The city of Ephesus became the Seat of Bishops where a Council of Bishops resided until as late as 431 A.D. However, at the time referred to by Christ in Revelation 2:1-7, they were commended for refusing to allow a hierarchy of clergy to develop. The Apostolic division of the Church Age would have ended with the death of the last Apostle; the Apostle John at Ephesus in 101 A.D. The end of the Apostolic Period began what came to be known as the Patristic Period of Church history.

The Patristic Period: 101-312 A.D.

     This was a time of great persecution upon early Christianity by both Judaism and the Roman Emperors. This period of Church history is represented in the book of Revelation by Christ’s epistle to the local church at Smyrna.

“8 And unto the angel of the church in Smyrna write; These things saith the first and the last, which was dead, and is alive; 9 I know thy works, and tribulation, and poverty, (but thou art rich) and I know the blasphemy of them which say they are Jews, and are not, but are the synagogue of Satan. 10 Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer: behold, the devil shall cast some of you into prison, that ye may be tried; and ye shall have tribulation ten days: be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life. 11 He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; He that overcometh shall not be hurt of the second death” (Revelation 2:8-11).

     This period of Church history is also referred to as the period of the Church Fathers. I do not like either of the terms Patriarch or Church Fathers. This is a phrase adapted from the Old Testament Scriptures referring to Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and the original twelve sons of Jacob making up the twelve tribes of Israel. There is no such phraseology referring to either the Apostles or those that followed directly after them. Those individuals who were trained directly by the Apostles came to be called Apostolic Fathers. The next few generations after the so called Apostolic Fathers were called Fathers of the Church or simply the Church Fathers in that many early church traditions were established by them and much of the early systematic theology was written by them. Although there were some extra-biblical practices that came into being shortly after the death of the Apostles, these practices were not necessarily unbiblical. Many of these extra-biblical practices would evolve into false doctrine.

     The Church has but one Father and one Author. He is God. Although there were many great Christians down through history who contributed to a continuum of faithful believers, they gave birth to nothing spiritual and they had no power to create anything. They were merely God’s instruments. Both the terms Patristic and Church Fathers reek of Apostolic Successionism. There is (and was) no such thing as Apostolic Successionism. The authority of the Apostles ended with the Apostles death and continued in every Christian only in the authority of the preaching of the inspired Words of God. The vast majority of errors and heresy regarding Ecclesiology can be traced to a false authoritarianism that is connected to the false teaching regarding Apostolic Successionism. Therefore, at the very beginning of our studies, let us point this out and disconnect it at every level of history.

Clement of Rome (30 A.D. – 100 A.D.)

     It is believed by many that this is the Clement Paul referred to in Philippians 4:3, who would become the Bishop (Senior Pastor) of the Church at Rome. Clement became well know in Church history due to an epistle he penned to the Church at Corinth dealing with divisions. This epistle would become a document of considerable influence during this period of Church history to usher in the idea of external unity among various local churches. Perhaps this was due to Clement’s view of the Church as also a universal and mystical organism. Robert R. Williams1 states:

      “Clement was the first among the Fathers to stress the distinction between the visible and the invisible Church, between the mystical Body of Christ and the actual fellowship on earth.”

     This statement may be a huge leap in logic from Clement’s actual view of the Church, but it does lay the foundation for the false doctrine that evolved from it. Earl D. Radmacher2 quotes from Clement’s Letter of the Church of Rome to the Church of Corinth.

     “When Clement speaks of the local church, he always qualifies the use of ekklesia with a descriptive adjective or phrase. In the salutation of his letter to the Corinthians he says: ‘The church of God living in exile in Rome, to the church of God exiled in Corinth.’ Again he speaks of them as ‘the solid and ancient Corinthian Church.” The local church is also spoken of as ‘Christ’s flock.’ ”

     Although it seems obvious from Clement’s letter to the Church of Corinth that he refers to the Church corporate, there is really nothing in this letter that would lead anyone to understand the doctrine of the Church any differently than what is taught by the Apostles. It is also obvious that others that followed Clement in history began to put more emphasis upon the Church corporate than what the reading of the New Testament Scriptures intended. This led to a pursuit of unity between various local churches and later to the Ecumenical Councils that would deal with various heresies as they arose within Christianity as a community. It would appear from the New Testament epistles that Christ intended for these various doctrinal corruptions to be dealt within individual local churches rather than by a communal decision. It was not that gathering a number of Pastors from various local churches to discuss a particular theological matter together was unbiblical. It became unbiblical when the decision(s) of the community were forced upon individual local churches or upon a group of local churches. By the late 4th century and early 5th century, this practice of communal decisions by a group of local church pastors led to the Council of Bishops taking away varying degrees of local church autonomy and leading to a hierarchy of Bishops.

