptized while on his deathbed
• The sins he committed?
• Unexplained execution of his eldest son and his
  second wife in 326.

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Emperor Theodosius

• 380 AD makes Christianity the official religion
  of the Roman Empire
• 382 AD Stripped pagan temples of statues and
  made pagan Roman state worship treason
• Developed church courts

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Emperor Justinian

• 527- 565 AD Justinian ruled from Ravenna and
  Constantinople
• Building program included the Hagia Sophia

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Charles the Great/Charlemagne

• 742? 814AD - crowned emperor of the Roman
  Empire in Saint Peter's basilica on Dec. 25, 800,
  by Pope Leo II.
• First in the west since 6th century, seen as
  rebellion in the eyes of Byzantine court but
  revived Roman empire in the west
• Implemented literacy and education to reform
  existing texts and halt their terrible
  corruption.
• Gregorian Chant made mandatory in 810

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Eastern/Western Split

• The Great Schism - 1054
• Creation of Orthodoxy
• Pope Leo IX sent emissaries to excommunicate the
  eastern patriarch for refusing to accept changes
  in the language of the Nicene Creed

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West vs. East

• Roman Catholicism

• Eastern Orthodoxy

• Western Focus Roman Pope
• Church order Pope, Cardinal, Arch-Bishop,
  Bishop, Priest, Deacon, Monk, Nun
• Church law and legal interpretation of Christian
  doctrines
• Personal discipline and purification
• Emphasis on correct action in ritual
• Trinity dwells in every Christian soul
• Prayer and penance can dispose the soul to
  receive infusions of grace, but not wholly in
  this life

• Eastern Focus
• Mystical goal of Christian life
• Know god
• Unity with the divine
• Unity with Christ
• Prayer and penance on earth experience
  ecstatically the glories of God's indwelling
• Eventually, they divided into national branches
  Greek, Russian, Serbian, Armenian, Syrian, etc.
• Stayed unified in traditions and are not
  competitive
• No Pope leadership rests on the conscience of
  the church

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The Crusades

• 1095-1291 first seven crusades
• Main goal To restore access for Christians to
  the holy places in and around Jerusalem (under
  Muslim control)
• Pope Urban II (1088-1099) assisted Emperor Alexus
  of Constantinople in launching the first crusade
  against the Muslims
• "Deus vult" (God wills it)
• The battle cry of the Crusaders.
• Red cross
• The official sign of the pilgrims.
• Crusades were failures they made no permanent
  conquests of the holy land and merely fostered
  harsh intolerance between Muslims and Christians.
• The papacy gained the most from the Crusades
  its authority and that of the European kings was
  increased.

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The Inquisition

• 1231 Gregory IX instituted the Inquisition
  (holy office) to fight Heretics
• 1256 Papal Bull permitted Inquisitors
  (Dominicans and Franciscans) to use torture

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Martin Luther

• Catholic monk turned Father of Protestantism
• Oct 31, 1517 All Saints Day Eve
• Luther posted The Ninety-Five Theses on church
  door at Wittenburg
• Excommunicated in 1520
• Translated the Bible into the language of the
  people
• Every person in charge of his/her relationship
  with God without the mediation of a Priest
• Questioned meanings of rituals
• Good deeds dont get you into heaven
• Eucharist is consubstantiation, not
  transubstantiation
• Various interpretations of the Bible

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John Calvin - Calvinism

• 1536 - Calvin published The Institutes of
  Christian Religion
• Belief in absolute sovereignty and omnipotence of
  God and total weakness of humanity
• No free will in humans because that detracts from
  the sovereignty of God
• Men and woman can't work toward salvation because
  God, in his infinite wisdom, predestined who
  would be saved and damned.

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Henry VIII

• Declared himself head of the church of England in
  1538
• Resulted in a separated church The Church of
  England
• Personal motives wanted to be able to divorce
  his first wife!

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Holidays/Symbols

• Part 3

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Christmas Why December 25th?

• Probably chosen to oppose the feast of the
  Natalis Solis Invicti (nativity of the
  unconquerable sun)
• December 25th, the birthday of the Sun-god
  (Mithras) at the winter solstice
• Light (Christ) at the darkest time of the year -
  symbolic

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First Christmas?

