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Christianity in Early Africa Ancient Traditions, Profound Impact CHRISTIAN HISTORY Issue 105 Christianity in Early Africa Ancient traditions, profound impact Did you know? FASCINATING FACTS AND FIRSTS FROM THE EARLY AFRICAN CHURCH BORN IN WATER, CARRIED BY PRAYER Thou art our holy Lord, Africa is the home of many Christian “firsts.” To The all-subduing Word, Tertullian of Carthage we owe the earliest Chris- Healer of strife: tian treatise about the sacraments, On Baptism: “But Thou didst Thyself abase, we, little fishes, after the example of our ΙΧΘΥΣ Jesus That from sin’s deep disgrace Christ, are born in water, nor have we safety in any Thy mightest save our race, other way than by permanently abiding in water.” And give us life. Tertullian also wrote a famous treatise on the Lord’s Prayer, reminding us that “Even the Lord Himself SERPENT REPELLENT? prayed; to whom be honor and virtue unto the ages Finally, we owe many “famous firsts” to Augustine. of the ages!” (For more on Tertullian, see “See how His Confessions represent an early example of how to these Christians love one another,” pp. 29–33. Bold-face give testimony to encourage other believers. names and places will be found on the map, pp. 22–23.) He also was essentially the first to define orig- inal sin as the guilt that we inherited from Adam MONEY AND MUSIC and Eve and to argue that baptism is needed to Then there is Clement of Alexandria. The first wash it away, no matter the age of the recipient. He Christian treatment of economics is his “Who Is the wrote in On Merit and the Forgiveness of Sins, and the WIKIPEDIA Rich Man that Shall Be Saved?” He also wrote the Baptism of Infants: “As infants are by the sacrament oldest Christian hymn whose authorship is known, of baptism conformed to the death of Christ, it must in about AD 200. Usually translated “Shepherd of be admitted that they are also freed from the ser- DEBRE DAMO MONK—MICHAEL GLERUP MARY OF EGYPT— Tender Youth,” it reads in part, pent’s poisonous bite.” NINE SAINTS FRESCOES—FLICKR / OLIVER LEE Christian History This also led Augustine to articulate a view of FACES OF THE AFRICAN CHURCH Left page: The “Nine Saints,” predestination that would dominate later Western pictured in this mural, spread Christianity through Ethiopia. Above Christianity, in which God graciously chooses to left: This Debre Damo monk lives on a high cliff. Above right: St. save some of the mass of human beings guilty of Mary of Egypt was a famous female monastic. original sin. NEED A SCORECARD? Making your way around early African Christianity are separate from the Eastern Orthodox Church means learning about Christian groups new to many (which accepts Chalcedon) and include churches in Westerners. Early Africa included both Latin-speak- both Egypt and Ethiopia (see “From Abba Salama ing (Western) and Greek-speaking (Eastern) Chris- to King Lalibela” pp. 18–21, and “Some others you tians. The Eastern or “Byzantine” half of the Roman should know,” pp. 36–37). Empire, headquartered at Constantinople in Asia Minor, spoke Greek. Eventually, its churches and the HARD TO GET TO churches headquartered at Rome divided. Monks at Debre Damo have a long climb. This Ethi- But long before that, early Christians were opian monastery, in continuous use since the sixth debating issues regarding the divinity of Christ century, contains many priceless artifacts. It can only and the relationship between his human and divine be reached by rope. Male visitors tie a rope around natures in ecumenical councils where church lead- their waist and are pulled up the cliff by a monk at ers came together. One, at Chalcedon in 451, wres- the top. Women are permitted to pray only at the tled with how Christ’s human and divine natures bottom. Female animals are also forbidden on the related. It declared that although Christ was one grounds. CH person he had two distinct natures. Some Christian traditions, whose stories we Christian History is a donor-supported minis- WIKIPEDIA tell in this issue, rejected Chalcedon, declaring try. Your regular gifts help keep the magazine that Christ had a single nature which was both in print. A donor form has been included in the human and divine. Today, you will sometimes hear center for your convenience. DEBRE DAMO MONK—MICHAEL GLERUP MARY OF EGYPT— NINE SAINTS FRESCOES—FLICKR / OLIVER LEE these churches called “Oriental Orthodox.” They Issue 105 1 Editor’s Note CHRISTIANITY IS OLD. Really old. African believers held the Bible. Allegorical inter- I think we all know this. We know that Christians pretation of Scripture was born in Alexandria, and have been at this for over 2,000 years. We, if we it was born out of a desire to emphasize that the are Westerners, know that the setting into which whole Bible—Old Testament and New, easy parts and