The healing ministry of the early Christian Church was shaped in a considerable degree by an important group called the Ante-Nicene Fathers. These pioneers, numbering about thirty men, provided leadership after the time of Christ Jesus and the apostles. They have been called the Ante-Nicene Fathers because they led the Church from around a.d. 100 until the famous Council of Nicaea was convened by the Roman Emperor Constantine in a.d. 325. This was a significant period in the spread of primitive Christianity. It was an age of rapid growth that extended throughout much of the Mediterranean region.
Healing ministries in the
early Christian Church
The Ante-Nicene Fathers managed the affairs of the Church when Jewish Christianity was replaced by Gentile Christianity. They exerted strong influences as church doctrine evolved in several different forms. They also established the initial order of church organization. As contending factions emerged, some of these leaders sought to direct the fledgling Christian movement toward a more unified view of the teachings of Christ Jesus.
