The first century
1.
Three key moments marked the beginning of the Christian movement:
the crucifixion and death of Jesus,
His last appearance to the disciples, and
Pentecost.
2.
How to move forward without our Master!
3.
If Jesus appeared many times after His death on the cross to His disciples, then His preaching was proven true when He said, “All who die shall live.” For this reason, perhaps, the disciples and the early Christians of that time were not afraid to face suffering and martyrdom, because they knew that death is only a passage.
4.
The great deed of Jesus, His greatest miracle, was the resurrection.
5.
When Jesus was born, the Roman emperor was Augustus, nephew of Julius Caesar (a very mild ruler). After him came Tiberius (more violent). The coin to which Jesus referred when He said, “Render unto Caesar what is Caesar’s,” bore the image of Tiberius. After him came Caligula (a bloodthirsty ruler). Then his uncle Claudius (gentler than his nephew). After that came Nero (the height of madness).
6.
It was necessary to believe in the resurrection as the strength to endure the persecution and the torments suffered by the followers of Jesus under all these merciless emperors. Christianity exists to this day thanks to the bravery of those missionaries who faced death and torture out of love for the cause.
7.
Christianity began in Jerusalem, and the first converts were Jews, since both Jesus and His disciples were Jewish. It was, therefore, originally a Jewish belief, forming the first Christian community. In the beginning, Christianity was very simple. They shared all their material goods among themselves, received the needy in the “House of the Way” (as this first Christian nucleus came to be called), fed the hungry, and cared for the sick.
8.
Then came Paul of Tarsus, an apostle of Jesus, whose story is both impressive and wonderful. However, we will not delve deeply into the deeds and life of this remarkable messenger of the Christian faith, because to speak of him would be to begin another study, which we will leave for another opportunity.
9.
At first, it was believed that Christianity was merely a branch of Judaism. Out of fear of the Jewish priests, the “Men of the Way” (as the disciples came to be known) began to introduce Jewish rituals into the emerging Christian faith, such as circumcision. All the communities that were formed were small and simple. James the Less remained in the Community of Jerusalem and was one of those who insisted on the circumcision of those who converted to Christianity.
10.
Two important events took place in that century: the Resurrection of Jesus and the phenomenon that occurred in Jerusalem fifty days after the Jewish Passover, the Pentecost. On that day, the disciples began to speak in different languages so that everyone in the square, including many foreigners, could hear and understand what they said. Thus were fulfilled the prophecies of the Prophet Joel in his biblical book, Chapter 3: “And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions…”
11.
For the Jews, Pentecost is the celebration of the moment when Moses received the Tablets of the Law on Mount Sinai. For Christians and Protestants, it represents the manifestation of the Holy Spirit. For Spiritists, it is the phenomenon of mediumship.
12.
It is important to note that during this century one could still feel the magnetism of Jesus and His simplicity among His followers.
13.
Another important point to highlight is the beheading of Paul under the emperor Nero. The clergy call Paul’s letters the “Canon.” In one of them he wrote, “Do not think that I came to build altars of stone; I came to build the message of the Son of God in the hearts of men.”
14.
The evangelists have their symbols:
Matthew – the angel, representing his effort to link Jesus to the Jewish people.
Mark – the lion, symbolizing attitude and action.
Luke – the ox, representing the act of offering oneself in sacrifice for love of others.
John – the eagle, symbolizing the one who soars high, sees everything from above, and brings forth the spiritual Gospel.
15.
A notable figure of this first century was Titus, who was a pagan. At Paul’s invitation, in order to participate in the first meeting of the early Christians, he underwent circumcision, as James expected him to. Through this act of obedience by Titus, it was decided from that meeting onward that Christians would no longer need circumcision. Another important figure was Timothy.
16.
At the end of this first century, the Roman emperor was Domitian, who was terrible to the Christians. It was also in this century that, through the inspiration of the Evangelist Luke, the Followers of the Way came to be called Christians.
17.
The first century was marked by the presence of the apostles, by the formation of the early communities (churches), and by the birth of the Christian era. It was a century of suffering and martyrdom.