What is the story of the early Christian Church?

Answer 1

Answer

Acts of the Apostles is often thought to provide the history of the early Christian Church. However, some scholars have difficulty with this, in part because of the considerable contradictions between Acts and the epistles of Paul They say that whenever they see a contradiction, it should be the epistles that are given priority.

If Acts is discounted as a reliable story of early Christianity, there is little else known about the early Church. There are many Christian traditions, including some arguably fanciful stories of the martyrdom of the apostles, but on this scholars doubt their authenticity. Tradition also says that the apostle Peter was the first bishop of Rome, but there is no evidence that Peter ever went to Rome, and scholars say that the office of bishop was only instituted in the second century, as the Church became large enough to warrant 'overseers'.

No contemporary records of the story of the early Christian Church have been passed down to us. Even Acts was not a contemporary record, being written early in the second century, some seventy years after the founding of Christianity. Perhaps in time more will be learnt of the story of the early Christian Church, but today that story is largely guesswork and unreliable traditions.