Building the City of God: PART 1 Lecture starts Wed Oct 2

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Building the City of God PART 1Lecture starts
Wed Oct 2

• Chapter 3 (300-500 AD)
• Be aware of dates, people and events
• NEXT DAY 1 TEST 2 Fri Oct 11

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BEFORE WE BEGIN

• During this time period of the Church there were
  many that were drawn to the monastic life
• Why do you think this movement occurred?
• What do you think was the appeal?
• What about for today?

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Key Concepts (read only)

• Councils (reasons results)
• Monasticism (Jerome, Basil)
• Important Early Leaders Ambrose Augustine
• Western Empire Falls
• Key Leader Leo the Great

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I. Early Church Councils

• Ecumenical Council
• Worldwide meeting of the bishops
• E.C. became opportunity for the Church to clarify
  its teaching

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A. 325 A.D. Council of Nicaea (pg. 72)

• Nicaea Northwest Asia Minor
• Called by Constantine
• First major meeting of the Church since the
  Council of Jerusalem
• Reason
• Discussion of Arianism
• Denied Jesus divinity
• Super creature / not God

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Nicaea (cont)

• Results
• Definition of the Father Son as homoousious
  of the same substance
• Coeternal, consubstantial, coequal
• Condemned Arius and Arianism
• First draft of Nicene Creed

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B. 381 A.D. Council of Constantinople (pg. 73)

• Constantinople modern day Istanbul
• Called by Emperor Theodosius I
• Reason
• Discussion of Apollinarianism
• Holy Spirit as a creature
• Macedonianism
• Son created Holy Spirit who was in turn
  subordinate to Father Son
• Results
• Confirmed results of Nicaea
• Affirmed the deity of the Holy Spirit
• Final draft of the Nicene Creed

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C. 431 A.D. Council of Ephesus (pg. 73-4)

• Ephesus south west Asia Minor
• Called by Theodosius II
• Reason
• Discussion of Nestorianism
• Role of Mary as Mother of God
• Results
• Condemned heresy
• Mary as the Mother of Jesus and of God--
• God-bearer
• Affirmed two natures in Christ

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D. 451 A. D. Council of Chalcedon (pg. 74)

• Chalcedon north of Constantinople
• Called by Emperor Marcian ratified by Pope Leo
  the Great
• Reason
• Discussion of Monophysitism
• One nature in Christ (divine)
• Results
• Condemned heresy
• Declared Christs two natures unmixed, unchanged,
  undivided, inseparable
• Key theologian
• St. Leo the Great, Doctor of the Church

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E. Results of the Early Councils

• 1. Church was able to shape and clarify much of
  its theology
• Led to more consistency of belief within the
  entire Church
• 2. Specific statements regarding the essence of
  the Trinity, Jesus (2 natures), and Mary
• Clear statements of belief held by the Church
  today
• 3. Demonstrated presence guidance of the Holy
  Spirit
• Guiding the Church, then and now, to minister to
  all its people

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II. Monasticism (pg. 80)

• (Quest for holiness begun in North Africa)
• Movement of people away from the world to pursue
  holiness
• alone single

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A. St. Anthony of Egypt (251-356) (pg. 80-81)

• founder of monasticism
• Heard words of Gospel, Go, sell all that you
  have give to poor
• Gave away familys possessions
• Lived alone as hermit
• Focus on scripture
• Persuaded to start community but preferred
  solitary life

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B. St. Jerome (331-420) (pg 82, 85-6)

• Translating the Bible by Pope Damascus (from
  Greek Hebrew to Latin)
• Vulgate
• Derived from the same Latin root as vulgar
  which originally meant of the common people
• Taught Bible to women

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C. St. Basil (329-379) (pg. 81)

• Father of Eastern Monasticism
• wrote a rule on how to live a life of prayer and
  quiet w/ other people
• Encouraged his followers to pray in silence,
  serve the poor and sick, and study

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D. and of Monasticism (pg. 83)

• POSITIVE
• Self sufficient
• Respect for liturgy and value of prayer
• Stability
• Christianized Europe

• NEGATIVE
• Extreme
• Double standard

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III. Early Influential Leaders

• A. St. John Chrysotom (344-407) (pg. 84)
• 1. Antioch
• 2. Golden Mouth (preacher)
• 3. Ordained Bishop of Constantinople (398)
• 4. Preacher of moral laxity

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• B. St. Ambrose (339-397) (pg. 85)
• Used fam. connections to become lawyer governor
• In 374, the bishop of Milan died leaving a
  vacancy
• People shouted for Ambrose who was not even a
  baptized Christian
• Applied skills as civil servant to servant of
  Church (trained clergy, poor, Bible)
• Ambrosian Chant

St. Ambrose and Theodosius
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C. Augustine (354-430) (pg. 86-88)

• Background info
• Born in North Africa or Roman Africa
• Father Roman Official
• Mother Monica (pg. 67-8) Christian
• Augustine had a mistress and a son
• Searched for life meaning
• Manichaean
• One God created good another created evil
• No one was responsible for his/her sins

With mother Monica
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Augustine (cont)

• Influenced by Monica, Ambrose, and Plato
• So wrote The Confessions, Augustine's
  Autobiography
• At 33, he is baptized by Ambrose
• Returned to North Africa and founded a monastery,
  made a priest, 4 years later made a bishop.
• Became Bishop of Hippo (354-430 A.D.)

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1. Augustine vs. Donatism

• Donatist-
• Donatus, Bishop of Carthage in North Africa
• Any apostate could never be forgiven
• Disloyal bishops could not perform real
  sacraments
• A. disagreed because
• It did not allow for the God's grace to work
• Sacraments validity comes from God working
  through weak and sinful people.

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2. Augustine vs. Pelagianism

• Pelagianism (pg. 75)
• (named after monk Pelagius)
• Issue Grace or God's power vs. work/human
  efforts for salvation
• Pelagius said that people could be saved without
  God's grace
• Why? Because Pelagius reacted against moral
  laxity that was rampant in the empire.
• A. disagreedsaid we are separated from God due
  to Original Sin as told in the story of Adam
  Eve. We have GRACE ( sacrifice of JC) to bring
  us back!

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3. Augustine and the Fall of Rome

• (410 AD), Rome falls to the Barbarian Goths (pg.
  76)
• Again Christians were blamed because their God
  did not save the city.
• Augustine responds with his greatest work, The
  City of God
• History ongoing struggle between two realms
• City of God and City of Man

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Western Roman Empire Falls (pg. 76)

• Major Causes
• Relocation of the capital to Constantinople
• Rome left as an imperial afterthought
• Weak Roman forces left to defend a large
  territory
• Bishop of Rome as Emperor of the West
• Allowed the bishop of Rome (Pope) to assume more
  power and authority
• St. Damascus (366-384)
• Apostolic See to connect his authority to that
  of the Apostles, specifically St. Peter
• Rome was destined to be the center of the Church
• Jerome
• Paved the way for Leo the Great to take over

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V. Leo the Great, Pope 440-461 (pg. 77-78)

• The Rising Influence of the Papacy
• Office of Pope became important due to Rome's
  fall (410) to the Visigoths
• Attila the Hun
• He provided leadership,
• Put the papacy in the spotlight
• Began to use title "Pontifex Maximus" (Highest
  bridge maker)remember Constantine used title
• Had to deal w many heresies
• Title from Gk "pappas" father
• Leo changed that due to his position as spiritual
  father and state official.