Comprehensive Exam Study Set - History of Christianity

St. Benedict of Nursia (480-543 A.D.)

"The patriarch of western monasticism." He was educated in Rome, where the licentiousness of the society drove him to withdraw from the world and become a monk. Eventually, a community was established around him and he took them to Monte Cassino. He reformed monasticism and established the Rule of St. _________. Rod Dreher famous writes that his rule saved western culture and preserved the faith in the west.

Pope St. Agatho

( r. 678-681) Held councils in the West to prepare the way for the 6th ecumenical council--Constantinople III-- to which he sent legates and a letter. The council condemned Monotheletism.

St. Justin Martyr

(105-165 A.D.) He was a talented philosopher and adhered to multiple philosophies before he became a Christian. He founded a school in Rome where one of his students was Tatian the Syrian. He was the most important philosopher and apologist of his day and is the patron saint of apologists. He and several companions were eventually martyred.

Henricians

(1116-1145) Followers of the itinerant preacher Henry the Monk. They rejected the disciplinary and doctrinal authority of the Catholic Church.

St. Cyprian of Carthage

(205-258 A.D.) Bishop of Carthage (present day Tunisia). He was a pagan rhetorician who converted to Christianity. He was profoundly influenced by Tertullian, and would often say "give me the master," referring to the books of Tertullian. After the Decian persecution (about 250), he decided that the lapsed should be able to return to the church after suitable penance. During the schism of Novatian (concerning the question of the lapsed), he decided that the heretics should be rebaptized if they want to become orthodox Christians since there is no salvation outside of the church. Extra Ecclesiam Nulla Sallus.

St. Gregory the Wonderworker

(213-273 A.D.) He was converted to the faith by Origen and later consecrated to be the first bishop of Neocaesarea in Pontus. His appellation Thaumaturgus means "wonder worker" and is based on the many miracles he is said to have performed.

St. Antony of Egypt

(250-356 A.D.) He was born in a region known as Herakleopolis Magna. He was one of the first and most popular ascetics to retire to the desert. St. Athanasius wrote a biography about him which popularized his from of monasticism. "The Life of St. Antony" was the first great piece of biography that praised the humble and monastic life rather than a life of military or intellectual conquests. Athanasius' account of him in the desert reflects Scriptural descriptions of the wilderness, as a place of testing and of temptation, since Scripture says that the wilderness is where sin goes off to. Antony went into the desert and fought temptations in the form of wild beasts.

Eusebius of Caesarea

(263-340 A.D.) He is known as the Father of Church history for his writings on the history of the early church. He was trained in the Origenist tradition and he maintained a hatred of Modalism all his life. This tendency was what originally made him sympathetic to the Arian cause. He tried to find a middle ground between Arianism and orthodoxy but eventually subscribed to the Nicene Creed. He was the bishop of Caesarea in Palestine and was a close advisor to Constantine the Great. Though he accepted the Nicene Creed, his acceptance was half-hearted and he continued to be an opponent of Athanasius.

Constantine the Great

(272 - 337) The first Roman emperor to convert to Christianity. His conversion was prompted by private revelation given to him at the battle of Milvian Bridge in 312 A.D. It was here that he defeated Maxentius and then attributed his military victory to Christ. He then gave toleration to Christianity and wanted to bring peace and unity in the church so that it could be allied with the interests of the state. He convened the council of Nicaea in 325 to decide on the validity of Arianism and he also made rulings against the Donatist schism. The sincerity of his faith is commonly debated by scholars and he was not baptized until the day before his death, as was common for many in his day. He is immeasurably important for the development of the church's understanding of how she should live with the state. He made Sunday a public holiday in 321 and he liberally donated church buildings to Christians. He established a precedent of the empire controlling the eastern church and had the unforseen consequence of making the bishops of Rome the most important organizational figures in the west.

St. Athanasius of Alexandria

(295-373 A.D.) A doctor of the Church. He accompanied St. Alexander of Alexandria to the council of Nicaea and then succeeded him to become the patriarch of Alexandria. He was a strong defender of Christian orthodoxy against Arianism and most specifically defended the teaching of the Triune God. Arian influence managed to expel him from his see five times, but he regained his office each time. __________ contra mundum __________ "against the world"

Didymus the Blind

(313-398 A.D.) Blind layman who became a major theologian and author. He was the last head of the catechetical school of Alexandria, Egypt, two of his notable students being St. Jerome and Rufinus of Aquileia. He was known for his kindness and for the fact that he shared some of Origen's unorthodox views. Most of his writings are lost to us today. He was condemned as an Origenist at the Council of Constantinople in 553.

St. Hilary of Poitiers

(315-367 A.D.) Doctor of the Church. He converted from paganism and though he was married, he was elected a bishop of Poitiers in what is now France. He was a strong opponent of the Arians and is known as the "Athanasius of the West." He was exiled for a short time but eventually regained his office.

St. Cyril of Jerusalem

(315-386 A.D.) A Doctor of the Church and bishop of Jerusalem. He lived during the Arian crisis and was expelled from his office three times due to his orthodox beliefs, but he gained it back each time. He famously known for his lectures given to catechumens. He is known for disputing the use of the term homoousios since it was man-made, and he spoke w/ Gregory of Nyssa about this.

St. Basil of Caesarea

(330-379 A.D.) A Doctor of the Church. He was the bishop of Caesarea in Cappadocia (now Kayseri, Turkey) and a defender of Trinitarian theology during the worst time of the Arian crisis. He is one of the three Cappadocian fathers and is also known as St. ______ the Great. He became a monk and then preached Christian missions with Gregory of Nazianzus. He defended orthodoxy against the Emperor Valens. He defended the deity of the Holy Spirit against the Pneumatomachi, and emphasized the threefold personhood of God. He is also famous for establishing churches, hospitals, and hostels for the poor. He organized a social welfare movement for people in Caesarea. His theology was championed at the Council of Constantinople in 381, shortly after his death.

St. Gregory of Nazianzus

(330-389 A.D.) His is known as "the Theologian" and he was very influential at the Council of Constantinople, being a friend of St. Basil of Caesarea and St. Gregory of Nyssa, the three Cappadocian Fathers. He, along with Basil, has an extended treatment on the Holy Spirit in his writings. His most famous works are the "Five Theological Orations" and the "Philocalia," which is a collection of Origen's writings that he collected in conjunction with Basil.

