Contents

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vii

CONTENTS.

Page
CHAPTER 1. — Historical Survey 1-18
    The Old and New Elements in the formation of the Catholic Church 2

The fixing of that which is Apostolic (Rule of Faith, Collection of Writings, Organization, Cultus)

5

The Stages in the Genesis of the Catholic Rule of Faith, the Apologists

7
Irenæus, Tertullian, Hippolytus 9
Clement and Origen 11

Obscurities in reference to the origin of the most important Institutions

15
Difficulties in determining the importance of individual Personalities 16
Differences of development in the Churches of different countries 17
I.

Fixing and Gradual Secularising of Christianity as a Church

18-168

CHAPTER II. — The setting up of the Apostolic Standards for Ecclesiastical Christianity. The Catholic Church

18-93
  A. The transformation of the Baptismal Confession into the Apostolic Rule of Faith 20-38
Necessities for setting up the Apostolic Rule of Faith 21
The Rule of Faith is the Baptismal Confession definitely interpreted 24
Estimate of this transformation 27
Irenæus 27
Tertullian 29
viiiResults of the transformation 31
Slower development in Alexandria: Clement and Origen 32
B.

The designation of selected writings read in the Churches as New Testament Scriptures or, in other words, as a collection of Apostolic Writings

38-67

Plausible arguments against the statement that up to the year 150 there was no New Testament in the Church.

38

Sudden emergence of the New Testament in the Muratorian Fragment, in (Melito) Irenæus and Tertullian.

43

Conditions under which the New Testament originated.

45

Relation of the New Testament to the earlier writings that were read in the Churches

47

Causes and motives for the formation of the Canon, manner of using and results of the New Testament

51

The Apostolic collection of writings can be proved at first only in those Churches in which we find the Apostolic Rule of Faith; probably there was no New Testament in Antioch about the year 200, nor in Alexandria (Clement)

56

Probable history of the genesis of the New Testament in Alexandria up to the time of Origen

60

ADDENDUM. The results which the creation of the New Testament produced in the following period

62
C.

The transformation of the Episcopal Office in the Church into an Apostolic Office. The History of the remodelling of the conception of the Church

67-94

The legitimising of the Rule of Faith by the Communities which were founded by the Apostles

67
By the “Elders” 68
By the Bishops of Apostolic Churches (disciples of Apostles) 69

By the Bishops as such, who have received the Apostolic Charisma veritatis

70
Excursus on the conceptions of the Alexandrians 70
The Bishops as successors of the Apostles 70

Original idea of the Church as the Holy Community that comes from Heaven and is destined for it

73

The Church as the empiric Catholic Communion resting on the Law of Faith

74
   

ixObscurities in the idea of the Church as held by Irenmus and Tertullian

77
By Clement and Origen 80
Transition to the Hierarchical Idea of the Church 83
The Hierarchical idea of the Church: Calixtus and Cyprian 84
Appendix I. Cyprian’s idea of the Church and the actual circumstances 90
Appendix II. Church and Heresy 90

Appendix III. Uncertainties regarding the consequences of the new idea of the Church

93
CHAPTER III. — Continuation. — The Old Christianity and the New Church 94-169
    Introduction 94
The Original Montanism 95

The later Montanism as the dregs of the movement and as the product of a compromise

100

The opposition to the demands of the Montanists by the Catholic Bishops: importance of the victory for the Church

104
History of penance: the old practice 109
The laxer practice in the days of Tertullian and Hippolytus 110
The abolition of the old practice in the days of Cyprian 111

Significance of the new kind of penance for the idea of the Church; the Church no longer a Communion of Salvation and of Saints, but a condition of Salvation and a Holy Institution and thereby a corpus permixtum

113
After effect of the old idea of the Church in Cyprian 115
Origen’s idea of the Church 116
Novatian’s idea of the Church and of penance, the Church of the Catharists 118

Conclusion: the Catholic Church as capable of being a support to society and the state

122
Addenda I. The Priesthood 128
        ”      II. Sacrifice 131
        ”      III. Means of Grace. baptism and the Eucharist 138
Excursus to Chapters II. and III. — Catholic and Roman 149-169
x

II. Fixing and Gradual Hellenising of Christianity as a System of Doctrine.

CHAPTER IV. — Ecclesiastical Christianity and Philosophy.
    The Apologists 169-230
1. Introduction 169
The historical position of the Apologists 169
Apologists and Gnostics 170
Nature and importance of the Apologists’ theology 172
2. Christianity as Philosophy and as Revelation 177
Aristides 179
Justin 179
Athenagoras 188
Miltiades, Melito 190
Tatian 190
Pseudo Justin, Orat. ad Gr. 193
Theophilus 194
Pseudo Justin, de Resurr. 195
Tertullian and Minucius 196
Pseudo-Justin, de Monarch 199
Results 199
3. The doctrines of Christianity as the revealed and rational religion 202
Arrangement 202
The Monotheistic Cosmology 204
Theology 205
Doctrine of the Logos 206
Doctrine of the World and of Man 212
Doctrine of Freedom and Morality 214
Doctrine of Revelation (Proofs from Prophecy) 215
Significance of the History of Jesus 217
Christology of Justin 220
Interpretation and Criticism, especially of Justin’s doctrines 225

