The History of Christian Doctrines

Chapter 1

IV. The Last Judgment and Final Awards

Literature Preface The Historical Volume of what was originally called "Reformed Dogmatics" now appears with a new title, namely, History of Christian Doctrines. Works on the gradual development of theological truth in t

Chapter 2

I. The Subject-Matter of the History of Dogma

The History of Dogma is not concerned with theology in general. It deals primarily with dogmas in the strict sense of the word, and only secondarily with doctrines that have not yet received ecclesiastical sanction.

Chapter 3

1. THE MEANING OF THE WORD "DOGMA". The word "dogma" is

derived from the Greek dokein, which in the expression dokein moi meant not only "it seems to me", or "it pleases me", but also "I have definitely determined something so that it is for me an established fact". The last

Chapter 4

2. THE ORIGIN AND CHARACTER OF DOGMAS. Religious

doctrines are found in Scripture, thought not in finished form, but dogmas in the current sense of the word are not found there. They are the fruit of human reflection, the reflection of the Church, often occasioned or i

Chapter 5

II. The Task of the History of Dogma

The task of the History of Dogma is, briefly stated, to describe the historical origin of the dogma of the Church and to trace its subsequent changes and developments; or, in the words of Seeberg, "to show how the Dogma

Chapter 6

1. ITS PRESUPPOSITIONS. The one great presupposition of the

History of Dogma would seem to be that the dogma of the Church is changeable and has, as a matter of fact, undergone many changes in the course of its historical development. That which is unchangeable is not subject to

Chapter 7

2. ITS SUBJECT MATTER. The fact that the History of Dogma deals

primarily with the dogmas of the Church does not mean that it need not concern itself with those doctrinal developments that were not yet, and perhaps were never to be, incorporated in the official Creeds. It would be a

Chapter 8

1. DIVISIONS OF THE HISTORY OF DOGMA. The common division

found in most of the older works on the History of Dogma is that into General and Special History of Dogma. This division is followed in each of the successive periods, the General History sketching the general philosoph

Chapter 9

2. METHOD OF TREATMENT. Under this general head two

distinctions call for consideration. a. That between the horizontal and the vertical method. Some follow the horizontal and others the vertical method in their study of the History of Dogma. They who adopt the former tak

Chapter 10

genesis and development of the dogma of the Church without any

prepossessions, without manifesting any sympathy or antipathy, and without in any way judging of the truth and falsity of the various doctrinal formulations. Such judgment, we are told, is not in place in -- 18 of 239 -

Chapter 11

1. FACTORS THAT GAVE RISE TO THE HISTORY OF DOGMA AS

A SEPARATE DISCIPLINE. The study of the History of Dogma as a separate discipline is of comparatively recent date. Valuable materials for such a study were gathered in the centuries preceding the Reformation, but, as Har

Chapter 12

2. EARLIER WORKS ON THE HISTORY OF DOGMA. The real

beginnings of the study of the History of Dogma are seen in the works of S. G. Lange and Muenscher. The work of the former was planned on a large scale, but was never completed. The latter wrote a work consisting of four

Chapter 13

3. LATER WORKS ON THE HISTORY OF DOGMA. Later works on

the History of Dogma reveal a tendency to break with the mechanical arrangement of the earlier works with their division of the subject into a General and a Special History and their application of the lokal-methode. Thi

Chapter 14

1. THEIR REPUTED WRITINGS. The Apostolic Fathers are the

Fathers who are supposed to have lived before the last of the apostles died, of whom some are said to have been disciples of the apostles, -- 25 of 239 -- and to whom the earliest Christian writings now extant are ascr

Chapter 15

2. FORMAL CHARACTERISTICS OF THEIR TEACHINGS. It is

frequently remarked that in passing from the study of the New Testament to that of the Apostolic Fathers one is conscious of a tremendous change. There is not the same freshness and originality, depth and clearness. And

Chapter 16

3. MATERIAL CONTENTS OF THEIR TEACHINGS. It is a matter of

common observation that the writings of the Apostolic Fathers contain very little that is doctrinally important. Their teachings are generally in harmony with the truth revealed in the Word of God, and are often represen

