JOHN ROBERTS THEOLOGICAL COLLEGE

MAWKLOT, SHILLONG.
Subject - History of Christianity (BHC01).
Topic on – A Historical Study on the Development of Catholicate and Papacy During the
Middle Ages.
Submitted by: Dapshynrang Thongni Submitted to: Dr. Imo Chujang

Introduction:
The Development of the Catholicate and papacy in Christianity is a complex and
evolving process that spans over centuries. And in this topic, we will look on the
development of the Catholicate and Papacy during the middle ages, this period it has been
called the dark age because of the political confusion, quarrel and decline in Europe the
decline of learning and development of Christianity into a formal, ignorance and highly
superstition religion, in Europe this lead tothe decadence which reach its lowest point in the
early century.
1.Developments of Catholicate:
The catholicate, also known as the catholicosate or church of the East. During the
middle ages the catholicate face significant development and challenges both with in the
internal structure and in the relationship with other Christian denomination. The development
and desire of such practice were important elements to Roman Catholic renewal.1
1.1Rise of the Catholic:
The word “Catholic” is derive from the Greek word “katholikos” means ‘Universal’
or ‘General’ it was first used to describe the early Christian church as a whole. The word
Catholic is first used of the church by Ignatius and it is next to be found in the letter of the
church of Smyrna.2 As Christian spread across in the second and third centuries over wide
geographical areas, there began to appear two distinct Catholic Churches, one in the Roman
empire and the other in the Persian empire, by the end of the third centuries a clear pattern of
the episcopal hierarchy was emerging both in the Roman and Persian Empire, though it was
not uniform or universal. Bishop became to be in charge of cities with several congregations
or districts with several towns and some Bishop came to have authority over a wider area
while some were recognized as holder of Great sees, reached Patriarchal status.3
1.2. Cathedral:
Many churches was built during the middle ages. The biggest of this all were called
Cathedrals, and they were the most expensive and beautiful building built and some time it
take a lot of time to construct those kind of building and some of it take a year to construct
and most of them they were built in a similar fashion, they generally laid out in the shape of
1
Dale T. IRVIN Scott W. Sunquist, History of the World Christian Movement, (Maryknoll: Orbis
Book), 151.
2
Williston Walker, A History of The Christian Church, (New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons,1959), 57.
3
F.Hrangkhuma, An Introduction to Church History, (Bangalore: Theological Book Trust, 1996), 78.

1
cross, they had very tall walls and high ceiling. Cathedral churches are of different degrees of
dignity, there are cathedral churches of simple diocesan bishop, of archbishops or
metropolitans, of primates, patriarchs and in the Roman Catholic Church, of pope. A
cathedral church is not necessarily large and magnificent, although most cathedrals have
become so. Since the territorial organization of the early church followed that of the Roman
Empire, cathedrals from the first were established wherever possible in town not in village. In
the early European Middle Ages, the town in which a cathedral church was situated became
known as the cathedral city.4
2. The Advance of Christianity:
2.1. The conversion of northern Europe –
2.1.1. England:
The Great Britain who were already Christians were pushed to the western side by the
Angles and Saxons who were non-Christians. However, they were conquered by Christianity
from some sides. From the continent by the Roman Christians, Gregory became the Bishop
of Rome in 590 then he send a group of monk under the leadership of Augustine to England
and when the Augustine reach in England they get a warm welcome because the queen
already a Christian and within a year the king was baptized along with 10,000 of his subject,
and after this it start the conversion of southern England. And from Ireland, the large part of
England was won and Iona became the grate missionary center from which the Irish and the
Scottish monk went to evangelize England and the European continent, and by the end of the
seventh century Christianity was the religion of most of England. There were a few minor
differences between Scottish Christianity and Roman Christianity and after some controversy
it was decided at the synod in 664 that the English church should obey the Roman authority.
Thus England, instead of being left in the Celtic backwater, came into the mainstream of
European Christianity. It ceased to be a mission field with in a century and became a
missionary base for the conversation of Northern Europe5
2.1.2. Germany:
Christianity was introduced to the Germany proper from England. Boniface was one
of the greatest missionaries from England and he usually called the Apostle to Germany. He
left good prospects at home when he was no longer young in order to carry the gospel to the
Germans. He labored tremendously, preaching, baptizing, founding school and monasteries,
building up in south Germany an organization for the church which he had won for Christ.
He attacked heathen worship violently, challenging their god, he cut down the Oak of
Geismar, which was scare to Odin, one of the gods, in a direct challenge to their gods, in the
present of the terror-stricken crowd of barbarians to provide the superiority to the Christian
God. He made southern Germany permanent a Christianity land and hardly any man has won
richer harvest for Christ.
2.1.3. Denmark:

4
Robert McHenry, The New Encyclopaedia Britannica, (Chicago: Encyclopaedia Britannia,
Inc.1993),951-952.
5
F. Hrangkhuma, An Introduction to Church History………121

2
 Denmark saw Christianity firmly established only with the coming of the king Cnut.
The youngest son of the Danish king and a zealous Christianity and he became the king of
England in 1016. Upon his brother death he became the king of Denmark and he took with
many bishop and monk from England to strengthen the Christianity cause there.
2.1.4. Sweden:
Olaf Tryggvasen, a notorious pirate was baptized by a Christian hermit in the Scilly
Isles and confirmed by the bishop of Winchester and in 995 he returns as a Christian to claim
the crown of Norway. He was still a violent man and when he fails to persuade unbeliever
with words, he offered to do battle with them under his forceful influence the nominal
conversion of Norway was complete by 1000 and with it the territory of Iceland and
Greenland.
2.1.5. Sweden:
King Olaf brought bishop and priest from England to Norway. One of this, Sigfrid
moved to Sweden in 1000. The king accepted Christianity and after that many missionary
works in Sweden and by the 1100 Christianity victory was sure in Sweden.
2.1.6. The Slavs:
Moravia was the first Slavonic land to became Christian in the ninth century through
the remarkable work of two brothers, Constantine and Methodius, Greek of Thessalonica. A
little letter Christianity was established among the Serbs and Bulgers and in Bohemia.
2.1.7. Russia:
Christianity was forced on the people by their rulers in many lands like Norway and
Poland, though English missionary also worked in Norway. And same way happens in Russia
by Vladimir the ruler of the kingdom whose capital was Kiev in the late tenth century, for the
political reason desired to introduce Christianity. So, the clergy of the eastern church were
invited. Of course, Christianity were introducing to the people by the eastern missionaries to
some extent, but Vladimir required all of his subject t accept Christianity whether they are
liked it or not and even they resist and compelled he still remained ruthless and cruel. 6
2.2 Advance to the East:
2.2.1. India:
India was the first Asian land to receive attention from catholic missionaries, who
follow close on the heels of the Portuguese traders. Initially the priest at goa ministered
mainly to Portuguese men who lived in India and Indian families. India was divided in many
castes and social groups set off from one another, and as person who was born in the
particular caste could never chain to another and this show them that this was not right for
what they had done and when the Christianity came most of the lower class was accepted
because they find that in this new religion all are equally, then in 1542, Francis Xavier came
to India and with in a few years he and his Jesuit follower had begun their missions in many

6
F. Hrangkhuma, An Introduction to Church History………122-123.

3
part of India and soon the Jesuit learned of the church of St. Thomas in Kerala and
elsewhere.7

2.2.2. central Asia and China:

Christian spread more rapidly across Asia than across Africa, in the part because
European military and economic involvement in Asia was more extensive. The Nestorian
church of Persia empire though persecution from time to time by its Zoroastrian ruler, had a
missionary zeal and spread the gospel eastward right across central Asia and as far as China.
In 635, Alopen, a Nestorian missionary reached the capital of China, Chang-An of the Tang
dynasty and it was well received. Nestorian Christianity flourish in China for about 300years
but from 845 it suffered a setback when the emperor Wu Tsung abolish all monasteries by
law at the change of the dynasty and by 900, they have been lost trace of the Christianity in
china. And by 1009 the Keriats in northern Mongolia were converted to Christianity and it
start this way, when the keriats king was lost in a snowstorm and then he saw a vision that
the saint promise him safe conduct if he become the a lamb of the Christian fold and when he
escape from that he called the Christian merchants who were staying there and he ask them
about the faith and then he was converted to Christian and the whole tribe follow him.8
3. The Development of Papacy:
In this we will see how the Roman church came to the prominent position amongst its
equals. In the early church there were about six major cities where Christianity has a major
impact on the lives of the citizens. Some of this were Jerusalem, Antioch, Alexandria,
Constantinople and Rome and most of this church except Rome were situated in the eastern
part of the Roman Empire with their patriarchs in charge.9
3.1 The Beginning of The Papacy:
The word ‘pope’ mean father. The system of the Roman Catholic church with the pope
as the supreme head is called papacy. Papacy is a creation of circumstance. The roman
empire had a well-established centralized administrative system and it was into this system
that Christianity entered. Theologically the Papacy was the formal completion of the
hierarchical concept of Christianity politically, it is the survival of the roman concept of
universal sovereignty. In the first few centuries, the church government was vested in five
patriarchates, Rome, Antioch, Alexandria, Constantinople and Jerusalem which were equal in
rank and they had coordination power. To a certain extend the ecclesiastical organization of
the church may describe simply as a confederation of almost independent patriarchates and
the only authority they all submitted was the supremacy of the emperor and the unanimous
decision of the whole church in council, to them the civil power was also ordained of God.
Although institutionalism was common in both eastern and western culture but the former
never created anything like papacy. In the east only independent patriarchates existed while

