Jumpstarter 3 of 10

Ideas to help restart your discussion

Question 3

Bercot describes the Council of Nicaea creating a “worldwide government of the Church” modeled after Rome (dioceses, patriarchs), and that Eastern bishops voluntarily submitted to Antioch; what do you think early Christians in the first and second centuries would have assumed about church structure compared to this post-Nicaea hierarchy?

Another way to ask: After Nicaea, the church became more organized and top-down, like the Roman system. How do you think Christians in the first two centuries expected the church to be led compared to that later hierarchy?

Direct Answer The transcript implies that the post-Nicaea hierarchy was a major shift: church structure became modeled after Roman government and centralized authority, which likely would have felt foreign to earlier, more kingdom-oriented Christianity.

Support from Transcript:

Bercot says Nicaea “set up a worldwide government of the Church that was modeled after the Roman system of government.”
He describes “bishops ruling over various dioceses, and then patriarchs or archbishops governing various bishops under them.”
He notes “the whole word diocese was a term of Roman government… originally a term of government in pagan Rome.”
Eastern bishops “agreed to come under the jurisdiction of the Bishop of Antioch, because that’s what Constantine wanted,” showing imperial influence.
He calls this arrangement part of the “Constantinian hybrid,” even though Eastern Christians were less affected than the West.

Discussion Follow-ups What signs would indicate a church structure is serving Jesus’ kingdom rather than copying the world’s power structures? How should “voluntary submission” be evaluated when an emperor is pressuring it?

Jumpstarter 3 of 10

Add your phone number?

Thank you!

Jumpstarter 3 of 10