Early Christianity , otherwise called the Early Church or Paleo-Christianity , describes the historical era of the Christian religion up to the First Council of Nicaea in 325. Christianity spread from the Levant , across the Roman Empire , and beyond. Originally, this progression was closely connected to already established Jewish centers in the Holy Land and the Jewish diaspora throughout the Eastern Mediterranean . The first followers of Christianity were Jews who had converted to the faith, i.e. Jewish Christians , as well as Phoenicians , i.e. Lebanese Christians . Early Christianity contains the Apostolic Age and is followed by, and substantially overlaps with, the Patristic era .
174-528: The Liturgy of the Hours ( Latin : Liturgia Horarum ), Divine Office (Latin: Officium Divinum ), or Opus Dei ("Work of God") are a set of Catholic prayers comprising the canonical hours , often also referred to as the breviary , of the Latin Church . The Liturgy of the Hours forms the official set of prayers "marking the hours of each day and sanctifying the day with prayer." The term "Liturgy of
348-619: A communion meal. Initially, Christians kept the Jewish custom of fasting on Mondays and Thursdays. Later, the Christian fast days shifted to Wednesdays and Fridays (see Friday fast ) in remembrance of Judas' betrayal and the crucifixion. James was killed on the order of the high priest in AD 62. He was succeeded as leader of the Jerusalem church by Simeon , another relative of Jesus. During
522-520: A chapter (capitulum) if it is short, or a lesson (lectio) if it is long. The reading is followed by a versicle. The hour is closed by an oration followed by a concluding versicle. Other components are included depending on the exact type of hour being celebrated. In each office, the psalms and canticle are framed by antiphons , and each concludes with the doxology . Latin language Latin ( lingua Latina , pronounced [ˈlɪŋɡʷa ɫaˈtiːna] , or Latinum [ɫaˈtiːnʊ̃] )
696-699: A city in Galilee . He was baptized in the Jordan River by John the Baptist . Jesus began his own ministry when he was around 30 years old around the time of the Baptist's arrest and execution . Jesus' message centered on the coming of the Kingdom of God (in Jewish eschatology a future when God actively rules over the world in justice, mercy, and peace). Jesus urged his followers to repent in preparation for
870-432: A day I praise you", and Psalm 118/119:62, "At midnight I rise to praise you". Of these eight hours, Prime and Compline may be the latest to appear, because the 4th-century Apostolic Constitutions VIII iv 34 do not mention them in the exhortation "Offer up your prayers in the morning, at the third hour, the sixth, the ninth, the evening, and at cock-crowing". The eight are known by the following names, which do not reflect
1044-526: A faster pace. It is characterised by greater use of prepositions, and word order that is closer to modern Romance languages, for example, while grammatically retaining more or less the same formal rules as Classical Latin. Ultimately, Latin diverged into a distinct written form, where the commonly spoken form was perceived as a separate language, for instance early French or Italian dialects, that could be transcribed differently. It took some time for these to be viewed as wholly different from Latin however. After
1218-743: A few in German , Dutch , Norwegian , Danish and Swedish . Latin is still spoken in Vatican City, a city-state situated in Rome that is the seat of the Catholic Church . The works of several hundred ancient authors who wrote in Latin have survived in whole or in part, in substantial works or in fragments to be analyzed in philology . They are in part the subject matter of the field of classics . Their works were published in manuscript form before
1392-404: A few. Famous and well regarded writers included Petrarch, Erasmus, Salutati , Celtis , George Buchanan and Thomas More . Non fiction works were long produced in many subjects, including the sciences, law, philosophy, historiography and theology. Famous examples include Isaac Newton 's Principia . Latin was also used as a convenient medium for translations of important works first written in
1566-615: A future king from the House of David who would establish and reign over an idealized kingdom. In the Second Temple period, there was no consensus on who the messiah would be or what he would do. Most commonly, he was imagined to be an end times son of David going about the business of "executing judgment, defeating the enemies of God, reigning over a restored Israel, [and] establishing unending peace". Yet, there were other kinds of messianic figures proposed as well—the perfect priest or
1740-688: A key locus of trade that made it the third-most important city of the Roman Empire. In the Book of Acts , it is said that it was at Antioch where followers of Jesus were first called Christians; it was also the location of the Incident at Antioch , described in the Epistle to the Galatians . It was the site of an early church traditionally said to be founded by Peter; later traditions also attributed
1914-560: A native language, Medieval Latin was used across Western and Catholic Europe during the Middle Ages as a working and literary language from the 9th century to the Renaissance , which then developed a classicizing form, called Renaissance Latin . This was the basis for Neo-Latin which evolved during the early modern period . In these periods Latin was used productively and generally taught to be written and spoken, at least until
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#17327729695822088-632: A new cover and revised Calendar of the Movable Feasts. Besides these shorter editions of The Divine Office , there used to be A Shorter Prayer During the Day comprising the Psalter for the Middle Hours also published by Collins. The last known reprint year is 1986, but this edition is now out of print. In 2009, Prayer during the day was published by Catholic Truth Society . The Liturgy of
2262-588: A number of hymns composed by himself and his brother Joseph (see Typicon for further details). In the West, the Rule of Saint Benedict modeled his guidelines for the prayers on the customs of the basilicas of Rome . It was he who expounded the concept in Christian prayer of the inseparability of the spiritual life from the physical life. The Benedictines began to call the prayers the Opus Dei or "Work of God." As
2436-492: A part. The constitutions of religious institutes generally oblige their members to celebrate at least parts and in some cases to do so jointly ("in choir"). Consecrated virgins take the duty to celebrate the liturgy of hours with the rite of consecration. Within the Latin Church, the lay faithful "are encouraged to recite the divine office, either with the priests, or among themselves, or even individually", though there
2610-671: A radical revision of the Roman Breviary, to be put into effect, at latest, on 1 January 1913. See Reform of the Roman Breviary by Pope Pius X . Pope Pius XII allowed the use of a new translation of the Psalms from the Hebrew and established a special commission to study a general revision, concerning which all the Catholic bishops were consulted in 1955. His successor, Pope John XXIII , implemented these revisions in 1960. Following
2784-567: A result, the list has variants, as well as alternative names. In addition to the historical phases, Ecclesiastical Latin refers to the styles used by the writers of the Roman Catholic Church from late antiquity onward, as well as by Protestant scholars. The earliest known form of Latin is Old Latin, also called Archaic or Early Latin, which was spoken from the Roman Kingdom , traditionally founded in 753 BC, through
2958-510: A ruin near modern Corinth in southern Greece, was an early center of Christianity. According to the Acts of Apostles , Paul stayed eighteen months in Corinth to preach. He initially stayed with Aquila and Priscilla , and was later joined by Silas and Timothy . After he left Corinth, Apollo was sent from Ephesus by Priscilla to replace him. Paul returned to Corinth at least once. He wrote
3132-407: A separate language, existing more or less in parallel with the literary or educated Latin, but this is now widely dismissed. The term 'Vulgar Latin' remains difficult to define, referring both to informal speech at any time within the history of Latin, and the kind of informal Latin that had begun to move away from the written language significantly in the post-Imperial period, that led ultimately to
3306-709: A small number of Latin services held in the Anglican church. These include an annual service in Oxford, delivered with a Latin sermon; a relic from the period when Latin was the normal spoken language of the university. In the Western world, many organizations, governments and schools use Latin for their mottos due to its association with formality, tradition, and the roots of Western culture . Canada's motto A mari usque ad mare ("from sea to sea") and most provincial mottos are also in Latin. The Canadian Victoria Cross
3480-429: A sort of informal language academy dedicated to maintaining and perpetuating educated speech. Philological analysis of Archaic Latin works, such as those of Plautus , which contain fragments of everyday speech, gives evidence of an informal register of the language, Vulgar Latin (termed sermo vulgi , "the speech of the masses", by Cicero ). Some linguists, particularly in the nineteenth century, believed this to be
