What Was the Church Structure of the Early Congregation? A Look at Early Witnesses
Question: What did the church structure of the first congregation look like?
“The later books of the New Testament and some of the apostolic fathers provide impressive evidence for the wide geographical spread of a particular church order. In every church this order consisted of a plurality of elders or bishops (the terms were used interchangeably), assisted by deacons.”1 (emphasis added)
In 1 Clement (c. AD 97) we see this exemplified in chapter 44:
“Our apostles also knew through our Lord Jesus Christ that there would be strife over the office of the episcopate. For this reason, having received perfect foreknowledge, they appointed those already mentioned and afterwards gave instruction that when these should fall asleep, other approved men should succeed them in their ministry. […] For our sin will not be small if we eject from the episcopate those who have blamelessly and holily offered its gifts.”2📌 Term explained: EpiscopateEpiscopate designates the office of bishop, which in the early church was initially often still used together with the office of elder
He speaks of the elders consistently in the plural. This allows inferences about the structure of the church in Rome. But there are also indications for other places. The Didache, an early Christian document possibly composed in Syria, states:
“Appoint for yourselves bishops and deacons worthy of the Lord, men who are meek and not lovers of money, truthful and proven; for they also perform for you the ministry of prophets and teachers.”3
Further examples – both biblical and extra-biblical – attest the existence of a plural eldership:
Jerusalem and Judea – Acts 11:30; 15:6; James 5:14
Jerusalem and Judea – Acts 11:30; 15:6; James 5:14
Galatia – Acts 14:23
Galatia – Acts 14:23
Asia Minor – 1 Pet 5:1–4
Asia Minor – 1 Pet 5:1–4
Ephesus – Acts 20:17, 28; 1 Tim 3:1–13
Ephesus – Acts 20:17, 28; 1 Tim 3:1–13
Philippi – Phil 1:1; Polycarp, Philippians 6
Philippi – Phil 1:1; Polycarp, Philippians 6
Corinth – 1 Clement 42:4; 44:3–6
Corinth – 1 Clement 42:4; 44:3–6
Crete – Tit 1:5–7
Crete – Tit 1:5–7
Rome – 1 Clement 42–44; Hermas, Visions 3:5:14
Rome – 1 Clement 42–44; Hermas, Visions 3:5:14
The first clear occurrence of a single bishop as a superior figure over the elders (presbyters) is found, according to Ferguson, in Ignatius of Antioch. He makes clear, however:
“The bishop as he appears in Ignatius’ letters was still a local bishop in a city (not a territorial bishop), and there is no mention of apostolic succession or priestly function. The bishop appears in close relationship with the rest of the clergy – the presbyters and deacons, who together with him exercised the unified leadership of the church.”5
📍 Conclusion
In the early church it was common in many places for several elders (presbyters) together with deacons to lead the congregations – as also witnessed in the New Testament. Only with Ignatius does a development toward a single bishop as a distinct office begin to emerge, separate from and superior to the elders.
Footnotes
Everett Ferguson, Church History, Volume 1: From Christ to the Pre-Reformation (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2005), 81. ↩
Everett Ferguson, Church History, Volume 1: From Christ to the Pre-Reformation (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2005), 81. ↩
Translation based on: 1 Clement, chapter 44, in: The Ante-Nicene Fathers, ed. by Alexander Roberts & James Donaldson, vol. 9, trans. by John Keith (New York: Christian Literature Company, 1897), 242. ↩
Translation based on: 1 Clement, chapter 44, in: The Ante-Nicene Fathers, ed. by Alexander Roberts & James Donaldson, vol. 9, trans. by John Keith (New York: Christian Literature Company, 1897), 242. ↩
Didache – Teaching of the Twelve Apostles, in: Library of the Church Fathers (Bellingham, WA: Faithlife, 2022), section 15. ↩
Didache – Teaching of the Twelve Apostles, in: Library of the Church Fathers (Bellingham, WA: Faithlife, 2022), section 15. ↩
See the overview in Ferguson, Church History, 81. ↩
See the overview in Ferguson, Church History, 81. ↩
Ibid., 82. ↩
Ibid., 82. ↩