In the history of the church, there have always been both a quest for the true church and a call for personal and communal reform and renewal. Most frequently the predominant model for this reform and renewal was the ecclesia primitiva. The notion of the ecclesia primitiva in the church history has most frequently referred to the apostolic church as portrayed in such New Testament passages as Acts 4:32ff, but has sometimes been extended to cover either the pre-Constantinian church or the whole patristic period.
The first known use of the term ecclesia primitiva dates at least from the fifth century. One may find occasional references to the idea of the ecclesia primitiva in Merovingian documents. Also, during the Carolingian period, the idea of the ecclesia primitiva remained and was used primarily to signify the ideals of the common and apostolic life. The idea was current, especially among those groups interested in the reform of monastic and canonical life. The use of the term ecclesia primitiva is seldom found in the tenth-century documents but the idea remained and was widely revived in the middle of the eleventh century and later on was used to promote the ideal of monastic and canonical reform. The idea of the ecclesia primitiva was also associated with the search for the most perfect form of the Christian life. The idea became so common by the middle of the twelfth century that sometimes it was simply used to refer to the institutions believed to have existed in the early church, very occasionally implying that in the early church Christianity had not achieved the fullness of its development. In general the idea of the ecclesia primitiva in the Middle Ages was most commonly associated with the following of the apostolic life and the practice of having all things in common and living a simple and communal life.
The reform on the model of the primitive church has been a primary motive for dissent since the early Middle Ages. Reformation, especially of the Anabaptists, was the culmination of the efforts to restore the primitive church. The ecclesia primitiva has been the model for the reform and renewal toward the true church within Protestantism as well as within Catholicism throughout the history of Christianity.

• 오광석(감리교신학대학교) | Oh, Gwang Seok