3654-572: A spoken and written language by the scholarship by the Renaissance humanists . Petrarch and others began to change their usage of Latin as they explored the texts of the Classical Latin world. Skills of textual criticism evolved to create much more accurate versions of extant texts through the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, and some important texts were rediscovered. Comprehensive versions of authors' works were published by Isaac Casaubon , Joseph Scaliger and others. Nevertheless, despite
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#17327729695823828-432: A strictly left-to-right script. During the late republic and into the first years of the empire, from about 75 BC to AD 200, a new Classical Latin arose, a conscious creation of the orators, poets, historians and other literate men, who wrote the great works of classical literature , which were taught in grammar and rhetoric schools. Today's instructional grammars trace their roots to such schools , which served as
4002-693: A vernacular, such as those of Descartes . Latin education underwent a process of reform to classicise written and spoken Latin. Schooling remained largely Latin medium until approximately 1700. Until the end of the 17th century, the majority of books and almost all diplomatic documents were written in Latin. Afterwards, most diplomatic documents were written in French (a Romance language ) and later native or other languages. Education methods gradually shifted towards written Latin, and eventually concentrating solely on reading skills. The decline of Latin education took several centuries and proceeded much more slowly than
4176-411: Is Veritas ("truth"). Veritas was the goddess of truth, a daughter of Saturn, and the mother of Virtue. Switzerland has adopted the country's Latin short name Helvetia on coins and stamps, since there is no room to use all of the nation's four official languages . For a similar reason, it adopted the international vehicle and internet code CH , which stands for Confoederatio Helvetica ,
4350-897: Is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages . Latin was originally spoken by the Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio ), the lower Tiber area around Rome , Italy. Through the expansion of the Roman Republic it became the dominant language in the Italian Peninsula and subsequently throughout the Roman Empire . By the late Roman Republic , Old Latin had evolved into standardized Classical Latin . Vulgar Latin refers to
4524-640: Is a reversal of the original phrase Non terrae plus ultra ("No land further beyond", "No further!"). According to legend , this phrase was inscribed as a warning on the Pillars of Hercules , the rocks on both sides of the Strait of Gibraltar and the western end of the known, Mediterranean world. Charles adopted the motto following the discovery of the New World by Columbus, and it also has metaphorical suggestions of taking risks and striving for excellence. In
4698-552: Is found in any widespread language, the languages of Spain, France, Portugal, and Italy have retained a remarkable unity in phonological forms and developments, bolstered by the stabilising influence of their common Christian (Roman Catholic) culture. It was not until the Muslim conquest of Spain in 711, cutting off communications between the major Romance regions, that the languages began to diverge seriously. The spoken Latin that would later become Romanian diverged somewhat more from
4872-465: Is known for an apology addressed to Emperor Hadrian during his visit to Athens, contributing to early Christian literature. Aristeides and Athenagoras also wrote apologies during this time. By the second century, Athens likely had a significant Christian community, as Hygeinos , bishop of Rome, write a letter to the community in Athens in the year 139. Gortyn on Crete was allied with Rome and
5046-689: Is modelled after the British Victoria Cross which has the inscription "For Valour". Because Canada is officially bilingual, the Canadian medal has replaced the English inscription with the Latin Pro Valore . Spain's motto Plus ultra , meaning "even further", or figuratively "Further!", is also Latin in origin. It is taken from the personal motto of Charles V , Holy Roman Emperor and King of Spain (as Charles I), and
5220-566: Is no obligation for them to do so. The laity may oblige themselves to pray the Liturgy of the Hours or part of it by a personal vow. The present official form of the entire Liturgy of the Hours of the Roman Rite is that contained in the four-volume Latin-language publication Liturgia Horarum , the first edition of which appeared in 1971. English and other vernacular translations were soon produced and were made official for their territories by
5394-1011: Is taught at many high schools, especially in Europe and the Americas. It is most common in British public schools and grammar schools, the Italian liceo classico and liceo scientifico , the German Humanistisches Gymnasium and the Dutch gymnasium . Occasionally, some media outlets, targeting enthusiasts, broadcast in Latin. Notable examples include Radio Bremen in Germany, YLE radio in Finland (the Nuntii Latini broadcast from 1989 until it
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5568-503: Is the start of a split between Jewish Christianity and Gentile (or Pauline) Christianity . While Jewish Christianity would remain important through the next few centuries, it would ultimately be pushed to the margins as Gentile Christianity became dominant. Jewish Christianity was also opposed by early Rabbinic Judaism , the successor to the Pharisees. When Peter left Jerusalem after Herod Agrippa I tried to kill him, James appears as
5742-658: Is traditionally identified as the founder of the Cypriot Orthodox Church. Damascus is the capital of Syria and claims to be the oldest continuously inhabited city in the world. According to the New Testament, the Apostle Paul was converted on the Road to Damascus . In the three accounts ( Acts 9:1–20 , 22:1–22 , 26:1–24 ), he is described as being led by those he was traveling with, blinded by
5916-636: Is translated as " church " in most English translations of the New Testament . Many early Christians were merchants and others who had practical reasons for traveling to Asia Minor , Arabia , the Balkans , the Middle East , North Africa , and other regions. Over 40 such communities were established by the year 100, many in Anatolia , also known as Asia Minor, such as the Seven churches of Asia . By
6090-493: Is used in the Old Testament to designate Jewish kings and in some cases priests and prophets whose status was symbolized by being anointed with holy anointing oil . The term is most associated with King David , to whom God promised an eternal kingdom ( 2 Samuel 7:11–17 ). After the destruction of David's kingdom and lineage, this promise was reaffirmed by the prophets Isaiah , Jeremiah , and Ezekiel , who foresaw
6264-543: The Corpus Inscriptionum Latinarum (CIL). Authors and publishers vary, but the format is about the same: volumes detailing inscriptions with a critical apparatus stating the provenance and relevant information. The reading and interpretation of these inscriptions is the subject matter of the field of epigraphy . About 270,000 inscriptions are known. The Latin influence in English has been significant at all stages of its insular development. In
6438-696: The Liber Orationum Psalmographus , the Book of Psalm-Prayers which originated in the Mozarabic Rite . Shorter editions of the Liturgy of the Hours are also available from various publishers: Christian Prayer (Daughters of St Paul and Catholic Book Publishing Company), Shorter Christian Prayer (Catholic Book Publishing Company) and Daytime Prayer (Catholic Book Publishing Company). In 2007, Liturgy Training Publications released
6612-845: The cross of Christ , after removing a Temple to Venus (attributed to Hadrian) that had been built over the site. Jerusalem had received special recognition in Canon VII of the First Council of Nicaea in 325 AD. The traditional founding date for the Brotherhood of the Holy Sepulchre (which guards the Christian Holy places in the Holy Land) is 313, which corresponds with the date of the Edict of Milan promulgated by
6786-496: The 12 tribes of Israel (10 of which were "lost" by this time) to symbolize the full restoration of Israel that would be accomplished through him. The gospel accounts provide insight into what early Christians believed about Jesus. As the Christ or "Anointed One" (Greek: Christos ), Jesus is identified as the fulfillment of messianic prophecies in the Hebrew scriptures. Through the accounts of his miraculous virgin birth ,
6960-728: The Benedictus and Magnificat antiphons for the 3-year cycle on Sundays added in the Liturgia Horarum, editio typica altera . The Psalms are taken from the Revised Grail Psalter with the rest of the biblical texts taken from the New American Bible . This is the only official English edition of the Office that is based on the Liturgia Horarum, editio typica altera . Following the establishment of
7134-423: The Byzantine Empire , which lasted till 1453. The First seven Ecumenical Councils were held either in Western Anatolia or across the Bosphorus in Constantinople. Caesarea , on the seacoast just northwest of Jerusalem, at first Caesarea Maritima , then after 133 Caesarea Palaestina , was built by Herod the Great , c. 25–13 BC, and was the capital of Iudaea Province (6–132) and later Palaestina Prima . It
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7308-487: The Carmelite , the Carthusian , the Dominican , the Premonstratensian , and the Ambrosian. St. Mark's Basilica in Venice, along with the four churches under its jurisdiction, retained its own unique liturgies, psalms, and Latin translations into the 19th century. Many other churches whose local rites predated Pius V's breviary by 200 years or more, such as that of Mantua, continued to use their own breviaries, liturgical calendars, and psalms, as well. Later popes altered
