The
first
“house
churches”
were
private
homes
that
were
converted into Christian churches.
Became known in Latin as
domus ecclesiae
.
The
rooms
were
often
adjoined
to
create
a
larger
gathering
space
that
could
accommodate
small
crowds
of
around
fifty
people.
Various
religious
and
ceremonial
purposes,
including
the
celebration
of
the
Mass,
the
baptism
of
Christian
converts,
storage of charitable items, private prayer and education.
After
Constantine’s
peace
around
315
Christians
no
longer
suffered persecution and began to build churches.
In
the
New
Testament,
salvation
and
eternal
life
are
transmitted
through
matter
and
the
word,
as
is
seen
in
St
Paul’s
bridal
imagery
for
the
Church:
“He
made
her
clean
by
washing her with water with a form of words” (Ep 5:26).
St
Paul’s
reference
to
the
bridal
imagery
of
Christ
and
His
Church
involved
the
expression
“mystery”,
a
term
which
is
capable of various interpretations (See Ep 5:32).
Origen
employed
the
expression
mystérion
to
refer
to
baptism
and
the
Eucharist,
and
by
the
beginning
of
the
fourth
century
this usage seems to be common.
Gradually,
in
the
West,
the
word
sacramentum
became
more
favoured to describe the rites.
In
the
year
256,
Pope
Stephen
wrote
to
Cyprian
stating
that,
in
accordance
with
Tradition,
heretics
should
be
reconciled
by
the
sacrament of penance, and not by re-baptism.
The
Donatists,
while
believing
that
re-baptism
was
necessary,
twisted
the
doctrine
of
baptism
to
their
own
end,
maintaining
that
as
they
really
had
the
sacrament
of
baptism
(and
this
could
not
be
denied
after
Stephen I had spoken), then they were the Church of Christ.
In
this
context,
St
Augustine
gave
the
word
sacramentum
the
refinements
which
have
remained
with
it
ever
since.
He
distinguished
between the sacramental sign (
signum
) and the grace content (r
es
).
In
this
formulation,
the
Donatists
received
the
sacrament
validly,
but
not
the
grace,
as
they
put
an
obstacle
in
the
way
by
opposing
the
true
Church of Christ.
The
Didaché
,
which
dates
from
around
100
AD,
speaks
of
a
rite
of
immersion
in
running
water,
but
also
of
a
triple
pouring
of
water
on the head of the candidate.
St
Hippolytus,
writing
around
the
year
215
gave
a
very
detailed
description
of
baptism
as
it
was
celebrated
at
Rome.
A
period
of
catechumenate,
even
as
long
as
two
or
three
years,
prepared
for
the sacrament.
The
whole
of
Tertullian’s
treatise
on
Baptism
which
is
the
oldest
monograph
on
this
sacrament,
dating
from
the
late
second
century, tacitly assumes that Christ instituted the sacrament.
St
Hippolytus
in
his
Treatise
on
the
Apostolic
Tradition,
dating
from
about
215
AD,
referred
to
the
Roman
rite
of
initiation,
where
the
Bishop
laid
hands
upon
the
candidates,
and
prayed
over
them.
He
then
poured
the
consecrated
oil
on
each
candidate
and
laid
his
hand
on
the
head
of
each
one,
reciting
the
formula:
“I
anoint
you
with
holy
oil
in
God
the
Father
Almighty
and
Christ
Jesus
and
the Holy Spirit.”
Tertullian
referred
to
three
distinct
phases
in
the
rite
of
Christian
initiation,
so
that
Confirmation
was
seen
as
a
sacrament
in
its
own
right:
“The
flesh
is
washed
that
the
soul
may
be
made
spotless;
the
flesh
is
anointed
so
that
the
soul
may
be
consecrated;
the
flesh
is
signed
with
the
cross
that
the
soul
may
also
be
protected;
the
flesh
is
overshadowed
by
the
imposition
of
the
hand
that
the
soul
also
may
be
enlightened
by
the
Spirit;
the
flesh
feeds
on
the
Body
and
Blood of Christ so that the soul as well may be replete with God.”