Ignatius of Antioch (35 A.D. - 110 A.D.)

     Ignatius was a contemporary of the Apostle John and was theologically trained by John. Ignatius is credited with numerous letters that became very influential within early Christianity up through the 5th century A.D. There are seven letters that we can be sure were written by him:

► To the Ephesians
► To the Magnesians
► Letter to the Trallians
► To the Romans
► To the Philadelphians
► To the Smyrnaeans
► To Polycarp, Bishop of Smyrna

     Although Ignatius did not really stray in any real way from the emphasis of the Scriptures upon the local church, he is credited as the first to use the term Universal or Catholic Church for the Church corporate. It still seems clear that Ignatius is using this term in reference inclusively of all local churches corporately and not to an organization in any form. However, this bad terminology would lead to bad theology.

     “Since, also, there is but one unbegotten Being, God, even the Father; and one only-begotten Son, God, the Word and man; and one Comforter, the Spirit of truth; and also one preaching, and one faith, and one baptism; and one Church which the holy apostles established from one end of the earth to the other by the blood of Christ, and by their own sweat and toil, it behoves you also, therefore, as ‘a peculiar people, and a holy nation,’ to perform all things with harmony in Christ.3 ” (underlining added)

     “From whom we also derive our being, from His divinely-blessed passion, that He might set up a standard for the ages, through His resurrection, to all His holy and faithful {followers}, whether among Jews or Gentiles, in the one body of His Church4 . ” (underling added)

     We must be careful here to point out that Ignatius’s writings are not inspired Scripture. Ignatius writings are merely his interpretation of Scripture (mainly Ephesians chapter 4) and his extrapolations of that understanding in application. His writings and interpretations are given considerable weight because he was taught doctrine directly by the Apostle John. Although his interpretation and even application are correct in most part, the idea of an Universal Church as a functional entity prior to the Kingdom Age is an extra-biblical idea that would be extrapolated to extreme degrees in years after Ignatius’s death. In later years, this idea of the Universal Church would evolve to become the Church as the Kingdom of God on earth.

     Other language of Ignatius was also later used to establish hierarchal polity with the Church. It seems clear in history (and in the practice of the early local churches) that there was a multiplicity of “elders” (Pastors) in most local churches. It also seems apparent that there was one of these “elders” who functioned as the Bishop (Senior Pastor or Ruling Elder).

“And when they had ordained them elders in every church, and had prayed with fasting, they commended them to the Lord, on whom they believed” (Acts 14:23).

“Paul and Timotheus, the servants of Jesus Christ, to all the saints in Christ Jesus which are at Philippi, with the bishops and deacons” (Philippians 1:1).

“1 Rebuke not an elder, but intreat him as a father; and the younger men as brethren... 17 Let the elders that rule well be counted worthy of double honour, especially they who labour in the word and doctrine” (I Timothy 5:1 & 17).

     Therefore, a hierarchy of “elders” (Pastors) and deacons evolved within individual local churches from a misunderstanding of what Ignatius said. Ignatius writes of this hierarchy of rule or order within local churches.

“Let all things therefore be done by you with good order in Christ. Let the laity be subject to the deacons; the deacons to the presbyters; the presbyters to the bishop; the bishop to Christ, even as He is to the Father.5 ”

     We fine here Ignatius’s explanation of the teaching of the Scripture regarding delegation of authority. Christ delegated and transposed His authority over the Church to the Bishop. The Bishop delegates authority to the Presbyters (other Pastors under his administration and “rule”). The Presbyters delegate authority to the Deacons, who are given authority in the tasks they are appointed to do. This is clearly local church and is parallel to the Apostolic simplicity of the New Testament epistles. This position would first develop into what came to be known as organic unity. Organic unity was the movement toward corporate unity among all individual local churches. However good and noble this was in its beginnings, it would later evolve into a hierarchal Episcopacy in Roman Catholicism

Polycarp of Smyrna (69 A.D.-155 A.D.)

     Polycarp was another contemporary of the Apostle John and was theologically trained by John. Polycarp lived 45 years beyond Ignatius’s death. The Apostle John was the Bishop of the Church of Ephesus while Polycarp was the Bishop of the nearby Church of Smyrna. He would have been a very young man compared to John the Apostle. We have the letter of Polycarp to the Philippians where Polycarp uses similar language about the Church as did Ignatius. As with Ignatius, his use of the phrase Universal or Catholic Church is used in Apostolic simplicity to refer to all local churches corporately throughout the world. We have three separate statements by Polycarp in this epistle to the Philippians.