7482-409: The Ceremonial of Bishops includes in Part III instructions on the Liturgy of the Hours which the bishop presides, for example the vesper on major solemnities. The General Instruction of the Liturgy of Hours in the Roman Rite states: "The public and communal prayer of the people of God is rightly considered among the first duties of the Church. From the very beginning the baptized 'remained faithful to
7656-567: The Council of Serdica . Cyrene and the surrounding region of Cyrenaica or the North African " Pentapolis ", south of the Mediterranean from Greece, the northeastern part of modern Libya , was a Greek colony in North Africa later converted to a Roman province. In addition to Greeks and Romans, there was also a significant Jewish population , at least up to the Kitos War (115–117). According to Mark 15:21 , Simon of Cyrene carried Jesus' cross. Cyrenians are also mentioned in Acts 2:10 , 6:9 , 11:20 , 13:1 . According to Byzantine legend,
7830-433: The Crisis of the Third Century , Nicomedia became the capital of the Eastern Roman Empire in 286. The Synod of Ancyra was held in 314. In 325 the emperor Constantine convoked the first Christian ecumenical council in Nicaea and in 330 moved the capital of the reunified empire to Byzantium (also an early Christian center and just across the Bosphorus from Anatolia , later called Constantinople ), referred to as
8004-438: The Danube River . The spread of Christianity among the Thracians and the emergence of centers of Christianity like Serdica (present day Sofia ), Philippopolis (present day Plovdiv ) and Durostorum (present day Silistra ) was likely to have begun with these early Apostolic missions . The first Christian monastery in Europe was founded in Thrace in 344 by Saint Athanasius near modern-day Chirpan , Bulgaria , following
8178-539: The First Epistle of Clement written to the Corinthian church, dated around 96. The bishops in Corinth include Apollo, Sosthenes , and Dionysius . Athens , the capital and largest city in Greece, was visited by Paul. He probably traveled by sea, arriving at Piraeus , the harbor of Athens, coming from Berœa of Macedonia around the year 53. According to Acts 17 , when he arrived at Athens, he immediately sent for Silas and Timotheos who had stayed behind in Berœa. While waiting for them, Paul explored Athens and visited
8352-431: The First Epistle to the Corinthians from Ephesus approximately in 54-55 which focused on sexual immorality, divorces, lawsuits, and resurrections. The Second Epistle to the Corinthians from Macedonia was written around 56 as a fourth letter discussing his proposed plans for the future, instructions, unity, and his defense of apostolic authority. The earliest evidence of the primacy of the Roman Church can be seen in
8526-468: The First Jewish-Roman War (AD 66–73), Jerusalem and the Temple were destroyed after a brutal siege in AD 70. Prophecies of the Second Temple's destruction are found in the synoptic gospels , specifically in the Olivet Discourse . According to a tradition recorded by Eusebius and Epiphanius of Salamis , the Jerusalem church fled to Pella at the outbreak of the First Jewish Revolt . The church had returned to Jerusalem by AD 135, but
8700-453: The Gallican Psalter for the Roman. The Franciscans gradually spread this breviary throughout Europe. Pope Nicholas III would then adopt the widely used Franciscan breviary to be the breviary used in Rome. By the 14th century, the breviary contained the entire text of the canonical hours. The Council of Trent in its final session on 4 December 1563 entrusted the reform of the breviary to the then pope, Pius IV . On 9 July 1568, Pope Pius V ,
8874-404: The Great Fire of AD 64. It is possible that Peter and Paul were in Rome and were martyred at this time. Nero was deposed in AD 68, and the persecution of Christians ceased. Under the emperors Vespasian ( r. 69–79 ) and Titus ( r. 79–81 ), Christians were largely ignored by the Roman government. The Emperor Domitian ( r. 81–96 ) authorized a new persecution against
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#17327729695829048-488: The Hebrew Bible called the Septuagint . The Septuagint was the translation of the Old Testament used by early Christians. Diaspora Jews continued to make pilgrimage to the Temple , but they started forming local religious institutions called synagogues as early as the 3rd century BC. The Maccabean Revolt caused Judaism to divide into competing sects with different theological and political goals, each adopting different stances towards Hellenization. The main sects were
9222-408: The Hellenistic period when the Ancient Near East underwent Hellenization (the spread of Greek culture ). Judaism was thereafter both culturally and politically part of the Hellenistic world; however, Hellenistic Judaism was stronger among diaspora Jews than among those living in the land of Israel. Diaspora Jews spoke Koine Greek , and the Jews of Alexandria produced a Greek translation of
9396-399: The Holy See , the primary language of its public journal , the Acta Apostolicae Sedis , and the working language of the Roman Rota . Vatican City is also home to the world's only automatic teller machine that gives instructions in Latin. In the pontifical universities postgraduate courses of Canon law are taught in Latin, and papers are written in the same language. There are
9570-450: The Middle Ages , borrowing from Latin occurred from ecclesiastical usage established by Saint Augustine of Canterbury in the 6th century or indirectly after the Norman Conquest , through the Anglo-Norman language . From the 16th to the 18th centuries, English writers cobbled together huge numbers of new words from Latin and Greek words, dubbed " inkhorn terms ", as if they had spilled from a pot of ink. Many of these words were used once by
9744-430: The Mundelein Psalter , containing Morning, Evening and Night Prayers and the Office for the Dead, with the 1963 Grail translation of the Psalms set to specially composed chant, and with hymns translated from the hymns of the Latin Liturgia Horarum . The Divine Office and the Liturgy of the Hours editions are both based on the Latin 1971 editio typica. In 2009, on the occasion of the Synod of African Bishops in Rome,
9918-424: The New English Bible and Ronald Knox's Translation of the Vulgate . Some of the canticles taken from the Revised Standard Version were amended slightly to conform the English text to the Vulgate in The Divine Office . The intercessions, concluding prayers, antiphons, short responses, responsories, second readings in the Office of Readings, the Te Deum and the Glory be to the Father are all translations approved by
10092-412: The Pauline epistles , letters written to various Christian congregations by Paul the Apostle in the 50s AD. The four canonical gospels of Matthew ( c. AD 80 – c. AD 90 ), Mark ( c. AD 70 ), Luke ( c. AD 80 – c. AD 90 ), and John (written at the end of the 1st century) are ancient biographies of Jesus' life. Jesus grew up in Nazareth ,
10266-471: The Persian Empire permitted Jews to return to their homeland of Judea , there was no longer a native Jewish monarchy. Instead, political power devolved to the high priest , who served as an intermediary between the Jewish people and the empire. This arrangement continued after the region was conquered by Alexander the Great (356–323 BC). After Alexander's death, the region was ruled by Ptolemaic Egypt ( c. 301 – c. 200 BC ) and then
10440-406: The Persians in 614 or the Saracens around 637. The first major church historian, Eusebius of Caesarea , was a bishop, c. 314–339. F. J. A. Hort and Adolf von Harnack have argued that the Nicene Creed originated in Caesarea. The Caesarean text-type is recognized by many textual scholars as one of the earliest New Testament types. Paphos was the capital of the island of Cyprus during
10614-456: The Roman Empire . The central tenets of Second Temple Judaism revolved around monotheism and the belief that Jews were a chosen people . As part of their covenant with God , Jews were obligated to obey the Torah . In return, they were given the land of Israel and the city of Jerusalem , where God dwelled in the Temple. Apocalyptic and wisdom literature had a major influence on Second Temple Judaism. Alexander's conquests initiated
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#173277296958210788-404: The Roman Rite of the Catholic Church at the Vatican City . The church continues to adapt concepts from modern languages to Ecclesiastical Latin of the Latin language. Contemporary Latin is more often studied to be read rather than spoken or actively used. Latin has greatly influenced the English language , along with a large number of others, and historically contributed many words to
10962-400: The Romance languages . During the Classical period, informal language was rarely written, so philologists have been left with only individual words and phrases cited by classical authors, inscriptions such as Curse tablets and those found as graffiti . In the Late Latin period, language changes reflecting spoken (non-classical) norms tend to be found in greater quantities in texts. As it
11136-408: The Sadducees , Pharisees , and Essenes . The Sadducees were mainly Jerusalem aristocrats intent on maintaining control over Jewish politics and religion. Sadducee religion was focused on the Temple and its rituals. The Pharisees emphasized personal piety and interpreted the Torah in ways that provided religious guidance for daily life. Unlike Sadducees, the Pharisees believed in the resurrection of