Chapter 17

II. Perversions of the Gospel

In the second century the Christian religion as a new force in the world, revealing itself in the organization of the Church, had to engage in a struggle for existence, It had to guard against dangers from without and fr

Chapter 18

1. JEWISH PERVERSIONS. There were three groups of Jewish

Christians which revealed a Judaistic tendency. Traces of them are found even in the New Testament. a. The Nazarenes. These were Jewish Christians who adopted the tenets of the Christian religion. They used only the Hebr

Chapter 19

2. GENTILE PERVERSIONS: GENTILE-CHRISTIAN GNOSIS. In

Gnosticism we meet with a second perversion of Christianity. It had this in common with the Judaistic sects, that it conceived of the relationship between the Old Testament and the New, and between their respective relig

Chapter 20

1. MARCION AND HIS MOVEMENT OF REFORM

a. His character and purpose. Marcion was a native of Pontus (Sinope), who was driven from his home, so it seems, on account of adultery, and made his way to Rome about the year 139 A. D. He is represented as a man of de

Chapter 21

2. THE MONTANIST REFORMATION:

a. Its origin. While Montanism may be regarded as a reaction against the innovations of the Gnostics, it was itself also characterized by innovating tendencies. Montanus appeared in Phrygia about the year 150 A. D., and

Chapter 22

1. THE TASK OF THE APOLOGISTS. Pressure from without and

from within called for a clear statement and for defense of the truth, and thus gave birth to theology. The earliest Fathers who took up the defense of the truth are for that very reason called Apologists. The most impor

Chapter 23

2. THEIR POSITIVE CONSTRUCTION OF THE TRUTH. In

stating the doctrinal contents of the divine revelation the Apologetes did not always clearly distinguish between general and special revelation, and often failed to discriminate carefully between that which is the produ

Chapter 24

3. THEIR SIGNIFICANCE FOR THE HISTORY OF DOGMA.

Harnack and Loofs are of the opinion that the Apologists completely fell away from the right apprehension of the Christian Gospel. They claim that these early Fathers sought the substance of Christianity solely in its ra

Chapter 25

1. THE ANTI-GNOSTIC FATHERS. The first one that comes into

consideration here is Irenaeus. He was born in the East, where he became a disciple of Polycarp, but spent the main part of his life in the West. At first a presbyter, he afterwards became bishop of Lyons. He evinces a p

Chapter 26

2. THEIR DOCTRINE OF GOD, MAN, AND THE HISTORY

OF REDEMPTION. They regarded the separation of the true God and the Creator as the fundamental error of the Gnostics, as a blasphemous conception suggested by the devil, and stressed the fact that there is but one God, w

Chapter 27

3. THEIR DOCTRINE OF THE PERSON AND WORK OF

CHRIST. Irenaeus and Tertullian differ considerably in their doctrine of the Person of Christ, and therefore it may be well to consider them separately. a. Irenaeus. The Christology of Irenaeus is superior to that of Ter

Chapter 28

4. THEIR DOCTRINE OF SALVATION, OF THE CHURCH,

AND OF THE LAST THINGS. Irenaeus is not altogether clear in his soteriology. He emphasizes the necessity of faith as a prerequisite for baptism. This faith is not only an intellectual acceptance of the truth, but also in

Chapter 29

VI. The Alexandrian Fathers

Just as in a former century Jewish religious learning and Hellenistic philosophy combined to produce the type of thought represented by Philo, so in the second and third centuries Hellenistic learning and the truths of t

Chapter 30

1. THE ALEXANDRIAN FATHERS. Clement and Origen

represent the theology of the East, which was more speculative than that of the West. Both were influential teachers of the school of the catechetes at Alexandria. Clement was not an orthodox Christian in the same measur

Chapter 31

2. THEIR DOCTRINE OF GOD AND OF MAN. Like the

Apologetes, Origen speaks of God in absolute terms, as the incomprehensible, inestimable, and impassible One, who is beyond want of anything; and like the Antignostic Fathers, he rejects the Gnostic distinction between t

