The Church and the Ministry in the Early Centuries; The 18th Series of the Cunningham Lectures by Thomas A Lindsay and published by Classics.
Scholars can only reconstruct what the lives of the first Christians were like with the limited evidence available to them. In 1902, this Scottish theologian set out to do just that, and published a series of lectures he had given on the subject. Drawing from biblical and other ancient texts, Lindsay paints a picture of first century churches, their leaders, and their missionaries. In particular, he traces the development of the ministry itself and how it evolved into the priesthood of the Catholic Church. As well as investigating how Roman religious customs influenced the early Church’s hierarchy, he briefly sketches some of the first Christian controversies concerning the roles of church leaders.
Lindsay discusses topics such as:
* The New Testament Conception of the Church
* A Christian Church in Apostolic Times
* The Prophetic Ministry
* The Churches Creating Their Ministry
* The Ministry in the Second Century
* The Fall of the Prophetic Ministry and the Conservative Revolt
* Ministry Changing to Priesthood
* The Roman State Religion and its Effects on the Organization of the Church