11310-418: The Seleucid Empire ( c. 200 – c. 142 BC ). The anti-Jewish policies of Antiochus IV Epiphanes ( r. 175 – 164 BC ) sparked the Maccabean Revolt in 167 BC, which culminated in the establishment of an independent Judea under the Hasmoneans , who ruled as kings and high priests. This independence would last until 63 BC when Judea became a client state of
11484-422: The Synoptic Gospels , specifically in Jesus's Olivet Discourse . Romans had a negative perception of early Christians. The Roman historian Tacitus wrote that Christians were despised for their "abominations" and "hatred of humankind". The belief that Christians hated humankind could refer to their refusal to participate in social activities connected to pagan worship—these included most social activities such as
11658-551: The Thessalonians and to Philippi , which is often considered the first contact of Christianity with Europe. The Apostolic Father Polycarp wrote a letter to the Philippians , c. 125. Nicopolis was a city in the Roman province of Epirus Vetus , today a ruin on the northern part of the western Greek coast. In the Epistle to Titus , Paul said he intended to go there. It is possible that there were some Christians in its population. According to Eusebius , Origen (c. 185–254) stayed there for some time Ancient Corinth , today
11832-510: The Western Roman Empire fell in 476 and Germanic kingdoms took its place, the Germanic people adopted Latin as a language more suitable for legal and other, more formal uses. While the written form of Latin was increasingly standardized into a fixed form, the spoken forms began to diverge more greatly. Currently, the five most widely spoken Romance languages by number of native speakers are Spanish , Portuguese , French , Italian , and Romanian . Despite dialectal variation, which
12006-424: The apostles of Jesus , who are said to have dispersed from Jerusalem sometime after the crucifixion of Jesus , c. 26–33, perhaps following the Great Commission . Early Christians gathered in small private homes, known as house churches , but a city's whole Christian community would also be called a " church "—the Greek noun ἐκκλησία ( ekklesia ) literally means "assembly", "gathering", or "congregation" but
12180-407: The bell in the forum rang the beginning of the business day at about six o'clock in the morning (Prime, the "first hour"), noted the day's progress by striking again at about nine o'clock in the morning (Terce, the "third hour"), tolled for the lunch break at noon (Sext, the "sixth hour"), called the people back to work again at about three o'clock in the afternoon (None, the "ninth hour"), and rang
12354-406: The doxology . The verse is omitted if the hour begins with the Invitatory (Morning Prayer/Lauds or the Office of Reading). The Invitatory is the introduction to the first hour said on the current day, whether it be the Office of Readings or Morning Prayer. The opening is followed by a hymn . The hymn is followed by psalmody . The psalmody is followed by a scripture reading. The reading is called
12528-530: The early Christian communities in Asia Minor , was the inclusion of Gentiles into God's New Covenant , sending the message that faith in Christ is sufficient for salvation . ( See also : Supersessionism , New Covenant , Antinomianism , Hellenistic Judaism , and Paul the Apostle and Judaism ). The Council of Jerusalem did not end the dispute, however. There are indications that James still believed
12702-544: The metropolitan see with the bishop of Jerusalem as one of its "suffragans" (subordinates). Origen (d. 254) compiled his Hexapla there and it held a famous library and theological school , St. Pamphilus (d. 309) was a noted scholar-priest. St. Gregory the Wonder-Worker (d. 270), St. Basil the Great (d. 379), and St. Jerome (d. 420) visited and studied at the library which was later destroyed, probably by
12876-539: The monastic practices of the Desert Fathers of Egypt. After the Second Vatican Council (1962 to 1965), which decided that the hour of prime should be suppressed, Pope Paul VI decreed a new arrangement of the Liturgy of the Hours. The structure of the offices, the distribution of psalms, and the prayers were updated. The distinction, already expressed in the 1960 Code of Rubrics , between
13050-664: The personal ordinariates for former Anglicans in the 2009 apostolic constitution Anglicanorum coetibus , there was sought an Anglican Use form of the Office that reflects Anglican tradition. In the Personal Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham in England and Wales , the Customary of Our Lady of Walsingham was adopted. In 2020, the Divine Worship: Daily Office was announced as
13224-589: The theater , the army, sports, and classical literature . They also refused to worship the Roman emperor , like Jews. Nonetheless, Romans were more lenient to Jews compared to Gentile Christians. Some anti-Christian Romans further distinguished between Jews and Christians by claiming that Christianity was "apostasy" from Judaism. Celsus , for example, considered Jewish Christians to be hypocrites for claiming that they embraced their Jewish heritage. Emperor Nero persecuted Christians in Rome, whom he blamed for starting
13398-588: The "sixth hour". The early church was known to pray the Psalms ( Acts 4:23–30 ), which have remained a part of the canonical hours. By 60 AD, the Didache recommended disciples to pray the Lord's Prayer three times a day; this practice found its way into the canonical hours as well. Pliny the Younger (63 – c. 113 ), mentions not only fixed times of prayer by believers, but also specific services – other than
13572-614: The 1963 Grail Psalms , while the Scripture readings and non-Gospel canticles are taken from the original 1970 first edition New American Bible . The prayers and intercessions are translated by the International Commission on English in the Liturgy (ICEL). The ELLC versions are used for items such as the Gospel canticles. An additional feature are psalm-prayers at the end of many Psalms, which were ICEL's translation of
13746-625: The Apostle Paul was from Tarsus (in south-central Anatolia) and his missionary journeys were primarily in Anatolia. The First Epistle of Peter ( 1:1–2 ) is addressed to Anatolian regions. On the southeast shore of the Black Sea , Pontus was a Greek colony mentioned three times in the New Testament. Inhabitants of Pontus were some of the first converts to Christianity. Pliny, governor in 110 , in his letters, addressed Christians in Pontus. Of
13920-637: The British Crown. The motto is featured on all presently minted coinage and has been featured in most coinage throughout the nation's history. Several states of the United States have Latin mottos , such as: Many military organizations today have Latin mottos, such as: Some law governing bodies in the Philippines have Latin mottos, such as: Some colleges and universities have adopted Latin mottos, for example Harvard University 's motto
14094-599: The Catholic Church in Africa, through Paulines Publications Africa, published a new English edition of the Liturgy of the Hours based on the Liturgia Horarum, editio typica altera . The antiphons and orations in this edition are taken from ICEL's 1975 translation of the Liturgy of the Hours, with independent translations for the offices for the new saints added to the General Roman Calendar as well as
14268-607: The Christians. It was at this time that the Book of Revelation was written by John of Patmos . In the 2nd century, Roman Emperor Hadrian rebuilt Jerusalem as a Pagan city and renamed it Aelia Capitolina , erecting statues of Jupiter and himself on the site of the former Jewish Temple, the Temple Mount . In the years AD 132–136, Bar Kokhba led an unsuccessful revolt as a Jewish Messiah claimant , but Christians refused to acknowledge him as such. When Bar Kokhba
14442-552: The Divine Office grew more important in the life of the church, the rituals became more elaborate. Soon, praying the Office began to require various books, such as a psalter for the psalms, a lectionary to find the assigned scripture reading for the day, a Bible to proclaim the reading, a hymnal for singing, etc. As parishes grew in the Middle Ages away from cathedrals and basilicas, a more concise way of arranging
14616-525: The Divine Office. An English/Latin parallel edition was published by Baronius Press in April 2012. Three English translations are in use. The Divine Office was produced by a commission set up by the Episcopal Conferences of Australia, England and Wales, Ireland and Scotland. First published in 1974 by HarperCollins , this edition is the official English edition for use in the dioceses of
14790-677: The English lexicon , particularly after the Christianization of the Anglo-Saxons and the Norman Conquest . Latin and Ancient Greek roots are heavily used in English vocabulary in theology , the sciences , medicine , and law . A number of phases of the language have been recognized, each distinguished by subtle differences in vocabulary, usage, spelling, and syntax. There are no hard and fast rules of classification; different scholars emphasize different features. As
14964-481: The Eucharist – assigned to those times: "they met on a stated day before it was light, and addressed a form of prayer to Christ, as to a divinity, … after which it was their custom to separate, and then reassemble, to eat in common a harmless meal." By the second and third centuries, such Church Fathers as Clement of Alexandria , Origen , and Tertullian wrote of the practice of Morning and Evening Prayer, and of
