The stories of the Early Church: the first hierarchy
Today, there is much debate about church statuses and jurisdictions. It is difficult to make sense of it all. To help clarify, it can be useful to understand what the Church was like at the beginning of its history.
Certainly, it is impossible to describe in a single article the Church's entire history Church in the first centuries of its existence. The UOJ plans a series of publications to explore various aspects of the inner life of the Early Church. The development dynamics and the reasons behind certain changes will be revealed. We hope this will be useful not only to history enthusiasts but also to those who are thinking of the future of today’s Church. For as the wise Solomon said: "What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun. Is there anything of which one can say, 'Look! This is something new'? It was here already, long ago; it was here before our time." (Ecclesiastes 1:9-10)
The Church in our modern understanding came into being on the day of Pentecost, when the Holy Spirit descended upon the twelve apostles in the Upper Room on Mount Zion. However, even before this, when Christ walked through Judea and Galilee with His disciples, preaching the Kingdom of God, they can be considered a community where certain relationships were developing, which later influenced the formation of the New Testament Church. In this community, there was no absolute equality in everything. Among the twelve apostles, there was John, the beloved disciple of Christ, later known as the Theologian. There was Peter, who was the first to receive the authority to bind and loose. Along with the apostle James, Peter and John formed a trio to whom the Lord paid special attention, trusting them to be present during the most important and secret events, such as the raising of Jairus' daughter or the Transfiguration.
We can observe a certain hierarchy among the apostles in the episode described by John the Evangelist: "Now there were some Greeks among those who went up to worship at the festival. They came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, with a request. 'Sir, we would like to see Jesus.' Philip went to tell Andrew; Andrew and Philip in turn told Jesus." (John 12:20-22). Philip did not go directly to Christ but did so through the apostle Andrew. This is quite notable, although, it doesn't give us grounds to make any sweeping conclusions.
Later, the apostle Paul wrote in his epistle to the Romans that all these differences were not meant for envy, intrigue, or seeking a higher position, but for each one to fulfil the ministry that God has assigned to them, according to their abilities: "We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us. If your gift is prophesying, then prophesy in accordance with your faith; if it is serving, then serve; if it is teaching, then teach; if it is to encourage, then give encouragement; if it is giving, then give generously; if it is to lead, do it diligently; if it is to show mercy, do it cheerfully." (Romans 12:6-8). We also remember the Parable of the Talents, where the master entrusts different numbers of talents to his servants according to their ability.
Initially, the twelve apostles not only led the Church but also made all the decisions: organized Eucharistic gatherings, preached, and managed material resources. These resources were abundant from the very beginning, as new converts brought all their possessions and laid them at the apostles' feet. There were many members of the first Christian community in Jerusalem. The Acts of the Apostles testify that after Peter’s first sermon on the day of Pentecost, three thousand men joined them. Although a significant portion of them were Jews from the diaspora (dispersion) who had come to worship at the Jerusalem Temple, there were also many local Jerusalemites.
Very quickly, it became clear in the early Christian community that some form of administrative system was needed to manage it, and this system began with the selection of seven deacons.
Here is how the apostle Luke describes it: "In those days when the number of disciples was increasing, the Hellenistic Jews complained against the Hebraic Jews because their widows were being overlooked in the daily distribution of food. So, the Twelve gathered all the disciples together and said, 'It would not be right for us to neglect the ministry of the word of God to wait on tables. Brothers and sisters, choose seven men from among you who are known to be full of the Spirit and wisdom. We will turn this responsibility over to them and will give our attention to prayer and the ministry of the word.' This proposal pleased the whole group. They chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit; also Philip, Prochorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas, and Nicholas from Antioch, a convert to Judaism. They presented these men to the apostles, who prayed and laid their hands on them." (Acts 6:1-6).
Notable in this structure is, firstly, the division of roles or types of ministry. The apostles are to "devote themselves to prayer and the ministry of the word", while the deacons are to "wait on tables". Secondly, the initiative to select the deacons comes from the apostles, but they are not the ones who choose them; the community does. Thirdly, the apostles ordain the deacons as the final act of the whole procedure.
It also means they had the final say on the candidates elected and could reject any of them. We also see that without this ordination, the deacons could not perform their ministry, which indicates that it had a sacred rather than merely functional significance. Certainly, the deacons had already received the Sacrament of Baptism, through which the Holy Spirit had descended upon them, but this is not sufficient for diaconal ministry. A special (if we may put it that way) grace was required, which was imparted to them through the laying on of the apostles’ hands.
This system of election and ordination into the priesthood existed for several centuries, after which the community’s role in choosing candidates for the priesthood was excluded. The rudiments of this remain the call "command" during ordination, addressed to the community, and the word "axios" (worthy), which must be uttered by those present in the temple.
