Church and Civil Government in Early Christianity
Early Christian teaching said to honor civil rulers, pray for them, and obey lawful authority, while giving worship only to God. Writers like Clement of Alexandria, Theophilus, Polycarp, Justin Martyr, Tertullian, and Cyprian repeat that balance. The church was also seen as an ordered body under bishops and clergy, not a leaderless group. Obedience was not unlimited: when rulers demanded idolatry or wrongdoing, Christians refused.
151 early-church witnesses · 252 source quotations · compared with Scripture
What did early Christians believe about the Church and Civil Government?
Early Christians generally taught respect and submission to civil rulers, while reserving worship for God alone. Clement of Alexandria, Theophilus of Antioch, Polycarp, and the Apostolic Constitutions all echo the New Testament call to honor rulers and pray for peace. At the same time, writers like Tertullian and Justin Martyr made clear that Christians would obey the state only where that did not force them into idolatry or sin.
On church life, the strongest early evidence says the church was organized under bishops and clergy, with Cyprian stressing episcopal order and the Apostolic Constitutions linking church government to ordained leaders. The evidence is broad and fairly strong for both themes, though some church-order texts are later and some government texts are brief Bible-linked comments rather than long explanations.
Many more early Christian quotations, Bible passages, and source links are gathered below so you can study the evidence for yourself.
Key Takeaways
- Early Christians taught respect for rulers, taxes, and public order.
- They also said Christians must obey God first when the state demands sin.
- Cyprian and the Apostolic Constitutions present the church as ruled by bishops and clergy.
- Justin Martyr and Tertullian show that civil obedience had clear limits.
Questions Answered by the Sources
Did early Christians say believers should obey civil rulers?
The sources consistently say Christians should be subject to rulers in lawful matters, honor the king, and recognize civil power as something ordered by God. They also stress that this does not replace worship owed to God alone.
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Clement of Alexandria, The Instructor (Paedagogus) Direct teaching
And about civil government: Give to Caesar the things that belong to Caesar, and to God the things that belong to God.
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Clement of Alexandria, The Instructor (Paedagogus) Direct teaching
And of civil government: Render to Cæsar the things which are Cæsar's;
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Theophilus of Antioch, To Autolycus Direct teaching
Matthew 6:3 Moreover, concerning subjection to authorities and powers, and prayer for them, the divine word gives us instructions, in order that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life.
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Justin Martyr, The First Apology Direct teaching
and He answered, “Tell Me, whose image does the coin bear?” And they said, “Cæsar’s.” And again He answered them, “Render therefore to Cæsar the things that are Cæsar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” Whence to God alone we render worship, but in other things we gladly serve you, acknowledging you as kings and rulers of men, and praying that with your kingly power you be found to possess also sound judgment.
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Theophilus of Antioch, Connection to 1 Timothy 2:2 Direct teaching
Moreover, concerning subjection to authorities and powers, and prayer for them, the divine word gives us instructions, in order that "we may lead a quiet and peaceable life."
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Didache, Connection to 1 Timothy 2:2 Direct teaching
Let us pray "for kings and those in authority," that they may be peaceable toward us, "that so we may have and lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty."
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Polycarp, The Martyrdom of Polycarp Direct teaching
for we are taught to give all due honour (which entails no injury upon ourselves) to the powers and authorities which are ordained of God.
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Polycarp, Connection to Titus 3:1 Supporting witness
for we are taught to give all due honour (which entails no injury upon ourselves) to the powers and authorities which are ordained of God.
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Irenaeus, Connection to Romans 13:1 Supporting witness
For this cause pay ye tribute also; for they are God's ministers, attending continually upon this very thing."
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Didache, Connection to 1 Timothy 2:2 Supporting witness
We further pray to Thee, O Lord, "for the king and all in authority,"
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Polycarp, Connection to 1 Timothy 2:2 Supporting witness
Pray for all the saints. Pray also for kings,
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Apostolic Constitutions, Apostolic Constitutions Supporting witness
XIII. Be subject to all royal power and dominion in things which are pleasing to God, as to the ministers of God, and the punishers of the ungodly.