CHAPTER V. — The Beginnings of an Ecclesiastico-theological interpretation and revision of the Rule of Faith in opposition to Gnosticism, on the basis of the New Testament and the Christian Philosophy of the Apologists; Melito, Irenæus, Tertullian, Hippolytus, Novatian

231-319
  1.

xiThe theological position of Irenæus and of the later contemporary Church teachers

231

Characteristics of the theology of the Old Catholic Fathers, their wavering between Reason and Tradition

231
Loose structure of their Dogmas 234

Irenæus’ attempt to construct a systematic theology and his fundamental theological convictions

236
Gnostic and anti-Gnostic features of his theology 237
Christianity conceived as a real redemption by Christ (recapitulatio) 239
His conception of a history of salvation 244

His historical significance: conserving of tradition and gradual hellenising of the Rule of Faith

244
2. The Old Catholic Fathers’ doctrine of the Church 247
The Antithesis to Gnosticism 247

The “Scripture theology” as a sign of the dependence on “Gnosticism” and as a means of conserving tradition

250
The Doctrine of God 253
The Logos Doctrine of Tertullian and Hippolytus 256
(Conceptions regarding the Holy Spirit) 261
Irenæus’ doctrine of the Logos 262
(Conceptions regarding the Holy Spirit) 266

The views of Irenæus regarding the destination of man, the original state, the fall and the doom of death (the disparate series of ideas in Irenæus; rudiments of the doctrine of original sin in Tertullian)

267
The doctrine of Jesus Christ as the incarnate son of God 275

Assertion of the complete mixture and unity of the divine and human elements

275
Significance of Mary 277
Tertullian’s doctrine of the two natures and its origin 279
Rudiments of this doctrine in Irenæus 283
The Gnostic character of this doctrine 286
Christology of Hippolytus 286
Views as to Christ’s work 288
Redemption, Perfection 289
Reconciliation 292
Categories for the fruit of Christ’s work 292

xii Things peculiar to Tertullian

293
Satisfacere Deo 294
The Soul as the Bride of Christ 294
The Eschatology 294

Its archaic nature, its incompatibility with speculation and the advantage of connection with that

297
Conflict with Chiliasm in the East 299
The doctrine of the two Testaments 300

The influence of Gnosticism on the estimate of the two Testaments, the complexus oppositorum; the Old Testament a uniform Christian Book as in the Apologists

301

The Old Testament a preliminary stage of the New Testament and a compound Book

304
The stages in the history of salvation 305
The law of freedom the climax of the revelation in Christ 309
3.

Results to Ecclesiastical Christianity, chiefly in the West, (Cyprian, Novatian)

312

CHAPTER VI. — The Transformation of the Ecclesiastical Tradition into a Philosophy of Religion, or the Origin of the Scientific Theology and Dogmatic of the Church: Clement and Origen

319
  (1) The Alexandrian Catechetical School and Clement of Alexandria 319

Schools and Teachers in the Church at the end of the second and the beginning of the third century; scientific efforts (Alogi in Asia Minor, Cappadocian Scholars, Bardesanes of Edessa, Julius Africanus, Scholars in Palestine, Rome and Carthage)

320
The Alexandrian Catechetical School. Clement 323

The temper of Clement and his importance in the History of Dogma; his relation to Irenus, to the Gnostics and to primitive Christianity; his philosophyof Religion

324
Clement and Origen 331
(2) The system of Origen 332
Introductory: The personality and importance of Origen 332
The Elements of Origen’s theology; its Gnostic features 334
The relative view of Origen 334, 336
His temper and final aim: relation to Greek Philosophy 335

xiiiTheology as a Philosophy of Revelation, and a cosmological speculation

340
Porphyry on Origen 341
The neutralising of History, esoteric and exoteric Christianity 342
Fundamental ideas and arrangement of his system 343
Sources of truth, doctrine of Scripture 346
I. The Doctrine of God and its unfolding 349
Doctrine of God 349
Doctrine of the Logos 352
Clement’s doctrine of the Logos 352
Doctrine of the Holy Spirit 357
Doctrine of Spirits 359
II. Doctrine of the Fall and its consequences 361
Doctrine of Man 363
III. Doctrine of Redemption and Restoration 365
The notions necessary to the Psychical 367
The Christology 369
The Appropriation of Salvation 375
The Eschatology 377

Concluding Remarks: The importance of this system to the following period

378
xiv
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