St. Gregory of Nyssa

(335-394 A.D.) The younger brother of Basil the Great. He decided against becoming a clergyman and married, but was later persuaded to return to an ecclesiastical career. He was consecrated bishop of Nyssa (now a ruin just north of Harmandali, Turkey). He participated in the First Council of Constantinople and was a strong defender of Trinitarian orthodoxy. He was one of the three great Cappadocian Fathers.

St. Ambrose of Milan

(338-397) Bishop of Milan, Italy and one of the four original doctors of the church. He became bishop before his baptism since he was a distinguished government official who both the Arians and Catholics felt would be a good and tolerant bishop. He is famous for guiding Augustine into the church through his powerful preaching and through teaching Augustine to read Scripture allegorically. He also stood and protected the basilica in Milan against the empire's forces who tried to overcome the church and establish an Arian bishop.

St. Jerome

(347-419 A.D.) One of the four original Doctors of the Church. Originally from Dalmatia (modern day Croatia), he was educated in Rome and attended the council of Rome in 382 and became the secretary of Pope Damasus. He is famous for learning Hebrew and translating the Latin Vulgate. His uncertainty about the canonicity of the Deuterocanonical books was followed in the Reformation, when the Reformers generally wanted to return to the Hebrew canon. It is important to note, though, that Jerome eventually agreed with/submitted to the church's ruling on the matter. He was involved in numerous theological controversies, including Arianism, Pelagianism, and Origenism.

Theodore of Mopsuestia

(350-428 A.D.) He was born in Antioch but later became the bishop of Mopsuestia (now Yakapinar, Turkey). He was a friend of St. John Chrysostom yet was supposed by some to have been a Nestorian. His person was condemned at the Second Council of Constantinople due to these allegations. It is likely that he influenced Nestorius and was more "Nestorian" than Nestorius himself.

St. John Chrysostom

(359-407 A.D.) A Doctor of the Church. Originally from Antioch in Syria, he became the patriarch of Constantinople. He was an extraordinary preacher and was named "golden mouth." His sermons were known for balancing the spiritual and literal interpretation as well as giving a practical application. His most famous work as a churchman was when he helped prevent Theodosius from destroying the city of Antioch and preached sermons to comfort the Antiocheans and prepare them for the afterlife in case his mission failed.

St. John Cassian

(360-435 A.D.) He operated in Bethlehem, Egypt, and Rome before settling in Marseilles, France. He founded a monastery for men and women in Marseilles and is possibly responsible for the Semi-Pelagianism movement. He and many of the monks with him rejected Pelagianism but were also uncomfortable with all of Augustine's teachings, so they wanted a middle way (i.e. semipelagianism). His writings on monasticism were influential to St. Benedict's Rule.

St. Patrick

(387-460 or 493 A.D.) Born to Roman parents in Great Britain, he was captured by Pirates and taken to Ireland where he was sold into slavery. Following private revelation, he escaped and returned to Ireland as a missionary bishop. His mission was authorized by Pope St. Celestine I.

Theodoret of Cyrus

(393-466 A.D.) He was the bishop of Cyrus and played an important role in the Nestorian and Monophysite controversies. He was deposed by the "Robber council" (Council in Ephesus, 449) which was declared null by Pope St. Leo I. The Second Council of Constantinople condemned his works as part of the "Three Chapters Controversy."

St. Fulgentius of Ruspe

(467-527 A.D.) Bishop of Ruspe (Now the ruin Thelepete, near Feriana, Tunisia). He thought on grace and predestination and his views are similar to that of St. Augustine of Hippo. He gave up a career in civil service to become a monastic and was persecuted by the Arian king Thrasamund.

St. Caesarius of Arles

(469-542 A.D.) He was the bishop of Arles in what is now France. He was the most prominent French bishop in his day and presided over the Second Council of Orange which condemned Semi-Pelagianism.

St. Benedict of Nursia

(480-550) "The Patriarch of Western Monasticism." His life is recorded by Pope St. Gregory the Great. Benedict grew up in Rome where he experienced extreme wealth and worldliness, so he withdrew from the world to a cave. Eventually, a community rose up around him and they moved together to Monte Cassino. Here, he reformed monasticism and wrote the Benedictine Rule.

Pneumatomachianism

(4th c. heresy, literally the "Spirit fighters" or "combators" against the Holy Spirit) While accepting the divinity of Jesus Christ as affirmed at Nicea in 325, they denied that of the Holy Spirit which they saw as a creation of the Son, and a servant of the Father and the Son. These figures, supposedly led by Macedonius of Constantinople, opposed the Cappadocian Fathers and were condemned at the Council of Constantinople (381)

Proba

(4th century) _______ came from a wealthy Roman family and was most likely raised in Roman pagan tradition before converting to Christianity sometime before embarking on her literary career. She combined the poetry of Virgil with biblical themes to emphasize the eternal and heroic aspects of Christianity. She is famous for writing theological poetry on the creation of Adam and Eve and of the birth of Christ. Her works were later used in Roman classrooms to teach upper-class children as they subtly combined the pagan history of the past with Christian ideals.

St. Gregory of Tours

(538-594 A.D.) Bishop of Tours in what is now France. He was highly respected as a church leader and wrote a 10 book work on the history of the Franks.

St. John of Damascus

(676-749 A.D.) A Doctor of the Church. John was born in Damascus in the modern state of Syria. He served for a time as an official for the Muslim Caliph, though he left the position to become a monk and priest in the monastery of Mar Saba, near Jerusalem. He wrote much on opposing iconoclasm and about the Assumption of Mary. The date of his death is considered the end of the period of the Church Fathers.

St. Polycarp of Smyrna

(68-155 A.D.) Bishop of Smyrna and was a hearer of the apostle John. He wrote a letter to the Phillipians and some of Ignatius of Antioch's letters are addressed to him. He is also likely the teacher of St. Irenaeus during his time in Turkey.

Brethren of the Free Spirit

(c. 1250) They apparently believed that they could be entirely liberated from conventional moral norms through attaining perfect union with God, and were accused in particular of sexual profligacy. They also believed that they could attain to perfection apart from the help of the church. They thought the sacramental life of the church was unnecessary.