More related quotations from this section 7 shown
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Didache, Connection to 1 Peter 2:13 Supporting witness
Be ye Subject to all royal power and dominion in things which are pleasing to God, as to the ministers of God, and the punishers of the ungodly.
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1 Timothy 2:2 Background
For kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty.
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1 Peter 2:13 Background
Be subject for the Lord's sake to every human institution, whether it be to the emperor as supreme,
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Titus 3:1 Background
Put them in mind to be subject to principalities and powers, to obey magistrates, to be ready to every good work,
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Romans 13:2 Background
Therefore whoever resists the authorities resists what God has appointed, and those who resist will incur judgment.
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Romans 13:6 Background
For because of this you also pay taxes, for the authorities are ministers of God, attending to this very thing.
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1 Peter 2:17 Background
Honor all people. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the king.
Did early Christians pray for kings and governors?
Several sources directly describe prayer for kings, rulers, and those in authority so Christians could live quietly and peaceably. The evidence shows this as a normal Christian practice, not a rare exception.
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Cyprian, Epistles Direct teaching
... whose commands and warnings we ought to keep, describes the honor of a bishop and the order of His Church in the Gospel. He says to Peter: “I say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my Church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. And I will give to you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.” From there, through the changes of times and successions, the ordering of bishops and the arrangement of the Church continues on. So the Church is founded upon the bishops, and every act of the Church is directed by these same rulers. Since this is founded on divine law, I am amazed that some, with reckless boldness, have chosen to write to me as if they were writing in the name of the Church, when the Church is established in the bishop and the clergy, and in all who stand firm in the faith. Far be it from the mercy of God and His unlimited power to allow the number of the lapsed to be called the Church, since it is written, “God is not the God of the dead, but of the living,” Matthew 22:32. For we do indeed desire that all may be made alive, a
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Apostolic Constitutions, Apostolic Constitutions Direct teaching
...l in the highest heavens, and yet look down on the things below: You who appointed the rules of the Church by the coming of Your Christ in the flesh; of which the Holy Spirit is the witness, by Your apostles, and by us the bishops, who by Your grace are here present; who have foreordained priests from the beginning for the government of Your people—Abel in the first place, Seth and Enos, and Enoch and Noah, and Melchizedek and Job; who appointed Abraham, and the rest of the patriarchs, with Your faithful servants Moses and Aaron, and Eleazar and Phinehas; who chose from among them rulers and priests in the tabernacle of Your testimony; who chose Samuel for a priest and a prophet; who did not leave Your sanctuary without ministers; who delighted in those whom You chose to be glorified in. Pour down, by us, the influence of Your free Spirit, through the mediation of Your Christ, which is committed to Your beloved Son Jesus Christ; which He bestowed according to Your will on the holy apostles of You, the eternal God. Grant by Your name, O God, who search the hearts, that this Your servant, whom You have chosen to be a bishop, may feed Your holy flock, and discharge the office of a
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Apostolic Constitutions, Apostolic Constitutions Supporting witness
... He must free it from its offenses and give hope. In this way he must restore it in strength to the Church, bringing it back into the flock. Bring back what has been driven away. That is, do not allow the one who remains in sins and has been cast out as punishment to stay excluded. Instead, receive that one, bring him back, and restore him to the flock, that is, to the people of the undefiled Church. Seek what is lost. That is, do not allow the one who has despaired of salvation because of the great number of offenses to perish completely. Search for the one who has grown sleepy, drowsy, and sluggish, and who is careless about his own life because of the depth of his sleep, and who is far from his own flock, so that he is in danger of falling among the wolves and being devoured by them. Bring him back by admonition. Urge him to be watchful, and plant hope in him. Do not allow him to say what some have said: “Our impieties are upon us, and we pine away in them; how then shall we live?” Therefore, as much as possible, let the bishop make the offense his own, and say to the sinner, “Only return, and I will undertake to suffer death for you, as our Lord suffered death for me and for
