Introduction to 1st Clement
In the third place from the apostles, Clement was allotted the bishopric. Since he had seen the blessed apostles and had been conversant with them, this man might be said to have the preaching of the apostles still echoing in his ears and their traditions before his eyes…
In the time of this Clement, no small dissension occurred among the brethren at Corinth. So the church in Rome dispatched a most powerful letter to the Corinthians, exhorting them to peace, renewing their faith, and declaring the tradition which it had lately received from the apostles. – Irenaeus (1.416)
As we continue to look into the Apostolic Fathers, we’ll now take a look at one of the most influential and well known of the group, Clement of Rome, and his epistle to the Corinthians, known as 1st Clement. Because of the length of the epistle, as well as it’s historical significance, we will take a few blogs focusing on this writing.
Who wrote 1st Clement?
The author is anonymous and represents himself as, “The church of God that sojourns in Rome…” However, early Church writers are in agreement that the epistle was written by Clement, bishop of Rome. This is affirmed by Clement of Alexandria, Irenaeus, Origen, the Apostolic Constitutions, and Eusebius. Most of the writers were convinced Clement was taught by the Apostles themselves. Some even thought this was the same Clement referenced by Paul in Philippians 4:3, “Yes, I also ask you, true partner, to help these women who have contended for the gospel at my side, along with Clement and the rest of my coworkers whose names are in the book of life.” (CSB)
The tradition of Clement being the author stuck pretty strong, as he became the attached author to later manuscript copies we have. (Jefford, 2012, Pg. 106) As discussed earlier, there is a 2nd Clement in the Apostolic Fathers collection, but it is generally recognized as not having been written by Clement of Rome.
Why was the epistle written?
It is a new era in the Church. The Apostles have passed the torch to the next generation. The Christian Church is still quite young and persecution continues. Once again, the Corinthian church is having division, and Paul isn’t there anymore to reason with them. The Roman church receives word of the petty splits and sinful activity happening, and they feel compelled to write to them. Packed with examples from the Old Testament, teachings from Jesus, and a reminder of the Apostles’ endurance, Clement presents a lengthy, convicting call to repentance and to reset their focus toward their Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
“The overriding concern in the Letter to the Corinthians has to do with schism and sedition. The church in Corinth seems to have been troubled and divided in Clement’s day as it was in Paul’s. Approximately forty years separated their respective correspondence, but the old problems remained. Or maybe it is better to say that the old problems resurfaced. Division, schism, and sedition have plagued the church from its beginning to the present day.”
Three reasons why 1st Clement is important for Church History
1. The Date of the Epistle
With the possible exception of the Didache and fragments of Papias’ writings, 1st Clement is generally believed to be the earliest writing in the Apostolic Fathers collection, making it the earliest surviving Church letter after the New Testament. It is typically agreed among scholars that Clement’s epistle to the Corinthians was written toward the end of the 1st century. (Jefford, 2012, Pg. 108; Holmes, 2006, Pg. 37-38) Therefore, while it may not tell us as much as we may want, 1st Clement is a crucial source in understanding early Church culture, apostolic tradition, the oral traditions of Jesus and the Gospel, and primitive Christian theology.
2. The earliest writing to reference the martyrdom of St. Peter and St. Paul
Shortly into the epistle, Clement looks to the endurance and martyrdom of the Apostles:
“Through envy and jealousy the greatest and most righteous pillars [of the church] have been persecuted and put to death. Let us set before our eyes the illustrious apostles. Peter, through unrighteous envy, endured not one or two, but numerous labors; and when he had at length suffered martyrdom, departed to the place of glory due to him.
Owing to envy, Paul also obtained the reward of patient endurance, after being seven times thrown into captivity, compelled to flee, and stoned. After preaching both in the east and west, he gained the illustrious reputation due to his faith, having taught righteousness to the whole world, and come to the extreme limit of the west, and suffered martyrdom under the prefects. Thus was he removed from the world, and went into the holy place, having proved himself a striking example of patience.”
This quote from 1st Clement is the earliest written testimony we have of Paul and Peters’ martyrdom. There would be later details by 2nd century Church Fathers regarding Paul being beheaded and Peter being crucified upside down, but the earliest source simply states they endured persecution and martyrdom. It is also worth noting that this quote implies Paul accomplished his desire as expressed in Romans to preach the Gospel in Spain.
3. 1st Clement had a big impact on the 2nd century Church
Much like Paul’s previous epistles to the Corinthians, Clement’s epistle convicted many churches and it grew in popularity throughout the 2nd century. Polycarp of Smyrna, a fellow Apostolic Father, seems to quote from 1st Clement multiple times in his epistle to the Philippians (Howell, 2012, Pg. 8). We see in the later 2nd century to 3rd century Church writings 1st Clement being referenced time and time again.
“Many early authors regarded 1 Clement as inspired and, as is evident from the testimony of Clement of Alexandria, thought it should be part of the canon of sacred scripture. Although 1 Clement was popular throughout the church in the East, it was less widely used in the West.”
While many in the Pre-Nicene era considered it Scripture, 1st Clement slowly became less popular over time and was talked about less. By the time the canon of the New Testament was more formally and dogmatically established, the epistle was left out.
But taking aside the question of whether it belongs in Scripture or not, it is still important we recognize the impact 1st Clement had on the early Church, and what we can learn from it today. So as we dive into this epistle, we will first look at the basic summary of what Clement is saying. Next, we’ll look at some of the theological implications found in the letter. Last, we’ll spend some time comparing 1st Clement with 1st and 2nd Corinthians and examine what we can observe and learn when seeing the scope of the 1st century church in Corinth.
Bibliography
Bercot, D. (1998). A Dictionary of Early Christian Beliefs. Peabody, MA. Hendrickson Publishing.
Holmes, M. (2006). The Apostolic Fathers in English (3rd ed.) Grand Rapids, MI. Baker Academic.
Jefford, C. (2012). Reading the Apostolic Fathers: A Student’s Introduction. Grand Rapids, MI. Baker Academic.
Howell, K. (2012). Clement of Rome and The Didache: A New Translation and Theological Commentary. Zanesville, OH. CHResources.
Schaff, P. (2016). The Complete Ante-Nicene, Nicene and Post-Nicene Collection of Early Church Fathers. Toronto, Canada.
Scripture quotations marked CSB have been taken from the Christian Standard Bible®, Copyright © 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible® and CSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers.