The Great Apostasy

The Great Apostasy

Summary: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints claims that it is the restored Church of Jesus Christ. Fundamental to that belief is that the Church was lost for a time. Without such a loss, there could have been no Restoration. Critics, and especially those who are of Protestant, Orthodox, or Catholic Christian background, have argued that the Latter-day Saint belief in the Great Apostasy is erroneous on many grounds. Some have argued that Christ never established an official institution during His mortal life. Others have argued that He did found a church, but that the church was never lost.

Regardless of the criticism, it is a valuable exercise for Latter-day Saints to consider the historical, scriptural, and theological grounding for their belief in the Great Apostasy. While some aspects of this belief lie beyond the ken of academics, Latter-day Saint belief is not contradicted by existing historical or scriptural evidence.

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Defining the Apostasy

Defining what the Apostasy actually was is a matter of great importance. Without this definition, we cannot assuage the concerns of those studying this topic. It is important to define the Apostasy using scripture.

The word apostasy comes from the Greek word ἀποστασία (ah-poh-stah-SEE-uh). The prefix ἀπο means (away), and στασίs means "standing." Thus, etymologically, we get "standing away" or "standing apart" as the meaning of the word. "The word means ‘rebellion,’ ‘mutiny,’ ‘revolt,’ or ‘revolution,’ and it is used in ancient contexts with reference to uprisings against established authority."

In 2 Thessalonians, the apostle Paul said, "Let no man deceive you by any means: for [the Second Coming of Jesus Christ] shall not come, except there come a falling away ["ἀποστασία"] first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition" (2 Thessalonians 2:3).

Thus, in contrast to some who believe that external persecution was a primary cause of the Great Apostasy, the New Testament and other passages of scripture actually place internal rebellion as its primary cause. As we shall see, however, external persecution still played a role.

Mass internal rebellion is the primary cause and central, defining feature of the Great Apostasy, but rebellion against what? Ultimately, it was a rebellion against key, essential doctrines taught by Christ and His Apostles. When we talk about someone who is an "apostate" or "apostatizes" from the Church today, we are usually referring to someone who is openly rebelling against the Church and its authority. This is the best way to make sense of the Great Apostasy.

Some have conceptualized the loss of priesthood authority, the changing of ordinances, and the corruption of scripture as part of the definition of the Great Apostasy. However, these are merely symptoms of the internal rebellion against key, essential doctrines of the Gospel of Jesus Christ as taught by His Apostles. The rebellion against these doctrines led to the creation of many different Christian groups, each of which did not fully align with New Testament teachings on how Christ's Church should be run and what its members should believe. The creators of these sects thus become the perpetrators of the Great Apostasy, and other Christians who belonged to these churches became the unfortunate and unwitting inheritors or victims of it.

The Establishment of Christ's Church

If Christ's official, institutional Church was lost, then it must have been established. However, many today doubt that Christ ever established such a church. As we shall see, "Christ had followers, leaders, and rules. That certainly constitutes an organization." The word that Greek uses to describe such a church is "ἐκκλησία" (eh-clay-SEE-uh).

In the Gospel of Matthew, after Christ praises Peter for receiving his testimony of Christ from heaven, Christ says, "And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church [μου τὴν ἐκκλησίαν]; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it" (Matthew 16:18, emphasis added). This is one of the most explicit pieces of evidence in the New Testament that Christ meant to establish a church. In the next verse, Christ says, "And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven" (Matthew 16:19). What does the language of "binding" and "loosing" refer to? Protestant scholars assure us that this refers to the power of the Apostles to permit and ban various forms of behavior among the covenant people. Matthew 18:18 confirms that all of the Twelve had this authority. This was the authority to establish doctrine for the Church (Acts 2:42). This authority is evident from the fact that one of the criteria for including a book in the New Testament canon was apostolicity—that is, the characteristic of having been written by an apostle. The Apostles were also given power ("δύναμις") and authority ("ἐξουσία") to cast out all devils (Matthew 10:1) and to cure diseases (Luke 9:1).