7
Paul R. Spickard and Kevin M. cragg, A Global History of Christians, (Michigan: Baker
Academic,1994), 204
8
F. Hrangkhuma, An introduction To Church History…,124.
9
M. Thongkhosei Haokip, Hstory of Christianity, (Delhi: Christian World Imprints, 2017), 181-182.

4
in the west papacy absorbed into it self all other ecclesiastical institution. The east considers
the unity of the church to arise from the doctrine of the communion of saint and not from the
hierarchical consideration. The west develops the theory that the pope is the center and
supreme source of spiritual jurisdiction on earth and he is the central of dogmatic truth and in
the exercise of his office he is the final and infallible teacher and the supreme teacher. The
full tittle of pope is Bishop of Rome, Vicar of Jesus Christ, successor of the prince of
Apostles, Supreme Pontiff of the Universal church, patriarch of the west, Primate of Italy,
Archbishop and Metropolitan of the Roman Province, and Sovereign of the state of Vatican
City.10
3.2. The Growth of Papacy:
To the distinction already attaching to the Roman Church and its Bishop the period of
invasion brought new eminence. Believed to be founded by Peter, situated in the ancient
capital and the large and most generous church of the west it had stood orthodox in the Arian
controversy, and in the ruin of the Germanic invasions it seemed the grate surviving
institution of the ancient world which they were unable to overthrow. The later claim of the
mediaeval papacy was therefore, sketched by the beginning of the sixth century.
Circumstance prevented their development in full practice in the period immediately
following. The rise of the Ostrogothic kingdom in Italy and the reconquest of Italy by the
eastern empire, diminished the independent of the papacy. Outside of Italy the growth of the
new catholic power, the Franks, and the gradual conversion of Arian Germanic rulers brought
about a harmony between the new sovereigns and their bishop that give to the latter extensive
independent of Roman claim, though accompanied by grate dependence on the Germanic
sovereigns. The full realization of the papal idea, thus early established and to encounter
many vicissitudes.
3.3. Papacy Decline and Renewal by the Revived Empire:
It may seem strange that the papacy which showed such power under Nicholas-I should
within twenty-five years of his death it went down to the lowest degradation. The explanation
is the growing anarchy of the time, up to a certain point the collapse of the Empire aided the
development of the papal authority that passed, the papacy became the sport of the Italian
noble and ultimately whatever faction was in control of Rome. Since the pope was chose by
the clergy and people of the city. The papacy could now appeal for aid to no strong outside
political power as Zacharias had to pippin against the Lombards.
At the time of John XII and Otto’s, John tired of Otto practice control and plotted against
him. Otto of strong religious feeling, to whom such a pope was an offense, doubtless was also
move by a desire to strengthen his hold on the German bishop by securing a more worthy and
complain head of the church. In 963 Otto compelled the roman people to swear to choose no
pope without his concern. The new pope stood solely by imperial support on Otto departure
John XII resume his papacy, and on John’s death the roman factions chose Benedict V. and
once more Otto return and force Benedict into exile, restored Leo VIII, and after Leo’s
speedy demise, caused the choice of John XIII. And Otto had rescued the papacy, for the time
being, from the Roman noble but at the cost of subserviency to himself. Otto’s son and
successor, Otto II perused substantially the same policy at home regarding the Papacy. And
10
K. M. George, Development of Christianity Through the Centuries, (Tiruvalla: Christava Sahitya
Samithi, 2005), 99-100.

