In this presentation we look at how the early church worshiped.

1. Before the Bible
A Six Part Journey in the Apostolic Faith
Lesson 1 – How did the early Church worship?

2. Course Syllabus
 In six parts we will survey several essential
questions about the early Church to gain a
better understanding of Christian worship in
the three centuries following Christ’s
crucifixion.
◦ Lesson 1 – How did the early Church worship?
◦ Lesson 2 – How was the early Church governed?
◦ Lesson 3 – How were the faithful instructed?
◦ Lesson 4 – What did the early Church believe?
◦ Lesson 5 – Icons, Incense and Saints, Oh My!
◦ Lesson 6 – Early Church Myths and Legacies

3. Course Scope
 This is a survey course, and the readings will
reflect survey level discussions.
 We will examine the first 350 years of the
Christian Church, from 33 A.D. until the
Second Ecumenical Council in 381 A.D.
 This time period roughly coincides with the
acceptance of the Canon of the New
Testament in both the Eastern and Western
Church – the time before the Bible as we
know it.

4. Preparation and Study
 Each Lesson will have assigned readings.
 You should finish your readings before you
begin the Power Point video (or attend live
class sessions).
 Watch the full video to synthesize your
readings (online students).
 Submit questions on the lesson page (for
online classes) or ask questions as we go
during live classes.

5. Prayer Before Study
 Christ my Lord, the Giver of light and
wisdom, who opened the eyes of the blind
man and transformed the fishermen into wise
heralds and teachers of the gospel through
the coming of the Holy Spirit, shine also in
my mind the light of the grace of the Holy
Spirit. Grant me discernment, understanding
and wisdom in learning. Enable me to
complete my assignments and to abound in
every good work, for to You I give honor and
glory. Amen.

6. How Did the Early Church Worship?
 33 A.D. – Crucifixion of Jesus Christ
 64 A.D. – Official persecution of Christians
(under Nero) begins
 Circa 100 A.D. – John (the Apostle) dies
For less than 70 years the Church had
leadership from the apostles themselves. After
the death of John, we begin a period of just
less than 300 years during which time there
was no commonly accepted canon of the New
Testament.

7. How Did the Early Church Worship?
 We’ll study more on the determination of
the New Testament Canon in Lesson 3.
 Our focus in this lesson is on what Early
Church worship looked like.
◦ Bible is not an instruction manual on worship
◦ Even if it were, Church flourished for 350 years
without agreed Canon of Scripture.
 To answer this question, it is helpful to
understand who the first leaders of the
Church were.

8. How Did the Early Church Worship?
Observant Jews
 The 12 apostles were each faithful Jews.
 While most were not formally educated,
they had learned the practices of the
Jewish faith through their upbringing.
 It should not be a surprise that this
background influenced the development
of the Early Church

9. How Did the Early Church Worship?
Worshiping in the Temple
 The initial worship of the Early Church
took place in the Jewish Temple or
synagogues following Jewish rituals
◦ “At Iconium Paul and Barnabas went as usual
into the Jewish synagogue. There they spoke
so effectively that a great number of Jews and
Greeks believed.”
 Acts 14:1 (NIV)

10. How Did the Early Church Worship?
Worshiping in the Temple
 To this worship practice they added the
distinctly Christian components which
were, in fact, transformed Jewish worship
practices. These included Baptism, the
Eucharist, the Agape meal, and others.

11. How Did the Early Church Worship?
Worshiping in the Temple
 The new Christian practices were viewed
through a messianic lens, and understood by
those Jews who became followers of “the
Way.”
 However, as the Church expanded to the
Gentile population, some aspects of the
temple worship caused confusion
 Probably explanation for the extinction of the
Agape meal.

12. How Did the Early Church Worship?
Worshiping in the Temple
 Persecution and the widespread conversion of
Jews led to the inability of the followers of
“the Way” to continue worshiping in the
Temple.
◦ "The Jews from Asia, seeing him in the temple,
stirred up the whole crowd and laid hands on him,
◦ crying out, "Men of Israel, help! This is the man
who teaches all men everywhere against the
people, the law, and this place;" And all the city
was disturbed; and the people ran together, seized
Paul, and dragged him out of the temple; and
immediately the doors were shut.” (Acts 21)

13. How Did the Early Church Worship?
 Structure of Jewish Worship
◦ The Litany - A series of liturgical prayers
◦ The Confession - Acknowledgment of God's goodness and
man's sinfulness
◦ Intercessory Prayer - Prayers for the people
◦ Scripture Readings - Torah, the Law, the Prophets
◦ Preaching - Teaching or sermon on applying the lessons to
life
◦ Benediction - An ending blessing