Elizabeth of Spalbeek

(c. 1267) She was a beguine who is known for her prophesies and being sought out by French royals to seek her advice in sorting out accusations of murder and other secret sins. She famously obtained bodily wounds on her body called the stigmata, similar to St. Francis' experience. Her body reportedly conformed into the image of Christ's body. In many ways, her hagiographical records present her as a female St. Francis. She would regularly mimic the events of the Passion in her body, as if she was both the victim and the tormentor. There came to be some accounts of her that doubted her religious authority and power to be divinely possessed. They saw Francis' stigmata as an attribute only males could have.

St. Papias of Hierapolis

(c. 130 A.D.) Bishop of Hierapolis (now Pamukkale, Turkey) and friend of St. Polycarp of Smyrna. He conducted interviews with those who had heard the apostles' teaching and as a result wrote Explanation of the Sayings of the Lord. Though only fragments of it survive, it remains an invaluable source of information for the early church.

Tatian the Syrian

(c. 170 A.D.) Originally a pagan, he became a Christian. He went to Rome and was student of St. Justin Martyr. After his education in Rome, he went back to the Middle East and founded the Aquarii or the "Encratites." The Aquarii (Greek, "Water-ites") were an extremist group who insisted on using water in communion and were rigorously ascetic.

Origen of Alexandria (185-254 AD)

(c. 185-254). Alexandrian biblical critic, exegete, theologian, and spiritual writer. He became the head of the catechetical school in Alexandria after Clement of Alexandria was forced to flee the city. He wrote a number of works including Against Celsus, a response to a non-Christian critique of Christianity, and On First Principles, an exposition of Christian doctrine as it was understood at that time. He is known for being the most "invisibly present" figure in early church history. His writings on subordinationism influenced Arius, his threefold sense of Scripture was the literal, the moral, and the allegorical, he wrote that all spirits were created equal but all would be saved in the "Apocatastasis." He is also famous for his mystical theology which highly influenced eastern Christian thought.

Docetism

(c. 1st-2nd century) Belief that Jesus' physical body was an illusion, as was his crucifixion; that is, Jesus only seemed to have a physical body and to physically die, but in reality he was incorporeal, a pure spirit, and hence could not physically die. This view is essentially an attempt to protect the divinity of Christ, since God cannot "change" by becoming a human and entering corruption. This view was common in Gnostic circles.

Caius of Rome

(c. 210) Priest in Rome during the reign of Pope Zephyrinus. His work, A Disputation with Proclus (a critique of Montanism) survives in fragmentary form which is contained in the works of Eusebius. He also is referred to as Gaius.

Leporius

(c. 426 A.D.) A French monk who was expelled from his monastery because of his unorthodox beliefs. He held that Christ was two separate persons, one human person and one divine person, though the Nestorian controversy had not yet risen. He also may have held Pelagian ideas. Following his expulsion, he found his way to St. Augustine in North Africa where Augustine convinced him to believe orthodox theology. Augustine helped him develop an accurate profession of the faith which was sent back to the French bishops with a letter of Augustine's recommendation for ______.

Pseudo-John

(c. 550 A.D.) An unknown author writing in the name of the apostle John in the 6th century. This work is known today as The Assumption of Mary. The belief that the BVM, having completed her earthly life, was in body and soul assumed into heavenly glory

St. Clement of Rome

(c. 70 A.D.) Probably the first or second successor of St. Peter (most commonly held to be the third, after Linus and Cletus). He wrote a letter to the Corinthians some time in the late first century which was even read as Scripture for a time in Corinth. His letters are important for understanding early orthodoxy's understanding of church order and authority: Clement issued a call to repentance, insisting that God required due order in all things and that the deposed presbyters must be reinstated and legitimate superiors obeyed. The Apostles 'appointed bishops and deacons' in every place, and it was they who gave directions how the ministry should perpetuate itself.

Julian of Norwich

(d. 1417) She was a mystic who lived in a cell and had many visions from Christ. Her work is the first book in English that we have from a woman. She lived during the Hundred Years War and her theology is characterized by tenderness, which was different from the emphases in her surrounding culture. She is famous for saying: "All shall be well, and all manner of things shall be well." Women were not able to teach at this time, but Julian worked around this by characterizing her message as "revelations" rather than teaching. Her most famous work is "Revelations of Divine Love."

St. Melito of Sardis

(d. 177 A.D.) The Bishop of Sardis (now Sart, Turkey). He was a prolific author yet little of his life is known and few of his writings survive. His most famous work is Apology for Christianity that was written for Emperor Marcus Aurelius. His christology was verty anti-GNostic (he wrote against Marcion by saying that Christ's humanity was real)

St. Hippolytus of Rome

(d. 235 A.D.) He is known as the first "anti-pope" and is the only anti-pope to be named a saint. He was a priest in Rome who came into conflict with Pope St. Zephyrinus. When Zephyrinus died and Callistus took his place, Hippolytus broke communion and his followers named him the new Pope of Rome, making him the first anti-pope. In 235 he was exiled to the island of Sardinia with the current Pope St. Pontianus. They were reconciled and then martyred together, which is why _____ is named a saint. Most of his writings are now lost.

Novatian of Rome

(d. 258 A.D.) A prominent priest in Rome who became an anti-pope following the election of Pope St. Cornelius. He led a schismatic movement which had similar theology to orthodoxy yet included overly-rigorous requirements. Their main rigorous claim was that those who associated w/ paganism could not come back into the church.

St. Methodius of Phillipi

(d. 311). The bishop of Phillipi (modern Filippoi in Greece) and a strong opponent of Origen's teachings. He was martyred shortly before Constantine came into power. Most of his writings are lost.

St. Alexander of Alexandria

(d. 326) Patriarch of Alexandria and mentor of Athanasius. He combated the Arians and participated in the first council of Nicaea. He was one of the most respected bishops at the council.

Arnobius of Sicca

(d. 330 A.D.) An early Christian apologist who was first a pagan anti-Christian apologist. He later converted to Christianity and proved his sincerity to the bishop by writing a 7-volume treatise against paganism. Lactantius became one of his students.