Chapter 32

3. THEIR DOCTRINE OF THE PERSON AND WORK OF

CHRIST. Both of these Fathers teach that in the incarnation the Logos assumed human nature in its entirety, body and soul, and thus became a real man, the God-man, though Clement did not entirely succeed in avoiding Doce

Chapter 33

4. THEIR DOCTRINE OF SALVATION, OF THE CHURCH,

AND OF THE LAST THINGS. The Alexandrian Fathers recognize the free will of man, which enables him to turn to the good and to accept the salvation that is offered in Jesus Christ. God offers salvation, and man has the pow

Chapter 34

VII. Monarchianism

-- 62 of 239 -- While the great heresy of the second century was Gnosticism, the outstanding heresy of the third century was Monarchianism. The Logos doctrine of the Apologetes, the Antignostic Fathers, and the Alexandr

Chapter 35

1. DYNAMIC MONARCHIANISM. This is the type of Monarchianism

that was mainly interested in maintaining the unity of God, and was entirely in line with the Ebionite heresy of the early Church and with present day Unitarianism. Some find the earliest manifestation of it in the rathe

Chapter 36

2. MODALISTIC MONARCHIANISM. There was a second form of

Monarchianism which was far more influential. It was also interested in maintaining the unity of God, but its primary interest seems to have been Christological, namely, the maintenance of the full divinity of Christ. It

Chapter 37

1. THE BACKGROUND

The trinitarian controversy, which came to a head in the struggle between Arius and Athanasius, had its roots in the past. The early Church Fathers, as we have seen, had no clear conception of the Trinity. Some of them c

Chapter 38

2. THE NATURE OF THE CONTROVERSY

a. Arius and Arianism. The great trinitarian strife is usually called the Arian controversy, because it was occasioned by the anti-trinitarian views of Arius, a presbyter of Alexandria, a rather skilful disputant, though

Chapter 39

3. THE COUNCIL OF NICEA. The Council of Nicea convened in 325

A. D. to settle the dispute. The issue was clear-cut, as a brief statement will show. The Arians rejected the idea of a timeless or eternal generation, while Athanasius reasserted this. The Arians said that the Son was c

Chapter 40

4. THE AFTERMATH

a. Unsatisfactory Nature of the Decision. The decision of the Council did not terminate the controversy, but was rather only the beginning of it. A settlement forced upon the Church by the strong hand of the emperor coul

Chapter 41

1. THE DOCTRINE OF THE TRINITY IN LATIN THEOLOGY

-- 76 of 239 -- Later theology did not add materially to the doctrine of the Trinity. There were deviations from, and consequent restatements of the truth. Roscelinus applied the Nominalist theory that universals are me

Chapter 42

2. THE DOCTRINE OF THE TRINITY IN THE PERIOD OF THE

REFORMATION. Calvin discusses the doctrine of the Trinity at length in his Institutes I. 13, and defends the doctrine as formulated by the early Church. On the whole he preferred not to go beyond the simple statements of

Chapter 43

3. THE DOCTRINE OF THE TRINITY AFTER THE PERIOD OF

REFORMATION In England Samuel Clarke, court preacher to queen Anne, published a work on the Trinity in 1712, in which he approached the Arian view of subordination. He speaks of the Father as the supreme and only God, th

Chapter 44

I. The Christological Controversies

The Christological problem can be approached from the side of theology proper and from the side of soteriology. Though the early Church Fathers did not lose sight of the soteriological bearings of the doctrine of Christ,

Chapter 45

1. FIRST STAGE OF THE CONTROVERSY

a. The Background. This controversy also had its roots in the past. Ebionites, Alogi, and Dynamic Monarchians denied the deity of Christ, and Docetae, Gnostics, and Modalists rejected. His humanity. They simply ruled out