14. How Did the Early Church Worship?
 Early Christian Worship Described
◦ The Didache (The Teaching of the 12 Apostles) –
40-60 AD
◦ “On the Lord's day, gather yourselves together and
break bread, give thanks, but first confess your sins
so that your sacrifice may be pure.”
◦ - A Sunday gathering – (the liturgy of the Church)
◦ - Confession of sins
◦ - The Eucharist (“breaking bread”)

15. How Did the Early Church Worship?
 Early Christian Worship Described
◦ First Apology of St. Justin Martyr (155-157 AD)
◦ “And on the day called Sunday, all who live in cities or in the country
gather together to one place, and the memoirs of the apostles or the
writings of the prophets are read, as long as time permits; then, when
the reader has ceased, the president verbally instructs, and exhorts to
the imitation of these good things. Then we all rise together and pray,
and, as we before said, when our prayer is ended, bread and wine and
water are brought, and the president in like manner offers prayers and
thanksgivings, according to his ability, and the people assent, saying
Amen; and there is a distribution to each, and a participation of that
over which thanks have been given, and to those who are absent a
portion is sent by the deacons. And they who are well to do, and
willing, give what each thinks fit; and what is collected is deposited
with the president, who succours the orphans and widows and those
who, through sickness or any other cause, are in want, and those who
are in bonds and the strangers sojourning among us, and in a word
takes care of all who are in need. But Sunday is the day on which we
all hold our common assembly, because it is the first day on which
God, having wrought a change in the darkness and matter, made the
world; and Jesus Christ our Saviour on the same day rose from the
dead.”

16. How Did the Early Church Worship?
 Jewish Worship
◦ The Litany
◦ The Confession
◦ Intercessory Prayer
◦ Scripture Readings
◦ Preaching
◦ Benediction
 Early Christian
◦ Confession
◦ Readings
◦ Preaching
◦ Prayers
◦ Eucharist

17. How Did the Early Church Worship?
 Jewish Worship
◦ The Litany
◦ The Confession
◦ Intercessory Prayer
◦ Scripture Readings
◦ Preaching
◦ Benediction
 Divine Liturgy
 St. Basil (350), St.
John Chrysostom
(400)
◦ Litanies
◦ Intercessory Prayer
(Trisagion/Troparia/
Kontakia)
◦ Epistle/Gospel Readings
◦ Homily
◦ Eucharistic Prayers
◦ Distribution of Eucharist
◦ Benediction

18. How Did the Early Church Worship?
 Distinctives of Early Church Worship
◦ Worship on Sunday
◦ Liturgical Prayer – not spontaneous
 Derived from Jewish tradition
◦ Use of Scripture and Oral Teaching
◦ The sharing of the Eucharist (communion)

19. How Did the Early Church Worship?
 Distinctives of Early Church Worship
◦ A Note on Liturgical Prayer
 Very common for evangelical churches to claim that Early Church
was unstructured and spontaneous in worship.
 Bible is clear that specific prayers were said.
 Acts 2:42 – “And they devoted themselves to the apostles'
teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the
prayers.” (ESV)
 Many Protestant Bibles take the word “the” out before prayers.
◦ “They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to the fellowship, to
the breaking of bread and to prayer.” (NIV)
The Greek has the definite article for “the” (“τόν”) before each of
those object nouns, but the Protestant translations omit it only
from prayers because reveals the true nature of Early Church
worship.

20. How Did the Early Church Worship?
 Distinctives of Early Church Worship
◦ Worship on Sunday
◦ Liturgical Prayer – not spontaneous
 Derived from Jewish tradition
◦ Use of Scripture and Oral Teaching
◦ The sharing of the Eucharist (communion)

21. How Did the Early Church Worship?
 Distinctives of Early Church Worship
◦ Music/Singing
 Derived again from Jewish Practices
 Psalms and “spiritual songs”
◦ Included Gospel Passages (Magnificat)
◦ Also included original hymnography
 250 A.D. – “Beneath your Compassion”
 “Beneath your compassion we take refuge, Theotokos!
Our prayers, do not despise in necessities,
but from danger deliver us,
only pure, only blessed one.
◦ Early church music was not instrumental!

22. How Did the Early Church Worship?
 Summary
◦ Early Christian worship began in synagogues
and patterned itself after Jewish worship
◦ Liturgical prayer and structured services
◦ Included sung hymns and psalms
◦ Was always centered around the Eucharist