1.
St. John the Evangelist on Patmos
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St. John on Patmos is a painting by Hieronymus Bosch. The painting is currently in the Gemäldegalerie, in Berlin, Germany, the reverse is also painted, the title of that picture is Scenes from the Passion of Christ and the Pelican with Her Young. St. John the Evangelist on Patmos forms a pair with St. John the Baptist in the Wilderness and it was noted in the 1940s that the two paintings may have been designed as wings of an altarpiece. Such an origin would explain the grisaille painting on the reverse and it has since been suggested that the altarpiece in question was an artwork which is known to have been made for St. Johns Cathedral, s-Hertogenbosch. The painting is difficult to date, if the s-Hertogenbosch hypothesis is correct, the date would be around 1489, although later dates have been proposed based on other criteria. Patmos in the Reception History of the Apocalypse, oxford University Press, Apr 18,2013 pg.197
2.
Hieronymus Bosch
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Hieronymus Bosch was a Dutch/Netherlandish draughtsman and painter from Brabant. He is widely considered one of the most notable representatives of Early Netherlandish painting school and his work is known for its fantastic imagery, detailed landscapes, and illustrations of religious concepts and narratives. Within his lifetime his work was collected in the Netherlands, Austria, and Spain, little is known of Boschs life, though there are some records. He spent most of it in the town of s-Hertogenbosch, where he was born in his grandfathers house, the roots of his forefathers are in Nijmegen and Aachen. His pessimistic and fantastical style cast a wide influence on art of the 16th century. His paintings have been difficult to translate from a point of view. Today he is seen as a hugely individualistic painter with deep insight into humanitys desires, attribution has been especially difficult, today only about 25 paintings are confidently given to his hand along with 8 drawings. Approximately another half dozen paintings are attributed to his workshop. His most acclaimed works consist of a few triptych altarpieces, the most outstanding of which is The Garden of Earthly Delights, Hieronymus Bosch was born Jheronimus van Aken. He signed a number of his paintings as Jheronimus Bosch, the name derives from his birthplace, s-Hertogenbosch, which is commonly called Den Bosch. Little is known of Boschs life or training, nothing is known of his personality or his thoughts on the meaning of his art. Boschs date of birth has not been determined with certainty and it is estimated at c.1450 on the basis of a hand drawn portrait made shortly before his death in 1516. The drawing shows the artist at an age, probably in his late sixties. Bosch was born and lived all his life in and near s-Hertogenbosch and his grandfather, Jan van Aken, was a painter and is first mentioned in the records in 1430. It is known that Jan had five sons, four of whom were also painters, Boschs father, Anthonius van Aken, acted as artistic adviser to the Illustrious Brotherhood of Our Blessed Lady. It is generally assumed that either Boschs father or one of his uncles taught the artist to paint, Bosch first appears in the municipal record on 5 April 1474, when he is named along with two brothers and a sister. In 1463,4,000 houses in the town were destroyed by a catastrophic fire and he became a popular painter in his lifetime and often received commissions from abroad. In 1488 he joined the highly respected Brotherhood of Our Lady, a religious group of some 40 influential citizens of s-Hertogenbosch
3.
Ephesus
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Ephesus was an ancient Greek city on the coast of Ionia, three kilometres southwest of present-day Selçuk in İzmir Province, Turkey. It was built in the 10th century BC on the site of the former Arzawan capital by Attic, during the Classical Greek era it was one of the twelve cities of the Ionian League. The city flourished after it came under the control of the Roman Republic in 129 BC, the city was famed for the nearby Temple of Artemis, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. Among many other buildings are the Library of Celsus. Ephesus was one of the seven churches of Asia that are cited in the Book of Revelation, the Gospel of John may have been written here. The city was the site of several 5th century Christian Councils, the city was destroyed by the Goths in 263, and although rebuilt, the citys importance as a commercial centre declined as the harbour was slowly silted up by the Küçükmenderes River. It was partially destroyed by an earthquake in 614 AD, the area surrounding Ephesus was already inhabited during the Neolithic Age, as was revealed by excavations at the nearby höyük of Arvalya and Cukurici. Excavations in recent years have unearthed settlements from the early Bronze Age at Ayasuluk Hill, according to Hittite sources, the capital of the Kingdom of Arzawa was Apasa. Some scholars suggest that this is the later Greek Ephesus, in 1954, a burial ground from the Mycenaean era with ceramic pots was discovered close to the ruins of the basilica of St. John. This was the period of the Mycenaean Expansion when the Achaioi settled in Asia Minor during the 14th and 13th centuries BC, Ephesus was founded as an Attic-Ionian colony in the 10th century BC on the Ayasuluk Hill, three kilometers from the centre of ancient Ephesus. The mythical founder of the city was a prince of Athens named Androklos, according to the legend, he founded Ephesus on the place where the oracle of Delphi became reality. Androklos drove away most of the native Carian and Lelegian inhabitants of the city and he was a successful warrior, and as a king he was able to join the twelve cities of Ionia together into the Ionian League. During his reign the city began to prosper and he died in a battle against the Carians when he came to the aid of Priene, another city of the Ionian League. Androklos and his dog are depicted on the Hadrian temple frieze, later, Greek historians such as Pausanias, Strabo and Herodotos and the poet Kallinos reassigned the citys mythological foundation to Ephos, queen of the Amazons. The Greek goddess Artemis and the great Anatolian goddess Kybele were identified together as Artemis of Ephesus, Pausanias mentions that the temple was built by Ephesus, son of the river god Caystrus, before the arrival of the Ionians. Of this structure, scarcely a trace remains, about 650 BC, Ephesus was attacked by the Cimmerians who razed the city, including the temple of Artemis. After the Cimmerians had been away, the city was ruled by a series of tyrants. Following a revolt by the people, Ephesus was ruled by a council and his signature has been found on the base of one of the columns of the temple
4.
Roman Empire
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Civil wars and executions continued, culminating in the victory of Octavian, Caesars adopted son, over Mark Antony and Cleopatra at the Battle of Actium in 31 BC and the annexation of Egypt. Octavians power was then unassailable and in 27 BC the Roman Senate formally granted him overarching power, the imperial period of Rome lasted approximately 1,500 years compared to the 500 years of the Republican era. The first two centuries of the empires existence were a period of unprecedented political stability and prosperity known as the Pax Romana, following Octavians victory, the size of the empire was dramatically increased. After the assassination of Caligula in 41, the senate briefly considered restoring the republic, under Claudius, the empire invaded Britannia, its first major expansion since Augustus. Vespasian emerged triumphant in 69, establishing the Flavian dynasty, before being succeeded by his son Titus and his short reign was followed by the long reign of his brother Domitian, who was eventually assassinated. The senate then appointed the first of the Five Good Emperors, the empire reached its greatest extent under Trajan, the second in this line. A period of increasing trouble and decline began with the reign of Commodus, Commodus assassination in 192 triggered the Year of the Five Emperors, of which Septimius Severus emerged victorious. The assassination of Alexander Severus in 235 led to the Crisis of the Third Century in which 26 men were declared emperor by the Roman Senate over a time span. It was not until the reign of Diocletian that the empire was fully stabilized with the introduction of the Tetrarchy, which saw four emperors rule the empire at once. This arrangement was unsuccessful, leading to a civil war that was finally ended by Constantine I. Constantine subsequently shifted the capital to Byzantium, which was renamed Constantinople in his honour and it remained the capital of the east until its demise. Constantine also adopted Christianity which later became the state religion of the empire. However, Augustulus was never recognized by his Eastern colleague, and separate rule in the Western part of the empire ceased to exist upon the death of Julius Nepos. The Eastern Roman Empire endured for another millennium, eventually falling to the Ottoman Turks in 1453, the Roman Empire was among the most powerful economic, cultural, political and military forces in the world of its time. It was one of the largest empires in world history, at its height under Trajan, it covered 5 million square kilometres. It held sway over an estimated 70 million people, at that time 21% of the entire population. Throughout the European medieval period, attempts were made to establish successors to the Roman Empire, including the Empire of Romania, a Crusader state. Rome had begun expanding shortly after the founding of the republic in the 6th century BC, then, it was an empire long before it had an emperor
5.
Book of Revelation
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Its title is derived from the first word of the text, written in Koine Greek, apokalypsis, meaning unveiling or revelation. The Book of Revelation is the apocalyptic document in the New Testament canon. The author names himself in the text as John, but his identity remains a point of academic debate. Modern scholarship generally takes a different view, and many consider that nothing can be known about the author except that he was a Christian prophet, Some modern scholars characterise Revelations author as a putative figure whom they call John of Patmos. The bulk of traditional sources date the book to the reign of the emperor Domitian, the book spans three literary genres, the epistolary, the apocalyptic, and the prophetic. It begins with John, on the island of Patmos in the Aegean and he then describes a series of prophetic visions, including figures such as the Whore of Babylon and the Beast, culminating in the Second Coming of Jesus. The title is taken from the first word of the book in Koine Greek, ἀποκάλυψις apokalypsis, the author names himself as John, but it is currently considered unlikely that the author of Revelation was also the author of the Gospel of John. All that is known is that this John was a Jewish Christian prophet, probably belonging to a group of such prophets and his precise identity remains unknown, and modern scholarship commonly refers to him as John of Patmos. 70 AD is the date of writing according to Martha Himmelfarb in the recently published Blackwell series. Revelation is an apocalyptic prophecy with an epistolary introduction addressed to seven churches in the Roman province of Asia, Apocalypse means the revealing of divine mysteries, John is to write down what is revealed and send it to the seven churches. The entire book constitutes the letter—the letters to the seven churches are introductions to the rest of the book. While the dominant genre is apocalyptic, the author himself as a Christian prophet, Revelation uses the word in various forms twenty-one times. The predominant view is that Revelation alludes to the Old Testament although it is difficult among scholars to agree on the number of allusions or the allusions themselves. Revelation rarely quotes directly from the Old Testament, almost every verse alludes to or echoes older scriptures. Over half of the stem from Daniel, Ezekiel, Psalms. He very frequently combines multiple references, and again the style makes it impossible to be certain to what extent he did so consciously. Revelation was the last book accepted into the Christian biblical canon and it was considered tainted because the heretical sect of the Montanists relied on it and doubts were raised over its Jewishness and authorship. Dionysius, bishop of Alexandria, disciple of Origen wrote that the Book of Revelation could have been written by Cerinthus although he himself did not adopt the view that Cerinthus was the writer and he regarded the Apocalypse as the work of an inspired man but not of an Apostle
6.
Gospel of John
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The Gospel According to John is one of the four canonical gospels in the New Testament. It traditionally appears fourth, after the gospels of Matthew, Mark. John begins with the witness and affirmation of John the Baptist and concludes with the death, burial, resurrection, although the Gospel of John is anonymous, Christian tradition historically has attributed it to John the Apostle, son of Zebedee and one of Jesus Twelve Apostles. C. K. Barrett, and later Raymond E. Brown, suggested that a tradition developed around the Johannine Community, and that this tradition gave rise to the gospel. The discovery of a number of papyrus fragments of manuscripts with Johannine themes has led more scholars to recognize that the texts were among the most influential in the early Church. The discourses contained with this gospel seem to be concerned with issues of the debate at the time of composition. It is notable that in John, the community appears to define itself primarily in contrast to Judaism, though Christianity started as a movement within Judaism, it gradually separated from Judaism because of mutual opposition between the two religions. The Gospel of John can be divided into four sections, a prologue, a Book of Signs, a Book of Glory, the narrative of Jesus public ministry, beginning with the introduction of the first disciples of Jesus. It consists of seven miracles, or signs, interspersed with long dialogues, discourses, Amen, amen sayings, in John it is this, and not the cleansing of the Temple, that prompts the authorities to have Jesus executed. The narrative of Jesus Passion, Resurrection, and post-Resurrection appearances and this is followed by Jesus Farewell Discourse, an account of his betrayal, arrest, trial, death, burial, post-Resurrection appearances, and final commission for his followers. Jesus mocking and crowning with thorns, the Ecce homo, the discovery of the empty tomb, the noli me tangere, the Great Commission, and the incredulity of Thomas. The section ends with a conclusion on the purpose of the gospel, that may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, a large majority of scholars believes this chapter to be an addition to the gospel. The Gospel of John is anonymous, traditionally, Christians have identified the author as the Disciple whom Jesus loved mentioned in John 21,24, who is understood to be John son of Zebedee, one of Jesus Twelve Apostles. These identifications, however, are rejected by the majority of biblical scholars. Nevertheless, the author of the fourth Gospel is sometimes called John the Evangelist, a significant minority consider the traditional account of John the Apostles authorship to be genuine. In addition, the ancient external attestation for Johannine authorship is strong, John is usually dated to AD 90–110. It arose in a Jewish Christian community in the process of breaking from the Jewish synagogue, scholars believe that the text went through two to three redactions, or editions, before reaching its current form. John, which regularly describes Jesus opponents simply as the Jews, is more hostile to the Jews than any other body of New Testament writing
7.
Johannine epistles
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The Johannine epistles, the Epistles of John, or the Letters of John are three of the catholic epistles of the New Testament, thought to have been written AD 85–100. The author of letters is alternatively believed to be John of Patmos, John the Evangelist, John the Apostle. This Epistle is written as a letter from the Apostle to an unnamed elect lady whom he loves. Within the letter John warns about opening home to false teachers, the third epistle, also a short letter, is addressed to a man named Gaius and mentioned as a dear friend. It talks about a man named Diotrephes whom Gaius excommunicated from the church and had gone on to create an anti-missionary sentiment and it is believed that the letter was delivered by a third person, Demetrius
8.
First Epistle of John
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The First Epistle of John, often referred to as First John and written 1 John, is the first of the Johannine epistles of the New Testament, and the fourth of the catholic epistles. It is attributed to John the Evangelist, traditionally thought to be the author of the Gospel of John and this epistle was probably written in Ephesus in AD 95–110. The work was written to counter docetism, which is the belief that Jesus did not come in the flesh and it also defined how Christians are to discern true teachers, by their ethics, their proclamation of Jesus in the flesh, and by their love. The main themes of the epistle are love and fellowship with God and it also distinguishes between the world and the children of God. The main themes of the epistle are discernible in the writers sectional organisation of his contents, there are four sections,1, 1–2,14,2, 15–3,10,3, 11–4,13,4, 14–5,20. The first, A, speaks of the witness, given and received, to God who is light, the second, B, is an exhortation to love not the world, with earthly motives, in earthly ways. The third, B, a balance to B, emphasizes love one another, the fourth, A, again begins with the witness, but this time it is to God who is love, life eternal is theirs who live a life of loving God. The key requirements of Ancient Rhetoric, Purpose and Structure are clearly evidenced in this letter, so too are the other requirements of Style and Memory. And there are three that bear witness in earth, the Spirit, and the water, and the blood, and it was included in the King James Bible, something Isaac Newton commented on in An Historical Account of Two Notable Corruptions of Scripture. This is sometimes used as evidence to counter the King-James-Only Movement, the majority of modern translations do not include this text, or include it as a footnote. The epistle is not written in the form as the other biblical epistles. The epistle is written in a style, without syntactical flourishes, and makes frequent use of asyndeton. In contrast to the style used in the Pauline epistles. In summary, the epistle may be said to exhibit a style which is marked by personal appeal, contrasts of right and wrong, true and false. Some scholars have proposed the idea that the epistle is really Johns commentary on a selection of traditional parallel couplets, the epistle is traditionally held to have been composed by John the Evangelist, at Ephesus, when the writer was in advanced age. The epistles content, language and conceptual style are similar to the Gospel of John,2 John. However, other scholars have challenged this position. There are at least two principal arguments for this view, the second is that the author of the epistle uses the conditional sentence in a variety of rhetorical figures which are unknown to the gospel
9.
Second Epistle of John
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The language of this epistle is remarkably similar to 3 John. It is therefore suggested by a few that a single author composed both of these letters, the traditional view contends that all the letters are by the hand of John the Apostle, and the linguistic structure, special vocabulary, and polemical issues all lend toward this theory. This establishes that, from the time the epistle was first written, there were those who had docetic Christologies, alternatively, the letters acknowledgment and rejection of gnostic theology may reveal a later date of authorship than orthodox Christianity claims. This can not be assured by a study of the context. Gnosticisms beginnings and its relationship to Christianity are poorly dated, due to an insufficient corpus of literature relating the first interactions between the two religions, adherents of gnosticism were most numerous during the second and third centuries. A late date of the composition, I was overjoyed to find some of your children walking in the truth, just as we have been commanded by the Father. But now, dear lady, I ask you, not as though I were writing you a new commandment, and this is love, that we walk according to his commandments, this is the commandment just as you have heard it from the beginning—you must walk in it. Many deceivers have gone out into the world, those who do not confess that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh, any person is the deceiver. Be on your guard, so that you do not lose what we have worked for, everyone who does not abide in the teaching of Christ, but goes beyond it, does not have God, whoever abides in the teaching has both the Father and the Son. Do not receive into the house or welcome anyone who comes to you and does not bring this teaching, for to welcome is to participate in the evil deeds of such a person. Although I have much to write to you, I would rather not use paper and ink, instead I hope to come to you and talk with you face to face, the children of your elect sister send you their greetings. The doctrines of Doceticm and Gnosticism had made inroads among the followers of Jesus in the half of the First Century. Some said that Jesus never assumed human flesh, but only had the appearance of flesh, others said that Christ was raised as a spirit only, and did not experience a bodily resurrection. In this epistle John condemns such doctrines in no uncertain terms with the statement that such persons were antichrist, the text is addressed to the elect lady and her children, and closes with the words, The children of thy elect sister greet thee. However, some prefer to transliterate the Greek word for lady with the proper name Kyria. The person addressed is commended for her piety, and is warned against false teachers, the lady has traditionally been seen as a metaphor for the church, the church being the body of believers as a whole and as local congregations. The children would be members of local congregation. He also includes a greeting from another church in the last verse, the term the elect was a fairly common term for those who believe in the gospel and follow Christ
10.
Third Epistle of John
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The purpose of the letter is to encourage and strengthen Gaius, and to warn him against Diotrephes, who refuses to cooperate with the author of the letter. Early church literature contains no mention of the epistle, with the first reference to it appearing in the middle of the third century. The language of 3 John echoes that of the Gospel of John, others contest this view, such as the scholar John A. T. Robinson, who dates 3 John to c. The location of writing is unknown, but tradition places it in Ephesus, the epistle is found in many of the oldest New Testament manuscripts, and its text is free of major discrepancies or textual variants. Third John is the shortest book of the Bible by word count and it is the only New Testament book which does not contain the names Jesus or Christ. The letter is written to a man named Gaius, the Elder may have converted Gaius, since he calls Gaius his child in the faith. The Apostolic Constitutions VII.46.9 records that Gaius was made bishop of Pergamon, the name Gaius occurs three other times in the New Testament. First, a Christian Gaius is mentioned in Macedonia as a companion of Paul. One chapter later, a Gaius from Derbe is named as one of Pauls seven traveling companions who waited for him at Troas. Next, a Gaius is mentioned residing in Corinth as being one of only a few there who were baptised by Paul. Lastly, a Gaius is referred to in a final greeting portion of the Epistle to the Romans as Pauls host and also host of the whole church, however, there is no reason to suppose that any of these men were the Gaius of 3 John. The Elder continues the letter by commending Gaius for his loyalty, the brothers are brothers in the faith or missionaries, who in accordance with Jesus command in Mark 6, 8–9 have set out on a journey without any money. The Elder then goes on to request that Gaius provide for the brothers to continue their journey, the Elder next describes his conflict with Diotrephes, who does not acknowledge the Elders authority and is excommunicating those, like Gaius, who welcome missionaries sent by the Elder. The Elder mentions a letter which he has written to the church which was suppressed by Diotrephes. The church is known to Gaius, but he is likely not a member of it. The dispute between Diotrephes and the Elder seems to be based on leadership and authority rather than doctrine. John Painter, however, argues the Elder is in referring to 2 John. The Elder closes this section with an entreaty to Gaius, Beloved, do not imitate evil, whoever does good is from God, whoever does evil has not seen God
11.
Events of Revelation
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The events of Revelation are the events that occur in the Book of Revelation of the New Testament. An outline follows below, by Chapter, in linear format, the Revelation of Jesus Christ is communicated, through an angel, to John the Apostle when he was on the island of Patmos. John records the vision, in written text, and is instructed to send the document to the seven churches of Asia. John addresses the church of Ephesus to repent from the ways of the Nicolaitans, John addresses the church of Smyrna to warn them of ten days of tribulation that may cost them their lives or imprisonment. John addresses the church of Pergamum to repent from the doctrines of Balaam, John addresses the church of Thyatira to repent from the teachings of the prophetess Jezebel. John addresses the church of Sardis for being dead or unaware of things to come, John addresses the church of Philadelphia to persevere with what little strength they have, to hold fast so that no one takes their crown. John addresses the church of Laodicea to repent from investing in material riches that make them miserable, rather, the heavenly throne with a rainbow around it, having the One seated in it, is revealed. Twenty-four surrounding thrones seated with twenty-four crowned elders appear, the four living creatures present themselves, each having six wings full of eyes, one having the face of a lion, another as a calf, the third as a man, and the last as an eagle. The first vision that the experiences is that of entering Heaven. In Revelation, God is described as having the appearance like that of jasper, around Gods throne are twenty four other thrones, on which sit elders in white robes. From the throne come thunder and lightning and, in front of the throne, the author sees seven torches, the author then sees four creatures which have six wings and are covered in eyes. The creatures are giving eternal thanks to God and, whenever one of them bows down to worship God, a book secured by seven seals is revealed in the right hand of Him who sits on the throne. It is made known only the Lion that is from the tribe of Judah is worthy to open this book. The Lamb, with seven horns and seven eyes, takes the book from Him who sits on the throne, all heavenly beings sing praise and honor the Lamb. The first seal is broken and the first of the four living creatures introduces a white horse whose crowned rider, equipped with a bow, the second seal is broken and the second of the four living creatures introduces a red horse, whose rider wields a great sword. The third seal is broken and the third of the four living creatures introduces a black horse, whose rider carries a pair of scales, goes out. The fourth seal is broken and the fourth of the four living creatures introduces an ashen horse comes out, whose rider has the name Death, the fifth seal is broken revealing the souls of those who had been slain for the Word of God. Mankind hides themselves in the caves and mountains acknowledging the presence of Him who sits on the throne, the servants of God are revealed, those who are to be sealed before the destruction of the Earth
12.
Authorship of the Johannine works
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The authorship of the Johannine works has been debated by scholars since at least the 2nd century AD. The main debate centers on who authored the writings, and which of the writings, if any, there may have been a single author for the gospel and the three epistles. Orthodox tradition attributes all the books to John the Apostle, however, in the 6th century, the Decretum Gelasianum argued that Second and Third John have a separate author known as John, a priest. 90-110, but perhaps, according to scholars, from Syria. Some scholars, however, argue that the apostle John wrote none of these works, although others, Robinson, F. F. Bruce, Leon Morris, and Martin Hengel hold the apostle to be behind at least some, in particular the gospel. In the case of Revelation, many scholars agree that it was written by a separate author, John of Patmos. While evidence regarding the author is slight, some believe this gospel developed from a school or Johannine circle working at the end of the 1st century. Some 19th-century scholars, however, agreed with the traditional authorship view, in favor of the historical and eyewitness character of the Gospel, a few passages are cited. Fredriksen sees the Fourth Gospels unique explanation for Jesus arrest and crucifixion as the most historically plausible, The priests motivation is clear and commonsensical, the Romans will come and destroy both our holy place and our nation. Caiaphas continues, It is expedient that one man should die for the people and these three epistles are similar in terminology, style, and general situation. They are loosely associated with the Gospel of John and may result from that gospels theology and these epistles are commonly accepted as deriving from the Johannine community in Asia Minor. Early references to the epistles, the organization of the church apparent in the text, and the lack of reference to persecution suggests that they were written early in the 2nd century. The phraseology of the first letter of John is very similar to that of the fourth gospel, so the question of its authorship is often connected to the question of authorship of the gospel. The two works use many of the characteristic words and phrases, such as light, darkness, life, truth. In both works, the basic concepts are explored, the Word, the incarnation, the passing from death to life. The two works also bear many stylistic affinities to one another, given the similarity with the Gospel, the great majority of critical scholars assign the same authorship to the epistle that they assign to the Gospel. Starting with Heinrich Julius Holtzmann, however, and continuing with C. H. Dodd, some scholars have maintained that the epistle, there are at least two principal arguments for this view. The second is that the author of the epistle, uses the sentence in a variety of rhetorical figures which are unknown to the gospel
13.
John the Apostle
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John the Apostle was one of the Twelve Apostles of Jesus according to the New Testament, which refers to him as Ἰωάννης. He was the son of Zebedee and Salome and his brother was James, who was another of the Twelve Apostles. The traditions of most Christian denominations have held that John the Apostle is the author of books of the New Testament. Church tradition has held that John is the author of the Gospel of John, in the Gospel, authorship is internally credited to the disciple whom Jesus loved in John 20,2. John 21,24 claims that the Gospel of John is based on the testimony of the Beloved Disciple. The authorship of some Johannine literature has been debated since about the year 200, some doubt that the Gospel of John was even written by an individual named John. Nevertheless, the notion of John the Evangelist exists, and is considered by some the same as the Apostle John. In his Ecclesiastical History, Eusebius says that the First Epistle of John, however, Eusebius mentions that the consensus is that the second and third epistles of John are not his but were written by some other John. Eusebius also goes to some length to establish with the reader that there is no consensus regarding the revelation of John. The revelation of John could only be what is now called the book of Revelation, the Gospel according to John differs considerably from the Synoptic Gospels, likely written decades earlier than Johns gospel. The bishops of Asia Minor supposedly requested him to write his gospel to deal with the heresy of the Ebionites, who asserted that Christ did not exist before Mary. John probably knew and undoubtedly approved of the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke, around 600, however, Sophronius of Jerusalem noted that two epistles bearing his name. Until the 19th century, the authorship of the Gospel of John had been attributed to the Apostle John, however, most modern critical scholars have their doubts. Some scholars place the Gospel of John somewhere between AD65 and 85, John Robinson proposes an initial edition by 50–55 and then a final edition by 65 due to similarities with Paul. Other scholars are of the opinion that the Gospel of John was composed in two or three stages, other scholars think that an even later date, perhaps even the last decade of the first century AD right up to the start of the 2nd century, is applicable. Nonetheless, today many scholars continue to accept the traditional authorship. The Gospel of John was written by an anonymous author, according to Paul N. Anderson, the gospel contains more direct claims to eyewitness origins than any of the other Gospel traditions. F. F. Bruce argues that 19,35 contains an emphatic, bart D. Ehrman, however, does not think the gospel claims to have been written by direct witnesses to the reported events
14.
Disciple whom Jesus loved
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The phrase the disciple whom Jesus loved or, in John 20,2, the disciple beloved of Jesus is used six times in the Gospel of John, but in no other New Testament accounts of Jesus. John 21,24 states that the Gospel of John is based on the testimony of this disciple. Since the end of the 1st century, the Beloved Disciple has been identified with John the Evangelist. Scholars have debated the authorship of Johannine literature since at least the third century, according to Stephen L. Harris, this view is rejected by modern scholars. Later at the crucifixion, Jesus tells his mother, Woman, here is your son, when Mary Magdalene discovers the empty tomb, she runs to tell the Beloved Disciple and Peter. The two men rush to the empty tomb and the Beloved Disciple is the first to reach the empty tomb, however, Peter is the first to enter. In John 21, the last chapter of the Gospel of John, also in the books final chapter, after Jesus implies the manner in which Peter will die, Peter sees the Beloved Disciple following them and asks, What about him. Jesus answers, If I want him to remain until I come, again in the gospels last chapter, it states that the very book itself is based on the written testimony of the disciple whom Jesus loved. The other Gospels do not mention anyone in parallel circumstances who could be linked to the Beloved Disciple. For example, in Luke 24,12, Peter runs alone to the tomb, Matthew, Mark, and Luke do not mention any one of the twelve disciples having witnessed the crucifixion. There are also two references to an unnamed other disciple in John 1, 35-40 and John 18, 15-16, which may be to the same person based on the wording in John 20,2. The closing words of Johns Gospel state explicitly concerning the Beloved Disciple that It is this disciple who testifies to these things and has written them, and we know that his testimony is true. Eusebius writing in the 4th century recorded in his Church History a letter which he believed to have been written by Polycrates of Ephesus in the 2nd century. The assumption that the Beloved Disciple was one of the Twelve Apostles is that he was present at the Last Supper which Matthew. Thus the most frequent identification is with John the Apostle, who would then be the same as John the Evangelist, merril F. Unger presents a case for this by a process of elimination. Some scholars have suggested a homoerotic interpretation of Christs relationship with the Beloved Disciple. Tilborg suggests that the portrait in the Gospel of John is positively attuned to the development of homosexual behaviour. However, he cautions that in the code, such imaginary homosexual behaviour is not an expression of homosexuality
15.
John the Evangelist
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John the Evangelist is the name traditionally given to the author of the Gospel of John. Christians have traditionally identified him with John the Apostle, John of Patmos, the Gospel of John refers to an otherwise unnamed disciple whom Jesus loved, who bore witness to and wrote the Gospels message. Christian tradition says that John the Evangelist was John the Apostle, the Apostle John was a historical figure, one of the pillars of the Jerusalem church after Jesus death. He was one of the twelve apostles and is thought to be the only one to have lived into old age. John is associated with the city of Ephesus, where he is said to have lived, some believe that he was exiled to the Aegean island of Patmos, where he wrote the Book of Revelation. However, this is a matter of debate, with some attributing the authorship of Revelation to another man, the authorship of the Johannine works has been debated by scholars since at least the 2nd century AD. The main debate centers on who authored the writings, and which of the writings, if any, orthodox tradition attributes all the books to John the Apostle. In the 6th century, the Decretum Gelasianum argued that Second and Third John have an author known as John. Historical criticism rejects the view that John the Apostle authored any of these works, many modern scholars conclude that the apostle John wrote none of these works, although others, notably J. A. T. Robinson, F. F. Bruce, Leon Morris, and Martin Hengel hold the apostle to be behind at least some, there may have been a single author for the gospel and the three epistles. Some scholars conclude the author of the epistles was different from that of the gospel, the gospel and epistles traditionally and plausibly came from Ephesus, c. 90-110, although some argue for an origin in Syria. In the case of Revelation, many scholars agree that it was written by a separate author, John of Patmos. In the Tridentine Calendar he was commemorated also on each of the days up to and including 3 January. This Octave was abolished by Pope Pius XII in 1955, the traditional liturgical color is white. John the Evangelist is usually depicted as a young man, in Christian art, John is symbolically represented by an eagle, one of the creatures envisioned by Ezekiel and in the Revelation to John. The use of the chalice as a symbol for John is sometimes interpreted with reference to the Last Supper, another explanation is to be found in the words of Christ to John and James, My chalice indeed you shall drink. According to some authorities, this symbol was not adopted until the 13th century, the painting Saint John the Evangelist by Domenico Zampieri was auctioned in London in December 2009, for an estimated US$16.5 million
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Acts of John
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The Acts of John is a collection of narratives and traditions ascribed to John the Apostle, who was the author of the Gospel of John. It is long known in fragmentary form, together with the Acts of Paul it is considered one of the most significant of the apostolic Acts in the New Testament apocrypha. It was condemned as a Gnostic heresy by the Church, the traditional author was said to be one Leucius Charinus, a companion of John, who was associated with several 2nd century Acts. Conventionally, the Acts of John was ascribed to Prochorus, one of the Seven Deacons discussed in Acts of the Apostles and it is difficult to know when the Acts of John was composed, but many scholars locate it to the second half of the second century. It may have originated as a Christianized wonder tale, designed for an urban Hellenic audience accustomed to things as having ones portrait painted. The Acts of John was eventually rejected by the church for its docetic overtones. However, although the Acts of John was condemned as heretical, the surviving Latin fragments, by contrast, seem to have been purged of unorthodox content, according to their translator M. R. James, the Latin fragments contain episodes now missing in the Greek. The Stichometry of Nicephorus gives its length as 2500 lines, an on-line translation presents the confrontation of John and Domitian during Domitians persecution of Christians, described as instigated by a letter of complaint from the Jews. Specifically, the account narrates two journeys of John, son of Zebedee, to Ephesus, filled with events, miracles. Lycomedes recounts a vision he received from the God of John, telling him that a man from Miletus was coming to heal his wife, Cleopatra, who had died seven days before from illness. Upon arrival, Lycomedes curses his situation and, despite Johns pleas to have faith that his wife will be back to life by the power of God. The entire city of Ephesus is stirred by his death and comes to his house to see his body, John then asks Christ to raise the two of them from the dead in order to prove Christs own might, quoting Matthew 7,7 in his request. Both Cleopatra and Lycomedes are resurrected, leaving the people of Ephesus in awe of the miracle that was performed before them. Later, during a festival celebrating the birthday of the Greek goddess Artemis, John rebukes them, threatening to have his God kill them if they are unable to convince their goddess to make him die on the spot with her divine power. Knowing that John has performed many miracles in their city, the people at the temple beg John not to destroy them, upon seeing this destruction, the people immediately see the error of their ways and acknowledge the God of John as the only true God. In a more comical account mentioned in the narrative, John, the author, and their companions stay overnight at an inn plagued with a bedbug infestation. The next morning, the author, joined by two of his companions, Verus and Andronicus, awakes to find the bugs gathered in the doorway. The three men wake John, who allows the creatures to return to the bed because of their obedience to the will of God, immediately following Johns encounter with the bedbugs, the traveling party journeys to the house of Andronicus in Ephesus in section 62
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Signs Gospel
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The Signs Gospel or the semeia source is a hypothetical gospel account of the life of Jesus Christ which some scholars have suggested could have been a primary source document for the Gospel of John. This theory has its basis in source criticism, since the commentary of Rudolf Bultmann was published in 1941, the hypothesis of a semeia source has gained some acceptance. One possible construction of the internal states that the Beloved Disciple wrote an account of the life of Jesus. However, this disciple died unexpectedly, necessitating that a revised gospel be written, in other words, it may be that John “is the source of the Johannine tradition but not the final writer of the tradition. The hypothesis of the Gospel of John being composed in layers over a period of time originated in the work of Rudolf Bultmann in 1941, Bultmann suggested that the author of John depended in part on an author who wrote an earlier account. This hypothetical Signs Gospel listing Christs miracles was independent of, and not used by and it was believed to have been circulating before the year 70 AD. Bultmanns conclusion was so controversial that heresy proceedings were instituted against him, nevertheless, this hypothesis has not disappeared. Scholars such as Raymond E. Brown believe that the author of the Signs Gospel to be the Beloved Disciple. They argue that the disciple who formed this community was both a person and a companion of Jesus Christ. Brown also suggests that the Beloved Disciple had been a follower of John the Baptist before joining Jesus and it is now widely agreed that the Gospel of John draws upon a tradition of Miracles of Jesus which is substantially independent of the three synoptic gospels. The Jesus Seminar has detected at least two distinct writing styles contained in the Gospel of John, the later style contains midrash and theological essays placed in the mouth of Jesus. The other - earlier - style is the original Signs Gospel and it is simple, direct and historical in style and can be reconstructed as follows, Text of the Signs Gospel
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Logos (Christianity)
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In Christology, the Logos is a name or title of Jesus Christ, seen as the pre-existent second person of the Trinity. It has been important for establishing the doctrine of the divinity of Jesus and his being God the Son by Trinitarian theologians as set forth in the Chalcedonian Definition. The concept derives from the prologue to the Gospel of John, which is translated into English as, In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God. In the translations, Word is used for Λόγος, although the term is often used transliterated but untranslated in theological discourse. Christian theologians often consider John 1,1 to be a text in their belief that Jesus is God, in connection with the idea that the Father, the Son. Though only in verse and the fourteenth verse of the prologue is Jesus referred to as the Word. Theologian N. T. Wright characterizes Word as being incomprehensible in human language and he claims that through belief the Logos will transform people with its judgment and mercy. According to Wright, Johns view of the Incarnation, of the Word becoming flesh, theologian Stephen L. Harris claims the author of John adapted Philos concept of the Logos, identifying Jesus as an incarnation of the divine Logos that formed the universe. To the rabbis who spoke of the Torah as preexistent, as Gods instrument in creation, to the Gnostics who would deny a real incarnation, Johns answer was most emphatic, the Word became flesh. To those who stopped with John the Baptist, he made it clear that John was not the Light, although the term Logos is not retained as a title beyond the prologue, the whole book of John presses these basic claims. As the Logos, Jesus Christ is God in self-revelation and redemption and he is God to the extent that he can be present to man and knowable to man. The Logos is God, as Thomas stated, My Lord, yet the Logos is in some sense distinguishable from God, for the Logos was with God. God and the Logos are not two beings, and yet they are not simply identical. In contrast to the Logos, God can be conceived apart from his revelatory action─although we must not forget that the Bible speaks of God only in his revelatory action. The paradox that the Logos is God and yet it is in some sense distinguishable from God is maintained in the body of the Gospel. That God as he acts and as he is revealed does not exhaust God as he is, is reflected in sayings attributed to Jesus, I and the Father are one and also, the Logos is God active in creation, revelation, and redemption. Jesus Christ not only gives Gods Word to us humans, he is the Word and he is the true word─ultimate reality revealed in a Person. The Logos is God, distinguishable in thought yet not separable in fact and this was decreed at the First Council of Constantinople
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Holy Spirit in Johannine literature
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Three separate terms, namely Holy Spirit, Spirit of Truth and Paraclete are used in Johannine literature. The Spirit of Truth is used in John 14,17,15,26 and 16,13, the First Epistle of John then contrasts this with the spirit of error in 1 John 4,6. 1 John 4, 1-6 provides the separation between spirits that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God and those who in error refuse it - an indication of their being evil spirits. In John 14,26 Jesus states, But the Comforter, the Holy Spirit, the identity of the Comforter has been the subject of debate among theologians, who have proposed multiple theories on the matter. Paraclete considered as the Spirit of Truth is used three times in the Gospel of John, in 14, 15-17,14,26 and 15, 26-27, where it is viewed as the Spirit which communicates Truth
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John's vision of the Son of Man
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Johns vision of the Son of Man is described in the scriptural Revelation 1, 9-20. John sees a vision of the risen, ascended and glorified Jesus Christ, Jesus is portrayed in this vision as having a robe with a golden sash, white hair, eyes like blazing fire, feet like bronze and a voice like rushing waters. He holds seven stars in his hand and has a double-edged sword coming out of his mouth. John, the author of Revelation, was exiled to the island of Patmos and he says that on the Lords Day he was in the Spirit, and heard a loud voice like a trumpet. When he turned around, he saw this Son of Man figure, in 1,18, the figure whom John sees identifies himself as the First and the Last, who was dead, and behold I am alive for ever and ever — a reference to Jesus resurrection. Some of the used in Revelation 1 is also used in Revelation 19 to describe the Rider on the White Horse. In both places he has a coming out of his mouth and has eyes like blazing fire. The Son of Man in this passage is portrayed as walking among seven lampstands, chapters 2 and 3 report letters written to the seven churches by John as it was revealed to him by the Son of Man. William Hendriksen suggests that the whole of the vision is symbolical of Christ, the Holy One, coming to purge His churches, One aspect of the vision is the portrayal of Jesus holding seven stars in his right hand. Such a motif is found on coins of the emperor Domitian. Sometime between 77 and 81, Domitians infant son died and he was subsequently deified, and is portrayed on coins of Domitian, with seven stars. Austin Farrer, on the hand, takes them to be the seven classical planets. Although Domitians son cannot be said to be holding the stars, frederick Murphy notes that Revelations image of Jesus with seven stars in his hand may be an allusion to that coin and an implicit critique of it. It is not the Roman imperial family that has cosmic significance, John tells us in Revelation 1,20 that the seven stars are the angels of the seven churches In commenting on this verse, C. I. Scofield states, The natural explanation of the messengers is that they were men sent by the seven churches to ascertain the state of the aged apostle, but they figure any who bear Gods messages to a church. In the New Testament, the Greek word for angels is not only used for heavenly angels, merrill Unger is of the opinion that human messengers is the meaning of the stars. Chronology of Revelation Resurrection appearances of Jesus
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New Testament people named John
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The name John is prominent in the New Testament and occurs numerous times. Among Palestinian Jews of this period, the name was one of the most popular, thus, it has long been debated which Johns are to be identified with which. Simon Peter is at times called “Simon, son of John”, the latter appears to be untranslated Aramaic, with bar meaning “son of” and Iona being Jonah, or according to Bauckham, Jôhana‘, an Aramaized form of John. John the Baptist, son of Zechariah, figures prominently in the beginning of each of the four Gospels, the Synoptic Gospels distinguish him as “the Baptist”, but the Gospel of John omits this epithet, as no other John is therein mentioned by name. John the Baptist was beheaded during the ministry of Jesus, so in most cases he is distinguished from other Johns. Ford proposes that Revelation originated as prophecy of John the Baptist, expanded by his followers to produce the book in its current form, John, son of Zebedee was one of the Twelve Apostles, along with his brother James. This John is mentioned frequently in the Synoptic Gospels, but always in company with his brother James or with Peter or often with both, but after the execution of his brother James in 44, this John is never again mentioned. There are many indications that James and John were killed together. Indeed, Papias records that James and John “were killed by the Jews”, nevertheless, many ancient sources and many modern scholars identify John the Apostle as the author of some or all of the Johannine books, thereby claiming apostolic authority for them. Annas the high priest was there, and Caiaphas, John, Alexander, Polycrates of Ephesus writes that John the Evangelist “was a priest, wearing the petalon”—i. e. specifically that he had served as High Priest. In this, he seems to identify the Evangelist with this high-priestly John mentioned in Acts, “John, called Mark” is mentioned several times in Acts. Such use of one Semitic name and another Greek name was a practice among Jews of the time. He is usually identified with the Mark mentioned in various epistles and this John is occasionally proposed as author of some of the Johannine works as well. Tarazi even goes so far as to attribute to him the Gospels of both Mark and John and all the other Johannine books. Since antiquity, many have considered the entire Johannine corpus to be the work of an author, a certain John of Ephesus. On the other hand, this identification and the authorship of works have also been disputed since antiquity. Thus, the authors of the Johannine works are conventionally called more explicitly—without prejudice to the issues of actual authorship. The author of the Gospel is termed John the Evangelist, in the Gospel, the name John occurs exclusively in reference to John the Baptist, and without that epithet, though “the sons of Zebedee” are also mentioned once
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Ancient Greek
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Ancient Greek includes the forms of Greek used in ancient Greece and the ancient world from around the 9th century BC to the 6th century AD. It is often divided into the Archaic period, Classical period. It is antedated in the second millennium BC by Mycenaean Greek, the language of the Hellenistic phase is known as Koine. Koine is regarded as a historical stage of its own, although in its earliest form it closely resembled Attic Greek. Prior to the Koine period, Greek of the classic and earlier periods included several regional dialects, Ancient Greek was the language of Homer and of fifth-century Athenian historians, playwrights, and philosophers. It has contributed many words to English vocabulary and has been a subject of study in educational institutions of the Western world since the Renaissance. This article primarily contains information about the Epic and Classical phases of the language, Ancient Greek was a pluricentric language, divided into many dialects. The main dialect groups are Attic and Ionic, Aeolic, Arcadocypriot, some dialects are found in standardized literary forms used in literature, while others are attested only in inscriptions. There are also several historical forms, homeric Greek is a literary form of Archaic Greek used in the epic poems, the Iliad and Odyssey, and in later poems by other authors. Homeric Greek had significant differences in grammar and pronunciation from Classical Attic, the origins, early form and development of the Hellenic language family are not well understood because of a lack of contemporaneous evidence. Several theories exist about what Hellenic dialect groups may have existed between the divergence of early Greek-like speech from the common Proto-Indo-European language and the Classical period and they have the same general outline, but differ in some of the detail. The invasion would not be Dorian unless the invaders had some relationship to the historical Dorians. The invasion is known to have displaced population to the later Attic-Ionic regions, the Greeks of this period believed there were three major divisions of all Greek people—Dorians, Aeolians, and Ionians, each with their own defining and distinctive dialects. Often non-west is called East Greek, Arcadocypriot apparently descended more closely from the Mycenaean Greek of the Bronze Age. Boeotian had come under a strong Northwest Greek influence, and can in some respects be considered a transitional dialect, thessalian likewise had come under Northwest Greek influence, though to a lesser degree. Most of the dialect sub-groups listed above had further subdivisions, generally equivalent to a city-state and its surrounding territory, Doric notably had several intermediate divisions as well, into Island Doric, Southern Peloponnesus Doric, and Northern Peloponnesus Doric. The Lesbian dialect was Aeolic Greek and this dialect slowly replaced most of the older dialects, although Doric dialect has survived in the Tsakonian language, which is spoken in the region of modern Sparta. Doric has also passed down its aorist terminations into most verbs of Demotic Greek, by about the 6th century AD, the Koine had slowly metamorphosized into Medieval Greek
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Apocalyptic literature
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Apocalyptic literature is a genre of prophetical writing that developed in post-Exilic Jewish culture and was popular among millennialist early Christians. Apocalypse is a Greek word meaning revelation, an unveiling or unfolding of things not previously known, as a genre, apocalyptic literature details the authors visions of the end times as revealed by an angel or other heavenly messenger. The apocalyptic literature of Judaism and Christianity embraces a considerable period, Apocalyptic elements can be detected in the prophetical books of Joel and Zechariah, while Isaiah chapters 24–27 and 33 present well-developed apocalypses. The Book of Daniel offers a fully matured and classic example of genre of literature. The non-fulfillment of prophecies served to popularize the methods of apocalyptic in comparison with the non-fulfillment of the advent of the Messianic kingdom. Some believe that the Messianic kingdom was not necessarily predicted to occur at the end of the seventy years of the Babylonian exile, but at some unspecified time in the future. The only thing for certain that was predicted is the return of the Jews to their land, thus, the fulfillment of the Messianic kingdom remained in the future for the Jews. This period was approximately 70 years, as prophesied by Jeremiah, the Book of Enoch, however, was not considered inspired Scripture by the Jews, so that any failed prophecy in it is of no consequence to the Jewish faith. The Greek empire of the East was overthrown by Rome, the fourth and last empire was declared to be Roman by the Apocalypse of Baruch chapters 36–40 and 4 Ezra 10, 60–12,35. Again, these two books were not considered inspired Scripture by the Jews, and thus were not authoritative on matters of prophecy, thus, it might be interpreted that Daniel was saying that Rome would be the last world power before the kingdom of God. Such ideas as those of the day of Yahweh and the new heavens, thus the inner development of Jewish apocalyptic was conditioned by the historical experiences of the nation. But the prophecies found in Jewish scriptures, which have not changed over time, another source of apocalyptic thought was primitive mythological and cosmological traditions, in which the eye of the seer could see the secrets of the future. Thus the six days of the creation, followed by a seventh of rest, were regarded as at once a history of the past. The object of literature in general was to square the righteousness of God with the suffering condition of His righteous servants on earth. Early Old Testament prophecy taught the need of personal and national righteousness, later prophecy incorporated an idea of future vindication of present evils, often including the idea of an afterlife. Apocalyptic prophets sketched in outline the history of the world and mankind, the origin of evil and its course, and the final consummation of all things. The righteous as a nation should yet possess the earth, either via an eternal Messianic kingdom on earth, or else in temporary blessedness here and eternal blessedness hereafter. Neither the prophets nor the authors are without conflict between their messages, however, and there are significant similarities between prophecy and apocalyptic writings
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New Testament
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The New Testament is the second major part of the Christian biblical canon, the first part being the Old Testament, based on the Hebrew Bible. The New Testament discusses the teachings and person of Jesus, as well as events in first-century Christianity, Christians regard both the Old and New Testaments together as sacred scripture. The New Testament has frequently accompanied the spread of Christianity around the world and it reflects and serves as a source for Christian theology and morality. Both extended readings and phrases directly from the New Testament are also incorporated into the various Christian liturgies, the New Testament has influenced religious, philosophical, and political movements in Christendom and left an indelible mark on literature, art, and music. In almost all Christian traditions today, the New Testament consists of 27 books, John A. T. Robinson, Dan Wallace, and William F. Albright dated all the books of the New Testament before 70 AD. Others give a date of 80 AD, or at 96 AD. Over time, some disputed books, such as the Book of Revelation, other works earlier held to be Scripture, such as 1 Clement, the Shepherd of Hermas, and the Diatessaron, were excluded from the New Testament. However, the canon of the New Testament, at least since Late Antiquity, has been almost universally recognized within Christianity. The term new testament, or new covenant first occurs in Jeremiah 31,31, the same Greek phrase for new covenant is found elsewhere in the New Testament. Modern English, like Latin, distinguishes testament and covenant as alternative translations, John Wycliffes 1395 version is a translation of the Latin Vulgate and so follows different terms in Jeremiah and Hebrews, Lo. Days shall come, saith the Lord, and I shall make a new covenant with the house of Israel, for he reproving him saith, Lo. Days come, saith the Lord, when I shall establish a new testament on the house of Israel, use of the term New Testament to describe a collection of first and second-century Christian Greek Scriptures can be traced back to Tertullian. In Against Marcion, written circa 208 AD, he writes of the Divine Word, by the 4th century, the existence—even if not the exact contents—of both an Old and New Testament had been established. Lactantius, a 3rd–4th century Christian author wrote in his early-4th-century Latin Institutiones Divinae and that which preceded the advent and passion of Christ—that is, the law and the prophets—is called the Old, but those things which were written after His resurrection are named the New Testament. The canon of the New Testament is the collection of books that most Christians regard as divinely inspired, several of these writings sought to extend, interpret, and apply apostolic teaching to meet the needs of Christians in a given locality. The book order is the same in the Greek Orthodox, Roman Catholic, the Slavonic, Armenian and Ethiopian traditions have different New Testament book orders. Each of the four gospels in the New Testament narrates the life, death, the word gospel derives from the Old English gōd-spell, meaning good news or glad tidings. The gospel was considered the good news of the coming Kingdom of Messiah, and the redemption through the life and death of Jesus, Gospel is a calque of the Greek word εὐαγγέλιον, euangelion