Chapter 46

2. SECOND STAGE OF THE CONTROVERSY

a. Confusion after the Decision of the Council. The Council of Chalcedon did not put an end to the Christological disputes any more than the Council of Nicea terminated the trinitarian controversy. Egypt, Syria, and Pale

Chapter 47

1. IN THE MIDDLE AGES. During the Middle Ages the doctrine of

the Person of Christ was not in the foreground. Other problems, such as those connected with the doctrines of sin and grace, and with the doctrine of the work of redemption, became the center of attention. A brief indica

Chapter 48

2. DURING THE REFORMATION. There is one peculiarity of

Lutheran Christology which deserves special attention. Luther held firmly to the doctrine of the two natures and their inseparable union -- 94 of 239 -- in the Person of the Logos. But his doctrine of the real presence

Chapter 49

3. IN THE NINETEENTH CENTURY. During the eighteenth century

a striking change took place in the study of the Person of Christ. Up to that time the point of departure had been prevailingly theological and the resulting Christology was theocentric. Scholars engaged in constructing

Chapter 50

1. THE IMPORTANCE OF ANTHROPOLOGICAL PROBLEMS

While the Christological controversies were agitating the East, other problems, such as those of sin and grace, of the freedom of the will and divine predestination, were coming to the foreground in the West. Their impor

Chapter 51

2. THE ANTHROPOLOGY OF THE GREEK FATHERS. The main

interest of the Greek Fathers lay in the field of Theology and Christology, and while they discussed anthropological questions, they touched these but lightly. There was a certain dualism in their thinking about sin and

Chapter 52

3. THE GRADUAL EMERGENCE OF ANOTHER VIEW IN THE

WEST. This Greek anthropology also influenced the West more or less in the second and third centuries, but in the third and fourth centuries the seeds of the doctrine that was destined to become prevalent in the West gra

Chapter 53

1. AUGUSTINE AND PELAGIUS

Augustine's view of sin and grace was moulded to some extent by his deep religious experiences, in which he passed through great spiritual struggles and finally emerged into the full light of the Gospel. He tells us in h

Chapter 54

2. THE PELAGIAN VIEW OF SIN AND GRACE

The most important questions in debate between Pelagius and Augustine were those of free will and original sin. According to Pelagius Adam, as he was created by God, was not endowed with positive holiness. His original c

Chapter 55

3. THE AUGUSTINIAN VIEW OF SIN AND GRACE. Augustine's

view of sin and grace was undoubtedly influenced somewhat by his early religious experiences and by its opposite in the Pelagian -- 110 of 239 -- system, but was primarily determined by his careful study of the Epistle

Chapter 56

4. PELAGIAN AND SEMI-PELAGIAN CONTROVERSIES. In the

Pelagian controversy the views of Augustine on sin and grace were put to the test. Small wonder that his views met with opposition, since the problems involved had never yet been discussed in a thorough manner. The Easte

Chapter 57

1. THE VIEWS OF GREGORY THE GREAT. Gregory the Great, born

at Rome about 540 A. D., was a diligent student of Augustine, Jerome, and Ambrose. His religious disposition prompted him to renounce the world, and after the death of his father he devoted his wealth to good works, and

Chapter 58

2. THE GOTTSCHALKIAN CONTROVERSY. Augustine had

occasionally spoken of a double predestination, and Isodore of Seville still wrote of it as being twofold. But many of the Augustinians in the seventh, eighth, and ninth centuries lost sight of this double character of p

Chapter 59

3. THE CONTRIBUTION OF ANSELM

There was one great thinker during the Middle Ages who not only reproduced the Augustinian anthropology, but also made a positive contribution to it, namely, Anselm of Canterbury. a. His Doctrine of Sin. He emphasizes th

Chapter 60

4. PECULIARITIES OF ROMAN CATHOLIC ANTHROPOLOGY. The

Roman Catholic Church clearly harbored two tendencies, the one Semi-Augustinian and the other Semi-Pelagian, of which the latter gradually gained the upper hand. We cannot follow the discussions -- 121 of 239 -- of all

