Abstract:
This research, based on documentary and bibliographic analysis, aims to examine the perspective of the early Church Fathers regarding the millennium described in Revelation chapter 20. John described a thousand-year period during which Satan is bound and only the saved are resurrected to reign with Christ. The issue centers on a claim—widely circulated on the internet and in Portuguese-language books—that the early Christian hope was that this kingdom would be established after Christ's Second Coming. Based on this premise, it is argued that the premillennial view is the correct one, as it was the only doctrine transmitted by apostolic tradition to the Church Fathers; consequently, any other perspective lacks support in early Christianity and should be rejected. However, some works challenge this assumption, highlighting the coexistence of divergent opinions. Yet, neither those who argue for unanimity nor those who question it provide a detailed presentation of the patristic records underpinning their claims. Given this context, it is necessary to examine texts that can shed light on early Christian eschatological hope. The results indicate a lack of uniformity among Christians in the early centuries, revealing that the early church harbored multiple interpretations regarding the end times. Authors such as Justin and Irenaeus demonstrated clear adherence to millenarianism. Conversely, Clement of Rome, Ignatius, Polycarp, and the Epistle of Barnabas offer no support for chiliasm. The study concludes that Christian eschatology in the first and second centuries was characterized by plurality, rendering the thesis of millenarian unanimity untenable.