Jews from the diaspora, who spread out from Jerusalem to their towns, carried the message of the new teachings they had heard there. Some returned home already as believers and baptised, while others simply shared this as an interesting piece of news. Therefore, the apostles, who travelled from town to town preaching, often met people who were first called "Christ’s disciples" and later, starting from Antioch, began to be called "Christians". The apostles preached in the towns and organised local communities, primarily in the major cities of the Roman Empire, where there were fairly large Jewish communities. The apostles’ preaching was mainly directed towards them.
After establishing the life of a community in one town, the apostles would move on.
From the very beginning, two types of hierarchy, so to speak, emerged in the Church: one group constantly travelled, moving from one community to another, and their authority extended over all Christians. The other group was tied to a specific community, and their authority was limited to that community. The latter were the bishops, who in the earliest period of the Church were also called presbyters, as well as deacons.
For example, in his epistle to Titus, the apostle Paul writes: "The reason I left you in Crete was that you might put in order what was left unfinished and appoint elders in every town, as I directed you." (Titus 1:5). Titus performed an apostolic ministry, moving from place to place, while in each specific community, a presbyter, who was also a bishop, was appointed. In some cases, apostolic and episcopal ministries overlapped. For instance, the first bishop of the Jerusalem community was the apostle James, the Lord's brother. The apostle John the Theologian lived his last years in Ephesus and was the leader of the community there.
Another important moment, which gives us an idea of the administrative principle that existed originally in the Church, is the Apostolic Council of 47 (or 49 according to some sources). Even though the apostolic preaching was initially directed to the Jews, a large number of Gentiles soon began joining the Church. This was not a new phenomenon, as even in the Old Testament times some Gentiles converted to Judaism.
They were called proselytes and were required to undergo circumcision and keep the law of Moses. When a large number of Gentiles began to join the Church, the question arose: should they observe the Mosaic law? The description of the Apostolic Council is found in Acts 15 and Galatians 2. The outcome of the council was the following decree: "It seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us not to burden you with anything beyond the following requirements: You are to abstain from food sacrificed to idols, from blood, from the meat of strangled animals, and from sexual immorality. You will do well to avoid these things. Farewell." (Acts 15:28-29).
For us, it is important to note the following: firstly, the issue, which concerned the whole Church rather than individual communities, was resolved at the level of the entire Church. Secondly, none of the apostles considered themselves to have the right to decide this matter alone, and even during the discussion, none of them, including Peter, had the final say. Thirdly, the apostle James, who chaired the council, had no exclusive powers other than organizational ones. From all of this, it follows that the main principle of the Church's governance and decision-making is the principle of conciliarity. This should not be confused with democracy. The sacred nature of this form of governance is that through conciliarity, the action of the Holy Spirit is manifested: "It seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us."
Another feature to note is that the transmission of the grace of the Holy Spirit in the Sacraments from the very beginning had a formal aspect. It occurred only through the laying on of hands by those authorized to do so: the apostles, and later, bishops (presbyters). This is important, especially in light of modern discussions about the validity of ordinations performed outside the Church. For example, in the Acts of the Apostles, it is written: "When the apostles in Jerusalem heard that Samaria had accepted the word of God, they sent Peter and John to them. When they arrived, they prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Spirit because the Holy Spirit had not yet come on any of them; they had simply been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. Then Peter and John placed their hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit." (Acts 8:14-17). Here, we see that the Holy Spirit does not descend as a result of personal faith in the preaching of Christ, nor even as a result of baptism (which here refers to immersion in water with the promise of faithfulness to Jesus Christ). The apostles needed to come and lay hands on the believers with an appropriate prayer.
Thus, we can identify the following characteristics of the newly established Church of Christ:
- the Holy Spirit is transmitted through the laying on of hands by authorized persons;
- the gifts of the Holy Spirit are diverse: Baptism as joining the Church, the grace of episcopacy (presbyterate), the grace of the diaconate;
- the Church's hierarchy is divided into those who move continuously and those who are local and tied to a specific community;
- the local hierarchy is chosen by the community itself and confirmed (ordained) by the apostles;
- no apostle dominates over another in an administrative sense, just as no community dominates over another;
- the unity of the Church is based on the unity of faith in Christ, unity in moral norms, and unity in the Sacraments performed by the Holy Spirit;
- the visible aspect of this unity was manifested in the fact that all apostles were recognized as such in all early Christian communities;
- conciliarity is the main principle of administrative governance in the Church.
In the upcoming publications, we will explore charismatic forms of ministry in the ancient Church. Spoiler – they have not survived to the present day.
