Early Christian Ethics and Their Impact
There’s a common argument among critics that much of what Christians view as Biblical ethics and truth stems from American conservatism in the late 20th century. To put it another way, the Christian sexual norms we see today are products of the “purity culture” from the 1990s. Some even suggest that current beliefs about Christ’s exclusivity reflect a kind of Western ideological dominance, and that the pro-life stance was crafted by figures like Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson to help Ronald Reagan gain office.
Yet, it seems that the early Christians faced similar criticisms for their beliefs and practices. They didn’t have to deal with literal lions, of course, but their convictions were often at the center of scrutiny. The early church established clear guidelines on what Christians should believe, but there were also writings that detailed how they ought to live.
Take the account from Justin Martyr, who provides a lovely depiction of Christian worship. It’s quite relatable to our experiences in modern services:
“On the day called Sunday, all the people living in the cities and the countryside gather in the same place and read the memoirs of the apostles and the writings of the prophets, as time permits. And when the reader stops reading, the president gives verbal instructions and encourages them to imitate these good things. Then we all stand together and pray. At the end of the prayer, bread and wine and water are brought, and the president offers prayers and thanksgiving according to his ability, and the people agree by saying, Amen.”
A letter known as the Letter to Diognetus, written in the second or third century, characterizes the Christian lifestyle. It describes Christians as foreigners in their own land:
“They live in their own country, but only as strangers. As citizens, they share everything with others, but they endure everything as if they were foreigners. For them, every foreign land is their homeland, and every land of their birth is a stranger’s land. They get married, like everyone else; they give birth to children; but they will not destroy their descendants. There is a common table, but no common bed.”
Perhaps the clearest example of early Christian ethics can be found in the Didache, which summarizes Christian moral teachings from the second century, stressing pro-life values: “Do not kill a child through abortion or kill a born child.”
The rapid growth of the early church can be linked to adherence to these values. In ancient Greek and Roman contexts, practices like abortion and infant exposure were socially acceptable, leading to countless girls being abandoned.
Rodney Stark, in his book The Rise of Christianity notes how Christians actively rescued abandoned girls, which created a demographic imbalance for pagan men seeking wives. Additionally, Christian women bore more children since they did not resort to abortions at the same rates as their pagan counterparts, a practice that was particularly harsh in that era.
In the grand scheme of things, the explosive expansion of Christianity across the Empire was, in a sense, a numbers game. God used the faithful actions of the early Christians to enact change. If we had the chance to speak to those who rescued babies at the time, they might be confused by the idea that their efforts would be historically significant. “I don’t really think about that,” they might say. “I just want to help.”
This reality suggests that the Christian experience can’t be merely about random kindness. God orchestrates history, and the obedience of His followers plays a crucial role. While some may urge people to “get with the times,” the way Christianity transformed the Roman world was distinctly countercultural. Everyday individuals living out extraordinary faith made a significant impact.
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