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Patmos
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Patmos is a small Greek island in the Aegean Sea, most famous for being the location of both the vision of and the writing of the Christian Bibles Book of Revelation. One of the northernmost islands of the Dodecanese complex, it has a population of 2,998, the highest point is Profitis Ilias,269 metres above sea level. It is part of the Kalymnos regional unit, Patmos main communities are Chora, and Skala, the only commercial port. Other settlements are Grikou and Kampos, the churches and communities on Patmos are of the Eastern Orthodox tradition. The mayor of Patmos is Gregory Stoikos, Patmos is mentioned in the Book of Revelation. The books introduction states that its author, John, was on Patmos when he was given a vision from Jesus, Early Christian tradition identified this writer as John the Apostle, though some modern scholars are uncertain, and thus call him the less specific John of Patmos. Because of the Book of Revelation, Patmos has a history as a destination for Christian pilgrimage. Visitors can see the cave where John is said to have received his Revelation, in 1999, the islands historic center Chora, along with the Monastery of Saint John the Theologian and the Cave of the Apocalypse, were declared World Heritage Sites by UNESCO. The monastery was founded by Saint Christodulos, Patmos is also home to the Patmian School, a notable Greek seminary. Patmos is seldom mentioned by ancient writers, therefore, very little can be conjectured about the earliest inhabitants. In the Classical period, the Patmians prefer to identify themselves as Dorians descending from the families of Argos, Sparta and Epidaurus, further mingling with people of Ionian ancestry. During the 3rd century BC, in the Hellenistic period, the settlement of Patmos acquired the form of an acropolis with an improved defence through a fortification wall, Patmos is mentioned in the Christian scriptural Bible Book of Revelation. The books introduction states that its author, John, was on Patmos when he was given a vision from Jesus, Early Christian tradition identified this writer John of Patmos as John the Apostle. As such, Patmos is a destination for Christian pilgrimage, visitors can see the cave where John is said to have received his Revelation, and several monasteries on the island are dedicated to Saint John. After the death of John of Patmos, possibly around 100, among these was a Grand Royal Basilica in honour of Saint John, built c. 300–350 at the location where the Monastery of Saint John the Theologian stands today, Early Christian life on Patmos, however, barely survived Muslim raids from the 7th to the 9th century. During this period, the Grand Basilica was destroyed, in the 11th century, the Byzantine Emperor Alexios I Komnenos gave Christodoulos the complete authority over the island of Patmos, as well as the permission to build a monastery on the island. The construction of the started in 1101
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Greece
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Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, historically also known as Hellas, is a country in southeastern Europe, with a population of approximately 11 million as of 2015. Athens is the capital and largest city, followed by Thessaloniki. Greece is strategically located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, situated on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula, it shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, the Republic of Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to the northeast. Greece consists of nine regions, Macedonia, Central Greece, the Peloponnese, Thessaly, Epirus, the Aegean Islands, Thrace, Crete. The Aegean Sea lies to the east of the mainland, the Ionian Sea to the west, the Cretan Sea and the Mediterranean Sea to the south. Greece has the longest coastline on the Mediterranean Basin and the 11th longest coastline in the world at 13,676 km in length, featuring a vast number of islands, eighty percent of Greece is mountainous, with Mount Olympus being the highest peak at 2,918 metres. From the eighth century BC, the Greeks were organised into various independent city-states, known as polis, which spanned the entire Mediterranean region and the Black Sea. Greece was annexed by Rome in the second century BC, becoming a part of the Roman Empire and its successor. The Greek Orthodox Church also shaped modern Greek identity and transmitted Greek traditions to the wider Orthodox World, falling under Ottoman dominion in the mid-15th century, the modern nation state of Greece emerged in 1830 following a war of independence. Greeces rich historical legacy is reflected by its 18 UNESCO World Heritage Sites, among the most in Europe, Greece is a democratic and developed country with an advanced high-income economy, a high quality of life, and a very high standard of living. A founding member of the United Nations, Greece was the member to join the European Communities and has been part of the Eurozone since 2001. Greeces unique cultural heritage, large industry, prominent shipping sector. It is the largest economy in the Balkans, where it is an important regional investor, the names for the nation of Greece and the Greek people differ from the names used in other languages, locations and cultures. The earliest evidence of the presence of human ancestors in the southern Balkans, dated to 270,000 BC, is to be found in the Petralona cave, all three stages of the stone age are represented in Greece, for example in the Franchthi Cave. Neolithic settlements in Greece, dating from the 7th millennium BC, are the oldest in Europe by several centuries and these civilizations possessed writing, the Minoans writing in an undeciphered script known as Linear A, and the Mycenaeans in Linear B, an early form of Greek. The Mycenaeans gradually absorbed the Minoans, but collapsed violently around 1200 BC and this ushered in a period known as the Greek Dark Ages, from which written records are absent. The end of the Dark Ages is traditionally dated to 776 BC, the Iliad and the Odyssey, the foundational texts of Western literature, are believed to have been composed by Homer in the 7th or 8th centuries BC. With the end of the Dark Ages, there emerged various kingdoms and city-states across the Greek peninsula, in 508 BC, Cleisthenes instituted the worlds first democratic system of government in Athens
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Domitian
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Domitian was the Emperor of Rome from 81 to 96. He was the brother of Titus and son of Vespasian. During his reign, his authoritarian rule put him at odds with the senate. After the death of his brother, Domitian was declared emperor by the Praetorian Guard and his 15-year reign was the longest since that of Tiberius. As emperor, Domitian strengthened the economy by revaluing the Roman coinage, expanded the defenses of the empire. Significant wars were fought in Britain, where his general Agricola attempted to conquer Caledonia, and in Dacia, Domitians government exhibited totalitarian characteristics, he saw himself as the new Augustus, an enlightened despot destined to guide the Roman Empire into a new era of brilliance. Religious, military, and cultural propaganda fostered a cult of personality, as a consequence, Domitian was popular with the people and army, but considered a tyrant by members of the Roman Senate. Domitians reign came to an end in 96 when he was assassinated by court officials and he was succeeded the same day by his advisor Nerva. Modern revisionists instead have characterized Domitian as a ruthless but efficient autocrat whose cultural, economic, Domitian was born in Rome on 24 October 51, the youngest son of Titus Flavius Vespasianus—commonly known as Vespasian—and Flavia Domitilla Major. He had a sister, Domitilla the Younger, and brother. One such family, the Flavians, or gens Flavia, rose from obscurity to prominence in just four generations, acquiring wealth. Domitians great-grandfather, Titus Flavius Petro, had served as a centurion under Pompey during Caesars civil war and his military career ended in disgrace when he fled the battlefield at the Battle of Pharsalus in 48 BC. Sabinus himself amassed further wealth and possible equestrian status through his services as tax collector in Asia, by marrying Vespasia Polla he allied the Flavian family to the more prestigious gens Vespasia, ensuring the elevation of his sons Titus Flavius Sabinus II and Vespasian to senatorial rank. The political career of Vespasian included the offices of quaestor, aedile, and praetor, and culminated with a consulship in 51, as a military commander, Vespasian gained early renown by participating in the Roman invasion of Britain in 43. Nevertheless, ancient sources allege poverty for the Flavian family at the time of Domitians upbringing, even claiming Vespasian had fallen into disrepute under the emperors Caligula, by all appearances, the Flavians enjoyed high imperial favour throughout the 40s and 60s. While Titus received an education in the company of Britannicus, Vespasian pursued a successful political. The same year the Jews of the Judaea province revolted against the Roman Empire in what is now known as the First Jewish-Roman War. Vespasian was assigned to lead the Roman army against the insurgents, of the three Flavian emperors, Domitian would rule the longest, despite the fact that his youth and early career were largely spent in the shadow of his older brother
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Eusebius
