Christian Spirituality and church history
By Tanja
What does it mean to be a Christian? What does your life look like as a Christian? Is a Christian the one with high privileges, the best positions and a pleasant lifestyle? Or should a Christian be like the Desert Monastic monks who devoted all their time to working hard, living a simple life and having a disciplined mind to know Christ? Should you only be a Christian if it is safe to live as one? What if there were risks, but what if those risks and disruptions magnified the glory of God in your life?
When you look at Church history, you will find that Christianity has spread rapidly, not only in one part of the world but everywhere. “Christianity’s center is always moving, always on a pilgrimage. The original center of Christianity was Jerusalem,”[1] however, Christianity has been the faith of many nations for two thousand years.
During the Roman period, Christians were known to be separate from the rest of Roman society because, as Christians, they could not worship other gods of Roman religion.[2] They firmly believed in the Jewish roots of having one true God. [3] This angered Roman thinkers who were polytheistic; their policy was “one of tolerance and peaceful coexistence among all cults”.[4] The persecution of Christians became quite intense during this period. The most severe persecution of Christians was during the reign of emperor Galerius (305-311). [5] He expressed his regret and even asked Christians to pray for his recovery when he became ill. [6]
The persecution of Christians ended when Flavius Valerius Constantinus, Constantine the Great, converted to Christianity.[7] He became a Christian when he put his trust in the Christian God during a battle in Rome against Maxenitus.[8] He saw a light in the sky in the form of a cross, with the inscription: “in hoc signo vinces,” (in this sign conquer). He then had a dream where Christ came to him and said those words, confirming how he should win his battle.[9]
Constantine showed favour to the Christians, and one of the things he did was legalise Christianity, giving the Christian religion respect and status.[10] Constantine issued the Edict of Milan with emperor Licinus. In this document they declared that people were able to choose what religion they wanted to follow; freedom of religion.[11]
Constantine continued putting his imprint on Christianity in several ways, from church leadership to church services, church buildings, church doctrine, and the holy day of rest.
Christian church leaders were given prestigious positions and had their work respected by society.[12] He also insisted that clergy wear respectable and beautiful clothing.[13] Churches and bishops no longer had to pay taxes and were given more land to build churches on. The Church was expected to serve the state, so it was granted tax-free status.[14] Constantine was involved in building famous churches such as the Church of Saint Irene in Constantinople,[15] St Peter in Rome, The Holy Specular in Jerusalem and The Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem.[16] The churches’ structure; were similar in that they had an atrium, naves and a sanctuary.[17] He inspired church music by introducing choirs and influenced church services and rituals by having the congregation kneel for prayer at the beginning of services. [18] He declared that the Lord’s Day of worship was to be observed once a week[19]on Sunday, the first day of the week.[20] He encouraged Bibles to be produced and gave Bibles away to Christians.[21]
He oversaw church doctrine coming together and arranged for bishops to meet to discuss the church creed. However, Constantine likely made this event possible with his financial means, and the event was hosted by him, rather than directly influencing doctrine.[22] Constantine settled disputes over Arianism, which argued that Jesus wasn’t divine but rather a created being.[23] The Nicene Creed helped to establish that Jesus was equal to God and outline Christian doctrines of the Trinity of God. [24]
Many Christians at that time believed that God had ordained Constantine to be in power because of the favour he showed them.[25] Other Christians were not too sure if it was a good thing the emperor was the one influencing people to come to church and be Christians. They didn’t see it as authentic Christianity. Many wanted to show that they could be true Christians by going to the desert of Egypt where they set up monasteries.[26] Other religions were suppressed at this time of favour for the Christians.[27] Christian leaders or monks who didn’t want a life of wealth or didn’t want property became “mendicant friars” or “wandering friars.” Their main aim was to connect with ordinary people and preach to them and they wandered from town to town.[28]
Constantine did not remove the worship of pagan gods in Roman society, nor were the pagan gods forgotten.[29] Constantine had his spirituality divided in half, as even though he looked to the Christian God for guidance, he was considered the “high priest” of paganism in his role as the emperor of Rome. [30] Constantine believed in the power of Christ, yet he only understood ‘power’ to be how God could help him be a victorious leader in his empire. [31] It was only on his deathbed that he was baptised. [32]
Constantine opened that door for Christianity to flourish, yet he continued to act as an emperor would. His influence on the church was enormous and his imprint on the structure of the church is significant. This impacted not only churches but also governments and the laws to come. Yet, even though he confessed to the Christian faith, he stood on the sidelines of full commitment to Christ.
It has been noted that we have been in the Constantine era until now, since there has been freedom of religion.[33] Christians have freedom to worship and to live out their Christian faith. Apostle Paul writes in Philippians that he knows what it is like to be in want and to have plenty, yet he urges Christians that “I can do all this through him who gives me strength.” (Philippians 4:11-13). True devotion to God and true revival come not only when we have complete peace and have all our material needs met, but sometimes in hard circumstances when we can see that God is the only thing, we need and the highest One we should desire.
[1] Timothy Keller, King’s Cross: The Story of the World in the Life of Jesus (London: Hodder, 2013), 124.
[2] Jo-Ann Shelton, As the Romans Did: A Sourcebook in Roman Social History, 2nd ed (New York: Oxford University Press, 1998), 408.
[3] Shelton, 408.
[4] Shelton, 408.
[5] Shelton, 416.
[6] Shelton, 416.
[7] Damien Casey, Gerard Hall, and Anne Hunt, Foundations of Christian Faith: Introduction for Students, 2004, 147.
[8] Shelton, As the Romans Did, 416.
[9] John P. Dickson, Bullies and Saints: An Honest Look at the Good and Evil of Christian History (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan Reflective, 2021), 59.
[10] Dickson, 62.
[11] Dickson, 62.
[12] Justo L. González, The Story of Christianity. Volume 1: The Early Church to the Reformation, Rev. and updated [ed.], 2nd ed (New York: HarperCollins, 2010), 142.
[13] González, 143.
[14] Dickson, Bullies and Saints, 78.
[15] González, The Story of Christianity. Volume 1, 145.
[16] https://www.thebiblejourney.org/biblejourney1/21-the-romanojewish-world-of-the-new-testament/constantine-the-helena-churches/
[17] González, The Story of Christianity. Volume 1, 145.
[18] González, 144.
[19] González, 143.
[20] https://www.britannica.com/topic/Sunday-day-of-week
[21] Dickson, Bullies and Saints, 72.
[22] Dickson, 73.
[23] Casey, Hall, and Hunt, Foundations of Christian Faith, 35.
[24] Veli-Matti Kärkkäinen, Christian Understandings of the Trinity: The Historical Trajectory, Christian Understandings (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2017), 51.
[25] González, The Story of Christianity. Volume 1, 147.
[26] González, 148.
[27] Shelton, As the Romans Did, 416.
[28] Casey, Hall, and Hunt, Foundations of Christian Faith, 147.
[29] González, The Story of Christianity. Volume 1, 139.
[30] González, 141.
[31] González, 139.
[32] González, 141.
[33] González, 131.zález, 131.
