Catholics are often quite interested in hearing about the lives and beliefs of the early Christians, as their church frequently quotes from these writings to support their teachings. On the other hand, some Protestants, particularly those who have come from a Catholic background, struggle with the idea of reading the early Christian writings, for fear that they will be led back into Catholicism. The question arises: Were the early Christians Catholic?

Early Christians vs. Church Fathers

First, a point should be made about terminology. We prefer to use the term “early Christians” rather than “church fathers” for these reasons:

(1) Jesus is the only Founder and Father of the church.

(2) In order to gain insights from believers who lived within a couple generations of the apostles, we reference the writings before AD 250 (sometimes extending to AD 325). In contrast, the term “church fathers” can refer to writers through AD 700.

(3) The term “early Christians” implies that these believers were common people just like us. We avoid the term “church fathers” because it can have more of a theological, scholarly connotation, implying that these people had a special knowledge, understanding, or gifting that we do not have.

(4) Scripture is the only authority of faith and practice. The early Christian writings can give us a clearer picture of how Scripture was understood in the early days of the church, but they are never to be placed above Scripture. They are never to define doctrines that Scripture does not define, and they are never to change the clear teachings of Scripture. Using the term “early Christians” instead of “church fathers” helps readers to maintain the proper perspective.

Timeline of early Christianity

AD 30-100: During the first century, the apostles traveled throughout Asia Minor to preach the gospel, establish and oversee churches, and disciple new believers. Because of their influence and leadership, the churches were unified in one heart, one faith, and one practice. They held firmly to the teachings of Jesus and the practices established by the apostles, to the point that John (the last living apostle) was able to say to the “fathers” and “young men” in the church at the end of the first century: “You are strong, and the word of God abides in you, and you have overcome the evil one” (1 John 2:14).

AD 100-150: During the first 50 years after John’s death, the early Christians were unified on nearly every doctrine and practice of the church. Many of these people were first-generation believers who had learned directly from the apostles. Writers during this time period included Clement of Rome, Hermas, Ignatius, Papias, and Polycarp. Their writings were highly revered and sometimes read alongside Scripture in the apostolic churches.

AD 150-200: The second generation after the apostles continued to hold faithfully to most of the apostolic teachings. Prominent writers during this time included Clement of Alexandria, Justin Martyr, Irenaeus, and Tertullian. All of these writers lived godly lives, and Justin and Irenaeus were martyred for their faith. However, all four were prolific philosophical writers, and they sometimes speculated about theological matters that were not outlined in Scripture. Some of their speculations were expounded upon by later writers and eventually formed the basis of modern Roman Catholic teachings. For example, Justin Martyr observed a parallel between Eve and the virgin Mary. Irenaeus and Tertullian created an elaborate typology from the idea, and Roman Catholic scholars throughout the centuries have referenced their writings to support Catholic dogma. Although there are a few exceptions, the second-generation writers typically held strongly to the fundamentals of the faith as taught by the apostles.

AD 200-250: The third generation after the apostles continued in many of the apostolic teachings but was influenced by the tendencies of the second generation. Writers from this time period included Cyprian, Hippolytus, Mark Felix, and Origen. Like their predecessors, they were devoted believers who separated from heretical views, and three of them were martyred during the Roman persecutions. Cyprian, bishop of Carthage, North Africa, faced the challenge of whether to allow professing Christians back into the church after they had sacrificed to the Roman deities in order to escape persecution. His decisions provided a springboard for later Roman Catholic practices, including confession, penance, and the rise of the Catholic priesthood. Origen, like his teacher Clement of Alexandria, was a prolific writer and a gifted intellectual who did not hesitate to venture into areas not discussed in Scripture, often interpreting passages allegorically rather than literally.

AD 250-325: Because the fourth and fifth generations after the apostles saw greater deviations from the apostolic teachings, we generally do not reference these writers unless they agree with the writers from the first two centuries. Commodianus and Lactantius were the more conservative writers, holding fast to the apostolic teachings; and Eusebius provided an invaluable account of the history of the Christian church. During this time period, Constantine brought the legalization of Christianity to the Roman Empire, and eventually it became the state religion. As a result, many unconverted pagans joined the church in order to escape persecution; and the church relaxed its doctrinal and moral standards in order to welcome them. This time period ends with the Council of Nicaea in AD 325.

After AD 325, the institutional church became more corrupt, as pagan practices were accepted, theologians continued to speculate beyond the clear teachings of Scripture, and Christianity was viewed as a set of doctrines to believe rather than a lifestyle to follow. Many of the “church fathers” of the fourth century and beyond were influential in these changes, including Ambrose, Augustine of Hippo, Basil of Caesarea, Gregory the Great, Jerome, and John Chrysostom.