St. Cyril of Alexandria

(d. 444 A.D.) A Doctor of the Church. He was known to be a harsh man who dealt cruelly with his ideological enemies, including Jews, Novatians, and even St. John Chrysostom. Some of his followers brutally murdered the female pagan philosopher Hypatia, although there is no evidence that this was done by Cyril's direction. He is most famous for his controversy w/ Nestorius, the patriarch of Constantinople. Cyril persuaded Pope Celestine to convene a council in 430 to condemn Nestorius' teaching. At the council of Ephesus in 431, Cyril assumed control and had Nestorius condemned before Nestorius' Antiochine allies could arrive.

St. Vincent of Lerins

(d. 445 A.D.) He was a priest and monk a the monastery on the island of Lerins outside of France. Though he appears to have held Semi-Pelagian ideas, he is highly regarded in Church history and is known for his argument that all Christian doctrine is to be interpreted in accord with Christian Tradition, which is what has been believed "everywhere, always, and by all."

St. Prosper of Aquitaine

(d. 455 A.D.) A layman and monk from the Aquitaine region of what is now France. He was an opponent of Semi-Pelagianism and wrote to St. Augustine about this issue. He later served in Rome under Pope St. Leo I.

St. Patrick

(mid or late 5th c.) "The apostle of the Irish." Patrick was a British Christian who was captured by Irish pirates and then lived as a herdsman in Ireland. He later heard a vision from God, escaped Ireland, and then returned back to Ireland to evangelize.

Pope St. Dionysus

(r. 260-268 A.D.) He held a regional council in Rome that defended the orthodox view of God against Modalism and Subordinationism. He also ransomed Christians in Turkey who had been enslaved by barbarian tribes.

Pope St. Julius I

(r. 337-352) He held a regional council in Rome and wrote a defense of St. Athanasius of Alexandria. He was a firm opponent of the Arians and a defender of the primacy of the papacy. He initiated the calling of the Council of Sardica of 343 to deal with the Arian crisis, but many Eastern and Arian bishops did not participate.

Pope St. Damasus I

(r. 366-384 A.D.) He changed the liturgical language in Rome from Greek to Latin and commissioned St. Jerome to translate the Latin Vulgate. He also presided over the regional Council of Rome in 382 which defined the canon of the New Testament.

Pope St. Innocent I

(r. 401-417 A.D.) His papacy endured the sacking of Rome by the Goths, yet he was a vigorous defender of Papal primacy. He made the most substantial claims for the power of the papacy than anyone did before him. He said that all major theological disputes should be brought before the Pope.

Pope St. Celestine I

(r. 422-432) A Pope opposed various heretical groups of his day. He wrote against Pelagianism, semipelagianism, and Nestorianism. He sent legates to the Council of Ephesus and commissioned St. Patrick to go on mission in Ireland.

Pope St. Leo I

(r. 440-461 A.D.) A Doctor of the Church who faced many barbarian invasions during his reign as pope. He is famous for successfully negotiating with Attila the Hun and convinced him to turn back and not sack Rome. More of his writings survive today than any other pope. He is most famous for his theological contributions during the Nestorian controversy. His "Tome" was instrumental in coming up with the term "hypostatic union" to describe the relationship between the humanity and divinity of Christ in one person of the Trinity.

Pope St. Gregory I

(r. 590-604 A.D.) One of the four original doctors of the Church. He sold his possessions and established monasteries and became a monastic himself. He was eventually drawn from the monastery and became the Pope of Rome. He helped with social welfare in Italy and gave the people organization and power apart from Constantinople who tried to govern them from afar. He is also known for bringing missionaries to England. He is commonly referred to as "____ the Great"

St. Columba

- 521-597 AD - Founded Iona, a monastery dedicated to scholarship and mission work that spread southward

According to Bruce Metzger, what were the three criteria that led to biblical books being recognized as canonical?

1) Orthodoxy (teaches a message that conforms to the church's rule of faith) 2) Apostolicity (being written by an apostle or someone who knew the apostles) 3) Consensus (the book must be recognized and read in all the churches. This means that regionally popular books like the Shepherd of Hermas are worthy of reading, but it is not on par with Scripture because it has not been globally recognized)

Athenagoras of Athens

133-190, Ante-Nicene apologist and philosopher who wrote an apology to Marcus Aurelius and Commodus, wrote Embassy for the Christians (a plea for justice for Christians). He is the first apologist to elaborate a philosophical defense of the Christian doctrine of God as Three in One.

Lactantius

4th century theologian and rhetorician who became an aid to Constantine. He is famous for tutoring Constantine's sons and writing "Divine Institutes" which argued for the reasonableness of Christianity against pagan critics. He was the pupil of Arnobius of Sicca and acted as a Christian apologist.

Nestorianism

4th-5th c. heresy from Nestorius, taught that there were two separate Persons in the Incarnate Christ, the one Divine and the other Human (as opposed to the orthodox teaching that in the Incarnate Christ was a single Person, at once God and man); whether Nestorius ever taught this is disputed. This view is famous for arguing that Mary should be called the Christotokos rather than the Theotokos, since she bore only the man and not the divine.

According to Stephen Neil, what are the monastics famous for doing between these two periods: 500-1000 1000-1500

500-1000: Monks were mainly attempting to convert the European barbarian tribes to Christianity 1000-1500: Monks were primarily trying to "Christianize" nominal and uneducated European Christians

Ebionites

A Jewish sect that insisted on the necessity of following Jewish law and rites, which they interpreted in light of Jesus' expounding of the Law. They regarded Jesus as the Messiah but not as divine. Some Ebionites were angel adoptionists (affirmed divine power in Jesus) while some emphasized his adherence to the law and his example in doing so.

Sibylla (c. 1240)

A beguine who was known for her exceptional piety and eventually condemned for potential fraud. She reported ecstatic visions in which she was being taken up into heaven. She refused food and was in a constant state of trance as well as demonic attack. Many Franciscans praised her as a living saint. Church authorities even built her a church for her visions. Later, though, she came to be accused of fraud and a young priest who accompanied her was also uncovered. The apparently made a demon costume and pretended to be in constant battles with demons to fool the church authorities into thinking she was divinely possessed.

Monarchianism

A common thread in discussions on Christology and Trinity in the early church. Fundamentally, it is an emphasis on the indivisibility of God (the Father) at the expense of the other "persons" of the Trinity leading to either Sabellianism (Modalism) or to Adoptionism.

Clare of Montefalco (d. 1308)

A medieval mystic who reportedly had marks of Christ's crucifixion on her heart, and her autopsy proved to her community that she was divinely possessed. After her autopsy, she was canonized as a saint.

Arius/Arianism. Who was Arius, what did he teach, and how did Origen influence him?

A priest in Alexandria and born in Libya. He does not deny the son's Divinity (understand gradation of divinity; like divine and saint). Arius presumed a graded hierarchy of divinity, and tried to connect Prov 8 with John 3:16. Scriptures were clear that there was a time when the Son was not (Prov shows Son being brought forth). He highlights the difference between begotten and Created. He gets this understanding from his particular reading of Origen's Christology, because the "substance" of the Son is secondary.

Semipelagianism

A rejection of Pelagianism which held that Augustine had gone too far to the other extreme and taught that grace aided free-will rather than replacing it. This was taught by Vincent of Lerins. This view was offically condemned by the Council of Orange in 529, which slightly weakened Augustine's extreme statements while also affirming predestination, so long as we do not affirm dual predestination, which teaches that God predestines some to Hell.

Pelagianism

A view espoused by Pelagius, a British monk in the late 4th century. Belief that original sin did not taint human nature and that mortal will is still capable of choosing good or evil without Divine aid. Pelagius taught, much to Augustine's dismay, that Adam and Eve represent the neutral state into which every person is born in. We do not need divine grace, but we can receive it if we are not strong enough.

Blandina

A virgin slave girl martyred in 177 at Lyons, together with *Pothinus, the bishop of the city. She is an important figure for performative Christology as she stood in cruciform while she was being killed. She was martyred along with Pothinus, the 92 year old bishop in Vienne and Lyons.

Olympias

A wealthy young widow of Constantinople who became the close friend of John Chrysostom. ______ used some of her fortune to build a monastery for women in Constantinople, which she oversaw. She was also ordained as a deaconess. Palladius in the Lausiac History gives a brief account of ________.

Melania the Elder

After losing her family, she converted to Christianity and renounced the world, traveling to Egypt to live in a monastery. Unlike other Christian converts, ________ did not give away her worldly goods and used her substantial wealth to support Christian communities and initiatives. She founded two monastic orders in Jerusalem. She was known for being the most educated Christian woman about whom we know. She regularly read the works of Origen and the Cappadocian Fathers.

What is the difference between pre-Chalcedonian Alexandrian "Word-flesh" Christology and Antiochian "Word-man" Christology? How did Chalcedon strike a balance between these two views?

Alexandrian "Word-Flesh": Apollinarian in tendency, argues that Christ is fully divine and that his being consists in one divine nature which is made up of divine intelligence and flesh. In its most extreme forms, it essentially denies the full humanity of Christ, at least in saying that Jesus does not have a fully human mind and will. Antiochian "Word-Man": Nestorian in tendency, argues that Christ is fully God and fully man but that these two natures are distinct from one another. Its extreme form resulted in Nestorianism which had the danger of making Jesus' human and divine natures too independent from one another, dividing Jesus into two persons. Chalcedon balanced these two views by coming up with the solution of the hypostatic union and the communicatio idiomatum, much to the thanks of Leo the Great.

Montanism

An Early Christian (around the late 2nd c.) dualist belief system. Marcion affirmed Jesus Christ as the savior sent by God and Paul as his chief apostle, but he rejected the Hebrew Bible and the Hebrew God. Marcionists believed that the wrathful Hebrew God was a separate and lower entity than the all-forgiving God of the New Testament.

Marcionism

An Early Christian dualist belief system. Marcion affirmed Jesus Christ as the savior sent by God and Paul as his chief apostle, but he rejected the Hebrew Bible and the Hebrew God. Marcionists believed that the wrathful Hebrew God was a separate and lower entity than the all-forgiving God of the New Testament.

The Acts of Paul and Thecla

An apocryphal work that describes the adventures of Paul and _____ during the Acts of St. Paul. It was hugely popular in the early church and was copied into several different editions. The story talks about how Thecla left her betrothed husband to follow Paul's ascetic example, and that they were both saved from execution. ____'s name become a virtual synonym for the heroic and virtuous Christian woman. It is also important to note that in the story, Paul tells Thecla to go and preach the Word.

Around what time in Europe was the practice of slavery ended due to the Christian worldview?

Around the late 10th century in Europe. It was replaced by serfdom, a state of life which most scholars agree was better than being a slave in the ancient world. "Slavery," in the strict sense of the word, rose once again by the early modern period.

Why was the destruction of the Temple in 70 A.D. a turning point in church history?

Because it was this moment that caused Christianity to depart from Judaism and become a more distinct religion. It moved away from being centered in the synagogue and moved towards the structure of bishops, priests, and deacons. This event also caused the church to rely more on a fixed canon and creed as it spread further into the Roman Empire.

Monophysitism (Eutychianism)

Belief that Christ's divinity dominates and overwhelms his humanity. Eutyches, a prominent teacher for this view, was excommunicated in 448 and his view was then rejected at Chalcedon in 451.

Adoptionism/Ebionism

Belief that Jesus was born as a mere (non-divine) man, was supremely virtuous and that he was adopted later as "Son of God" by the descent of the Spirit on him. A common variant of this view is "angel adoptionism," which argued that Jesus was a virtuous man who was adopted by God when the "Christ angel" descended on him at baptism. This means that "Jesus Christ" refers to the man Jesus and the indwelling angel named "the Christ." This view was fundamentally an attempt to recognize a sort of divinity in Christ while also protecting monotheism as well as encouraging believers to imitate the virtuous life of Christ.

Patripassianism

Belief that the Father and Son are not two distinct persons but that the Son is the "mode" or incarnation of the Father, and thus God the Father suffered on the cross as Jesus. This view was strongly denounced by Tertullian in the 3rd c.

Saint Augustine of Hippo

Bishop, saint, and philosopher from Hippo. He is arguably the most influential philosopher and theologian in western thought. His primary issues were interpreting Scripture allegorically (Neoplatonism, especially in regard to reading the OT), writing on the Trinity (the psychological analogy: the mind, and the knowledge by which it knows itself, and the love by which it loves itself."), Manichaeism (him turning away from the teachings of Mani in Confessions), Donatism (unity of the church, are the sacraments effective because of the minister's purity/impurity? Or because of Christ's power?), Pelagianism (Are humans born in a neutral moral state like Adam and Eve or do we have original sin?), Just war Theory (Some wars can be valid if: it is a last resort, there is a just cause, it is under valid authority, there is probable success, and if there is an exit strategy)

Who were some of the primary popes and bishops who furthered the rise of the papacy into the middle ages?