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Apostolic Constitutions, Apostolic Constitutions Supporting witness
...zzle does eat, but does not eat it all up, so you who labor on the threshing floor, that is, in the Church of God, should eat from the Church. This was also the case with the Levites, who served in the tabernacle of testimony, which was in every way a type of the Church. Indeed, even its very name showed that the tabernacle was appointed beforehand as a testimony of the Church. Therefore, the Levites who served at the tabernacle shared in the things offered to God by all the people: gifts, offerings, firstfruits, tithes, sacrifices, and oblations. They did this without disturbance, they and their wives, their sons, and their daughters. Since their work was ministry at the tabernacle, they had no lot or inheritance in the land among the children of Israel, because the oblations of the people were Levi's lot and the inheritance of their tribe. Therefore, O bishops, you are to your people priests and Levites, ministering in the holy tabernacle, the holy Catholic Church. You stand at the altar of the Lord your God, and offer to Him reasonable and unbloody sacrifices through Jesus the great High Priest. To the laity you are prophets, rulers, governors, and kings; mediators between Go
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Apostolic Constitutions, Apostolic Constitutions Supporting witness
...lts out of a contentious spirit, cast him out as a harmful person, so that he may not lay waste the Church of God. For such a man stirs up disturbances in cities. Even though he is inside, he does not become the Church, but is an unnecessary and useless member, casting a stain, as far as he can, on the body of Christ. For if people who are born with extra parts on their body, hanging from them like fingers or lumps of flesh, cut them off because of their ugliness, so that the deformity disappears and the man recovers his natural good shape by the surgeon's work, how much more ought you, the pastors of the Church, to do the same. For the Church is a perfect body, with sound members, made up of those who believe in God, in the fear of the Lord, and in love. So when an unnecessary member is found in it, with wicked intentions, making the rest of the body ugly, and disturbing it with sedition, war, and evil-speaking, causing fears, disturbances, stains, evil-speaking, accusations, disorders, and doing the same works as the devil, as if he were appointed by the devil to bring reproach on the Church by slanders, great disorders, strife, and division, then you should act. Therefore, wh
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Apostolic Constitutions, Apostolic Constitutions Supporting witness
...6:3. And the other multitudes of the orders—angels, archangels, thrones, dominions, principalities, authorities, and powers—cry aloud and say, "Blessed be the glory of the Lord out of His place," Ezekiel 3:12. But Israel, Your Church on earth, taken from the Gentiles, imitates the heavenly powers night and day, and with a full heart and a willing soul sings, "The chariot of God is tens of thousands, thousands rejoicing; the Lord is among them, in Sinai, in the holy place." Heaven knows Him who set it in place like a cube of stone, in the form of an arch, upon nothing; who joined land and water to one another; who spread the life-giving air everywhere; and who joined fire with it for warmth and for comfort against darkness. The choir of stars fills us with wonder, declaring Him who numbers them and showing Him who names them. The animals declare Him who puts life into them. The trees show Him who makes them grow. All these creatures, made by Your word, display the greatness of Your power. Therefore every man ought to send up a hymn from his very soul to You through Christ, in the name of all the rest, since He has power over them all by Your appointment. For You are kind in Your
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Origen, Against Celsus Supporting witness
And if those who govern in the Church, and are called rulers of the divine nation — that is, the Church— rule well, they rule in accordance with the divine commands, and never suffer themselves to be led astray by worldly policy.
Did early Christians say the Church was different from worldly government?
The sources present the Church as a distinct people or body under Christ, not as a political government. Some texts also speak of the Church as separate from the world and governed by its own order.