As the institutional church (which came to be known as the Roman Catholic church) continued to deviate from apostolic teachings, groups began to separate from the church. Splinter groups started to form in the early 200s and have continued through the present day. Some were short-lived, while others have lasted for several hundred years. The most significant of these events were the Council of Ephesus of 431 (forming the Assyrian Church of the East), the Great Schism of 1053-1054 (forming the Eastern Orthodox church), and the Protestant Reformation of 1517 (forming various branches of Protestantism and Anabaptism).

Who can be trusted?

As stated earlier, no human writing should be placed above Scripture. The Word of God is the supreme authority to which the opinions of men must bow. Nevertheless, the early Christian writings can provide insight into how the earliest believers – many of whom were students of the apostles – understood Scripture.

As seen in the timeline above, time generally gives rise to corruption. The most reliable of the early Christian writings are those of the first century, as many of the authors learned directly from the apostles. The writings of following centuries are also valuable, but one must differentiate between the apostolic teachings and the writers’ personal opinions. This problem becomes more of an issue throughout the centuries.

However, the writings of later writers should not be dismissed simply because they are later in time. For example, Hippolytus, Mark Felix, and Lactantius were two or three centuries removed from the apostles; yet they held firmly to the historic faith and wrote masterfully in defense of what they believed. Their teachings should be carefully compared with Scripture and the writings of first-century believers.

Were the early Christians Catholic?

As seen in the timeline above, the institutional church of the third and fourth centuries looked very different from the Roman Catholic church of today. Although these writers laid the foundation for Catholic doctrines that would be developed later, the early Christians definitely would not have identified themselves with the Roman Catholic church as it exists today. Following are their perspectives on the most prominent doctrines and practices of the modern Catholic church:

Mary

The early Christians believed, as Scripture teaches, that Mary was an ordinary young girl who found favor with God and was blessed to be the mother of Jesus. While they sought to follow her example of godliness, they did not view her as sinless, for only Jesus is sinless:

• “I know of no one among men who is perfect in all things at once, as long as he is still human. . . . The only exception is He alone who clothed Himself with humanity for us.” – Clement of Alexandria (c. 195)
• “God alone is without sin. And the only human without sin is Christ, since Christ is also God.” – Tertullian (c. 210)
• “No one is without stain and without sin. . . . In the Epistle of John, it says, ‘If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us’ [1 John 1:8].” – Cyprian (c. 250)

The early Christians did not venerate Mary in any way by praying to her or giving her the Catholic titles Mother of the Church, Queen of Heaven, or Mediatrix. Rather, they taught that Jesus is the only mediator and that believers are to pray to Him alone:

• “Unless man had been joined to God, he could never have become a partaker of incorruptibility. For it was incumbent upon the Mediator between God and men to bring both parties to friendship and harmony, through His relationship to both. He presented man to God, and He revealed God to man.” – Irenaeus (c. 180)
• “Christ Jesus . . . is the Universal Priest of the Father.” – Tertullian (c. 207)
• “We offer our petitions to the God of the universe through His Only-Begotten Son. To the Son, we first present them. We beseech Him, as ‘the propitiation for our sins’ [1 John 2:2] and as our High Priest, to offer our desires, sacrifices, and prayers to the Most High. Our faith, therefore, is directed to God through His Son.” – Origen (c. 248)
• “Every prayer, supplication, intercession, and thanksgiving is to be sent up to the Supreme God through the High Priest – the living Word and God, who is above all the angels. . . . To invoke angels, without having obtained a greater knowledge of their nature than is possessed by men, would be contrary to reason. But . . . even if we had this knowledge, . . . it would not permit us to pray with confidence to anyone other than to the Supreme God, who is sufficient for all things, through our Savior, the Son of God.” – Origen (c. 225)

Prayers to Saints

Jesus taught His disciples to pray to the Father (Matthew 6:9), and the early Christians universally opposed prayers of any kind to anyone other than God.