Bp. Steven (255) used Mt. 16:18 to argue for papal primacy. Pope St. Damasus (d. 384) gave a formal definition of papal primacy. Pope Leo the Great (d. 461) helped bring unity at Chalcedon and then argued that the papacy was the spiritual power which was above earthly power Pope Gregory I (d. 604) was instrumental on providing for the poor in his area, writing the most important book on pastoral care, and was responsible for converting the Anglo-Saxons By 800, Leo III crowned Charlemagne the king of the Holy Roman Empire. More generally, the papacy was a critical force in bringing unity to a fractured western Europe as well as protecting Europe from Islamic invasions.

Justin Martyr (100-165)

Christian apologist who argued that Christianity was a more noble and superior philosophy to the classical world. He believed that the logos (Jn 1:1) could be found in classical theology and that Christianity can be predicted in the OT. He responded to Trypho and argued that worshiping Christ is no contradiction of monotheism, and he said that belief in Christ is the main hermeneutical principle for understanding the OT. He is known for his angelomorphic Christology which says that the "Angel of the Lord" appearances in the OT are preincarnate appearances of Christ. He is also famous for describing the order of the church's worship in terms that pagans could understand as well as developing Logos Christology. He was martyred under Marcus Aurelius in 165.

Muratorian Canon

Document from around AD 200, discovered by Lodovico Antonio Muratori, list of authoritative books of Scripture, contained 22/27 books in the current NT canon.

Savanorola

Dominican monk who was burned at the stake for speaking out against Pope Alexander VI, because of Alexander's excessive evil and worldliness.

Circumcellions

Donatist extremists who became violent religious fanatics, were infamous for attacking various communities in Augustine's North Africa.

Manichaeism

Founded by Mani a Persian sage from the third century, A major dualistic religion stating that good and evil are equally powerful, and that material things are evil. This group was also famous for their intensely literal biblical exegesis, which is starkly contrasted by Christian allegorical interpretation. Augustine of Hippo belonged to this group before he learned to read Scripture allegorically from Ambrose of Milan.

The policy of Iconoclasm

From late in the seventh century onwards some parts of the Greek Church reacted against the veneration of icons. In 726 the Emperor Leo III ordered the destruction of all icons and persecuted those who refused. The policy continued under his successors till about 780.

Thomas a Kempis

German monk (1380-1471), author of "the imitation of christ"; early northern christian writer who challenged individuals to live a godly life rather than focus just on knowledge. His movement is known as the Modern Devotion. He highly influenced the devotional life of John Wesley, especially in his message on receiving communion often.

What is one of Robert Louis Wilken's contributions to studies in early Christian historical theology in his book 'The Spirit of Early Christian Thought'?

He is praised in the academic community for interpreting most of the theological issues in the early church through the lens of theosis. All Christological and ecclesiastical issues have something to do with this.

What did the Roman General Titus say would happen when the Jewish Temple was destroyed in 70 AD? Why is this statement important for how we understand the distinction between Judaism and Christianity in the first century?

He said it should be destroyed "in order that Jewish and Christian religions may be demolished." This infers that Judaism and Christianity were both still connected to the Temple and synagogue at this point, making them much closer to one another than is usually imagined.

What did Apollinarius teach, and how did Athanasius influence him?

He shared with St Athanasius the conviction that only the unchangeable Divine *Logos could be the saviour of man with his inherently changeable and fallible mind or soul. This led him to deny explicitly (in a way that St Athanasius did not) the presence of a human mind or soul in Christ. While this enabled him to stress the unity of God-head and flesh in the person of Christ and to repudiate any conception of moral development in Christ's life, it carried the implication that Christ's manhood was not complete.

Tertullian of Carthage (160-240 AD)

He was a pagan lawyer who became a Christian. He was a powerful and punchy apologist who used a harsh style to critique his opponents. He argued for the toleration of Christianity in the pagan world on the basis that Christians were useful for the empire because of their hard work and prayers for the good of the empire. He defended the validity of the OT against Marcion and identified God as both just and merciful throughout all of history. He is also famous for the patripassianism debate against Praxeas, which said that God acted in three modes. He argued that if modalism is true, then God the father died on the cross, thus "patri (father) passianism (suffered)." He then took the approach of subordinationist trinitarianism. He is the first to coin the term "trinitas" to describe God in Scripture. In terms of his intellectual pursuits, he used Stoic philosophy and other types of philosophy as a tool when necessary, but he distrusted philosophy as a firm source of truth. He believed that Scripture is the ultimate source of revelatory truth. He also had a rigorous strain in him that compelled him to join the Montanist group later in life. He was particularly upset of the church's laxity in treating sexual sin in the clergy.

Why was the Council of Nicaea a turning point in church history?

It both set the tone for the most important affirmation of Christian theology: the divinity and humanity of Jesus Christ, and was the basis upon which further debates would come. It was also the moment that marks the increasing intermingling with the church and secular power. It resulted in both monastic and schismatic reactions. Ironically, the monastic reaction to Nicaea would include the people who were most formative in developing Nicene theology from 325 into the middle ages.

Who are the main figures who responded to Marcion's movement?

Justin Martyr, Irenaeus, and Tatian

Desert Mothers

Known as Ammas ('mothers'), they were the female counterpart to the better-known Abbas ('fathers') such as Saint Anthony the Great (also known as Saint Anthony of Egypt, 251-356 CE), credited with establishing Christian monasticism. Other women were famous writers who blended pre-Christian literature and philosophy with biblical precepts while still others contributed to building projects, social programs, and evangelical efforts while also supporting men whose contributions today are well known.

Margaret of Cortona (d. 1297)

Layperson (d. 1297) who practiced extreme mortification, experiencing ecstasies and visions, considered an exemplary Franciscan. Her early life consisted of luxurious self-indulgence as she was married to a nobleman, but her lover died and she was cast out. She then dedicated herself to the religious life. She felt that she was divinely-possessed and she self-identified as a saint. The Franciscan order eventually came to doubt her sincerity when she held long trances in church and reportedly was seen hanging from the church's cross. She went against society's values of women being silent and in control, with gnashing of teeth, twisting, and shouting. These behaviors caused many to believe she was demonically possessed. She lived the last years of her life as a penitent, but was later canonized as a saint.

