This goes much farther back than just Democrats. These forces coopted the Church all the way back to the last days of the Roman Empire. The Roman elite simply took over when the fall of the Empire, as it had been for centuries, became a foregone conclusion. These elites have been in control of the Roman Church ever since.
Jerusalem had been the center of the Jesus movement since the first days after the resurrection. There was no other central authority in the Church until after Jerusalem had fallen. There were several players on the board: Ephesus, where John based his apostolate in Asia Minor; Antioch, where Paul had launched his ministry and where Irenaeus became a prominent bishop; Israel and Trans Jordan where there were still pockets of Jewish believers from the Jerusalem Church after the destruction. Some were family members of Jesus; Rome, that had large communities of believers - many which had escaped the ravages of war and other calamities. Despite the Roman persecutions, they thrived. All of these groups claimed Apostolic tradition and authority.
After the death of John, his disciple Polycarp became the bishop of John's apostolate in Ephesus. After the martyrdom of Polycarp, Ephesus lost its weight and influence. About the time of the 2nd Jewish Revolt, Antioch was struck with a huge earthquake that pretty much took them out of play. The bishop of Antioch, Irenaeus, was sent to Rome to meet his martyrdom. The 2nd Jewish Revolt decimated many of the remaining Jewish believers from the Jerusalem community that did not escape. That pretty much left Rome as a de facto center for Christianity at the time.
Over the next couple of hundred years, Christianity became the new force in Rome. Many elites became Christian - some in name only. If you can't beat them, join them. The rest is history. There were many changes to Christianity involving theology and tradition made during these days that are still a part of the Roman Church today, and consequently, the rest of Christianity that inherited them. But, that is a discussion for another time and place.
This goes much farther back than just Democrats. These forces coopted the Church all the way back to the last days of the Roman Empire. The Roman elite simply took over when the fall of the Empire, as it had been for centuries, became a foregone conclusion. These elites have been in control of the Roman Church ever since.
Jerusalem had been the center of the Jesus movement since the first days after the resurrection. There was no other central authority in the Church until after Jerusalem had fallen. There were several players on the board: Ephesus, where John based his apostolate in Asia Minor; Antioch, where Paul had launched his ministry and where Irenaeus became a prominent bishop; Israel and Trans Jordan where there were still pockets of Jewish believers from the Jerusalem Church after the destruction. Some were family members of Jesus; Rome, that had large communities of believers - many which had escaped the ravages of war and other calamities. Despite the Roman persecutions, they thrived. All of these groups claimed Apostolic tradition and authority.
After the death of John, his disciple Polycarp became the bishop of John's apostolate in Ephesus. After the martyrdom of Polycarp, Ephesus lost its weight and influence. About the time of the 2nd Jewish Revolt, Antioch was struck with a huge earthquake that pretty much took them out of play. The bishop of Antioch, Irenaeus, was sent to Rome to meet his martyrdom. The 2nd Jewish Revolt decimated many of the remaining Jewish believers from the Jerusalem community that did not escape. That pretty much left Rome as a de facto center for Christianity at the time.
Over the next couple of hundred years, Christianity became the new force in Rome. Many elites became Christian - some in name only. If you can't beat them, join them. The rest is history. There were many changes to Christianity involving theology and tradition made during these days that are still a part of the Roman Church today, and consequently, the rest of Christianity that inherited them. But, that is a discussion for another time and place.