15138-599: The Grinch Stole Christmas! , The Cat in the Hat , and a book of fairy tales, " fabulae mirabiles ", are intended to garner popular interest in the language. Additional resources include phrasebooks and resources for rendering everyday phrases and concepts into Latin, such as Meissner's Latin Phrasebook . Some inscriptions have been published in an internationally agreed, monumental, multivolume series,
15312-564: The Heaven which he had now entered, to love and save from destruction all who acknowledged him as Lord. For his followers, Jesus' death inaugurated a New Covenant between God and his people. The apostle Paul, in his epistles, taught that Jesus makes salvation possible. Through faith , believers experience union with Jesus and both share in his suffering and the hope of his resurrection. While they do not provide new information, non-Christian sources do confirm certain information found in
15486-648: The Hours ( Liturgia Horarum in Latin) is published by Libreria Editrice Vaticana in four volumes, arranged according to the liturgical seasons of the church year. The liturgical books for the celebration of the Liturgy of the Hours in Latin are those of the editio typica altera (second typical edition) promulgated in 1985 and re-issued by the Vatican Publishing House – Libreria Editrice Vaticana – in 2000 and 2003. Midwest Theological Forum has published an edition iuxta typicam with updating of
15660-577: The Hours , produced by the International Commission on English in the Liturgy , was first published in 1975 by Catholic Book Publishing Company in the USA. This edition is the official English edition for use in the US, Canada and some other English-speaking dioceses. It is in four volumes, an arrangement identical to the original Latin typical edition. The psalms are taken (slightly adapted) from
15834-656: The Hours" has been retroactively applied to the practices of saying the canonical hours in both the Christian East and West –particularly within the Latin liturgical rites –prior to the Second Vatican Council , and is the official term for the canonical hours promulgated for usage by the Latin Church in 1971. Before 1971, the official form for the Latin Church was the Breviarium Romanum , first published in 1568 with major editions through 1962. The Liturgy of
16008-605: The Hours, like many other forms of the canonical hours, consists primarily of psalms supplemented by hymns , readings, and other prayers and antiphons prayed at fixed prayer times . Together with the Mass , it constitutes the public prayer of the church. Christians of both Western and Eastern traditions (including the Latin Catholic , Eastern Catholic , Eastern Orthodox , Oriental Orthodox , Assyrian , Lutheran , Anglican , and some other Protestant churches) celebrate
16182-483: The Jewish practice of reciting prayers at certain hours of the day or night. In the Psalms are found expressions like "in the morning I offer you my prayer"; "At midnight I will rise and thank you"; "Evening, morning and at noon I will cry and lament"; "Seven times a day I praise you". The Apostles observed the Jewish custom of praying at the third, sixth, and ninth hours, and at midnight (Acts 10:3, 9; 16:25; etc.). Hence
16356-628: The Johannine works traditionally and plausibly occurred in Ephesus , c. 90–110, although some scholars argue for an origin in Syria . This includes the Book of Revelation , although modern Bible scholars believe that it to be authored by a different John, John of Patmos (a Greek island about 30 miles off the Anatolian coast), that mentions Seven churches of Asia . According to the New Testament,
16530-436: The Roman Breviary of Pope Pius V. Pope Clement VIII instituted obligatory changes on 10 May 1602, 34 years after Pius V's revision. Pope Urban VIII made further changes, including "a profound alteration in the character of some of the hymns. Although some of them without doubt gained in literary style, nevertheless, to the regret of many, they also lost something of their old charm of simplicity and fervour." Pope Pius X made
16704-735: The Roman Emperor Constantine the Great , which legalized Christianity in the Roman Empire. Jerusalem was later named as one of the Pentarchy , but this was never accepted by the Church of Rome . ( See also : East–West Schism#Prospects for reconciliation ). Antioch (modern Antakya , Turkey) was the capital of the Roman province of Syria and a center of Greek culture in the Eastern Mediterranean , as well as
16878-492: The Roman years and seat of a Roman commander. In 45 AD, the apostles Paul and Barnabas , who according to Acts 4:36 was "a native of Cyprus", came to Cyprus and reached Paphos preaching the message of Jesus, see also Acts 13:4–13 . According to Acts, the apostles were persecuted by the Romans but eventually succeeded in convincing the Roman commander Sergius Paulus to renounce his old religion in favour of Christianity. Barnabas
17052-529: The Second Vatican Council, the Catholic Church's Latin Church, hoping to restore their character as the prayer of the entire church, revised the liturgical book for the celebration of the Divine Office, and published it under the title "Liturgy of the Hours". The Council itself abolished the office of Prime, and envisioned a manner of distributing the psalms over a period of more than 1 week. In
17226-639: The Southern Cross in Australia, Japan, and Oceania. While developed primarily from the Anglican tradition, the Divine Worship: Daily Office is considered to be a specific use of the Liturgy of the Hours. By the time of Benedict of Nursia (480–548 AD), the monastic Divine Office was composed of seven daytime hours and one at night. In his Rule of St. Benedict , he associated the practice with Psalm 118/119:164, "Seven times
17400-556: The Torah (such as food laws , male circumcision , and Sabbath observance) gave rise to various answers. Some Christians demanded full observance of the Torah and required Gentile converts to become Jews. Others, such as Paul, believed that the Torah was no longer binding because of Jesus' death and resurrection. In the middle were Christians who believed Gentiles should follow some of the Torah but not all of it. In c. 48–50 AD , Barnabas and Paul went to Jerusalem to meet with
17574-454: The Torah was binding on Jewish Christians. Galatians 2:11-14 describe "people from James" causing Peter and other Jewish Christians in Antioch to break table fellowship with Gentiles. ( See also : Incident at Antioch ). Joel Marcus, professor of Christian origins, suggests that Peter's position may have lain somewhere between James and Paul, but that he probably leaned more toward James. This
17748-467: The United States the unofficial national motto until 1956 was E pluribus unum meaning "Out of many, one". The motto continues to be featured on the Great Seal . It also appears on the flags and seals of both houses of congress and the flags of the states of Michigan, North Dakota, New York, and Wisconsin. The motto's 13 letters symbolically represent the original Thirteen Colonies which revolted from
17922-563: The University of Kentucky, the University of Oxford and also Princeton University. There are many websites and forums maintained in Latin by enthusiasts. The Latin Misplaced Pages has more than 130,000 articles. Italian , French , Portuguese , Spanish , Romanian , Catalan , Romansh , Sardinian and other Romance languages are direct descendants of Latin. There are also many Latin borrowings in English and Albanian , as well as
18096-717: The above countries as well as many other dioceses around the world, especially in Asian and African countries. It is arranged in three volumes: The psalms are taken (with slight adaptations) from the 1963 Grail Psalms, while the Scripture readings and non-Gospel canticles are taken from various versions of the Bible, including the Revised Standard Version , the Jerusalem Bible , the Good News Bible ,
18270-490: The author and then forgotten, but some useful ones survived, such as 'imbibe' and 'extrapolate'. Many of the most common polysyllabic English words are of Latin origin through the medium of Old French . Romance words make respectively 59%, 20% and 14% of English, German and Dutch vocabularies. Those figures can rise dramatically when only non-compound and non-derived words are included. Early Christians The Apostolic sees claim to have been founded by one or more of
18444-697: The beginning of the First Jewish–Roman War in AD 66. Jerusalem's bishops became suffragans (subordinates) of the Metropolitan bishop in nearby Caesarea , Interest in Jerusalem resumed with the pilgrimage of the Roman Empress Helena to the Holy Land ( c. 326–328 AD ). According to the church historian Socrates of Constantinople , Helena (with the assistance of Bishop Macarius of Jerusalem ) claimed to have found
18618-425: The benefit of those who do not understand Latin. There are also songs written with Latin lyrics . The libretto for the opera-oratorio Oedipus rex by Igor Stravinsky is in Latin. Parts of Carl Orff 's Carmina Burana are written in Latin. Enya has recorded several tracks with Latin lyrics. The continued instruction of Latin is seen by some as a highly valuable component of a liberal arts education. Latin
18792-489: The canonical hours in various forms and under various names. The chant or recitation of the Divine Office therefore forms the basis of prayer within the consecrated life , with some of the monastic or mendicant orders producing their own permutations of the Liturgy of the Hours and older Roman Breviary. Prayer of the Divine Office is an obligation undertaken by priests and deacons intending to become priests, while deacons intending to remain deacons are obliged to recite only