In the writings of Origen, Augustine, and teachings of the middle ages, what is the fourfold sense of Scripture?

Letter: events that happened on the surface Moral: What you should do on the basis of the letter Allegory: What you believe and what the letter symbolizes on a deeper and more spiritual level Anagogical: Where you are destined to go Ex. Jerusalem Letter: Historical city of the Jews Moral: The human soul, since we should be pure Allegory: the church of Christ Anagogical: the heavenly city of God which awaits us

Why was the Council of Chalcedon a Turning Point in church history?

Mark Noll writes that there are three "triumphs" of Chalcedon: Sound doctrine over error, catholicity over cultural fragmentation, and theological-philosophical reasoning over anti-intellectualism. This council brought the Alexandrian and Antiochene camps together by balancing between apollinarian and nestorian positions. It also helped prevent the phenomenon of Alexandrian and Antioch competing for control over Constantinople. This council is also important for papal power: Pope Leo the Great bridged the two sides with the idea of the communicatio idiomatum and the hypostatic union. Mark Noll also argues that the Council of Chalcedon's christology is important for how we think about living both in the church and in the world.

Who were the main Roman Emperors to persecute Christianity?

Nero (64), Domitian (90), Marcus Aurelius (177), Decius and Valerian (mid third century), and Diocletian (beginning of fourth century)

In what way were Origen's writings important to the Arian controversy?

Origen says that if God is not the creator out of nothing, then there is no god, but he is a fashioner. If matter is corruptible, it is corrupted, and therefore has a beginning, yet Origen said that there was not a time when Christ was not. The substance of the Son is created being, and therefore, secondary. However, Origen also speaks of Christ's divinity, so the argument is on who is reading Origen well.

Paula

Roman matron who dedicated her life as a nun. She followed Jerome to Palestine and then founded a convent in Bethlehem. She is partially responsible for convincing Jerome to translate the Vulgate Bible.

Macrina the Younger

She is sometimes known as '______the Younger' to distinguish her from ______ the Elder', her paternal grandmother. By her strength of character she exercised a deep influence upon her brothers, esp. in winning Basil from a promising secular career for the Christian priesthood. She also established a flourishing community on the family estate in Pontus. The chief source for knowledge of her life is Gregory of Nyssa's Vita Macrinae Junioris, which also preserves a vivid account of their meeting at her deathbed. She is also the teacher of Gregory of Nyssa in his book 'On the Soul and the Resurrection.' Macrina is one of the most influential women for early Christian theology.

Hildegard of Bingen (d. 1179)

She received divine visions from an early age and became an abbess of a monastery. She advocated for the reform of monasticism in her context and was considered to have prophetic power. She is famous for her art, music, and powerful preaching. She is also notable for her depictions of Adam and Eve and other artworks which depict Adam and Eve in Native American style, as she had heard stories of the Vikings visiting these peoples in the New World. Her theology is often characterized as universal in nature. Her theology can be considered "universal" in the sense that her emphases connect with other religions in her experience, such as her emphasis on music and the godliness of sound, which she connects with "in the beginning was the Word..." This emphasis on the preeminence of sound is a Hindu idea.

Agnes

She was said to have been martyred at the beginning of the fourth century during Diocletian's persecution. She was about 13 when she was killed.

According to Nancy Caciola, who is the only female stigmatic (someone who has the wounds of Christ on their body) saint canonized in the middle ages? Why is this important?

St. Catherine of Siena, and her "wounds" were invisible. Caciola makes this point to say that the female body had to be interpreted differently in the middle ages, and it speaks to the fact that many authorities thought that the stigmata were something only males could have.

Ignatius of Antioch

The "God bearer." He is famous for being the bishop of Antioch and being taken from Antioch to Rome for martyrdom. Along the way, he wrote seven letters to local churches to exhort them in the faith and ask them not to try and free him. He desired to be martyred so that he might become the "wheat of Christ" and be torn by the lions. His letters have a high theology of the humanity and divinity of Christ, the eucharist, and they show a reverence for the see of Rome, though the bishop of Rome is not mentioned.

Augustine's Political Theory

The Church should not run the government and the government should not run the church. Nevertheless, since governments are transitory while the Church is eternal, the church ought to be the moral conscience and guide of the government in all times.

What was the Great Western Schism? (aka the Babylonian Captivity of the Church)

The From 1378-1414, there were three popes at once. In 1378, Urban VI was elected but showed signs of insanity amidst his reforming efforts. The cardinals also felt threatened by the Roman people to elect their favorite candidate, Urban. Then , the college of Cardinals withdrew to Anagni and elected Clement VII as pope, on the ground that the election of Urban VI had been done under duress from threats from the Roman people. Clement then set up his court in Avignon and he and Urban created conflict between the church in France and in Italy. The Concilarist movement then stepped in to solve the issue but only elected an additional pope, Alexander V--creating three popes. The schism was ended in 1417 when Martin V was elected pope.

The Christology of the Shepherd of Hermas

The book is a series of visions that Hermas received. He is guided by an angel in the form of a shepherd. The book speaks about one God and the nature of the Christian life. The book was very popular in the early church and was read by Origen. The book is adoptionistic in its Christology and it identifies the Holy Spirit with Jesus before the Incarnation, and it suggests that the Trinity only came into existence after the Incarnation.

Neoplatonism

The continuation of Platonic philosophy from c. 250-70, usually attributed to Plotinus. This philosophy is like Platonism but it is especially open to religious interests. It was very common with early Jewish and Christian figures. Characteristic of Neoplatonism is the doctrine of the three hypostases: the One, the ultimate unknowable source from which everything that exists emanates; Intelligence (or νοῦς), the realm of perfect intuitive knowledge; and Soul, the realm of discursive thought and activity. It is in this framework that figures such as Justin Martyr could say that the Father sent the Son (the Logos) as the mediator between God and man. The issue for the Neoplatonist, though, was in the Incarnation. They had no issue with believing that Jesus is the eternal Logos and mediator of the unknown "One" or "Father," but how could God in the Logos become incarnate? Does this not necessitate a "change" in the Godhead? If God changes, then He cannot be God.