“The church of God that sojourns at Smyrna to the church of God that sojourns at Philomelium, and to all those of the holy and Catholic Church who sojourn in every place.6” (underling added)

“By his patient endurance he overcame the wicked magistrate and so received the crown of immortality; and he rejoices with the apostles and all the righteous to glorify God the Father Almighty and to bless our Lord Jesus Christ, the Saviour of our souls and Helmsman of our bodies and Shepherd of the Catholic Church throughout the world.7 ” (underling added)

“And the whole crowd marveled that there should be such a difference between the unbelievers and the elect. And certainly the most admirable Polycarp was one of these [elect]; in whose times among us he showed himself an apostolic and prophetic teacher and bishop of the Catholic Church in Smyrna.8 ” (underling added)   

 Irenaeus of Lyons (Gaul, what is now France; somewhere between 115 to 125 A.D. – 202 A.D.??)

     It is believed that Irenaeus was raised in a Christian home and grew up in the local church of Smyrna under the Pastoral leadership of Polycarp. His birth date and time of death are in question. Some believe he may have been born as late as 140 A.D. If this is the case, he would have been about 15 years of age at the time of Polycarp’s martyrdom. If the earlier dates are correct, he could have been as old as 40 years of age at the time of Polycarp’s death.

     Irenaeus would have been born at the beginning of historic period of the Church Age known as the Age of Persecution as detailed in Christ’s epistle to the local church of Smyrna in Revelation 2:8-11. Smyrna was a very important city within the Roman Empire and the cultus of Roman paganism. Geographically, Smyrna was located about 35 miles Northwest of Ephesus at the West end of the Hermus Valley where the Hermus River empties into the sea at the head of a gulf. Historically, Smyrna was a very ancient city. Aeolian Greeks before 1000 B.C probably settled it. The city was destroyed by Alyattes of Lydia about 600 B.C. and remained so for about 300 years. It was re-established under Alexander the Great’s empire about 290 B.C. The present Turkish city of Izmar continues to thrive there.

     In 26 A.D., the citizens of Smyrna appealed to Rome to build a Temple to Emperor Tiberius. It was chosen out of eleven applicants to become the site of the second Asian Temple to Caesar. As a result, Smyrna became a central seat of the Caesar Cult. The citizens of Smyrna had been avid worshippers of Caesar from as early as 195 B.C. (even though it was Domitian, 81-96 A.D., who first declared himself Kurios and god). Now with the Temple here, her zeal was greatly increased. The city was said to wear a crown of porticoes that referred to the roofs of the temples and municipal buildings that crowned the surrounding hilltops. As a result, the city was referred to as the Crown of Asia. The faithful Caesar worshippers were promised a crown of life. Christ states (Rev. 2:10) that He will give the real “crown of life” (I John 5:11-12) to His faithful followers.

     Within the city of Smyrna there was a street called the Street of Gold. It began at the Temple of Zeus (the supreme deity of the ancient Greeks) and ended at the Temple of Cybele (the goddess of nature). There were close to 300,000 people in Smyrna at this time. About 70,000 of them were Christians.

     Smyrna was noted for its extreme loyalty and faithfulness to Caesar. Perhaps it is to the Temple erected to Tiberius (and representing all later Caesars) that Christ refers to as the “synagogue of Satan” in that the many Jews living in the city were dualistic and syncretistic in their acceptance of both Emperor worship and that of YAHWEH.

     In order to understand what evolved (and Roman religion is an evolution) into the Caesar Cult, it is necessary to understand the religious history of the Romans. Originally the Roman god was just an unnamed impersonal force that pervaded and controlled nature. Central to their individual responsibilities was the need to be involved in rituals and sacrifices that preserved the peace of the gods. Therefore, the Romans were careful to make offerings at each meal to those spirits that provided the harvest and the spirits that watched over their food supplies in storage.

     After the Romans conquered the Greeks, they began to adopt the names of the Greek gods for their unnamed spirits. They translated these names into Latin. Thus the Greek god Zeus became the Roman god Jupiter. He made his will known through thunder and lightning. The Greek god Ares became the Roman god Mars. He was second in importance only to Jupiter. He was the god of war.

