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Originally Posted by why 
1. Polity does not mean what you seem to think it means.
I think he does know. At least it was clear to me in context.
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No, they did not 'just wait around for 200 years for the go ahead to celebrate the Eucharist'. Early sects of Christianity were highly divergent in beliefs systems. The formation of the church was not divined by God. I don't see why this is such a difficult concept to understand. You'd see a few of these divergent practices had you read Augustine's Confessions as you claimed instead of relying on History Channel 'Christians were persecuted by the Romans nada pues' simplicities -- especially because they're largely irrelevant in many patristic studies since many of the most influential church fathers were born after the First Council of Nicaea.Is English your native language? You don't seem to know the proper meaning of "divine" (as a verb) and "divination." Certainly, it is non-controversial that there were many heretical and schismatic "Christian" sects about. Some of these were monstrously heretical like the numerous Gnostic systems--some so bad that they are unworthy of the very name "Christian" by the most liberal definition. Others were merely rigorist schismatics like the Novatians. Throughout it all, the mainstream Catholic Church endured and without a doubt was the normative Christiam body. Certainly, there is a vast ante-Nicean Christian literature, which is our source for nearly all our knowledge of these deviant bodies. It's been a long time since I read Augustine's Confessions, but I don't remember him talking much about these heresies except for his involvement with the Manichaeans. I don't know why on earth you would say the heresies are "largely irrelevant in many patristic studies." I've studied the Fathers, especially the ante-Nicean Fathers quite a bit, and I'd hardly say that's the case.
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They were unified as a church because they were executed together? They all had vastly different practices. They were executed because they were not pagans, not because they were Christians. What became orthodox was due to the work of men, not divination by God.For the record, Jews were not pagans, and they were not executed by the Romans. Yes, what became "othodox" was the work godly men interpreting the Holy Scriptures. Believing Christians would say that they were guided in this process, which took centuries, by the Holy Spirit that Christ promised would lead us into all truth.