However, do the lone mentions of an "ἐκκλησία" in Matthew 16 and 18 establish that Christ meant to establish a church? Lothar Coenen expresses doubt in The New International Dictionary of New Testament Theology that the uses of "ἐκκλησία" in the passages from Matthew 16 and 18 can be used to support the notion that Christ intended the official, institutional church to come into being. They are indeed the only times in all the Gospels that "ἐκκλησία" is used. "In all probability," Coenen writes, "Jesus himself called together the Twelve, but did not found the 'ekklesia' as such in his own lifetime, not even through the institution of the Lord's Supper." However, "This by itself would not settle the question whether he intended the church to come into being." This should not threaten Latter-day Saint belief. If Jesus at the very least came, taught His people, won them as followers, performed His Atonement, and gave His Apostles both authority to baptize and a commission to baptize His followers after His Ascension, the essential Latter-day Saint belief that Christ established a church is preserved.

The Apostasy Predicted

Latter-day Saints have appealed to a variety of scriptures to support their belief in the Great Apostasy. Some of these scriptures are better to use than others. Some do not give good evidence to support belief in the Great Apostasy.

One scripture frequently used is Amos 8:11. It says, "Behold, the days come, saith the Lord God, that I will send a famine in the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the Lord."

The most extensive evidence of an apostasy is found in the New Testament.

The Symptoms of the Great Apostasy Predicted

The scriptures give three symptoms that characterize the Great Apostasy.

1. Loss of Apostolic authority
2. Corruption of scripture
3. Change of covenants

The best historical scholarship available places the death of the last Apostle around 100 AD.

The Fate of the Apostles

Apostle	Location	Killed By	Reason	Manner	Source	Date	Historical Likelihood
Peter	Rome, Italy	Roman authorities under Emperor Nero	Preaching Christ during the Roman persecution of Christians after the Great Fire of Rome in (c. AD 64–67).	Crucified	Tradition	64–68 AD	Moderate-High
Andrew	Patras, Greece	Roman governor of Achaia	Refused to stop preaching Christianity.	Crucified	Tradition	60 AD	Low-Moderate
James G	Jerusalem	Herod Agrippa	To please certain Jewish leaders who opposed the Christian movement (Acts 12:1–2).	Beheaded	Acts 12	44 AD	High
John	Ephesus	None	Exiled to Patmos under Roman authority for preaching the Gospel (Revelation 1:9).	Natural	Tradition	100 AD	Moderate
Philip	Hierapolis	Local authorities in Phrygia	Converted prominent individuals and challenged paganism.	Crucified	Apocrypha	80 AD	Low
Bartholomew	Armenia	Armenian or local pagan rulers	Converted members of the royal family to Christianity.	Flayed	Tradition	69–71 AD	Low
Thomas	Chennai, India	Local rulers in India	Converted many people, including members of the nobility.	Speared	Tradition	72 AD	Moderate
Matthew	Ethiopia	Local rulers	Refused to stop teaching and converting people.	Natural or Stabbed	Legend	68 AD	Low
James L	Jerusalem	Jewish religious leaders	Preached that Jesus was the Messiah	Stoned	Josephus	62 AD	Low
Jude	Persia/Beirut	Local authorities in Persia	Missionary activities and conversions	Beaten/Axed	Apocrypha	65 AD	Low
Simon	Persia	Persian or Roman authorities	Preaching Christianity	Sawn	Tradition	65–107 AD	Low
Judas	Jerusalem	Himself	After betraying Jesus, he died in remorse (Matthew 27:3–5; Acts 1:18–19 describes the aftermath differently).	Suicide	Math. 27 / Acts 1	AD 30–33	High
Matthias	Jerusalem or Colchis	Jewish religious authorities	For preaching Christ as the Messiah	Stoned or Crucified	Tradition	80 AD	Moderate

Preparing the Way for the Restoration

Notes (click to expand)

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