Thereafter,
the
theological
development
of
Confirmation
was
greatly
influenced
by
the
thought
of
a
certain
Faustus
who
was
Abbot
of
Lerins
and
then
bishop
of
Riez
in
Southern
France
during
the
second
part
of
the
fifth
century.
His
idea
was
that
Confirmation
equipped
the
Christian
to
be
a
soldier
of Christ:
Military
proceedings
require
that
when
a
commander
receives
a
man
into
the
number
of
his
soldiers,
he
should
not
only
put
his
mark
upon
him,
but
also
equip
him
with
arms
suitable
for
fighting.
So
the
Holy
Spirit,
who
descended
upon
the
baptismal
waters
bearing
salvation,
gave
at
the
font
all
that
is
needed
for
innocence:
at
Confirmation
He
gives
an
increase
of
grace,
for
in
this
world
those
who
survive
through
the
different
stages
of
life,
must
walk
among
dangers
and
invisible
enemies.
In
Baptism
we
are
born
again
to life, after Baptism we are confirmed for battle.
1
.
The
early
Fathers
expressed
their
faith
in
the
real
and
substantial
presence
of
Christ
in
this
sacrament.
In
the
first
centuries,
St
Ignatius
of
Antioch,
St
Justin
and
St
Irenaeus
argued
the
real
presence
of
Christ
in
the
Eucharist
against
the
Docetists, who did not believe in the reality of the Incarnation.
2
.
St Irenaeus taught the reality of Christ’s presence in the Eucharist:
Just
as
a
cutting
from
a
vine,
planted
in
the
earth,
bears
fruit
in
due
season,
and
a
grain
of
wheat,
falling
on
the
ground
therein
dissolves,
and
rises
again
with
large
increase
by
the
Spirit
of
God
who
sustains
all
things,
and
thereafter,
by
the
Wisdom
of
God,
becomes
fit
for
man’s
food,
and
at
last
receives
the
Word
of
God
and
becomes
a
Eucharist,
which
is
Christ’s
Body
and
Blood,
so
too
our
bodies,
nourished
by
the
Eucharist,
and
laid
in
the
earth there to suffer dissolution, will in due season rise again.
3
.
St
Augustine
highlighted
the
realism
of
continuity
between
Christ’s
flesh
which
hung
upon
the
Cross
and
the
Eucharistic
Christ:
On
the
other
hand,
St
Augustine
also
emphasized
the
spiritual
and
sacramental
manner
in
which
Christ’s
flesh
is
to
be
eaten.
Both
aspects
of
St
Augustine’s
thought
are
necessary
to
make
up
the
full
Catholic vision of the Holy Eucharist.
Sacramental approach
Then it shall come to pass that the Body and Blood of Christ will be life to each one, when that which is received visibly in the sacrament is in very truth spiritually eaten, spiritually drunk.Realism
From Mary’s flesh He took flesh. And because in His very flesh He walked on earth, and because His very flesh He gave us to eat for our salvation and no one eats that flesh unless he has first adored it... we find how not only do we not sin by adoring, but we sin by not adoring.
4
.
In
the
Didaché
(around
the
year
100),
the
idea
of
the
Sacrifice
of
the
Mass
can
be
found,
though
not
of
course
in
its
fully
developed
form:
“On
the
Lord’s
own
day,
assemble
in
common
to
break
bread
and
offer
thanks;
but
first
confess your sins so that your sacrifice may be pure.”
5
.
St
John
Chrysostom
expressed
the
link
between
the
Sacrifice
of
Calvary
and
the Sacrifice of the Mass:
For
Christ
is
everywhere
one
complete
Body.
Just
as
He
is
one
Body
and
not
many
bodies
even
though
He
is
offered
in
many
places,
so
too
there
is
but
one
sacrifice.
It
is
our
High
Priest
who
offered
the
sacrifice
which
cleanses
us.