      The Greek god Hera became the Roman god Juno. She was a female deity responsible for women and marriages. The second half of the month of June was when she was said to be the most active and therefore it was the most favorable time for marriages. The Greek god Poseidon became the Roman god Neptune. He was the god of the waters (rivers and seas). The Priests of Neptune were known in the Latin as PONTIFEX (bridge builders). Their high priest was known as PONTIFEX MAXIMUS (High Priest). This individual was an elected official and supervised all of the religious calendar and sacrifices.

     Understanding a few of the other gods of Rome may also help us to understand why Christians could have no involvement with this whole system, let alone its worship of false gods. Venus was the Roman name given to the Greek goddess Aphrodite. She was the goddess of love (meaning sex and fertility) and beauty. In Corinth alone there were over 1,000 sacred prostitutes as part of the cultus of Rome. This involved the worshippers in sacred orgies and love feasts.

     Eventually (probably because of their many military victories), the family of Caesars (the Julian family) came to be accepted as divine or deities. From this developed the cultus of Emperor worship. Domitian is the first recorded Caesar (Emperor) to take the title of Master and God (96 A. D.).

     The requirements of individuals to this Caesar cult were intent more upon developing a consensus of loyalty to Rome among all the conquered peoples then it was religious. Those who refused became objects of close scrutiny as to their loyalty to the Roman Empire. That is why those who were seen as having only religious reasons for not doing so were exempted (such as the Jews).

     Prior to the vast spread of Christianity, Jews and early Christians were exempt from being required to take part in Emperor worship. When this exemption was no longer given to Christians, and if they failed to offer the yearly-required pinch of incense to declared their worship and loyalty to Caesar, they were greatly persecuted.
Nero (in 64 A.D.) was the first Emperor to extend a major persecution of Christians. Domitian (81 A.D. to 96 A.D.) provided the next major persecution. By the time of Emperor Trajan (about 20 years later) a profession of faith in Jesus Christ was a capital offense if the person would not renounce their faith (it is unique that this was the same policy adopted by the Roman Catholic Church during the Inquisition).

     Polycarp, the Bishop of Smyrna, was executed for this, after his refusal to renounce Christ at the age of 86 about 156-160 A.D. The large number of Christians willing to die rather then renounce their faith in Christ confirms that the majority of Christians were not only monotheistic in their theology but also monolithic in their faith.

     There were ten successive imperial persecutions during this period of Church history by Roman Emperors attempting to annihilate Christianity: Nero, 64-68 A.D.; Domitian, 95-96 A.D.; Trajan, 104-117 A.D.; Marcus Aurelius, 161-180 A.D.; Severus, 200-211 A.D.; Maximinus, 235-237 A.D.; Decius, 250-253 A.D.; Valerian, 257-260 A.D.; Aurelian, 270-275 A.D.; and Diocletian, 303-313 A. D. Irenaeus grew up and lived within three of these eras of persecution, yet it is believed he was never martyred himself. If this is true, Irenaeus would have been the first of the so called Church Fathers who did not suffer martyrdom. During this period of extreme persecution while growing up in the city of Smyrna, which was a seat of the Roman cultus, the fact he was not martyred seems odd.

     Irenaeus can be credited with formulating four areas of deviation from the Apostolic simplicity of the local church organization:

1. The emphasis on organic unity over local church autonomy
2. The Universal Church as the divine custodian and dispenser of Truth (in the Council of Bishops)
3. The perpetual succession of Bishops from Christ laying the foundation for Apostolic Successionism
4. Salvation was limited to those in organic unity (obedient membership) within the Universal or Catholic Church (of course, it is true that only regenerated people are members of Christ’s “body,” I Cor. 12:13; however, becoming a member of the “body” was not the “door” to salvation, salvation was the “door” into the “body”)

     Most of Irenaeus’s statements regarding the Church come from his successive series of five books entitled Against Heresies written to combat the rising integrationism of Gnosticism into Christianity. The Gnostics were teaching that they possessed a secret tradition of Truth (Gnosis) that came from Jesus Himself. Irenaeus argued against such a notion by detailing an intricate succession of Bishops of which none were Gnostics. Therefore, the Gnostic claim to possess true Knowledge (Gnosis) must be false. Irenaeus believed true Knowledge was passed down through the years from Christ through the Council of Bishops. Thus, the first hint of Successionism is found in his first volume.

“The Church, though dispersed throughout the whole world, even to the ends of the earth, has received from the apostles and their disciples this faith.9 ” (underling added)

     No one would disagree that we receive inspired Truth from God through the Apostles. No one would disagree that the Church corporate was (and is) the depository of that Truth and the intended guardian of that Truth. However, there is a difference between Truth and truth. There is the verbally inspired Truth of the Scriptures that came through the Apostles. There is also truth that is derived from the correct interpretation of inspired Truth. However, there is a difference between inspired Truth and truth derived from inspired Truth.