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Tertullian, Apology Direct teaching
...an obstinate refusal to offer sacrifices, he found in their religious services nothing but meetings early in the morning for singing hymns to Christ and God, and sealing their way of life by a united pledge to remain faithful to their religion, forbidding murder, adultery, dishonesty, and other crimes. In reply, Trajan wrote back that Christians were by no means to be sought out. But if they were brought before him, they should be punished. O miserable deliverance. Under the necessities of the case, it is a self-contradiction. It forbids them to be sought out, as innocent, and it commands them to be punished, as guilty. It is at once merciful and cruel. It passes by, and it punishes. Why do you play this game of evasion with yourself, O Judgment? If you condemn, why do you not also inquire? If you do not inquire, why do you not also absolve? Military stations are set throughout all the provinces for tracking robbers. Against traitors and public enemies every man is a soldier. Search is made even for their confederates and accessories. The Christian alone must not be sought, though he may be brought and accused before the judge, as if a search had any other end than that! And so
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Justin Martyr, The Martyrdom of Justin Martyr Direct teaching
Having come together, offer sacrifice with one accord to the gods.” Justin said, “No right-thinking person falls away from piety to impiety.” Rusticus the prefect said, “Unless ye obey, ye shall be mercilessly punished.” Justin said, “Through prayer we can be saved on account of our Lord Jesus Christ, even when we have been punished, because this shall become to us salvation and confidence at the more fearful and universal judgment-seat of our Lord and Saviour.” Thus also said the other martyrs: “Do what you will, for we are Christians, and do not sacrifice to idols.”
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Justin Martyr, The Martyrdom of Justin Martyr Supporting witness
Then the prefect Rusticus said to Chariton, “Tell me more, Chariton, are you also a Christian?” Chariton replied, “I am a Christian by the command of God.” Rusticus the prefect asked the woman Charito, “What do you say, Charito?” Charito answered, “I am a Christian by the grace of God.” Rusticus asked Euelpistus, “And what about you?” Euelpistus, a servant of Caesar, responded, “I too am a Christian, having been freed by Christ; and by the grace of Christ, I share the same hope.” Rusticus the prefect asked Hierax, “And you, are you a Christian?” Hierax answered, “Yes, I am a Christian, for I revere and worship the same God.” Rusticus the prefect asked, “Did Justin make you Christians?” Hierax replied, “I was a Christian, and will be a Christian.” Then Pæon stood up and said, “I too am a Christian.” Rusticus the prefect asked, “Who taught you?” Pæon replied, “From our parents, we received this good confession.” Euelpistus said, “I willingly heard the words of Justin. But I also learned to be a Christian from my parents.” Rusticus the prefect asked, “Where are your parents?” Euelpistus replied, “In Cappadocia.” Rusticus asked Hierax, “Where are your parents?” And he answered, “Christ
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Justin Martyr, The First Apology Supporting witness
For all are called Christians. Wherefore we demand that the deeds of all those who are accused to you be judged, in order that each one who is convicted may be punished as an evil-doer, and not as a Christian;
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Ignatius, Epistles of Ignatius Supporting witness
Be subject to Cæsar in everything in which subjection implies no [spiritual] danger.
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Ignatius, Epistle to the Philadelphians (Long Version) Supporting witness
For “in Christ there is neither bond nor free.” Let governors be obedient to Cæsar;
Common Questions
Did early Christians support civil government?
Yes. They taught honor, prayer, and lawful obedience to rulers, as long as this did not break God’s commands.
Did early Christians think the church needed leaders?
Yes. Cyprian and the Apostolic Constitutions describe the church as ordered under bishops and other church leaders.
Did early Christians always obey the state?
No. They refused when rulers demanded worship of idols or other actions against Christ.
Source Index for the Church and Civil Government
The guided sections above show the strongest quotations. This compact index highlights 160 ranked source links from 252 compiled sources for deeper study.
Source index 160 ranked links shown
Early Christian Writings 80 shown of 151
Primary-source quotations from early Christian writers and church documents.
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Unknown, Unknown Work
Bible Passages 80 shown of 101
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