So
we
offer
now
that
which
was
then
offered,
and
which
cannot
be
exhausted.
6
.
Faustus
of
Riez
deepened
further
this
theme
that
the
Lord
instituted
the
Sacrament of His Sacrifice:
And
since
Christ
wished
to
remove
His
Body
from
our
eyes
and
ascend
to
the
heavens,
it
was
necessary
that
He
consecrate…
the
Sacrament
of
His
Body
and
Blood,
so
that
what
was
sacrificed
once
and
for
all
as
our
Ransom,
may be constantly worshipped in the mystery constantly renewed.
7
.
The
school
of
Antioch
identified
the
real
Body
of
Christ,
born
of
the
Virgin
Mary,
crucified
and
risen
with
the
Eucharistic
Christ
and
thus
put
more
stress
on
the
Redemption,
the
saving
action
of
Christ.
On
the
other
hand,
the
school
of
Alexandria
saw
the
dignity
of
the
Eucharist
in
terms
of
the
Body
and
Blood
of
the
Word
which
create
union
with
Him
and
hence
put
more
stress
on
the
Incarnation.
1
.
In the early Church, confession and penance were public affairs.
2
.
If
a
person
committed
a
grave
sin,
they
had
to
ask
bishop
for
penance,
publicly
live
the
life
of
a
penitent.
In
the
post-apostolic
age
as
in
the
apostolic
one,
there
was
a
clear
distinction
between
everyday
sins
and
grave
ones.
Perhaps
in
the
early
Church
very
grave
sins
were
not
that
common,
and
it
is
in
this
context
that
the
severe
penitential
practice
of
early
Christianity
must
be
evaluated.
3
.
Exclusion from communion, strict course of prayer, fasting and almsgiving.
4
.
After this period of penance, return to normal Christian life.
5
.
Often could only be done once in a lifetime.
6
.
An
early
second
century
document,
the
Didaché
or
Teaching
of
the
Twelve
Apostles,
taught
that
everyday
or
venial
sins
could
be
expiated
by
prayer,
fasting, and almsgiving.
7
.
St
Ignatius
of
Antioch
drew
attention
to
the
same
process,
in
which
the
bishop
with
his
priests
determined
the
penance
which
the
penitent
must
perform:
“The
Lord
forgives
all
those
who
mend
their
ways
and
return
to
union
with
God and to communion with their bishop.”
8
.
In
the
third
century
Christian
East,
the
work
known
as
the
Didascalia
Apostolorum
maintained
that
all
sins
could
be
forgiven.
A
period
of
penance
(a
fast
of
two
to
seven
weeks)
was
imposed
after
excommunication,
followed
by
a reconciliation conveyed by the imposition of hands by the bishop.
9
.
In
the
fifth
century,
St
Leo
the
Great
did
not
introduce
private
confession,
but
rather confirmed this existing practice for private sins:
I
order
that
all
measures
be
taken
to
eradicate
the
presumptuous
deviation
from
the
apostolic
rule
through
an
illicit
abuse
of
which
I
have
learned
of
late.
In
the
procedure
of
Penance…
there
should
be
no
public
confession
of
sins
in
kind
and
number
read
from
a
written
list,
since
it
is
enough that the guilt of conscience be revealed to the priests alone in secret confession.
1
0
.
By
the
early
part
of
the
sixth
century,
a
new
penitential
discipline
had
arrived
from
Ireland
and
England
to
France
and
thence
to
Spain.
This
new
concept
permitted
reconciliation
to
penitents
as
often
as
they
asked
for
it.
The
new
approach
solved
the
problem
of
many
Christians,
who
having
fallen
into
grave
sin,
because
of
the
heavy
and
disabling
public
penance,
felt
that
they
must
wait
until
there
was
a
danger
of
death
before
being
reconciled.
As
a
matter
of
fact,
in
the
English
and
Irish
Churches,
the
practice
of
once-only
reconciliation and public penance never really became established.
1
.
Both
Gospel
of
Mark
(Mark
6.13)
and
Letter
of
James
(James
5:14-15)
speak
of
disciples and elders carrying on the healing ministry.
2
.
Prayer with and over the person.
3
.
Anointing in the name of the Lord.
4
.
In
the
Apostolic
Tradition,
dating
from
around
the
year
215
and
attributed
to
Hippolytus,
a
rite
for
the
blessing
of
the
oil
of
the
sick
by
the
bishop
was
indicated at the end of the Eucharistic prayer.
5
.
A
letter
written
in
the
year
416
by
Pope
Innocent
I
to
the
Bishop
of
Gubbio
indicated
the
understanding
of
Anointing
of
the
Sick
at
that
time.
The
Pope
affirmed
the
continuity
of
this
sacrament
with
the
rite
mentioned
by
the
Apostle
St
James,
and
stated
that
the
oil
had
to
be
blessed
by
the
bishop;
however, priests could also perform the anointing.
6
.
Moreover,
Pope
Innocent
spoke
of
anointing
carried
out
by
lay
people,
but
this
must
be
considered
as
a
sacramental
rather
than
a
sacrament,
even
though the distinction was not clear at that time.
7
.
Victor
of
Antioch
described
the
significance
of
oil
in
the
sacrament
of
Anointing:
Now
oil
is
both
a
remedy
against
fatigue
and
a
source
of
light
and
gladness.
And
so
the
anointing
with
oil
signifies
the
mercy
of
God,
a
remedy
for
sickness and enlightenment of the heart.
1
.
It
is
evident
that
the
Apostles
shared
with
others
the
sacrament
of
Order
which
they
possessed
in
its
fullness.
Timothy
and
Titus,
whom
St
Paul
set
over the churches of Ephesus and Crete, enjoyed episcopal orders.
2
.
The
body
of
elders
gradually
developed
into
communities
ruled
by
one
bishop
and
a
college
of
priests;
a
system
involving
a
monarchical
episcopate
would have been in place by about 100 AD.
3
.
At
the
beginning
of
the
second
century,
around
100
AD,
St
Ignatius
of
Antioch
wrote about the threefold sacrament of order:
Let
everyone
revere
the
deacons
as
Jesus
Christ,
the
bishop
as
image
of
the
Father,
and
the
presbyters
as
the
senate
of
God
and
the
assembly
of
the
apostles. For without them, one cannot speak of the Church.
4
.
Clement of Alexandria [150-215 AD]
The Stromata
Book VI ch 13:
Even
here
in
the
Church
the
gradations
of
bishops,
priests,
and
deacons
happen
to
be
reflections
of
the
angelic
glory
and
of
that
arrangement
which,
the
scriptures
say,
awaits
those
who
have
followed
in
the
footsteps
of
the
apostles
and
who
have
lived
in
complete
righteousness
according
to
the
gospel.
5
.
Hippolytus [215 AD]
The Apostolic Tradition 9
:
When
a
deacon
is
to
be
ordained,
he
is
chosen
after
the
fashion
of
those
things
said
above,
the
bishop
alone
in
like
manner
imposing
his
hands
upon
him
as
we
have
prescribed.
In
the
ordaining
of
a
deacon,
this
is
the
reason
why
the
bishop
alone
is
to
impose
his
hands
upon
him:
he
is
not
ordained
to
the
priesthood,
but
to
serve
the
bishop
and
to
fulfill
the
bishop’s
command.
He
has
no
part
in
the
council
of
the
clergy,
but
is
to
attend
to
his
own
duties
and is to acquaint the bishop with such matters as are needful.
1
.
At
the
very
beginning
there
was
no
specifically
Christian
form
of
Marriage,
but
Christians
celebrated
it
like
other
people,
in
a
ceremony
presided
over
by
the
father
of
the
family,
employing
simple
rites
and
gestures
like
linking
the
hands of the man and woman.
2
.
A
Christian
rite
gradually
developed.