     During the beginnings of early Christianity and the evolution of the doctrine of the Church, the systematic theologies that developed from the study of inspired Truth came to be viewed as equal with that Truth. As we have seen in the first 200 years of the history of the evolution of the doctrine of the Church, it is easy to see how terminology can evolve and distort the meaning of the original intent in the inspired Truth of Scripture. In this evolution, words begin to gather meaning beyond Scriptural definitions and the context of their use in Scripture. Such is the case with Irenaeus regarding the corporate Church as the Guardian of Truth through the succession of Bishops rather than the local church through the leadership of local church pastors:

“As I have already observed, the Church, having received this preaching and this faith, although scattered throughout the whole world, yet, as if occupying one house, carefully preserves it. She also believes these points [of doctrine] just as if she had but one soul, and one and the same heart, and she proclaims them, and teaches them, and hands them down, with perfect harmony, as if she possessed only one mouth. For, although the languages of the world are dissimilar, yet the import of the tradition is one and the same. For the Churches which have been planted in Germany do not believe or hand down anything different, nor do those in Spain, nor those in Gaul, nor those in the East, nor those in Egypt, nor those in Libya, nor those which have been established in the central regions of the world.10 ”

     During every generation of Christianity a new “wind of doctrine” (heresy) would blow down the valley of humanity leading many simple and ignorant believers astray. When a new heresy like Gnosticism began to develop a large influence, the bishops of the local churches from the area of influence would gather together to discuss the heresy and develop a strategy to deal with it. These Councils of Bishops were born out of noble purposes and often resulted in some serious, in-depth theological discussion and developments. However, the decisions of these Councils of Bishops and the writings of influential men like Irenaeus began to be given considerations equal with Scripture. Apostolic authority was given to the decisions of these Councils as they began to view themselves as the Successors of the Apostles.

     Although different in organization, this same dynamic has continued within denominations and conventions of churches on many different levels. It is also continued in principle within recognized academic institutions such as Bible Colleges and Seminaries where highly educated academicians are viewed as the unquestioned guardians and disseminators of Truth.

     “We are in a position to reckon up those who were by the apostles instituted bishops in the Churches, and [to demonstrate] the succession of these men to our own times . . . Since, however, it would be very tedious, in such a volume as this, to reckon up the successions of all the Churches, we do put to confusion all those who, in whatever manner, whether by an evil self-pleasing, by vainglory, or by blindness and perverse opinion, assemble in unauthorized meetings; [we do this. I say] by indicating that tradition derived from the apostles, of the very great, the very ancient, and universally known Church founded and organized at Rome by the two most glorious apostles, Peter and Paul; as also [by pointing out] the faith preached to men, which comes down to our time by the means of the successions of the bishops. For it is a matter of necessity that every Church should agree with this Church, on account of its preeminent authority, that is, the faithful everywhere, inasmuch as the apostolic tradition has been preserved continuously by those [faithful men] who exist everywhere.11 ” (underlining added)

     This theological reactionism, born out of noble purposes to combat doctrinal heresy and entering into local churches, led to a theological redactionism of the Biblical doctrine of the Church, leading to numerous Ecclesiological heresies. The strong emphasis and desire for organic unity took precedent over the Scriptural doctrine of local church autonomy evolving into an organization that would almost completely pervert the doctrine of salvation, the doctrine of the Church, and a Christian world view leading to State Churches and theonomy.

     An important extra-biblical influence in the theology of Irenaeus was a book called the Shepherd of Hermas (Hermas was a slave who supposedly received five visions from God). The book comprises five visions, twelve mandates, and ten parables. Irenaeus, and later Tertullian (although there appears some resistance to this by Tertullian), quotes from the Shepherd of Hermas considering it inspired and Scripture. The Shepherd of Hermas was primarily about the Church and a call to repentance (internal purity and organic unity). Another important aspect of the Shepherd of Hermas in its influence upon Biblical interpretation of this period is that it relied heavily upon the allegorical interpretive methodology. This would lead many theologians in later years to adopt the allegorical interpretive methodology to the interpretation of all the Scriptures, especially regarding prophecy. Origen Adamantius of Alexandria would especially use and adopt this method. The Shepherd of Hermas would be the first instance where extra-biblical material was given equal weight with Scripture. It also led to what came to be known as the Adoptionist View of the Sonship of Jesus (i.e., Jesus was the adopted Son of God as opposed to His eternal existence).