Title: Development of Christianity
1Development of Christianity
- Gnostic Gospels and Holidays, too!
2The Gnostic Gospels
3The 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
4Why 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
5Nag 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 TruthÂ
- Liturgical and initiatory texts
- The Prayer of Thanksgiving, The Prayer of the
Apostle Paul - Writings dealing primarily with the feminineÂ
- 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
6Gospel 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
7Gospel 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
8The 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
9Important Historical Figures
10Christianity Spreads 46-62 AD
- Paul's (Saul) missionary journeys spread
Christianity significantly - His speech to the Greeks on Mars Hill
(Aereopagus)
11Christianity 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.
12Christians 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.
13First 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.
14Christians 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
15The 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.
16Importance 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
17313 AD Edict of Milan
- Legalized Christianity
- Probably for political gain
18- Jerusalem
- Created the Church of the Holy Sepulchre on what
was supposedly the site of the crucifixion
19325 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
20Nicene 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.
21337 AD
- Constantine was baptized while on his deathbed
- The sins he committed?
- Unexplained execution of his eldest son and his
second wife in 326.
22Emperor 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
23Emperor Justinian
- 527- 565 AD Justinian ruled from Ravenna and
Constantinople - Building program included the Hagia Sophia
24Charles 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
25Eastern/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
26West vs. East
- 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
27The 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.
28The Inquisition
- 1231 Gregory IX instituted the Inquisition
(holy office) to fight Heretics - 1256 Papal Bull permitted Inquisitors
(Dominicans and Franciscans) to use torture
29Martin 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
30John 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.
31Henry 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!
32Holidays/Symbols
33Christmas 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
34First 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
35Christmas 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.
36Mistletoe 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.
37Santa 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.
38Candy 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
39Preparation 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
40Fat 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)
41Ash 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)
42Holy Week Begins
43Palm Sunday
- Celebrates the beginning of the week of the
Passion (holy week) - When Jesus entered Jerusalem and walked on palm
leaves
44Maundy Thursday
- Represents the last supper
- From Latin mandatum meaning new commandment
- represents the commandment Jesus gave the
disciples regarding communion - Washing of feet
45Good 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
46Easter 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
                      Â
47Pagan 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