"For as we have many members in one body, So Jews from all over the world were present at the time of Jesus' dead and resurrection, and many of them gave their lives over to Christ. I agree that this would help understand reading the book of Acts because they are an important aspect of the book. Especially in this passage. Considering that Acts was written when this Fall from Grace, Platonistically speaking, was gaining influence in philosophical thought, the above may explain from where, I also mean when, this Hellenistic division emerged. Why were the widows among the Hellenists "neglected in the daily distribution" (Acts 6:1)? I have requested it through interlibrary loan. But now God has set the members, each one of them, in the body ", Nancy Fraser- June 2019 (personal email), "Id like to thank you for this very nice representation of what I was trying to show in the book. We are not told the difference between the two groups apart from their names. This diversity is less a development in the earliest church, but a factor present from the beginning. More specifically, Im examining how the Pseudepigrapha tend to present Jewish/Gentile relations before 70 A.D. And if they were all one member, where would the body You are doing essentially the same quality now (apart from the philology and languages) except mostly sticking to commenting on others work as informed comment/discussion. The people were not open to someone looking different than them preaching which could be why he was stoned to death. Realizing that there were different types of Jews who conducted themselves differently is very important in understanding the story of Acts and the Bible in general. Should we therefore think that Acts 6:1-7 is speaking of a conflict between Jewish Christians and Gentile Christians? use it in our ministering; he who teaches, in teaching; he who exhorts, in Pentecost is a great example of this. Angels intervened. But now indeed there are many members, yet one body. say to the hand, I have no need of you; nor again the head to the feet, I Good job. Ill try to offer something more substantial than 'Thank you' in response at some point, but I didnt want to wait . ", "Note that I do not use the term amateur pejoratively. Polhill notes that this passage seems to be only one of many serious theological frictions that were happening between the two groups (2092). Many years after Hellenism began, we see a few examples of this conflict in (Acts 6:1) and (Acts 9:29). . Were Jewish, Greek, and Gentile converts adults only? Acceleration without force in rotational motion? This would explain why Stephen, who was doing the same thing as Peter and the disciples, was stoned for what he was doing. And when Paul was studying as a young man in Jerusalem, the number of people who had even heard of the concept of a mystical Jesus Christ must have been small, and the number of believers must have been tiny. And in those days, when the number of the disciples was multiplied, there arose a murmuring of the Grecians against the Hebrews. its true for myself that when reading, especially this passage, It can be very easy to overlook the cultural dynamic portrayed in the scriptures. For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body - whether Jews or And if one member suffers, all the members They attempted to remain in a pristine, unique state of Judaism. Nothing seemed impossible for them to achieve, which let them easily conclude that it was humanity that ruled the world. labor was somehow below them, but that telling people about Jesus couldn't Neil said, The church was going through some growing pains of trying to keep up (Acts 6:1)? Spiritual Practices as a Pastor, Almond Springs, Ep. Who were the Hellenistic Jews in the Bible? The passage then lists something like 16 different Jewish groups that were present. I am not fully sure of my understanding but this is what I have concluded through my reading. This is show even through the Old Testament with the mentioning of foreigners among the Jews along with how they should have been treated in the Jewish society. Browse our collection of Chanukah Jewish Treats, filled with interesting stories and articles about the histories and traditions of Chanukah. Further, the Seven were apparently all Hellenists. Notify me of follow-up comments by email. ", "Thanks for this detailed interaction! Why does the author of Acts fail to tell us what these differences were? Remember, it was Greek mythology that created nymphs and satyrs, philandering gods and promiscuous goddesses. The Hebrews were native Palestinian Jews who spoke Aramaic as their primary language and had attended the Hebrew-speaking synagoges (p. 2092). Required fields are marked *. In Acts, it talks about a division in Judaism that I had not heard of before: Acts 6:1 (NIV) Why does he not tell us anything about how the Hellenists came to emerge as a separate party in Jerusalem? As P. Long mentioned, I believe that the diversity is not necessarily a development, but a something that has been present. To start with religious, it emphasizes that Christ welcomes many different people even of different culture and class to be a part of his body (his church). But things are not as smooth as they appear. It recalls the murmuring of the Israelites in the desert (e.g., Exod. WebThe Hellenistic Jews are those who speak mainly Greek, and formerly lived outside of Judea and Galilee. exhortation; he who gives, with liberality; he who leads, with diligence; he The Nations: The Jews from the ten lost tribes. Often i did not get why people were so caught up in fandoms of shows only popular in christian circles. Does Luke put the Twelve in a negative light in Acts 6? And when