• Earliest mention of the observance on Dec. 25th
  is in the Philocalian Calendar, representing
  Roman practice of the year 336.
• 435 AD - the first "Christ mass" was officiated
  by Pope Sixtus III

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Christmas Tree

• The druids
• decorated their trees with symbols of prosperity
  -- a fruitful harvest, coins for wealth and
  various charms such as those for love or
  fertility.
• Scandinavian Pagans
• first to bring their decorated trees indoors as
  this provided a warm and welcoming environment
  for the native fairy folk
• The Saxons
• first to place lights on the their trees in the
  form of candles.
• Ancient Romans
• decorated their homes with greens at the Festival
  of Saturnalia, their New Year, and exchanged
  evergreen branches with friends as a sign of good
  luck.

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Mistletoe and Holly

• Two hundred years before the birth of Christ, the
  Druids used mistletoe to celebrate the coming of
  winter. They believed the plant had special
  healing powers
• Scandinavians also thought of mistletoe as a
  plant of peace and harmony. They associated
  mistletoe with their goddess of love, Frigga.

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Santa Claus

• St. Nicholas was born in Turkey in the 4th
  century.
• He was very pious from an early age, devoting his
  life to Christianity. He became widely known for
  his generosity for the poor.
• But the Romans held him in contempt. He was
  imprisoned and tortured.
• Constantine allowed Nicholas to go free and made
  him a delegate to the council of Nicea.
• He is especially noted for his love of children
  and for his generosity.

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Candy Cane

• In the late 1800's a candy maker in Indiana
  wanted to express the meaning of Christmas
• The color white symbolizes the purity and sinless
  nature of Jesus.
• Next, he added three small stripes to symbolize
  the pain inflicted upon Jesus before His death on
  the cross.
• He added a bold stripe to represent the blood
  Jesus shed for mankind.
• When looked at with the crook on top, it looks
  like a shepherd's staff
• If you turn it upside down, it becomes the
  letter J

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Preparation for Christian Holy Week

• Beginning with Lent, which precedes Easter by 40
  days
• Represents 40 days in desert
• Renunciation of temptation or dedication to
  something positive in remembrance of Jesus
• Also, taking on something to parallel what Christ
  took on

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Fat Tuesday

• The day before Lent
• In French, Mardi Gras
• Shrove Tuesday
• In Latin America, called Carnival (carne
  flesh, so farewell to the flesh)
• Celebration before renunciation
• Paczki day (pronounced pun-shke)

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Ash Wednesday

• Remember, man, thou art dust and to dust thou
  shall return (Genesis 319)
• Relates to Jesus sacrifice on behalf of mans
  salvation
• Priests mark the heads of the faithful with a
  cross of ashes
• Fasting (as Christ did)

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Holy Week Begins
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Palm Sunday

• Celebrates the beginning of the week of the
  Passion (holy week)
• When Jesus entered Jerusalem and walked on palm
  leaves

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Maundy Thursday

• Represents the last supper
• From Latin mandatum meaning new commandment
• represents the commandment Jesus gave the
  disciples regarding communion
• Washing of feet

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Good FridayIronic titleFollowing the stations
of the cross3 hours on the cross

• The Stations are usually a series of 14 pictures
  or sculptures depicting the following scenes
• Jesus is condemned to death
• Jesus receives the cross
• The first fall
• Jesus meets His mother
• Simon carries the cross
• Veronica wipes Jesus' face with her veil
• The second fall
• Jesus meets the women of Jerusalem
• The third fall
• Jesus is stripped of His garments
• Crucifixion Jesus is nailed to the cross
• Jesus dies on the cross
• Jesus' body removed from the cross (Pieta)
• Jesus is laid in the tomb

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Easter Sunday

• Celebrates Resurrection
• Christian symbols lamb (sacrifice)
• Egg (tomb with rock from which Jesus emerged) and
  coloring eggs conversion to Christianity
• Lily purity, one of Marys flowers

                       
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Pagan origins of symbols

• Eggs, bunnies, pastel colors (symbols of
  reproduction, birth)
• Eastre pagan goddess of the earth and spring,
  from an egg that dropped from the sky into the
  water
• Easter rising sun in the east, celebration of
  spring and the vernal equinox