Christianity was born looks very little like the setting hard—speak of our life in Christ. (For an example of we find ourselves in today. this in action, see “The Bible’s story is our story,” pp. But most of the time our Christian walk is based 24–28.) Later, John Cassian (see “Become completely on the things we hold in common with the first as fire,” pp. 15–17) divided this allegorical approach Christians—the doctrines that have endured through into no fewer than three senses that complemented time that we confess each Sunday. the literal meaning. Sometimes it helps us to think about the context in which those doctrines were first confessed. In 2003 WHOLE BIBLE, WHOLE CHURCH Christian History did an issue (no. 79, African Apostles) “Jerusalem,” on this model, is all at once the literal on the nineteenth- and twentieth-century explosion city, the church, the human soul, and the heavenly of Christian missions in Africa—a story with high city we all desire. The whole Bible was for the whole drama, many heroes, and much faithful witness. Christian and the whole church. But many of us are here because mission went out The second lesson is the high regard in which from Africa in the first place. So many early church early African believers held the Church—with a cap- fathers and mothers, so many martyrs, so many writ- ital “C.” Christ’s command for unity was serious, ers, so many worshipers came from the African church. visible, and structural. Schism would not only (before Christianity was STORIES OF THE FAITHFUL tolerated) make resistance to persecution harder, but From cities like Carthage, Alexandria, and Hippo, and it was also a theological problem (“See how these the regions that are now Ethiopia, Algeria, Tunisia, Christians love one another,” pp. 29–33). It broke the Egypt, and Libya came heroes, martyrs, bishops, bonds of love and doctrinal accountability. monks, and theologians—Tertullian, Augustine, “Catholic” meant “universal,” and it meant Cyprian, Origen, Perpetua, Anthony, Maurice, Fru- that precisely because these Christians desired the mentius, and Syncletica. church to be visibly universal and comprehensive, If you don’t know their stories yet, you will find where the bishops of every city would see them- them here. (And if, like me, you are bad at holding selves and their teachings as accountable to each maps in your head, you will find one of those here, other. too, on pages 22–23. Throughout the issue, people We may look back and say it and places on the map are indicated in bold.) was an impossible ideal—but In this issue, we will walk through everything before we do so, we should be chal- from ancient archaeological ruins to modern-day lenged by these African believers’ worshiping communities of Coptic Christians as we deep assumption that it was not regain touch with the African context. And we will only possible, but necessary. hear how this heritage is being rediscovered and pro- Read on and be challenged. moted today. The lessons from these stories are many, but two Jennifer Woodruff Tait stand out. The first is the high regard in which early Managing Editor 2 Christian History 9 24 6 Christianity in early Africa Ancient traditions, profound impact 4 Listening to the African witness 24 The Bible’s story is our story CH interviews two church historians How Alexandrians taught us to read the Bible Joseph Trigg 6 The hunger games and the love feast Perpetua’s martyrdom and North African spirituality 29 See how these Christians love one Edwin Woodruff Tait another How Carthage influenced the idea of church unity 9 A tour of ancient Africa J. Warren Smith What archaeology tells us about early Christian Africa Niall Finneran 34 Breaking bread for the church Lessons from Augustine’s life as a pastor 14 Saved from the compost heap Ed Smither Rescued texts illuminate African Christianity Niall Finneran 36 Some others you should know . The African church gave us leaders, theologians, 15 “Become completely as fire” martyrs—and controversies Egyptian monks’ legacy of watchfulness and prayer Michael Glerup Michael Birkel 39 Telling the African story 18 From Abba Salama to King Lalibela CH speaks with Thomas Oden on how North Africans Ethiopian Christian traditions are among the oldest in shaped early Christian teaching the world Tekletsadik (Tekle) Belachew Also Did you know? • Editor’s note • Recommended 22 Map: Historic Christian North Africa resources Publisher Managing Editor Circulation Manager ©2013 Christian History Institute. Cover: “Fresco in Abune Yemata Church” Christian History Institute Dr. Jennifer Woodruff Tait Kaylena Radcliff (© George Steinmetz/ Corbis). Founder Editorial Coordinator Layout Christian History is published by Christian History Institute, P.O. Box 540, Dr. A. K. Curtis Dawn Moore Dan Graves Worcester, PA, 19490.
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