Chapter 61

1. THE ANTHROPOLOGY OF THE REFORMERS. The Reformers

followed Augustine and Anselm in their construction of the doctrine of sin and grace, though with some modifications. They gave a more exact definition of the relation of Adam's sin to that of his descendants by substitu

Chapter 62

2. THE SOCINIAN POSITION. Socinianism represents a reaction

against the doctrine of the Reformation, and in the doctrines of sin and grace it is simply a revival of the old Pelagian heresy. According to it the image of God in which man was formed consisted merely in man's dominio

Chapter 63

3. ARMINIAN ANTHROPOLOGY. In the beginning of the

seventeenth century the Calvinistic doctrine of sin and grace met with a determined opposition in the Netherlands, which centered in the great Arminian controversy. Arminius, a disciple of Beza, and at first a strict Cal

Chapter 64

4. THE POSITION OF THE SYNOD OF DORT. This Synod was

summoned by the States General of the Netherlands in 1618, and was indeed an august assembly, consisting of eighty-four members and eighteen political delegates. Forty-eight of these were Hollanders, and the rest foreign

Chapter 65

5. THE POSITION OF THE SCHOOL OF SAUMUR. The School of

Saumur made an attempt to tone down the Calvinism of the Synod of Dort especially on two points. Amyraldus distinguished between a universal and conditional, and a limited and unconditional decree. In the former God decr

Chapter 66

V. Anthropological Views of Post-Reformation Times

It is not necessary to discuss the anthropology of the Post- Reformation period at length. There have been no controversies that brought new elements to the foreground, and no Synods or Councils -- 131 of 239 -- that f

Chapter 67

1. DIVERGENT VIEWS. There are especially two that deserve

consideration. a. A Modification of the Arminian View in Wesleyan Arminianism. It is a well known fact that Arminius himself did not depart as far from Scripture truth and from the teachings of the Reformers as did his f

Chapter 68

2. SOME MODERN THEORIES OF SIN

a. Philosophical. Some prominent philosophers of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries expressed themselves on the nature and origin of sin, and in a measure influenced theological thought. Leibnitz looked upon the evi

Chapter 69

1. IN GREEK PATRISTIC THEOLOGY. The Apostolic Fathers speak

in general, usually Scriptural terms, of the work of Christ. The most significant statement is found in the Epistle to Diognetus. It combines the ideas of man's sin as deserving punishment, of God as giving His Son as a

Chapter 70

2. IN LATIN PATRISTIC THEOLOGY. Though the doctrine of the

work of Christ in Latin patristic theology has several points in common with that of early Greek theology, yet even in this early period important differences begin to emerge. The distinctively Latin type of theology beg

Chapter 71

II. The Doctrine of the Atonement from Anselm to the

Reformation The theological discussions in the five centuries between Gregory the Great and Anselm were of such a nature that they did not contribute much to the development of the doctrine of the atonement. With Anselm

Chapter 72

1. THE DOCTRINE OF THE ATONEMENT IN ANSELM. Anselm of

Canterbury made the first attempt at a harmonious and consistent representation of the doctrine of atonement. His Cur Deus Homo is an epoch-making book, a masterpiece of theological learning, in which the author combines

Chapter 73

2. ABELARD'S THEORY OF THE ATONEMENT. Abelard's theory

has little in common with that of Anselm, except the denial that a price was paid to Satan. The death of Christ is not regarded as a ransom, not even as a ransom offered to God. Abelard rejects the Anselmian view that Go

Chapter 74

3. REACTION TO ABELARD IN BERNARD OF CLAIRVAUX.

Bernard of Clairvaux criticized Abelard's theory, but did not present one of his own. Neither did he accept the view of Anselm … He took Abelard to task especially for his rationalistic interpretation of Christianity, an

Chapter 75

4. SYNCRETISTIC VIEWS OF THE ATONEMENT. In such

Schoolmen as Peter the Lombard, Bonaventura, and Thomas Aquinas, we find traces of the influence of both Anselm and Abelard. They adopt elements from both, but do not succeed in combining them into an inner unity. a. Pet

