The Establishment of the Church in Rome

The scope and power of Rome spread so that it became the capital of the Roman Empire which had captured all the lands bordering the Mediterranean Sea.

The Epistle of St Paul to the Romans, Fr Tadros Yacoub Malaty (PDF)

With this post I begin a study of the apostle Paul’s letter to the Romans. Malaty begins with a helpful introduction and overview before coming to the actual text of Paul’s letter.

Eventually, Rome became the meeting place for world politicians and rulers, and the learning centre for the Sciences, Arts, and Philosophy. It became especially famous for the Roman law which is still being taught in most universities today around the world.

It also became home to every controversial and idolatrous pagan practice. The population included many Jews at the time of St Paul, although at times both before and after this the Jewish population was alternately expelled and returned.

There is no mention in the New Testament about the birth of the Church in Rome. Moreover, the person who first carried the torch of faith to this city is unknown.

There is no evidence that the church in Rome was founded by Peter, and certainly not Paul. There is much evidence that it was founded by Jews with names forgotten to history:

Acts 2: 5 And there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men, from every nation under heaven.

After hearing and believing the first recorded sermon of Peter, these men returned home – including to Rome. Further, it is clear from this epistle that the church in Rome was not founded by any apostle:

Romans 15: 20 And so I have made it my aim to preach the gospel, not where Christ was named, lest I should build on another man’s foundation

After this, Paul writes of his intention to visit Rome – not building on the foundation laid by another. There is no evidence of any apostle founding the church, and this would include Peter; there is ample evidence that Peter was in Jerusalem or Antioch in the first decades after Christ’s Ascension.

Most Western and Eastern scholars find it hard to agree with the claim that St Peter the apostle is the one who established this Church and occupied the papacy seat in Rome for 25 years.

Of course, one can write this sentence about just about every claim of apostolic founding of any of the earliest churches – although each one has a claim of apostolic founding. Keep in mind, those Jews that heard Peter’s first sermon came from “every nation,” and to those nations they returned. It seems to me that out of these we will find the true founders of the earliest church communities throughout the empire.

This epistle was most likely written during Paul’s third missionary journey, which dates it approximately 57-58 AD. The members of this church in Rome likely included both Jews and Gentiles, although it is likely that Jews made the largest part of the community.

This Epistle is of great significance in the history of the early Church. It is said that St John Chrysostom used to read it twice per week.

I think I’ve read it through twice in the last four years….

Conclusion

From the epistle, one can deduce the purposes for which Paul wrote it. It seems clear that the converted Jews saw themselves as superior to the converted Gentiles: they were the children of Abraham, they were chosen; yet, some Gentiles saw themselves as superior, seeing in the Jews an ungrateful people.

In these the circumstances, the Epistle of St Paul has been written and directed to both parties. … The Apostle discusses in his Epistle the message of salvation in its widest implications. He proclaims that the door has been opened to all nations through a living faith that is evident in deeds of love. … At the same time, St Paul deals with the problem of pride which threatens the lives of both Jews and Gentiles.

These themes of “living faith” and “deeds of love” will be present throughout the letter. In some important ways, the differences in understanding these ideas point to the differences we find between Eastern and Western Christianity, and, in the West, even between Roman Catholic and Reformed theology.

I will continue the introduction next week, focused on just these topics.