In the opening section of the Apostolic Tradition, its purpose is made explicit. “We have proceeded to the summit of the tradition which befits the churches, in order that those who have been well taught by our exposition may guard that tradition which has remained up to now, and by recognizing it may remain firm” (Hippolytus 75). The need to record, establish and in the same vein, settle the matter on certain points concerning the Christian community is an indication in-itself that clarifications absolutely needed to be made. Because of one of its main tenets, that is, the belief in the existence of One and Only God, Christianity stood apart from all other religions. The exclusion of those who were members of particular professions and crafts was due to the inherent uniqueness of Christianity, which was in no way going to compromise its position in order to accommodate any other belief system. It could not merely blend into the syncretic nature of the religion of the Roman Empire. The restrictions were not trivial but purposely put into place in order to avoid Christianity going into a heretical or syncretic direction. The endeavour here, attributed to Hippolytus, was most certainly not an exercise in futility but a reaction to the issues of its time frame. At the beginning of the 3rd Century, Christianity was slowly expanding and branching out. In an era dominated by Roman rule it is clear to see why Christianity needed to clarify its stand. It demanded absolute allegiance that made it incompatible with both syncretic paganism and emperor worship, two activities which permeated the lives of all Roman citizens and the ways in which many earned a living.