Church History:

The First 500 Yrs.

The “unofficial” Top 10 people/events in the first 500 years of Church history

Justin Martyr (150 AD) Tertullian (200 AD) Iraneus (177 AD) Council of Nicea (325 AD) Athanasius (367 AD)

Augustine (387 AD) Jerome (405 AD) St. Patrick (432 AD) Council of Chalcedon

(451 AD) Gregory I (590 AD)

I. Justin Martyr• Wrote his apologies to Emperor Antonius Pius.

• Considered the 1st great Christian apologist to defend Christianity before a hostile Roman government.

•He dispelled many misunderstandings of Christianity.

•He taught that “All truth is God’s.”

•He also taught that God was holy & separate from humanity, but God reached out to us in Christ (Jesus was God’s essence – like a new flame taken from a candle).

•Was a martyr.

2. Tertullian

•Great Christian author.•He’s unique because he writes in Latin (not Greek).

•He developed the Biblical concept of the Trinity.

•Why is this important?

3. Iranaeus• He wrote the book Against Heresies.• He spoke out against the Gnostic heresy

that claimed:a. God was not involved in human history.

b. Salvation came through “special knowledge – gnosis” – not faith in Christ.c. Jesus was not really a physical being.

4. Council of Nicea (in Asia Minor)

•Called by Constantine, it called together 300 bishops to settle the question of whether Jesus was God.

•Athanasius spoke in favor of Christ’s deity.

•Arius – a pastor in Alexandria, claimed that Jesus was a created being.

Arius

•All but 2 bishops sided with Athanasius.

•The deity of Christ became the official orthodox Christian position.

•Arianism was labeled a heresy.

Athanasius

In his “Easter Letter,” he was the first to recognize the 27 books of the New Testament

Matthew Mark Luke John Acts Romans 1,2 Corinthians Galations Ephesians Phillipians Colossians 1,2 Thessalonians 1,2 Timothy Titus Philemon Hebrews James 1,2 Peter 1,2,3 John Jude Revelation

How did the Church decide which books would be included in the New Testament?

a. Written by an apostle or close friend of an apostle.

b. Universal acceptance by churches.**Some books that took the longest to accept: Hebrews, James, II Peter, II & III John, & Revelation**

6. Augustine•The most influential Christian author.

•His theology influenced both Catholics and Protestants.

•Two famous books:• Confessions – his testimony

• “The Bible was composed in such a way that as beginners mature, its meaning grows with them.” 

• “I was in misery, and misery is the state of every soul overcome by friendship with mortal things and lacerated when they are lost. Then the soul becomes aware of the misery which is its actual condition even before it loses them.” 

• City of God – it contrasted worldly kingdoms with God’s kingdom

• “God is always trying to give good things to us, but our hands are too full to receive them.” 

• He developed the ideas of original sin and atonement.

Jerome• He completed

a translation of the Latin Vulgate.

• This was the 1st accurate translation of Scripture into the common language of western Rome – into Latin.

Every Middle Ages scholar benefited from Jerome’s translation.

8. St. Patrick Goes to Ireland•He converted most of Ireland to Christianity.

•He established over 300 churches and baptized 120,000 people.

9. Council of Chalcedon

•The Church affirmed the humanity of Christ’s nature

(this preached against gnosticism)•Don’t forget Christ’s humanity!

10. Gregory I Becomes Pope•Pope Gregory I greatly expanded the power & authority of the pope.

•He wrote books, sent missionaries, & governed Rome.

•His idea of establishing a Christian kingdom was central to Middle Ages thought.

•A Christian kingdom was just that – it combined the church with political power.

Today we have separation of Church and State.Pro’s/Con’s?

Assignment: In-Class Essay Now that you have been given a background on the ten

major people and events from the first 500 years of Church history, you are going to compose an essay during the rest of class.

Your essay needs to respond to this question: Of the 10 events and people, which three are the most important to the Christian faith today? Explain. Grade:

○ Organization (Hook, Intro, Thesis, Body, Conclusion, etc.)○ Mechanics (spelling, usage, grammar)○ Content & Accuracy○ Sound arguments

Resources: Notes & your own thoughts! Use MLA format

Your name

My name

Class

Date

Title

Type your introduction and thesis in the first paragraph and be sure that when you start a new

paragraph your paper is still double spaced and DOES NOT have extra space before or after the

paragraph.

This is correct! The spacing between the last line of the paragraph and the first line of the next

paragraph is the same as any other line!

This is INCORRECT! See how there is more space between the line above and this line? It does

not match the distances. Be sure to fix this. Ask three before me! That means as three classmates how

to do something before you ask me. Good luck!

1. Font: Times New Roman 2. Font size: 12 pt font 3. Change spacing to 2.0 4. Change spacing: Remove space after

paragraph.