• “Christians . . . pray to God alone through Jesus.” – Origen (c. 248)
• “In the Apocalypse, the angel resists John, who wishes to worship him, and says, ‘See that you do not do this. For I am your fellow-servant and your brother. Worship Jesus the Lord’ [Rev. 19:10].” – Cyprian (c. 250)
• “You go so far as to lavish this power [of forgiveness of sins] on martyrs as well! . . . Let it suffice the martyr to have purged his own sins. . . . Who can redeem another’s death by his own, except the Son of God alone?” – Tertullian (c. 212)
• “We judge it improper to pray to those beings who themselves offer up prayers. For even they themselves would prefer that we should send up our requests to the God to whom they pray, rather than to send them downwards to themselves, or to apportion our power of prayer between God and them.” – Origen (c. 248)
• “We speak of Paradise, the place of divine bliss appointed to receive the spirits of the saints. There, the saints are cut off from the knowledge of this world by that fiery zone, as by a sort of enclosure.” – Tertullian (c. 197)
• “It is clear that those who make prayers to the dead . . . do not act as becomes men. They will suffer punishment for their impiety and guilt. Rebelling against God, the Father of the human race, they have undertaken unforgivable rites. They have violated every sacred law.” – Lactantius (c. 304-313)

Purgatory

The early Christians believed in an intermediate state called Hades (or Sheol in the Old Testament), where the souls of the dead await the final resurrection. They did not believe that souls are purged of sin in either of these places; rather, both the saved and the lost await the final judgment, when they will be taken to their eternal destiny (heaven or hell).

The early Christian writers typically believed that Hades is divided into two parts – a lower part for the wicked and a higher part (called Abraham’s bosom or paradise) for the righteous. The righteous are not in heaven, but they are in the presence of Christ, and they fellowship with believers who have already died. The wicked are in a place of darkness and sorrow, where they are keenly aware of the nearby lake of fire and their impending punishment.

• “All souls, therefore, are shut up within Hades. Do you admit this? It is true, whether you say yes or no. Moreover, there are already experienced there punishments and consolations.” – Tertullian (c. 210)
• “‘No disciple is above the Master’ [Matt. 10:24]. . . . Our Master, therefore, did not at once depart, taking flight [to heaven]. Rather, He awaited the time of His resurrection, as determined by the Father. . . . Likewise, we also should await the time of our resurrection determined by God.” – Irenaeus (c. 180)
• “The souls of the godly remain in a better place, while those of the unjust and wicked are in a worse place, waiting for the time of judgment.” – Justin Martyr (c. 160)
• “What lies beneath the earth is not itself void of distributed and arranged powers. For there is a place where the souls of the just and the unjust are taken, conscious of the anticipated dooms of future judgment.” – Novatian (c. 235)
• “Let no one imagine that souls are immediately judged after death. For all are detained in one and a common place of confinement – until the arrival of the time in which the great Judge will make an investigation of their deserts. Those whose piety will have been approved will receive the reward of immortality. However, those whose sins and crimes will have been brought to light – these will not rise again. Rather, they will be hidden in the same darkness with the wicked, being destined to certain punishment.” – Lactantius (c. 304-313)
• “All the generations from Adam even unto this day have passed away. However, those who, through the grace of God, have been made perfect in love, now possess a place among the godly. And they will be made manifest at the revelation of the kingdom of Christ. For it is written, ‘Enter into your secret chambers for a little time, until my wrath and fury pass away. And I will remember a propitious day, and will raise you up out of your graves’ [Isa. 26:20].” – Clement of Rome (c. 96)
• “The Lord ‘went away in the midst of the shadow of death,’ where the souls of the dead were. However, afterwards, He arose in the body. And after the resurrection, He was taken up [into heaven]. From this, it is clear that the souls of His disciples also (upon whose account the Lord underwent these things) will go away into the invisible place allotted to them by God. And they will remain there until the resurrection, awaiting that event. Then receiving their bodies, and rising in their entirety (that is, bodily), just as the Lord arose, they will come in that manner into the presence of God.” – Irenaeus (c. 180)

Incense

The early Christians believed that the burning of incense was a pagan practice, and they universally rejected it in their services:

• “God has no need of streams of blood, libations, and incense.” – Justin Martyr (c. 160)
• “The Framer and Father of this universe does not need blood, nor the odor of burnt offerings, nor the fragrance of flowers and incense, for He is Himself perfect fragrance.” – Athenagoras (c. 175)
• “God, the Creator of the universe, has no need of odors or of blood. These things are the food of devils.” – Tertullian (c. 212)
• “We erect no temples to [the gods] and do not worship their images. . . . We do not slay victims in sacrifice and . . . we do not offer incense and offerings of wine.” – Arnobius (c. 305)
• “Most persons regard idolatry as being limited to these practices alone: burning incense or immolating a victim.” – Tertullian (c. 200)
• “God is not appeased by incense, victims, or costly offerings. For these things are all corruptible. Rather, he is appeased by a reform of the morals.” – Lactantius (c. 304-313)
• “[As a Christian], you worship – not with the spirit of some worthless perfume – but with your own.” – Tertullian (c. 200)