Babylonian Captivity of the Church

The exile of the Popes to Avignon from 1309 to 1377. Philip IV, the king of France, attempted to tax and judge the clergy, which prompted Pope Boniface to publish Unam Sanctam, which argued that the papacy had authority over the earthly government. Then, Philip rallied supporters to arrest Pope Boniface. After this, the popes deserted Rome and moved to Avignon, France.

Sabellianism (modalism)

The general view that God the Father works in salvation history through three "modes" rather than being one God in three persons. This view was first formally advanced by Noetus of Smyrna and Sabellius in the late 2nd and early third centuries. In this view, the names "Father, Son, and Holy Spirit" only refer to the different "masks" or "roles" God plays at different times.

Clement of Alexandria (150-215 AD)

The teacher of a catechetical school in Alexandria before Origen became teacher there. He also argued that while the OT prepared the Jews for Christ, Greek philosophy prepared the Greeks for Christ. Each of them were part of God's reason that leads us to the Logos. He saw faith and reason as part of a single whole and argued against Celsus' attacks on the "unreasonableness" of Christianity.

Monothelitism

The view that Jesus Christ had two natures but only one will. This view attempted to explain the divine will and power in Christ and also indicated the soteriological hope for Christians to be completely conformed to the divine will.

Gnostic Antinomianism

The view that the NT law of grace overrides the OT law, making it unnecessary to live a holy life. Some gnostics (e.g. Ophites and Nicolaitans) taught that since matter was opposed to the spirit, the body was unimportant. This means that we can do whatever we want in our body, since it is corrupt anyways. Similar views were found among some anabaptists in the sixteenth century as a consequence of justification by faith and later among some sects in seventeenth century England.

Bauer Thesis

This thesis proposes that e 2nd-century church was very diverse and included many "heretical" groups that had an equal claim to apostolic tradition. _____ interpreted the struggle between the orthodox and heterodox to be the "mainstream" Roman church struggling to attain dominance. Bart Ehrman adapted this thesis and argued that early Christianity was actually composed of many "Christianities" that were wiped away as proto-orthodoxy won the day.

According to Nancy Caciola, why were women considered to be more prone to demonic possession than men in the middle ages?

Women as opposed to men were weak, gullible, and spiritually 'porous.' Medieval dictionaries used sex-specific words from the ancient world such as "vir" for man and "mulier" for woman. "vir" refers to virtue and strength while "mulier" refers to softness and weakness. Since woman is mulier, she is more susceptible to evil possession. Chronologically, by the 15th c., possessions in women were viewed as almost exclusively demonic.

According to Nancy Caciola, how did the medieval perspectives from the 15th c. on possession in women lead to the witch trials centuries after?

Women, according to Caciola, were now excluded from the privilege of possession by good spirits. Women were the easy and favorite targets of evil spirits, which Caciola argues was a precedent for the witch-hunting craze in the 1430s: "Indeed, witchcraft is an extreme but logical conclusion of the shifts in the interpretation of possessed behaviors engendered by the discernment of spirits."[1] The writers quoted by Caciola believed themselves to be living in an age where demon-possessed women were trying to subvert the natural order of the church, and the answer was to depend on church hierarchy apart from lay revelation.

Irenaeus of Lyons

a late second-century bishop of the church at Lyons. He was originally born in Smyrna (north of Ephesus), the land of Polycarp (who may have discipled him or at the very least, taught him when he was a boy). Later, he left Asia Minor and became the bishop in Vienne and Lyons, Gaul (modern day France). He is known for his peacemaking efforts in the Quartodeciman controversy (battle between east and west where he was the bridge) as well as his efforts in giving toleration for the Montanists. He is most famous for writing Against Heresies in which he identifies and refutes many Gnostic heresies and establishes the "Rule of Faith" as a summary of the orthodox Christian faith and proper hermeneutic for interpreting the Bible. He also developed a doctrine of Recapitulation which argued that Christ "summed up all things" in himself. By doing this, Christ took on all aspects of human nature and restored fallen humanity to communion with God.

Perpetua and Felicitas

d. Mar. 203. They were imprisoned and martyred in the gladiatorial arena in Carthage. P was from a prominent family and refused her father's request for her to deny Christ and live for her family. F was the slave of P and died with her. The martyrdom account was possibly edited by Tertullian and it exhibits many features that were common to the Montanists, such as ecstatic visions and prophecy. These figures are important women in the early church and are important for discussions around "performative Christology."

Gnosticism

refers to a diverse, syncretistic religious movement consisting of various belief systems generally united in the teaching that humans are divine souls trapped in a material world created by an imperfect god, the demiurge, who is frequently identified with the Abrahamic God. This perspective is generally dualist, teaching that the body and matter is evil while the inward soul is good. The aim of each Christian is to be freed from our material body and have our divine spark within us escape materiality altogether.

Benedictine Rule

rules drawn up in 530 by Benedict, a monk, regulating monastic life. The Rule emphasizes obedience, poverty, and chastity and divides the day into periods of worship, work, and study

What edits did Marcion make to the biblical canon?

the OT needed to be abandoned by Christians. He also made edits to the New Testament and took books out that had too much of a Jewish emphasis (i.e. he only included Luke's Gospel and edited out any references to the Old Testament). He also only had ten letters of Paul, and he had these letters because of his interpretation that grace triumphs over the Jewish law, and therefore the law and anything to do with Judaism is now irrelevant and is to be associated with the evil God of the OT.

What were the general arguments against Marcionism that Justin Martyr, Irenaeus, and Tatian used?

· There are theological reasons important to Christian doctrine, identity reasons (i.e. we are the Israel of God, as Paul says), and some such as Bart Ehrman speculate that Christians wanted to maintain the OT so that they would be viewed as an ancient religion by Rome and have the protected status that the Jews used to have because of their antiquity. If Christians were viewed as a "new" and "strange" religion, which Pliny calls them (A strange superstition), then they would be persecuted and disrespected.

How did Irenaeus use apostolic succession to argue against Marcion and Gnosticism?

· the apostles knew of no doctrine like what the Gnostics and Marcionites were preaching. If the apostles did teach these things, they would have handed them down to the churches which we can trace back to the apostles to this day. Thus, for Irenaeus and many others in the early church, apostolic succession was a sure norm for the defense of the authentic Christian faith, and those groups which did not have apostolic succession could not be trusted to teach the true gospel.