18966-409: The careful work of Petrarch, Politian and others, first the demand for manuscripts, and then the rush to bring works into print, led to the circulation of inaccurate copies for several centuries following. Neo-Latin literature was extensive and prolific, but less well known or understood today. Works covered poetry, prose stories and early novels, occasional pieces and collections of letters, to name
19140-577: The celebration of saints. It is arranged in six volumes: Although most priests and other clerics in the Latin Church now use the Roman breviary, some (such as those in the Priestly Fraternity of Saint Peter or similar societies) continue to use the breviary as revised by Pope Pius X , the latest edition of which was issued under Pope John XXIII . The motu proprio Summorum Pontificum in 2007 authorized every Latin Church cleric to use this edition to fulfill his canonical obligation to pray
19314-464: The celestial Son of Man who brings about the resurrection of the dead and the final judgment . Christianity centers on the life and ministry of Jesus of Nazareth , who lived c. 4 BC – c. AD 33 . Jesus left no writings of his own, and most information about him comes from early Christian writings that now form part of the New Testament . The earliest of these are
19488-763: The cities of Asia Minor . By the early 50s, he had moved on to Europe where he stopped in Philippi and then traveled to Thessalonica in Roman Macedonia . He then moved into mainland Greece, spending time in Athens and Corinth . While in Corinth, Paul wrote his Epistle to the Romans , indicating that there were already Christian groups in Rome . Some of these groups had been started by Paul's missionary associates Priscilla and Aquila and Epainetus . Social and professional networks played an important part in spreading
19662-415: The classicised Latin that followed through to the present are often grouped together as Neo-Latin , or New Latin, which have in recent decades become a focus of renewed study , given their importance for the development of European culture, religion and science. The vast majority of written Latin belongs to this period, but its full extent is unknown. The Renaissance reinforced the position of Latin as
19836-417: The close of the business day at about six o'clock in the evening (the time for evening prayer). The healing of the crippled man at the temple gate occurred as Peter and John were going to the temple to pray ( Acts 3:1 ) at the "ninth hour" of prayer (about three pm). The decision to include Gentiles among the community of believers, arose from a vision Peter had while praying at noontime, ( Acts 10:9–49 )
20010-586: The competent episcopal conferences . For Catholics in primarily Commonwealth nations , the three-volume Divine Office , which uses a range of different English Bibles for the readings from Scripture, was published in 1974. The four-volume Liturgy of the Hours , with Scripture readings from the New American Bible , appeared in 1975 with approval from the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops . The 1989 English translation of
20184-473: The connection between Acts 15 and the seven Noahide laws. In roughly the same time period, rabbinic Jewish legal authorities made their circumcision requirement for Jewish boys even stricter. The primary issue which was addressed related to the requirement of circumcision , as the author of Acts relates, but other important matters arose as well, as the Apostolic Decree indicates. The dispute
20358-412: The country's full Latin name. Some film and television in ancient settings, such as Sebastiane , The Passion of the Christ and Barbarians (2020 TV series) , have been made with dialogue in Latin. Occasionally, Latin dialogue is used because of its association with religion or philosophy, in such film/television series as The Exorcist and Lost (" Jughead "). Subtitles are usually shown for
20532-596: The dead and an afterlife. The Essenes rejected Temple worship, which they believed was defiled by wicked priests. They were part of a broader apocalyptic movement in Judaism, which believed the end times were at hand when God would restore Israel. Roman rule exacerbated these religious tensions and led the radical Zealots to separate from the Pharisees. The territories of Roman Judea and Galilee were frequently troubled by insurrection and messianic claimants . Messiah ( Hebrew : meshiach ) means "anointed" and
20706-429: The decline in written Latin output. Despite having no native speakers, Latin is still used for a variety of purposes in the contemporary world. The largest organisation that retains Latin in official and quasi-official contexts is the Catholic Church . The Catholic Church required that Mass be carried out in Latin until the Second Vatican Council of 1962–1965 , which permitted the use of the vernacular . Latin remains
20880-535: The disruptions severely weakened the Jerusalem church's influence over the wider Christian church . Jerusalem was the first center of the Christian Church according to the Book of Acts . The apostles lived and taught there for some time after Pentecost . James the Just, brother of Jesus was leader of the early Christian community in Jerusalem, and his other kinsmen likely held leadership positions in
21054-640: The earliest New Testament types. It had a significant Jewish population , of which Philo of Alexandria is probably its most known author. It produced superior scripture and notable church fathers, such as Clement, Origen, and Athanasius; also noteworthy were the nearby Desert Fathers . By the end of the era, Alexandria, Rome, and Antioch were accorded authority over nearby metropolitans . The Council of Nicaea in canon VI affirmed Alexandria's traditional authority over Egypt, Libya, and Pentapolis (North Africa) (the Diocese of Egypt ) and probably granted Alexandria
21228-528: The educated and official world, Latin continued without its natural spoken base. Moreover, this Latin spread into lands that had never spoken Latin, such as the Germanic and Slavic nations. It became useful for international communication between the member states of the Holy Roman Empire and its allies. Without the institutions of the Roman Empire that had supported its uniformity, Medieval Latin
21402-621: The end of the first century , Christianity had already spread to Rome , Ethiopia , Alexandria , Armenia , Greece , and Syria , serving as foundations for the expansive spread of Christianity , eventually throughout the world. Christianity originated as a minor sect within Second Temple Judaism , a form of Judaism named after the Second Temple built c. 516 BC after the Babylonian captivity . While
21576-718: The episcopal conferences mentioned and confirmed by the Holy See in December 1973. The Gospel canticles ( Benedictus , Magnificat , Nunc Dimittis ) are from the 1963 Grail Translation, but an appendix at the end of the book gives the English Language Liturgical Consultation (ELLC)) versions of the Gospel canticles as alternatives. Collins also publishes shorter editions of The Divine Office : Between 2005 and 2006, Collins republished The Divine Office and its various shorter editions with
21750-526: The extant letters of Ignatius of Antioch considered authentic , five of seven are to Anatolian cities, the sixth is to Polycarp . Smyrna was home to Polycarp, the bishop who reportedly knew the Apostle John personally, and probably also to his student Irenaeus . Papias of Hierapolis is also believed to have been a student of John the Apostle. In the 2nd century, Anatolia was home to Quartodecimanism , Montanism , Marcion of Sinope , and Melito of Sardis who recorded an early Christian Biblical canon . After
21924-406: The form of the fixed-hour prayers was a hybrid of secular and monastic practice. In the East, the development of the Divine Services shifted from the area around Jerusalem to Constantinople . In particular, Theodore the Studite ( c. 758 – c. 826 ) combined a number of influences from the Byzantine court ritual with monastic practices common in Asia Minor , and added thereto
22098-404: The gospels present Jesus as the Son of God . The gospels describe the miracles of Jesus which served to authenticate his message and reveal a foretaste of the coming kingdom. The gospel accounts conclude with a description of the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus , ultimately leading to his Ascension into Heaven . Jesus' victory over death became the central belief of Christianity. In
22272-458: The gospels. The Jewish historian Josephus referenced Jesus in his Antiquities of the Jews written c. AD 95 . The paragraph, known as the Testimonium Flavianum , provides a brief summary of Jesus' life, but the original text has been altered by Christian interpolation . The first Roman author to reference Jesus is Tacitus ( c. AD 56 – c. 120 ), who wrote that Christians "took their name from Christus who
22446-404: The hours was needed. So, a sort of list developed called the Breviary , which gave the format of the daily office and the texts to be used. The spread of breviaries eventually reached Rome, where Pope Innocent III extended its use to the Roman Curia. The Franciscans sought a one-volume breviary for its friars to use during travels, so the order adopted the Breviarium Curiae , but substituting
22620-504: The invention of printing and are now published in carefully annotated printed editions, such as the Loeb Classical Library , published by Harvard University Press , or the Oxford Classical Texts , published by Oxford University Press . Latin translations of modern literature such as: The Hobbit , Treasure Island , Robinson Crusoe , Paddington Bear , Winnie the Pooh , The Adventures of Tintin , Asterix , Harry Potter , Le Petit Prince , Max and Moritz , How