Images

In Exodus 20:4-5, God prohibited the formation or worship of images: “You shall not make for yourself a carved image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. You shall not bow down to them or serve them.” The early Christians believed that this prohibition, as one of the Ten Commandments, still applied to them, and they were careful to observe it:

• “Ages before, Moses expressly commanded that neither a carved, nor molten, nor molded, nor painted likeness should be made. This was so that we would not cling to things of sense, but pass to spiritual objects. For familiarity with the sense of sight disparages the reverence of what is divine.” – Clement of Alexandria (c. 195)
• “We are not to draw the faces of idols, for we are prohibited to cling to them.” – Clement of Alexandria (c. 195)
• “We know that the names of the dead are nothing, as are their images. But when images are set up, we know well enough, too, who carry on their wicked work under these names. . . . Demons have their abode in the images of the dead. . . . ‘Not that an idol is anything’ [1 Cor. 10:19], as the apostle says, but that the homage they render to it is to demons. These are the real occupants of these consecrated images – whether of dead men or (as they think) of gods.” – Tertullian (c. 197)
• “If we refuse our homage to statues and frigid images, . . . does it not merit praise instead of penalty that we have rejected what we have come to see is error?” – Tertullian (c. 197)
• “The religious ceremonies of the gods are in vain [because] those images that are worshipped are representations of men who are dead. And it is a wrong and inconsistent thing that the image of a man should be worshipped by the image of God. For he who worships is naturally lower and weaker than that which is worshipped. Furthermore, it is an unforgivable crime to desert the living in order to serve memorials for the dead. For the dead can give neither life nor light to anyone, for they are themselves without it.” – Lactantius (c. 304-313)
• “It is not possible at the same time to know God and to address prayers to images.” – Origen (c. 248)
• “Without a doubt, there is no religion wherever there is an image. For religion consists of divine things, and there is nothing divine except in heavenly things. So it follows that images are without religion, for there can be nothing heavenly in something that is made from the earth.” – Lactantius (c. 304-313)

Apostolic Succession

While some of the early churches kept succession lists (lists of the people who held the office of bishop), they did not teach that a bishop (or church leader) had to be properly ordained by a bishop who could trace his succession back to the apostles. The succession lists were not used to prove lawful ordination or to validate the functions performed by church leadership. Rather, they were used to show that the church had faithfully preserved the doctrines of the apostles. The early Christians taught that the purpose of the church was not to preserve a succession but to faithfully teach the truths of Scripture:

• “It behooves us to learn the truth from those who possess that succession of the church which is from the apostles, and among whom exists that which is sound and blameless in conduct, as well as that which is unadulterated and incorrupt in speech. . . . They expound the Scriptures to us without danger, neither blaspheming God, nor dishonoring the patriarchs, nor despising the prophets.” – Irenaeus (c. 180)
• “[The apostles] founded churches in every city, from which all the other churches – one after another – derived the tradition of the faith, and the seeds of doctrine. In fact, they are every day deriving them, so that they may become churches. Indeed, it is only on this account that they will be able to deem themselves apostolic – as being the offspring of apostolic churches. . . . Therefore, although the churches are so many and so great, they comprise but the one primitive church of the apostles.” – Tertullian (c. 197)
• “Let the heretics contrive something of the same kind [i.e. a list of episcopal succession back to the apostles]. . . . However, even if they were to produce such a contrivance, they will not advance even one step. For when their very doctrine is compared with that of the apostles, its own diversity and discrepancy proves that it had neither an apostle nor an apostolic man for its authorship. . . . The heretics will be put to this test by those churches, who, although they do not have as their founder the apostles or apostolic men (as being of much later date, for churches are in fact being founded daily), yet since they agree in the same faith, they are considered to be no less apostolic because they are alike in doctrine. Therefore, let all the heresies, when challenged to these two tests [i.e. episcopal succession and apostolic doctrine] by our apostolic church, offer their proof of how they consider themselves to be apostolic. . . . For the heretics are in no sense themselves apostolic because of their diversity as to the mysteries of the faith.” – Tertullian (c. 197)
• “True knowledge is that which consists in the doctrine of the apostles and the ancient constitution of the church throughout all the world. It also consists in the distinctive manifestation of the body of Christ according to the succession of the bishops. For by this they have handed down that church which exists in every place and which has come down even unto us. She is guarded and preserved without any forging of Scriptures by a very complete system of doctrine. She neither receives any addition to, nor does she allow any diminishing of, the truths which she believes.” – Irenaeus (c. 180)

Peter, Rome, and the Papacy

The early Christians recounted that Peter preached at Rome and joined Paul in founding its church. However, they did not believe that the church of Rome (or any church) should hold the primacy over other churches, demand that others agree with it, or declare itself infallible:

• “I do not issue orders to you, as though I were some great person. . . . For now I begin to be a disciple, and I speak to you as fellow disciples with me.” – Ignatius, bishop of Antioch (c. 105)
• “It remains that upon this same matter each of us should bring forward what we think – judging no man. Nor should we reject anyone from the right of communion if he should think differently from us. For none of us sets himself up as a bishop of bishops. Nor by tyrannical terror does anyone compel his colleague to the necessity of obedience. For every bishop – according to the allowance of his liberty and power – has his own proper right of judgment. He can no more be judged by another than he himself can judge another. Rather, let us all wait for the judgment of our Lord Jesus Christ.” – Cyprian (c. 256)
• “When the blessed Polycarp was visiting in Rome in the time of Anicetus, . . . they were at once well inclined towards each other, not willing that any quarrel should arise between them upon this matter [of when to observe Easter]. Anicetus [bishop of Rome] could not persuade Polycarp to forego the [practice of observing it on Nisan 14, regardless of the day of the week], for these things had always been observed by John the disciple of our Lord, and by other apostles with whom he had been conversant. Nor, on the other hand, could Polycarp succeed in persuading Anicetus to keep [the observance in his way], for Anicetus maintained that he was bound to adhere to the usage of the presbyters who preceded him. And in this state of affairs, they held fellowship with each other.” – Irenaeus (c. 180)
• “Those who are at Rome do not always observe those things that were handed down from the beginning. Yet they vainly pretend the authority of the apostles. Anyone may know also . . . that there are some diversities. . . . Similarly, in very many other provinces, many things are varied because of the difference of the places and names. Nevertheless, there is no departure at all from the peace and unity of the catholic [universal] church on this account – such as Stephen [bishop of Rome] has dared to make.” – Firmillian (c. 256)
• “Peter – whom the Lord chose first and upon whom He built His church – did not insolently claim anything to himself. Nor did he arrogantly assume anything when Paul later disputed with him about circumcision. He did not say that he held the primacy and that he needed to be obeyed by novices and those lately come.” – Cyprian (c. 250)

The Apostolic Faith

Finally, the early Christians believed that the apostolic faith was “once for all handed down to the saints” (Jude 3 NASB) and cannot be changed. Church leaders were not to teach the doctrines of a particular church, nor were they to teach their own personal opinions; rather, they were to faithfully teach the truths of Scripture without adding or subtracting anything:

• “In the Lord’s apostles, we possess our authority. For even they did not of themselves choose to introduce anything [new], but faithfully delivered to the nations the teaching that they had received from Christ. If, therefore, even ‘an angel from heaven should preach any other gospel’ [Gal. 1:18] than theirs, he would be called accursed by us.” – Tertullian (c. 197)
• “Although dispersed throughout the whole world, even to the ends of the earth, the church has received this faith from the apostles and their disciples. . . . Although she is scattered throughout the whole world, yet she carefully preserves it, as if she occupied only one house. She also believes these points just as if she had only one soul, and one and the same heart. She proclaims these things, teaches them, and hands them down with perfect harmony.” – Irenaeus (c. 180)
• “From this, therefore, do we draw up our rule. Since the Lord Jesus Christ sent the apostles to preach, no others should be received as preachers [i.e. founding teachers] than those whom Christ appointed. For ‘no man knows the Father except the Son, and he to whomever the Son will reveal Him’ [Matt. 11:27]. Nor does the Son seem to have revealed Him to any other than the apostles, whom He sent forth to preach.” – Tertullian (c. 197)
• “We must not at all depart from the evangelical precepts. Disciples should observe and do the same things that the Master both taught and did. . . . So then, neither the apostle himself nor an angel from heaven can preach or teach anything other than what Christ has once taught and that His apostles have announced.” – Cyprian (c. 250)
• “Those who seek to set up any new dogma have the habit of very readily perverting into conformity with their own notions any proofs they care to take from the Scriptures. . . . The apostolic word marks out the case in these words: ‘If anyone preaches any other gospel to you other than that which you have received, let him be accursed’ [Gal. 1:18]. Consequently, in addition to what has been once committed to us by the apostles, a disciple of Christ should receive nothing new as doctrine.” – Disputation of Archelaus and Manes (c. 320)

Conclusion

In summary, the views and practices of the early church were very different from those of the modern Roman Catholic church (as well as most other churches). While some of the second-, third-, and fourth-century writers laid the foundation for ideas that would later be developed into Catholic doctrines, the early Christians definitely would not have identified themselves with the Roman Catholic church as it exists today.