Early Christianity

[the_rev]

What happened during the early Christianity of the Roman Empire.

Were women involved in their "rememberence meal" Were their denominations?

How is it different from the Christianity of Today.

[Pio Nono]

JMJ
1/1 - Mary the Mother of God

the_rev,

The question you ask is rather broad, and I believe you are asking about the early liturgy. Let me try to address what you ask about...

(1) The concept of "remembrance meal" or "love feast" is inapplicable to the early liturgies - these are often referred to as an "αγαπέ" (agape) meal. The problem is that the αγαπέ was entirely separate from what we now call the Mass (what the Teens Encounter Christ movement does with its "Agape Meal" is a good example of the separation between the meal and the Mass). I don't throw Greek around to look smart, it's so that you become desensitized to its use when some well-meaning but misguided RCIA teacher uses it without knowing its meaning. The concept of "meal" was rarely, if ever, applied to the Mass; this reference is almost non-existent in the writings of the Fathers, and there is [i]no[/i] comparison with the Jewish meals of the day (though there are comparisons with Jewish sacrifice; cf. Justin Martyr's [i]First Apology[/i]). The Mass was always understood within the context of Temple sacrifice (esp. that of the Passover sacrifice, not the Passover meal). I paraphrase Cardinal Ratzinger's words from [i]Feast of Faith[/i] when I say that "...to call the Mass a community meal is to cheapen its value, for its price was the death of the Savior."

(2) There were no denominations. There were other churches in the proper sense (ie. Chaldean, Alexandrian, &c.), but there were no denominations as we now understand them. The ecclesiology (theology of the Church) was not as developed as it is today, so one might be led to think there were denominations, but this follows from inaccurate readings of early texts.

(3) The role of women was the same as it is today, except that women did not serve during the Mass. There were female deacons, and the question is still out as to whether they were ordained. What is not up for grabs, though, is that they had no part in normal liturgies - they only served at baptismal liturgies, mostly to hold sheets around naked women.

(4) It's a common misunderstanding that the Mass was held in what would amount to the dining room of ancient Roman households - this is entirely false. Evidence from the earliest times show that there were special rooms set aside for the celebration of the liturgy, drawing further the distinction between the Mass and the αγαπέ (which [i]was[/i] held in the dining room).

I would point you towards something to read for further information, but as far as I know there is nothing that is comprehensive (and well-translated) in the English language. About the best you're going to find is the [i]Missarum Sollemnia[/i] of Fr. Joseph Jungmann - even then, though, there are problems with this book (his excessive reliance on the [i]Didache[/i], for instance) and it is very difficult to read. I'll keep you posted if I find any further information on this. Hope this helps.

Yours,
Pio Nono