Chapter 76

5. DUNS SCOTUS ON THE ATONEMENT. While Aquinas

represents the Dominican theology, which is the official theology of the Church of Rome, Duns Scotus may be regarded as the founder of the Franciscan theology. His work is primarily critical and negative. He wrote no Sum

Chapter 77

III. The Doctrine of the Atonement in the Period of the

Reformation The doctrine of the atonement did not constitute one of the subjects of debate between the Reformers and the Roman Catholic Church. Both regarded the death of Christ as a satisfaction for sin, and a satisfact

Chapter 78

1. THE REFORMERS IMPROVING ON THE DOCTRINE OF

ANSELM. There is substantial agreement between the Reformers and Anselm. Both maintain the objective nature of the atonement and both regard it as a necessity. They differed, however, as to the nature of this necessity.

Chapter 79

2. THE SOCINIAN CONCEPTION OF THE ATONEMENT. A

formidable attack was made on the doctrine of the Reformers by Socinus. He began with an attempt to remove the very foundation on which it was based, namely, the idea of justice in God as understood by Anselm and the Ref

Chapter 80

3. THE GROTIAN THEORY OF THE ATONEMENT. This theory

really represents a middle course between the doctrine of the Reformers and the Socinian view. Grotius himself evidently did not so consider it, for he entitled his work, Defense of the Catholic Faith Concerning the Sati

Chapter 81

4. THE ARMINIAN VIEW OF THE ATONEMENT. This took shape

after Grotius had published his work, and the two theologians that were most active in its construction were Curcellæus and Limborch. They did not adopt the Grotian scheme, though they joined him in the attempt to sail i

Chapter 82

5. THE COMPROMISE OF THE SCHOOL OF SAUMUR. The School

of Saumur represents an attempt to tone down the rigorous Calvinism of the Synod of Dort, and to avoid at the same time the error of Arminianism. This is seen especially in the work of Amyraldus, who boldly taught a hypo

Chapter 83

1. THE MARROW CONTROVERSY IN SCOTLAND. An interesting

controversy arose in Scotland in the beginning of the eighteenth century. Neonomianism, very prevalent in England in the seventeenth century, also made its appearance in Scotland. The name is due to the fact that it prac

Chapter 84

2. SCHLEIERMACHER AND RITSCHL ON THE ATONEMENT

a. Schleiermacher. We meet with a comparatively new line of thought in Schleiermacher. He rejects altogether the doctrine of penal satisfaction. His constructive work on the doctrine of the atonement reveals little resem

Chapter 85

3. SOME OF THE MORE RECENT THEORIES OF THE

ATONEMENT. In the English speaking countries we meet with reproductions of most of the typical theories considered in the preceding, though often with variations. The following are the most important. a. The Governmental

Chapter 86

I. The Soteriology of the Patristic Period

It is natural to pass from the doctrine of the atonement, or of the objective work of redemption through Christ, to a discussion of the method in which believers obtain a share in its benefits, or of the subjective appli

Chapter 87

1. THE SOTERIOLOGY OF THE FIRST THREE CENTURIES. It

would be unreasonable to look for a common, definite, well integrated, and fully developed view of the application of the work of redemption in the earliest Church Fathers. Their representations are naturally rather inde

Chapter 88

2. THE SOTERIOLOGY OF THE REMAINING CENTURIES OF

THE PATRISTIC PERIOD. Pelagius deviated much farther from the Scriptural representation of the application of redemption than any of the earlier Church Fathers. It may even be said that he forsook the biblical foundation

Chapter 89

II. The Soteriology of the Scholastic Period

When we come to the scholastic period, we meet with a variety of opinions respecting the main elements of the saving process, such as grace, faith, justification, merit, and good works. On the whole the position of the C

Chapter 90

1. THE SCHOLASTIC CONCEPTION OF GRACE. There was one

point on which the prevailing opinion among the Scholastics was in agreement with Augustinianism rather than with Pelagianism and -- 180 of 239 -- Semi-Pelagianism. While the latter asserted that it lay in the power of