22794-416: The kingdom's coming. His ethical teachings included loving one's enemies ( Matthew 5:44 ; Luke 6:28–35 ), giving alms and fasting in secret ( Matthew 6:4 –18), not serving both God and Mammon ( Matthew 6:24 ; Luke 16 :13), and not judging others ( Matthew 7:1 –2; Luke 6:37–38). These teachings are highlighted in the Sermon on the Mount and the Lord's Prayer . Jesus chose 12 Disciples who represented
22968-412: The language of the Roman Rite . The Tridentine Mass (also known as the Extraordinary Form or Traditional Latin Mass) is celebrated in Latin. Although the Mass of Paul VI (also known as the Ordinary Form or the Novus Ordo) is usually celebrated in the local vernacular language, it can be and often is said in Latin, in part or in whole, especially at multilingual gatherings. It is the official language of
23142-440: The large areas where it had come to be natively spoken. However, even after the fall of Western Rome , Latin remained the common language of international communication , science, scholarship and academia in Europe until well into the early 19th century, by which time modern languages had supplanted it in common academic and political usage. Late Latin is the literary language from the 3rd century AD onward. No longer spoken as
23316-412: The late seventeenth century, when spoken skills began to erode. It then became increasingly taught only to be read. Latin grammar is highly fusional , with classes of inflections for case , number , person , gender , tense , mood , voice , and aspect . The Latin alphabet is directly derived from the Etruscan and Greek alphabets . Latin remains the official language of the Holy See and
23490-431: The later part of the Roman Republic , up to 75 BC, i.e. before the age of Classical Latin . It is attested both in inscriptions and in some of the earliest extant Latin literary works, such as the comedies of Plautus and Terence . The Latin alphabet was devised from the Etruscan alphabet . The writing later changed from what was initially either a right-to-left or a boustrophedon script to what ultimately became
23664-450: The leader of the Jerusalem church. Clement of Alexandria ( c. 150–215 AD ) called him Bishop of Jerusalem . Peter, John and James were collectively recognized as the three pillars of the church ( Galatians 2:9 ). At this early date, Christianity was still a Jewish sect. Christians in Jerusalem kept the Jewish Sabbath and continued to worship at the Temple. In commemoration of Jesus' resurrection, they gathered on Sunday for
23838-421: The less prestigious colloquial registers , attested in inscriptions and some literary works such as those of the comic playwrights Plautus and Terence and the author Petronius . While often called a "dead language", Latin did not undergo language death . By the 6th to 9th centuries, natural language change eventually resulted in Latin as a vernacular language evolving into distinct Romance languages in
24012-517: The light, to Damascus where his sight was restored by a disciple called Ananias (who is thought to have been the first bishop of Damascus) then he was baptized . Thessalonica , the major northern Greek city where it is believed Christianity was founded by Paul , thus an Apostolic See , and the surrounding regions of Macedonia , Thrace , and Epirus , which also extend into the neighboring Balkan states of Albania and Bulgaria , were early centers of Christianity. Of note are Paul's Epistles to
24186-467: The most important cities in the empire. Early Christians referred to themselves as brethren, disciples or saints , but it was in Antioch, according to Acts 11 :26, that they were first called Christians (Greek: Christianoi ). According to the New Testament, Paul the apostle established Christian communities throughout the Mediterranean world. He is known to have also spent some time in Arabia. After preaching in Syria, he turned his attention to
24360-407: The new Divine Office of the Anglican Use personal ordinariates. There are two editions: the North American Edition released in late 2020 for use by the Personal Ordinariate of the Chair of Saint Peter and the Commonwealth Edition to be released in 2021 to replace the Customary in the Personal Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham and introduce an office for the Personal Ordinariate of Our Lady of
24534-494: The next prayer. As the format of unbroken fixed-hour prayer developed in the Christian monastic communities in the East and West, longer prayers soon grew, but the cycle of prayer became the norm in daily life in monasteries . By the fourth century, the characteristics of the canonical hours more or less took their present shape. For secular (non-monastic) clergymen and lay people, the fixed-hour prayers were by necessity much shorter. In many churches and basilicas staffed by monks,
24708-443: The obligation to use the promulgated text in all places, and the total prohibition of adding or omitting anything, declaring in fact: "No one whosoever is permitted to alter this letter or heedlessly to venture to go contrary to this notice of Our permission, statute, ordinance, command, precept, grant, indult declaration, will decree and prohibition. Should anyone, however, presume to commit such an act, he should know that he will incur
24882-413: The other varieties, as it was largely separated from the unifying influences in the western part of the Empire. Spoken Latin began to diverge into distinct languages by the 9th century at the latest, when the earliest extant Romance writings begin to appear. They were, throughout the period, confined to everyday speech, as Medieval Latin was used for writing. For many Italians using Latin, though, there
25056-446: The poor, sick, and widows. Women actively contributed to the Christian faith as disciples, missionaries, and more due to the large acceptance early Christianity offered. Historian Keith Hopkins estimated that by AD 100 there were around 7,000 Christians (about 0.01 percent of the Roman Empire's population of 60 million). Separate Christian groups maintained contact with each other through letters, visits from itinerant preachers , and
25230-410: The practice of seven fixed prayer times has been taught from the time of the early Church; in Apostolic Tradition , Hippolytus instructed Christians to pray seven times a day "on rising, at the lighting of the evening lamp, at bedtime, at midnight" and "the third, sixth and ninth hours of the day, being hours associated with Christ's Passion." The Christian prayer of that time consisted of almost
25404-551: The prayers at terce, sext, and none. Daily morning and evening prayer preceded daily Mass, for the Mass was first limited to Sundays and then gradually spread to some feast days. The daily prayer kept alive the theme of gratitude from the Sunday "Eucharist" (which means gratitude). The prayers could be prayed individually or in groups. By the third century, the Desert Fathers began to live out Paul's command to "pray without ceasing" ( 1 Thessalonians 5:17 ) by having one group of monks pray one fixed-hour prayer while having another group pray
25578-410: The principal authority of the early Christian church. Clement of Alexandria ( c. 150–215 AD ) called him Bishop of Jerusalem . A 2nd-century church historian, Hegesippus , wrote that the Sanhedrin martyred him in 62 AD. In 66 AD, the Jews revolted against Rome . After a brutal siege, Jerusalem fell in 70 AD . The city, including the Jewish Temple, was destroyed and the population
25752-502: The religion as members invited interested outsiders to secret Christian assemblies (Greek: ekklēsia ) that met in private homes (see house church ). Commerce and trade also played a role in Christianity's spread as Christian merchants traveled for business. Christianity appealed to marginalized groups (women, slaves) with its message that "in Christ there is neither Jew nor Greek, neither male nor female, neither slave nor free" ( Galatians 3:28 ). Christians also provided social services to
25926-426: The right to declare a universal date for the observance of Easter (see also Easter controversy ). Some postulate, however, that Alexandria was not only a center of Christianity, but was also a center for Christian-based Gnostic sects. The tradition of John the Apostle was strong in Anatolia (the near-east , part of modern Turkey, the western part was called the Roman province of Asia ). The authorship of
26100-457: The role of Bishop of Antioch as first being held by Peter. The Gospel of Matthew and the Apostolic Constitutions may have been written there. The church father Ignatius of Antioch was its third bishop. The School of Antioch, founded in 270, was one of two major centers of early church learning. The Curetonian Gospels and the Syriac Sinaiticus are two early (pre- Peshitta ) New Testament text types associated with Syriac Christianity . It
26274-400: The same elements as the Jewish: recital or chanting of psalms and reading of the Old Testament, to which were soon added readings of the Gospels, Acts, and epistles, and canticles . Other elements were added later in the course of the centuries. The canonical hours stemmed from Jewish prayer . This "sacrifice of praise" began to be substituted for the sacrifices of animals. In Roman cities,
26448-456: The sharing of common texts, some of which were later collected in the New Testament. Jerusalem was the first center of the Christian Church according to the Book of Acts . The apostles lived and taught there for some time after Pentecost. According to Acts, the early church was led by the Apostles, foremost among them Peter and John . When Peter left Jerusalem after Herod Agrippa I tried to kill him, James, brother of Jesus appears as
