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How does a Christian community choose its leaders, welcome newcomers, and carry prayer into the working day?
The Apostolic Tradition of Hippolytus opens a close view of church practice in early third-century Rome. Traditionally attributed to Hippolytus of Rome, this short handbook sets out how a community chooses and ordains leaders, shares bread and cup, and prepares new members for baptism. Its concern is concrete: what people do together, and how they do it.
The writer seeks to preserve what he describes as tradition handed down from the apostles, guarding it against loss and novelty. From prayers of thanksgiving to baptism at cockcrow, the instructions bring worship and ordinary habits into focus. The authorship remains debated, while the text's prayers and patterns help shape later liturgies in both East and West.
What you’ll discover
- Leaders chosen by the people See how the text places the community's choice at the beginning of a bishop's appointment.
- Prayer around the shared table Explore the model thanksgiving prayer and the set forms surrounding bread, cup, and shared meals.
- The path toward baptism Follow instructions for questioning newcomers, preparing candidates, and gathering for baptism at cockcrow.
- Faith in ordinary hours Discover how rising, washing hands, and preparing for work become occasions for prayer.
- A tradition under debate Consider the writer's claim to preserve apostolic practice alongside questions about the handbook's authorship.
Who will love it
This book will delight readers who love the roots of Christian worship, the history of Rome, early liturgy, or the lives of ordinary believers.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- Inherited practice becomes a firm boundary
- The people choose their bishop
- Each role has its own limits
- A convert's life comes under examination
- Baptism brings believers into shared worship
- Shared tables carry duties of care
- Prayer gives the day its shape
- Many versions preserve the inherited rules
- The rules reveal a whole life
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The Apostolic Tradition of Hippolytus
A bishop in Rome writes down how to ordain, baptize and pray, hoping the old ways survive a bitter schism.
Medium level2–5 hours to read20 languages
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In short
Picture a candidate in Rome at cockcrow, around the year 217. The candidate has fasted for a day and kept vigil all night.
The Apostolic Tradition of Hippolytus at a glance
- Reading time
- About 2 h 5 min1 h 40 min fast, 2 h 30 min slow
- Length
- 29,800 words
- Library level
- Medium longer sentences, everyday words
Reading time at 238 words a minute (fast 300, slow 200). How long the classics take to read · Updated
From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1
Hippolytus writes to guard the old ways
Hippolytus composed the Apostolic Tradition as a defence of inherited practice. He hopes that those who are well trained will hold fast to what has continued up to now. The reason he gives is a lapse or error that recently occurred through ignorance.
That lapse was a split inside the Roman church. Hippolytus was a presbyter known for learning and eloquence. His rival Callistus had a rough past. He had run a Christian bank that failed, served time in the Sardinian mines, and then risen to power. The two men fought over the nature of Christ and over the forgiveness of sin.
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- 15-minute summary
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Details
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- English
- Reading time
- 2 h 20 min
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Cite this edition
Hippolytus of Rome. The Apostolic Tradition of Hippolytus. Library of Alexandria, 2026, libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-apostolic-tradition-of-hippolytus.
Hippolytus of Rome. (2026). The apostolic tradition of Hippolytus. Library of Alexandria. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-apostolic-tradition-of-hippolytus
Hippolytus of Rome. The Apostolic Tradition of Hippolytus. Library of Alexandria, 2026. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-apostolic-tradition-of-hippolytus.
@book{hippolytusofrome2026apostolic,
author = {Hippolytus of Rome},
title = {The Apostolic Tradition of Hippolytus},
publisher = {Library of Alexandria},
year = {2026},
url = {https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-apostolic-tradition-of-hippolytus}
}
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What is the Apostolic Tradition about?
It is a church manual that sets out how bishops, presbyters and deacons are ordained, how converts are examined and baptized, how the community shares meals and gifts, and how believers pray through the day.
Who was Hippolytus and why did he write it?
Hippolytus was a learned Roman presbyter who became a rival bishop after quarrelling with Callistus. He wrote the manual close to 217 to guard the church against what he saw as recent error and novelty.
Was the Apostolic Tradition really written by Hippolytus?
Scholars in the twentieth century linked the Latin, Egyptian and other versions to him. The Greek original is lost, so the text is rebuilt from translations, and a few passages are judged to be later additions.
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