5
when Otto III came he even went further and the Roman noble controlled the papacy in his
minority, but in 1996 he entered Rome and put them down and cause his cousin Bruno to be
made pope of George V the first German to hold the papal office after the Gregory’s Otto
place on the papal throne his tutor, Gerbert, archbishop of Rheims, as Silverster II the first
French pope and the most learned men of the age.11
3.4. Papacy and Council:
Ecumenical council play a very important role in the development of
papacy. The system of council was well established from the beginning of the fourth century.
In the act of the apostle there was the first council at Jerusalem (act 15) to discuss the
question wether the gentile converts were to be circumstanced.
Constantine the grate as the supreme tribunal of faith dominated the
first ecumenical council at Nicaea 325 AD. It was convoked by the emperor and there is no
particle of proof that he consulted ST. Silverster before doing it. In the first council the role
of the Roman church was very minimum and the bishop of Rome did not participate in the
council.
The council of Sardica is a very important in history of papacy as it
permitted an appeal to the bishop of Rome over the decision of a provincial synod. Although
the right conferred was a new one and it had only limited power. Clarke say, the pope may
order a fresh trial and if he order one, may name the Bishop from the neighborhood who are
to hear the retrial and associate his legate with them ang he is not authorized to summon the
disputants to Rome or to try the case in person or by his own deputies.
At the second general council, which met in Constantinople (381)
neither the bishop of Rome nor his delegate presided. But it was presided by Meletius. It was
in this council that it placed Constantinople as the first rank after the Bishop of Rome because
Constantinople is the ‘new Rome’. This decision was the grate blow to the roman claim of
supremacy. No doubt, Rome was still given the first rank because it was the imperial city.
In the council meet in Africa (418) presided by the Bishop Aurelius
there were three papal legates who argue for the primacy of the pope and their product an
alleged claim at Nicaea of the primacy of the pope. But there was African Bishop who
participated in the council and produced an original copy of the decision of the Nicea in
which there were no papal claim and this matter was reported to the pope.
The Council of Chalcedon (451) presided by Leo the grate is
considered a grate triumph of papacy. He upheld the Sardican canon favoring the ‘Petrine’
claim but with the help of Emperor Theodocious did not agree to the claims, but with the help
of Empress Pulcharia and that of Marcon he enforce his views on those present at the council.
The council of Florance (1439) was another importance council in
the history of papacy. The council declared the supreme of papacy. Thus, papacy had
gathered to itself much of the episcopal power and every one expected the pope to reform but
nothing happens.

11
Williston Walker, A History Of The Christian Church…, 123 – 124, 195 – 198.

6
 It was the council of Trent (1545-1561) that the reform catholic
church molded the definition and doctrine in the interest of papacy. However, the struggle for
Episcopal freedom did not end at Trent. The Gallican church had inherited the conciliar
tradition traditions and it asserted that a general council was superior to the pope, until 1870
the Gallican church kept this tradition as to its old traditions and conciliar authority. 12

Another important council is the Vatican council (1869-1870), which the Roman Catholics
claim as a general council at which the famous decree of papal infallibility was passed. The
Roman Pontiff when he speak ex-cathedra, that is, when in charge of the office of pastor and
teacher of all Christians, by virtue of his supreme apostolic authority he define a doctrine
regarding faith or moral to be held by the Universal Church by the divine assistance promised
to him blessed Peter us possessed of the infallibility with which the divine redeemer willed
that his Church should be endowed for defining doctrine regarding faith or morals and that
therefore such definition of the Roman Pontiff are irreformable of themselves and not from
the consent of the Church. The second Vatican council (1965) also issued a statement on the
hierarchical system of the Church. Although the bishop may join in the council their freedom
is very much limited. However, the second Vatican council encourage the synodal system.
It is clear that the councils of the early centuries did not give the pope any of the
privileges which the papacy claim today. In fact, the early council asserted it supremacy over
the pope. It is so to be noted that the councils, which gave the papacy its supreme power,
especially that of Trent, first and second Vatican council were the council of the west and not
general ecumenical council in its true sense.

Conclusion:
As we have seen and learn in this topic about the development of the
Catholicate and Papacy in the middle age, we can say that they are indeed develop and spread
to many parts of Europe Asia and even in many other parts of the world. And they play their
own role in their own part. Especially when it come to the church and the way they run it,
Bishop became to be in charge with several congregations or districts with several towns and
some Bishop came to have authority over a wider area. And when it came to Papacy, it play it
own part in the of their council.

12
K. M. George, Development of Christianity Through the Centuries…, 112 -114.

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 Bibliography

Dale T. IRVIN Scott W. Sunquist. History of the World Christian Movement. Maryknoll:
Orbis Book.

Walker Williston. A History of The Christian Church. New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons,
1959.

F.Hrangkhuma, An Introduction to Church History. Bangalore: Theological Book Trust,

1996.

McHenry Robert. The New Encyclopaedia Britannica. Chicago: Encyclopaedia Britannia,

Inc.1993.

R. Spickard Paul and M. cragg Kevin. A Global History of Christians. Michigan: Baker
Academic, 1994.

Haokip M. Thongkhosei. Hstory of Christianity. Delhi: Christian World Imprints, 2017.

George K. M. Development of Christianity Through the Centuries. Tiruvalla: Christava

Sahitya Samithi, 2005.