The early Church faced challenging conditions, both politically and socially. For the first five hundred years, the Church was almost entirely in the territory of the Roman Empire, which was a powerful state with many tools for punishing the unwanted (Boer 1). However, Christianity withstood all oppression because of wise leadership and unique doctrine. This essay aims to highlight the characteristics that ensured the survival and development of religion.
First of all, it is necessary to understand that the earliest followers of Christianity did not have any official gathering places. Such structures would inevitably attract unwanted attention, making them an easy target. Thus, by avoiding any centralized structures, Christianity could avoid political oppression. The Church as an institution, with the division of its members into different ranks, appeared for the first time in Syria (Boer 29). The most prominent members of the community were made bishops, thus concentrating the authority of the Church. However, the meaning of such leadership was in the dissemination of the existing doctrine based on faith and mutual assistance.
One of the greatest strengths of the Christian community was its willingness to help the poor and sick in cities. Such a tactic made it possible to attract many people to their side, even despite large-scale social persecution. Accordingly, due to the presence of such good fame, even with the execution of any member of the Church, the status of Christians as people willing to help others did not disappear and continued to spread. This allowed for a gradual change in opinion about the Church, building a base of followers and surviving social pressure.
Finally, the presence of church leaders allowed for maintaining moral discipline and unity in Christian communities. This was accomplished by following the established church tenets in the teaching of the Apostolic Fathers (Boer 38). Even with the colossal cultural pressure exerted both outside by the Roman Empire and from within due to culturally diverse followers, the Church could cope with it by concentrating people around a single concept. Sincere faith has made it possible to combine different cultures while maintaining an unchanged religious basis.
Work Cited
Boer, Harry. A Short History of the Early Church. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing, 1990.