St
Ignatius
of
Antioch
remarked
that
the
faithful should obtain the bishop’s permission before contracting Marriage.
3
.
Tertullian
also
bore
witness
to
the
fact
that
Marriage
was
contracted
before
the
Church:
How
shall
I
be
able
to
describe
the
happiness
of
a
Marriage
which
the
Church
performs,
the
offering
of
the
sacrifice
ratifies,
and
the
blessing
seals,
to which the angels assent, and which the heavenly Father recognizes.
4
.
The
Tradition
of
the
Church
concerning
Matrimony
gradually
but
surely
unfolded.
From
the
third
to
the
fifth
centuries,
three
concepts
were
often
repeated by the Fathers.
•
One
of
these
was
that
Christian
marriage
is
a
symbol
of
Christ
and
His
Church,
and
this
idea
is
found,
for
instance
in
the
writings
of
St
John
Chrysostom and St Ambrose.
•
A
second
notable
theme
is
that
marriage
confers
grace,
as
Tertullian
and
Origen did not hesitate to point out.
•
Third,
the
elevation
of
Marriage
to
the
order
of
grace
occurred
at
the
Marriage
Feast at Cana, according to St Cyril of Alexandria and St Maximus of Turin.
5
.
Furthermore,
St
John
Chrysostom
stressed
the
complementary
nature
of
marriage and virginity:
Whoever
denigrates
marriage
also
diminishes
the
glory
of
virginity.
Whoever
praises
it
makes
virginity
more
admirable
and
resplendent.
What
appears
good
only
in
comparison
with
evil
would
not
be
truly
good.
The
most
excellent
good
is
something
even
better
than
what
is
admitted
to
be
good.
6
.
St
Augustine
stressed
the
goodness
of
marriage
against
the
Manichaeans,
who
taught
that
matter
in
general
and
Marriage
in
particular
were
evil;
he
firmly
stated
that
the
three
goods
of
Marriage
were
fidelity,
children
and
a
sacrament.
7
.
In
the
West,
the
Christian
vision
of
Matrimony
was
bound
up
with
Roman
law.
Here
the
consent
of
the
couple
was
the
determining
factor.
The
man
and
woman
came
to
be
seen
as
the
minsters
of
the
sacrament
of
matrimony.
For
this
reason,
until
the
time
of
the
Council
of
Trent,
so-called
clandestine
marriages were considered valid in the West.
8
.
In
Eastern
Christendom,
on
the
other
hand,
right
from
ancient
times,
priests
and
bishops
actively
participated
in
the
celebration
of
Marriage,
along
with
the
parents
of
the
couple
or
even
replacing
them.
This
procedure
took
place
at
the
request
of
the
families
and
with
the
approval
of
the
state
authorities.
Gradually,
some
of
the
rites
which
were
originally
used
in
the
family
sphere
were absorbed into the liturgical rites.
9
.
Thus,
in
the
East,
it
became
accepted
that
the
ministers
of
the
mystery
of
Holy
Matrimony were not only the couple, but essentially the priest or bishop.
1
.
The
first
phase
was
mainly
concerned
with
the
lawfulness
of
celebrating
Easter
on
a
weekday.
2
.
The
Christians
of
Asia
Minor,
following
the
Jewish
chronology,
and
appealing
to
the
authority
of
the
apostles
John
and
Philip,
celebrated
the
Christian
Passover
uniformly
on
the
fourteenth
of
Nisan
(which
might
fall
on
any
of
the
seven
days
of
the
week)
by
a
solemn
fast;
they
fixed
the
close
of
the
fast
accordingly,
and
seem
to
have
partaken
on
the
evening
of
this
day,
as
the
close
of
the
fast,
of
the
Eucharist,
as
the
Christian
Passover
and
the
festival
of
the
redemption
completed
by
the
death
of
Christ.