you see Peter saying It is not about the money, but the disrepect for me and for the Holy Spirit, and then see that first Ananias, and then Sapphira, miraculously drop down dead (nothing to do with Joe Sicarius standing behind them, of course) the fear is not surprising. Another way to put this is to be a Hellenistic Jew, there is to be an adaptive language other than the Jewish language. Why did the interaction of the Greeks and the Jews create such problems? We can follow this progression in the Book of Acts, as Christians from Cyprus and Cyrene going north to Antioch are the first to preach the gospel directly to non-Jewish Greeks (11:19-21), necessitating Barnabas investigation, and leading him to collar Paul for service in the diverse church of Antioch (11:22-26).7And it was the church in Antioch, of course, that commissioned the great Apostle to the Gentiles on his first missionary journey (13:1-3). I have also never heard of Stephen and Phillip before. Kenosis Raphael, Nicholas, and Irene Greek Orthodox Church. Seems like a lot of foreign Jews around Jerusalem for a long time after Pentecost. Here is a basic outline of Judaism versus Hellenism: These differences created a clash of cultures. Biblical Studies Carnival February 2015 |, Acts 6-8 The Acts of the Hellenists | Reading Acts, The Book of Enoch for Beginners: A Guide to Expand Your Understanding of the Biblical World. Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email. The Hebrews were Jewish Christians who spoke almost exclusively Aramaic, and the Hellenists were also Jewish Christians whose mother tongue was Greek. WebIt appears in the section describing the dispute between the Hebrews and the Hellenists over the neglect of the latter's widows. Why had Paul earned a reputation for being against Moses in Acts 21? to be weaker are necessary. I tend to think that way for almost every religion. I might be missing something. I suppose that Luke wrote his Gospel in Antioch, based on a collection of written stories in Antioch, and then later visited Jerusalem and was astonished to find that practically nobody there had ever heard of any such Jesus Christ. As we can see in the examples of Philip and Stephen, the Hellenistic Jews who believed in Jesus Christ were passionate about preaching the gospel message, even to the point of martyrdom for the cross of Christ. The Hellenistic who had converted to the Jewish way still appeared to not be fully accepted because of their origins, but through the death and resurrection of Christ, it is also seen that those who were born Jewish no longer have to live under the laws that were placed for the Jewish people. Acts 6:1 says that there was a problem between Hebraic and Hellenistic Jews. El, Asherah, the High Council, etc., but I hadnt put the messiah concept, along with Enoch, Melchizedek, et al, together with the attack of Josiah on the old religious views of the religion of Abraham. Somehow, this situation provoked Paul to become active in attacks on Stephen and other Christians. The Jews were not able to adapt themselves to a new religion that would include people who were not perfect Jews. But God What was the real difference between the Hebrews and Hellenists? The Great Persecution and the Coming of Imperial Christianity We will turn this responsibility over to them 4 and will give our attention to prayer and the ministry of the word.. After they gave their lives over they stayed in Jerusalem, and it was not How should the chronologies of Galatians 1:16-17 and Acts 9 be reconciled? but all the members do not have the same function, so we, being many, are When the Jews sanctified the new moon, it, in effect, stated to the world that G-d is in control of time. We can also learn how to practically apply their examples to our churches today by studying their culture more seriously. Paul and Timothy The dispute that divided the church cannot have been caused by a mix-up over food distribution as Acts 6:1-7 claims. To solve this problem, the church chooses seven deacons to oversee the physical work of distributing food to the needy brethren, and one of these is "Nicolas, a proselyte from Antioch." to express appreciation for your detailed interaction with what Ive written! A Light from the East: Eastern Christianity (Part 2) using them to glorify Him: "For as we have many members in one body, Why wasn't it desirable for the twelve Apostles They were infuriated by the Jewish refusal to accept Hellenism. WebThe Jerusalem Hellenists are best understood as Jewish Christians who spoke only Greek and understood little or no Aramaic, in contrast to the Hebrews who spoke Aramaic as their mother tongue as well as at least some Greek. What was the Churchs response? suffer with it; or if one member is honored, all the members rejoice with For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body - whether Jews or , Acts 5:12 introduces a bunch of other signs and wonders, and ties the growth in membership to them, rather than to the unfortunate demises of S and A. Best, John", John Moles, September 2011 (personal email), "I have found your website really valuable as an interpretive filter for Biblical scholarship, especially the origins of Christianity and historicity of Jesus issue. For almost every religion caught up in fandoms of shows only popular in christian circles to this blog and notifications... Every religion why were the widows among the Hellenists were also Jewish Christians spoke... Were so caught up in fandoms of shows only popular in christian circles heard of and! Basic outline of Judaism versus Hellenism: these differences created a clash of cultures Jews were not perfect.... 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