First Century Church

[M. Demetrius]

During the last half of the first century, Christianity had spread from Jerusalem to many provinces, even as far as Rome itself. It's clear that for twenty or thirty years, Christianity was regarded as one of the several sects of Judaism, and probably many if not most forms from the synagogues would have been retained.

What would the meetings have been like?

Would they have met (until the split from Judaism) in local synagogues?

What would be the order of service, so to speak, in a "house church"?

[Nathan Ross]

If you haven't seen it already, Chapter III of Lanciani's Pagan and Christian Rome might be interesting - all about the development of church buildings by early Christian communities in Rome. It's available in full on Lacus Curtius:

Lanciani Ch. III

It's very old now, of course, and probably a bit dated (the theory on the development of traditonal Pompeian houses into churches seems a bit fanciful!), but Lanciani's book is very readable and full of interesting stuff nonetheless.

[Epictetus]

I have read several Church fathers and Lives of the martyrs talk about meeting in private homes. (It seems like every rich martyr hosted meetings, and I assume this wasn't completely a literary trope. They would have big homes and the space to hold meetings, anyway.) The taking of bread and wine to symbolise the body and blood of Christ seems to be very old and may have been part of meetings from the very beginning. Recording Jesus' life also seems to have begun within a couple decades, so probably various gospels were read or maybe recited from memory. Relieving the poor was probably also done in the first century, if I remember Peter Brown's book Through the Eye of a Needle correctly. Helping the poor was done very publicly and in common, so would be part of their communal activity.

[M. Demetrius]

Thanks for those ideas. Many hints can be found by searching through the Epistles, which were written to congregations in specific areas. But few have to do with "what would I expect to see/experience if I actually went there?" sorts of things.

Nathan, thank you. I'd quite forgotten what a great resource Lacus Curtus is. My headbone gets thicker by the day, it seems, and the brain compresses accordingly.

[rule]
It seems unlikely that before the end of the 1st C very many homes became dedicated to being church buildings, at least in Judea. The attack in 70 and those following would have made short work of those buildings along with the others. What does seem likely is that the smaller groups continued to meet more or less in secret, much like they do still in places where Christianity is opposed by the governments. The Underground Church has its roots planted a very long time ago.

[Vindex]

I always thought early Christianity came off quite well in the excellent film Quo Vadis (except for the martyrdom by Nero of course).

An all round excellent film, and apart form the soldiers' kit (before anyone gets excited it seemed a well researched piece.

[Diocle]

The first meeting points were the so called 'Domus Ecclesiae' like this one at Dura



But Domus Ecclesiae have been found also in Palestine.

[Severinus]

One of the better primary sources of information about 1st century Christians is the "Didache", perhaps written in the late 1st century or early 2nd century. The linked Wikipedia article provides details & links to various English translations.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Didache

From this & other sources, 1st century Christians apparently gathered in synagogues, homes (small to large), caves, groves, and practically anywhere else private enough. (Wherever two or more are gathered in His name, He is among them.) As Demetrius indicated earlier, there is little evidence Christians dedicated many church buildings during the 1st century.

This Wikipedia article on 1st century Christianity provides a good overview & includes links to more sources.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christianit...st_century

This RAT topic thread has many posts with links to various websites about Christianity during its first few centuries.

http://www.romanarmytalk.com/13-ancient-...anity.html

Some websites in these posts include articles with bibliographies for further readings if you wish.

Hope these help.

[Severinus]

One of the better primary sources of information about 1st century Christians is the "Didache", perhaps written in the late 1st century or early 2nd century. The linked Wikipedia article provides details & links to various English translations.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Didache

From this & other sources, 1st century Christians apparently gathered in synagogues, homes (small to large), caves, groves, and practically anywhere else private enough. (Wherever two or more are gathered in His name, He is among them.) As Demetrius indicated earlier, there is little evidence Christians dedicated many church buildings during the 1st century.

This Wikipedia article on 1st century Christianity provides a good overview & includes links to more sources.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christianity_in_the_1st_century

This RAT topic thread has many posts with links to various websites about Christianity during its first few centuries.

www.romanarmytalk.com/13-ancient-civ-tal...ns-christianity.html

Some websites in these posts include articles with bibliographies for further readings if you wish.

Hope these help.

[Severinus]

One of the better primary sources of information about 1st century Christians is the "Didache", perhaps written in the late 1st century or early 2nd century. The linked Wikipedia article provides details & links to various English translations.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Didache

From this & other sources, 1st century Christians apparently gathered in synagogues, homes (small to large), caves, groves, and practically anywhere else private enough. (Wherever two or more are gathered in His name, He is among them.) As Demetrius indicated earlier, there is little evidence Christians dedicated many church buildings during the 1st century.

This Wikipedia article on 1st century Christianity provides a good overview & includes links to more sources.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christianit...st_century

This RAT topic thread has many posts with links to various websites about Christianity during its first few centuries.

www.romanarmytalk.com/13-ancient-civ-tal...ns-christianity.html

Some websites in these posts include articles with bibliographies for further readings if you wish.

Hope these help.