Chapter 91

2. THE SCHOLASTIC CONCEPTION OF FAITH. There was a

general tendency in the scholastic period to distinguish between faith as a form of knowledge, a mere assent to the truth, and faith as a spiritual affection, productive of good works. Peter the Lombard makes a threefold

Chapter 92

3. THE SCHOLASTIC CONCEPTION OF JUSTIFICATION AND

MERIT. Augustine's confusion of justification and sanctification was not rectified but rather intensified by the Schoolmen. Their common teaching is that justification is effected through the infusion of -- 182 of 239 -

Chapter 93

1. THE LUTHERAN ORDER OF SALVATION

It was especially the system of penances as developed in the Roman Catholic Church and the traffic in indulgences closely connected with it, that prompted Luther to take up the work of reformation. He himself was deeply

Chapter 94

2. THE REFORMED ORDER OF SALVATION. In Reformed

theology the ordo salutis acquired a somewhat different form. This is due to the fact that Calvin consistently took his startingpoint in an -- 188 of 239 -- eternal election and in the mystical union established in the

Chapter 95

3. THE ARMINIAN ORDER OF SALVATION. The Arminians teach

that God bestows a universal grace on man, which is sufficient to enable the sinner to believe and obey the Gospel; and that the call which comes to man through the preaching of the Word exerts a merely moral influence o

Chapter 96

4. MINOR CONCEPTIONS OF THE ORDER OF SALVATION

a. Antinomian. The Antinomians really leave no room for a subjective application of the redemption wrought by Christ. They do not distinguish between the work of Christ in procuring, and that of the Holy Spirit in applyi

Chapter 97

1. IN THE PATRISTIC PERIOD. The doctrine of the Church also has

its roots in the earliest literature of the Christian era. In the Apostolic Fathers and in the Apologetes the Church is generally represented as the communio sanctorum, the people of God, which He has chosen for a posses

Chapter 98

2. IN THE MIDDLE AGES. It is a striking fact that, while the

theologians of the Middle Ages have very little to say about the Church, and therefore contribute but few elements to the development of the doctrine of the Church, the Church itself actually developed into a close-knit,

Chapter 99

3. DURING AND AFTER THE REFORMATION. The conception of

the Church that was born of the Reformation was quite different from that of the Roman Catholic Church. Luther was gradually weaned from the papal conception. The Leipsic disputation opened the way for new ideas on the C

Chapter 100

1. THE SACRAMENTS IN GENERAL

a. Development of the Doctrine Before the Reformation The term "sacraments" is derived from the Latin "sacramentum", by which the Vulgate rendered the Greek musterion, which is used in the New Testament to designate some

Chapter 101

2. BAPTISM

a. Development of the Doctrine Before the Reformation Baptism was foremost among the sacraments as the rite of initiation into the Church. Even in the Apostolic Fathers we find the idea that it was instrumental in effect

Chapter 102

3. THE LORD'S SUPPER

a. Development of the Doctrine Before the Reformation. At first the Lord's Supper was accompanied with a common meal, for which the -- 218 of 239 -- people brought the necessary ingredients. These gifts were called obl

Chapter 103

I. The Intermediate State

The doctrine of the last things never stood in the center of attention, is one of the least developed doctrines, and therefore calls for no elaborate discussion. Its main elements have been rather constant, and these con

Chapter 104

II. The Second Advent and the Millennial Hope

The early Christians were taught to look for the return of Jesus Christ, and it is evident even from the New Testament that some of them expected a speedy return. The literal interpretation of Rev. 20:1–6 led some of the

Chapter 105

III. The Resurrection

Most of the early Church Fathers believed in the resurrection of the body, that is, in the identity of the future body with that of the present. The views of Clement of Alexandria are somewhat uncertain, but it is clear

Chapter 106

IV. The Last Judgment and the Final

Awards The earliest Church Fathers have very little to say about the last judgment, but generally stress its certainty. Most of them are of the opinion that the saints in heaven will enjoy different degrees of blessednes