The Christian way of life following upon the apostles' preaching is depicted in a series of letters which appear in the first century AD. These letters of the New Testament church fathers describe the life of a community which practices the faith of Jesus Christ. The letter of Clement of Rome (second century AD) portrays the Church at Ephesus as an example of peaceful supplicence, sober and humble piety, remarkable hospitality, and impassive knowledge. The same can be said for the letter of Hippias (second century AD). The life of Valentinus (third century AD) describes the life of a ascetic living in the desert.
In the fourteenth century the outlook of christianity changed to include a more materialistic understanding of salvation. With the birth of Constantine the Great, a new sense of individualism appeared which favored material goods. Under the influence of John the Baptist, who claimed to be the son of God, the Roman Catholic Church began to separate itself from the Christian way of life. Under the influence of Martin Luther, who insisted that salvation is through grace, the church in naperville il broke away from the Christian way of life.
Following closely on the heels of these breakaways was the excommunication of eighty-two Eastern bishops who were prominent supporters of liberation struggles. This action by the papacy against these bishops marked the beginning of a process of gradual division of the Christian community into two camps, separating the 'heresies' from the'moderates'. This schism, or differentiation, between the two camps of the christians marked a significant milestone in the history of the Christian faith.
When the Western Church, weakened by centuries of wrongdoings and social evils, was finally reunited with Rome under the Emperor Dometian, the divided flock of Christians found themselves living under a religious umbrella which was no longer protecting their spiritual interests, but simply oppressing the people of the East. A great number of the true Christians were driven into the deserts, while the remaining, called 'postmodernists', continued to live as pagans, practicing a kind of Christianity that they mistakenly thought to be Christian. Under the influence of these pagans the true Christian was no longer understood as being a follower of Christ, but rather a heretic, or sinner. As these two camps began to separate themselves from each other the idea of a true Christian began to lose all its metaphysical meaning, becoming nothing more than an abstract, academic concept.
Theodoros Zosios, in his book The Case of the Twofold Gospel, expounded a theory that after the death of Christ an universal Christian Naperville Churches would arise, composed of two groups. The first, representing the righteous remnant that had been scattered by the false church fathers, would include those who 'followed the right example' of Christ, and who were saved through the help of the Holy Spirit. They were purified and made worthy of entering into the righteous assembly of God. The second group, which included the generation of elders, or daimonides, would exclude those who fell away from the faith, either through ignorance or willful rejection. Theodoros also maintained that the historical Jesus, who is also the Son of God, would return to earth as the final savior of humanity.
In our times there are increasing calls for a separation of religion and government, which is manifest in the current debates on the matter between civil liberties, separation of religion and government. On the one hand the Christian advocates an absolute protection of their rights to freedom of religion, and deny that non-Christians ought to be suppressed from participating in any public religious rites. They maintain that the first amendment of the constitution ought to provide that no laws contrary to the teachings of Christ can be imposed on the followers of Christ. They further insist that the national council should not be allowed to exclude anyone on the basis of race, color, or nationality. The National Council of Churches has recently voted to condemn racism, sexism, or prejudice. If the Christian right has learned anything from the civil rights struggle it should be that all human beings are equal in dignity and deserve the right to participate in public life.
Check out this post that has expounded on the topic:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Church_(congregation).