The
Eucharist
on
the
evening
of
the
14th
(or,
according
to
the
Jewish
mode
of
reckoning,
the
day
from
sunset
to
sunset,
on
the
beginning
of
the
15th)
of
Nisan
was
celebrated
in
memory of the Last Supper of Christ.
3
.
This
observance
did
not
exclude
the
idea
that
Christ
died
as
the
true
paschal
Lamb.
For
we
find
among
the
Fathers
both
this
idea
and
the
other
that
Christ
ate
the
regular
Jewish Passover with his disciples, which took place on the 14th.
4
.
The
Roman
Church,
on
the
other
hand,
likewise
appealing
to
early
custom,
celebrated
the
death
of
Jesus
always
on
a
Friday,
the
day
of
the
week
on
which
it
actually
occurred,
and
His
Resurrection
always
on
a
Sunday
after
the
March
full
moon,
and
extended
the
paschal
fast
to
the
latter
day;
considering
it
improper
to
terminate
the
fast
at
an
earlier
date,
and
to
celebrate
the
communion before the festival of the Resurrection.
5
.
Nearly
all
the
other
churches
agreed
with
the
Roman
tradition
in
this
observance, and laid the main stress on the resurrection-festival on Sunday.
6
.
The
difference
came
to
a
head
first
on
a
visit
of
Polycarp,
bishop
of
Smyrna,
to
Pope
Anicetus,
between
150
and
155
AD.
It
was
not
settled;
yet
the
Pope
and
the
bishop
parted
in
peace,
after
the
Pope
had
charged
his
venerable
guest
to
celebrate the Mass in his church.
7
.
The
controversy
boiled
up
again
more
strongly
between
190
and
194.
Pope
Victor
I
required
the
Asiatics
to
abandon
their
Quartadeciman
practice.
Against
this
Polycrates,
bishop
of
Ephesus,
solemnly
protested
but
Victor
turned
a
deaf
ear,
branded
the
Asiatics
as
heretics,
and
threatened
to
excommunicate them.
8
.
Many
of
the
Eastern
bishops,
and
even
Irenaeus
(though
he
agreed
with
Victor
on
the
disputed
point)
earnestly
reproved
him,
and
reminded
Victor
of
the
fraternal
conduct
of
Anicetus
to
Polycarp.
Irenaeus
proved
himself
a
true
peacemaker
on
this
occasion,
and
his
vigorous
protest
seems
to
have
prevented the schism.
9
.
The
Quartodeciman
minority
remained
faithful
to
their
previous
practice
throughout
the
whole
of
the
third
century,
and
the
Novatians
in
Asia
Minor
followed them in this.
1
0
.
The
second
stage
in
the
Easter
controversy
centres
round
the
Council
of
Nicaea (AD 325) and it ruled:
•
that
Easter
must
be
celebrated
by
all
throughout
the
world
on
the
same
Sunday;
•
that this Sunday must follow the fourteenth day of the paschal moon;
•
that
that
moon
was
to
be
accounted
the
paschal
moon
whose
fourteenth
day
followed
the
spring
equinox;
that
some
provision
should
be
made,
probably
by
the
Church
of
Alexandria
as
best
skilled
in
astronomical
calculations,
for
determining
the
proper
date
of
Easter
and
communicating
it
to
the
rest
of
the
world.
1
1
.
The
third
stage
in
the
Easter
controversy
centres
round
the
praxis
in
England
and Ireland:
•
The
Roman
missionaries
coming
to
England
at
the
time
of
Pope
St
Gregory
the
Great
found
the
British
Christians,
the
representatives
of
that
Christianity
which
had
been
introduced
into
Britain
during
the
period
of
the
Roman
occupation,
still
adhering
to
an
ancient
system
of
Easter
computation
which
Rome itself had by then abandoned.
•
The
use
of
the
Alexandrine
computus
over
the
British
and
Irish
cycle
was
decided
at
the
Synod
of
Whitby
in
664
AD.
The
Alexandrine
computus
was
finally
adopted
by
the
Irish
colonies
in
northern
Britain
in
the
early
eighth
century.
