Elders
In our church, Grace Fellowship of San Diego, we do not have a senior or head Pastor; we have three elders and then deacons. While one of the elders may be perceived as a pontifex maximus to some, the three elders are on a level plain with respect to their authority and responsibility. Admittedly, I am not a leader in the church, so my view of this is not from the inside; this is just my perception which has been discussed with other members of our local body. I needed to set the context for what this post is about.
Last night, during the wonderful evening of dinner and discussion with our great friends, we talked a little about elders in the Early Church and some on the role Timothy played. When you look at the history of the leadership of the Church and how that developed and progressed in the first to second century of the Church, things obviously became hierarchical relatively quick.
This morning, during the sermon (lesson) time, Bob, one of our deacons, continued through our chapter by chapter series on Acts. In Acts xx.17 he read about how Paul called for the elders of Ephesus to come. Lo and behold, Bob went into a discussion on the role of an elder, the number, and so forth. Of course, he had to discuss the comparison with a pastor as is the typical hierarchy in most churches today. This portion of Bob's lesson was intriguing (not to mention almost the only thing I heard; shortly after he moved on into the next verses in the passage I had to go to the nursery and help with my older son). Essentially the same information was talked about as was last night.
What does this mean? I'll just take it as a divine call to study up on this subject. I will look into the Early Church and see how this developed; but, I'm talking well before the formation of the Roman Catholic Church. A huge figure in Church History is Ignatius of Antioch, martyred around AD 107. His letters are foundational for understanding the transition from the Biblical period, headed and directed by the Apostles, to the Early Church period under the guidance and leadership of bishops (which is the same word in Greek for elder) and deacons.
This won't be added work. I have been weaving my way through different subjects and works to find what I will focus my Master's Thesis on when I reach that point. I have pretty much found what I want to reasearch more and write about: Ignatius of Antioch, his doctrine and martyrdom, and especially his doctrine of martyrdom (martyrology). One of his three core points to the churches while on his way to glory was that of respect for, submission to, and the continuance of the bishops and deacons over the local bodies.
This will be an excellent study. Will this kick aside my Layman's Tulip? No, sorry. But this will be quite the fascinating look into the Early Church and how they sought to keep some control amid persecution and the rapid growth of heresy.
Last night, during the wonderful evening of dinner and discussion with our great friends, we talked a little about elders in the Early Church and some on the role Timothy played. When you look at the history of the leadership of the Church and how that developed and progressed in the first to second century of the Church, things obviously became hierarchical relatively quick.
This morning, during the sermon (lesson) time, Bob, one of our deacons, continued through our chapter by chapter series on Acts. In Acts xx.17 he read about how Paul called for the elders of Ephesus to come. Lo and behold, Bob went into a discussion on the role of an elder, the number, and so forth. Of course, he had to discuss the comparison with a pastor as is the typical hierarchy in most churches today. This portion of Bob's lesson was intriguing (not to mention almost the only thing I heard; shortly after he moved on into the next verses in the passage I had to go to the nursery and help with my older son). Essentially the same information was talked about as was last night.
What does this mean? I'll just take it as a divine call to study up on this subject. I will look into the Early Church and see how this developed; but, I'm talking well before the formation of the Roman Catholic Church. A huge figure in Church History is Ignatius of Antioch, martyred around AD 107. His letters are foundational for understanding the transition from the Biblical period, headed and directed by the Apostles, to the Early Church period under the guidance and leadership of bishops (which is the same word in Greek for elder) and deacons.
This won't be added work. I have been weaving my way through different subjects and works to find what I will focus my Master's Thesis on when I reach that point. I have pretty much found what I want to reasearch more and write about: Ignatius of Antioch, his doctrine and martyrdom, and especially his doctrine of martyrdom (martyrology). One of his three core points to the churches while on his way to glory was that of respect for, submission to, and the continuance of the bishops and deacons over the local bodies.
This will be an excellent study. Will this kick aside my Layman's Tulip? No, sorry. But this will be quite the fascinating look into the Early Church and how they sought to keep some control amid persecution and the rapid growth of heresy.
posted by Eddie at
1:56 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home