26622-428: The succeeding revision, the character of Matins was changed to an Office of Readings so that it could be used at any time of the day as an office of Scriptural and patristic readings. Furthermore, the period over which the Psalter is recited has been expanded from one week to four. The Latin hymns of the Roman Office were in many cases restored to the pre-Urban form, albeit several of them were shortened. This Liturgy of
26796-410: The successor to Pius IV who closed the Council of Trent, promulgated an edition, known as the Roman Breviary, with his Apostolic Constitution Quod a nobis , imposing it in the same way in which, two years later, he imposed his Roman Missal and using language very similar to that in the bull Quo primum with which he promulgated the Missal, regarding, for instance, the perpetual force of its provisions,
26970-460: The surrounding area after the destruction of the city until its rebuilding as Aelia Capitolina in c. 130 AD , when all Jews were banished from Jerusalem. The first Gentiles to become Christians were God-fearers , people who believed in the truth of Judaism but had not become proselytes (see Cornelius the Centurion ). As Gentiles joined the young Christian movement, the question of whether they should convert to Judaism and observe
27144-476: The synagogue, as there was a local Jewish community . A Christian community was quickly established in Athens, although it may not have been large initially. A common tradition identifies the Areopagite as the first bishop of the Christian community in Athens, while another tradition mentions Hierotheos the Thesmothete . The succeeding bishops were not all of Athenian descent: Narkissos was believed to have come from Palestine, and Publius from Malta. Quadratus
27318-459: The teaching of the apostles, to the brotherhood, to the breaking of bread and to the prayers' (Acts 2 :42). Many times the Acts of the Apostles testifies that the Christian community prayed together. The testimony of the early Church shows that individual faithful also devoted themselves to prayer at certain hours. In various areas the practice soon gained ground of devoting special times to prayer in common." Early Christians were in fact continuing
27492-421: The three Pillars of the Church : James the Just, Peter, and John . Later called the Council of Jerusalem , according to Pauline Christians , this meeting (among other things) confirmed the legitimacy of the evangelizing mission of Barnabas and Paul to the Gentiles . It also confirmed that Gentile converts were not obligated to follow the Mosaic Law , especially the practice of male circumcision , which
27666-435: The three major hours (Matins, Lauds and Vespers) and the minor hours (Terce, Sext, None and Compline) has been retained. All hours, including the minor hours, start with the versicle from Ps 70 (69) v. 2 (as do all offices in the traditional breviary except Matins and Compline): V. Deus, in adiutorium meum intende ; R. Domine, ad adiuvandum me festina ("O God, come to my aid: O Lord, make haste to help me"), followed by
27840-428: The times of day at which in the second millennium they have traditionally been recited, as shown by the use of the word "noon", derived from Latin (hora) nona , to mean midday, not 3 in the afternoon: This arrangement of the Divine Office is described by Benedict. However, it is found in John Cassian 's Twelve books on the institutes of the coenobia and the remedies for the eight principal faults , which describe
28014-410: The words of historian Diarmaid MacCulloch : Whether through some mass delusion, some colossal act of wishful thinking, or through witness to a power or force beyond any definition known to Western historical analysis, those who had known Jesus in life and had felt the shattering disappointment of his death proclaimed that he lived still, that he loved them still, and that he was to return to earth from
28188-403: The wrath of Almighty God and of the Blessed Apostles Peter and Paul." With the same bull, Pius V ordered the general abolition of all breviaries other than his reformed breviary, with the same exception that he was to make in his Quo primum bull: he allowed those legitimately in use for at least 200 years to continue. Examples of such breviaries are the Benedictine ( Breviarium Monasticum ),
28362-474: Was between those, such as the followers of the "Pillars of the Church", led by James , who believed, following his interpretation of the Great Commission , that the church must observe the Torah , i.e. the rules of traditional Judaism, and Paul the Apostle , who called himself "Apostle to the Gentiles", who believed there was no such necessity. The main concern for the Apostle Paul, which he subsequently expressed in greater detail with his letters directed to
28536-426: Was condemned as execrable and repulsive in the Greco-Roman world during the period of Hellenization of the Eastern Mediterranean , and was especially adversed in Classical civilization from ancient Greeks and Romans , who valued the foreskin positively. The resulting Apostolic Decree in Acts 15 is theorized to parallel the seven Noahide laws found in the Old Testament . However, modern scholars dispute
28710-426: Was defeated, Hadrian barred Jews from the city, except for the day of Tisha B'Av , thus the subsequent Jerusalem bishops were Gentiles ("uncircumcised") for the first time. The general significance of Jerusalem to Christians entered a period of decline during the persecution of Christians in the Roman Empire . According to Eusebius , Jerusalem Christians escaped to Pella , in the Decapolis ( Transjordan ), at
28884-550: Was executed in the reign of Tiberius by the procurator Pontius Pilate" (see Tacitus on Jesus ) . The decades after the crucifixion of Jesus are known as the Apostolic Age because the Disciples (also known as Apostles ) were still alive. Important Christian sources for this period are the Pauline epistles and the Acts of the Apostles . After the death of Jesus, his followers established Christian groups in cities, such as Jerusalem. The movement quickly spread to Damascus and Antioch , capital of Roman Syria and one of
29058-413: Was free to develop on its own, there is no reason to suppose that the speech was uniform either diachronically or geographically. On the contrary, Romanised European populations developed their own dialects of the language, which eventually led to the differentiation of Romance languages . Late Latin is a kind of written Latin used in the 3rd to 6th centuries. This began to diverge from Classical forms at
29232-425: Was mostly killed or removed. According to a tradition recorded by Eusebius and Epiphanius of Salamis , the Jerusalem church fled to Pella at the outbreak of the First Jewish Revolt . According to Epiphanius of Salamis, the Cenacle survived at least to Hadrian's visit in 130 AD . A scattered population survived. The Sanhedrin relocated to Jamnia . Prophecies of the Second Temple's destruction are found in
29406-496: Was much more liberal in its linguistic cohesion: for example, in classical Latin sum and eram are used as auxiliary verbs in the perfect and pluperfect passive, which are compound tenses. Medieval Latin might use fui and fueram instead. Furthermore, the meanings of many words were changed and new words were introduced, often under influence from the vernacular. Identifiable individual styles of classically incorrect Latin prevail. Renaissance Latin, 1300 to 1500, and
29580-441: Was no complete separation between Italian and Latin, even into the beginning of the Renaissance . Petrarch for example saw Latin as a literary version of the spoken language. Medieval Latin is the written Latin in use during that portion of the post-classical period when no corresponding Latin vernacular existed, that is from around 700 to 1500 AD. The spoken language had developed into the various Romance languages; however, in
29754-420: Was one of the three whose bishops were recognized at the First Council of Nicaea (325) as exercising jurisdiction over the adjoining territories. Alexandria , in the Nile delta , was established by Alexander the Great . Its famous libraries were a center of Hellenistic learning. The Septuagint translation of the Old Testament began there and the Alexandrian text-type is recognized by scholars as one of
29928-431: Was shut down in June 2019), and Vatican Radio & Television, all of which broadcast news segments and other material in Latin. A variety of organisations, as well as informal Latin 'circuli' ('circles'), have been founded in more recent times to support the use of spoken Latin. Moreover, a number of university classics departments have begun incorporating communicative pedagogies in their Latin courses. These include
30102-418: Was there that Peter baptized the centurion Cornelius , considered the first gentile convert. Paul sought refuge there, once staying at the house of Philip the Evangelist , and later being imprisoned there for two years (estimated to be 57–59). The Apostolic Constitutions (7.46) state that the first Bishop of Caesarea was Zacchaeus the Publican . After Hadrian's siege of Jerusalem (c. 133), Caesarea became
30276-414: Was thus made capital of Roman Creta et Cyrenaica . St. Titus is believed to have been the first bishop. The city was sacked by the pirate Abu Hafs in 828. Paul the Apostle preached in Macedonia , and also in Philippi , located in Thrace on the Thracian Sea coast. According to Hippolytus of Rome , Andrew the Apostle preached in Thrace , on the Black Sea coast and along the lower course of
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