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Eusebius of Caesarea, also known as Eusebius Pamphili, was a Greek historian of Christianity, exegete, and Christian polemicist. He became the bishop of Caesarea Maritima about 314 AD, together with Pamphilus, he was a scholar of the Biblical canon and is regarded as an extremely well learned Christian of his time. He wrote Demonstrations of the Gospel, Preparations for the Gospel, as Father of Church History he produced the Ecclesiastical History, On the Life of Pamphilus, the Chronicle and On the Martyrs. Little is known about the life of Eusebius and his successor at the See of Caesarea, Acacius, wrote a Life of Eusebius, a work that has since been lost. Eusebius own surviving works probably only represent a portion of his total output. Beyond notices in his extant writings, the sources are the 5th-century ecclesiastical historians Socrates, Sozomen, and Theodoret. There are assorted notices of his activities in the writings of his contemporaries Athanasius, Arius, Eusebius of Nicomedia, Eusebius pupil, Eusebius of Emesa, provides some incidental information. In his Ecclesiastical History, Eusebius writes of Dionysius of Alexandria as his contemporary, if this is true, Eusebius birth must have been before Dionysius death in autumn 264, most modern scholars date the birth to some point in the five years between 260 and 265. He was presumably born in the town in which he lived for most of his adult life and he was baptized and instructed in the city, and lived in Palestine in 296, when Diocletians army passed through the region. Eusebius was made presbyter by Agapius of Caesarea, S. Wallace-Hadrill, deem the phrase too ambiguous to support the contention. By the 3rd century, Caesarea had a population of about 100,000 and it had been a pagan city since Pompey had given control of the city to the gentiles during his command of the eastern provinces in the 60s BC. The gentiles retained control of the city for the three centuries to follow, despite Jewish petitions for joint governorship, gentile government was strengthened by the citys refoundation under Herod the Great, when it had taken on the name of Augustus Caesar. In addition to the settlers, Caesarea had large Jewish. Eusebius was probably born into the Christian contingent of the city.46 states that Zacchaeus was the first bishop, through the activities of the theologian Origen and the school of his follower Pamphilus, Caesarea became a center of Christian learning. Origen was largely responsible for the collection of information, or which churches were using which gospels. On his deathbed, Origen had made a bequest of his library to the Christian community in the city. Together with the books of his patron Ambrosius, Origens library formed the core of the collection that Pamphilus established, Pamphilus also managed a school that was similar to that of Origen. Pamphilus was compared to Demetrius of Phalerum and Pisistratus, for he had gathered Bibles from all parts of the world, like his model Origen, Pamphilus maintained close contact with his students
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John the Baptist
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John the Baptist, also known as John the Baptizer, was a Jewish itinerant preacher in the early first century AD. John is revered as a religious figure in Christianity, Islam, the Baháí Faith. He is called a prophet by all of these traditions, and is honoured as a saint in many Christian traditions, John used baptism as the central symbol or sacrament of his messianic movement. Most scholars agree that John baptized Jesus, scholars generally believe Jesus was a follower or disciple of John and several New Testament accounts report that some of Jesus early followers had previously been followers of John. John the Baptist is also mentioned by the Jewish historian Josephus, according to the New Testament, John anticipated a messianic figure greater than himself. Christians commonly refer to John as the precursor or forerunner of Jesus, John is also identified with the prophet Elijah. John the Baptist is mentioned in all four canonical Gospels and the non-canonical Gospel of the Nazarenes, the Synoptic Gospels describe John baptising Jesus, in the Gospel of John it is implied in John 1, 32-34. The Gospel of Mark introduces John as a fulfilment of a prophecy from the Book of Isaiah about a messenger being sent ahead, John is described as wearing clothes of camels hair, living on locusts and wild honey. John proclaims baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sin, and says another will come after him who will not baptize with water, Jesus comes to John, and is baptized by him in the river Jordan. The account describes how, as he emerges from the water, the heavens open, a voice from heaven then says, You are my Son, the Beloved, with you I am well pleased. Later in the gospel there is an account of Johns death and it is introduced by an incident where the Tetrarch Herod Antipas, hearing stories about Jesus, imagines that this is John the Baptist raised from the dead. It then explains that John had rebuked Herod for marrying Herodias, Herodias demands his execution, but Herod, who liked to listen to John, is reluctant to do so because he fears him, knowing he is a righteous and holy man. The account then describes how Herods daughter Herodias dances before Herod, when the girl asks her mother what she should request, she is told to demand the head of John the Baptist. Reluctantly, Herod orders the beheading of John, and his head is delivered to her, at her request, Johns disciples take the body away and bury it in a tomb. There are a number of difficulties with this passage, the Gospel wrongly identifies Antipas as King and the ex-husband of Herodias is named as Philip, but he is known to have been called Herod. Although the wording clearly implies the girl was the daughter of Herodias, many texts describe her as Herods daughter, Herodias. Since these texts are early and significant and the reading is difficult, many see this as the original version, corrected in later versions and in Matthew. Josephus says that Herodias had a daughter by the name of Salome, scholars have speculated about the origins of the story
30.
Justin Martyr
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Saint Justin, also known as Justin Martyr was an early Christian apologist, and is regarded as the foremost interpreter of the theory of the Logos in the 2nd century. He was martyred, alongside some of his students, and is considered a saint by the Roman Catholic Church, the Anglican Church, Most of his works are lost, but two apologies and a dialogue did survive. Further, he indicates, as St Augustine did regarding the true religion that predated Christianity. This notion allows him to many historical Greek philosophers, in whose works he was well studied. Justin Martyr was born at Flavia Neapolis in Samaria into a pagan family and he says he tried first the school of a Stoic philosopher, who was unable to explain Gods being to him. He then attended a Peripatetic philosopher but was put off because the philosopher was too eager for his fee, then he went to hear a Pythagorean philosopher who demanded that he first learn music, astronomy, and geometry, which he did not wish to do. Subsequently, he adopted Platonism after encountering a Platonist thinker who had settled in his city. Moved by the aged mans argument, Justin renounced both his religious faith and his philosophical background, choosing instead to re-dedicate his life to the service of the Divine. As a result, he decided that the only option for him was to travel throughout the land. His conversion is commonly assumed to have taken place at Ephesus though it may have occurred anywhere on the road from Judaea to Rome and he then adopted the dress of a philosopher himself and traveled about teaching. During the reign of Antoninus Pius, he arrived in Rome, Tatian was one of his pupils. In the reign of Marcus Aurelius, after disputing with the cynic philosopher Crescens, he was denounced by the latter to the authorities, according to Tatian and Eusebius. Justin was tried, together with six companions, by Junius Rusticus, who was urban prefect from 163-167, though the precise year of his death is uncertain, it can reasonably be dated by the prefectoral term of Rusticus. The martyrdom of Justin preserves the record of the trial. The Prefect Rusticus says, Approach and sacrifice, all of you, Justin says, No one in his right mind gives up piety for impiety. The Prefect Rusticus says, If you do not obey, you will be tortured without mercy, and all the martyrs said, Do as you wish, for we are Christians, and we do not sacrifice to idols. The Prefect Rusticus read the sentence, Those who do not wish to sacrifice to the gods, the holy martyrs glorifying God betook themselves to the customary place, where they were beheaded and consummated their martyrdom confessing their Saviour. The church of St. John the Baptist in Sacrofano, a few north of Rome
31.
Pope Dionysius of Alexandria
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Saint Dionysius of Alexandria, named the Great, 14th Pope of Alexandria & Patriarch of the See of St. Mark from December 28,248 until his death on March 22,264 after seventeen years as a bishop. He was the first Pope to hold the title the Great, Dionysius large surviving correspondence provides most of our information about him. Only one original letter survives to day, the remaining letters are excerpted in the works of Eusebius. Dionysius was born to a pagan family sometime in the late 2nd. He spent most of his life reading books and carefully studying the traditions of heretics and he converted to Christianity at a mature age and discussed his conversion experience with Philemon, a presbyter of Pope Sixtus II. After his conversion, he joined the Catechetical School of Alexandria and was a student of Origen and he eventually became leader of the school and presbyter of the Christian church, succeeding Pope Heraclas in 231. Later he became Pope of the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria & Patriarch of the See of St. Mark in 248 after the death of Pope Heraclas, Dionysius was more an able administrator than a great theologian. Information on his work as Bishop of Alexandria is found in Dionysius correspondence with other bishops, dionysius’ correspondences included interpretations on the Gospel of Luke, the Gospel of John and the Book of Revelation. During 249, a persecution was carried out in Alexandria by a pagan mob. Dionysius managed to survive this persecution and the war that followed. In January 250 the new emperor Decius issued a decree of legal persecution, out of fear many Christians denied their faith by offering a token pagan sacrifice, while others attempted to obtain false documents affirming their sacrifice. Others who refused to sacrifice faced public ridicule and shame among their family and friends, many fled from the city into the desert, where most succumbed to exposure, hunger, thirst, or attacks by bandits or wild animals. Dionysius himself was pursued by the prefect Sabinus, who had sent out an assassin to murder him on sight, Dionysius spent three days in hiding before departing on the fourth night of the Decian decree with his servants and other loyal brethren. After a brush with a group of soldiers, he managed to escape with two of his followers, and set up a residence in the Libyan desert until the end of the persecution the following year. In opposition to Novatians teaching, Dionysius ordered that the Eucharist should be refused to no one who asked it at the hour of death, even those who had previously lapsed. In 252 an outbreak of plague ravaged Alexandria, and Dionysius, along with priests and deacons, took it upon themselves to assist the sick. The persecutions subsided somewhat under Trebonianus Gallus, but were renewed under Valerian who replaced Gallus, Dionysius was imprisoned and then exiled. When Gallienus, took over the empire he released all the believers who were in prison, Gallienus wrote to Dionysius and the bishops a letter to assure their safety in opening the churches
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Papias of Hierapolis
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Papias was an Apostolic Father, Bishop of Hierapolis, and author who lived c. It was Papias who wrote the Exposition of the Sayings of the Lord in five books, very little is known of Papias apart from what can be inferred from his own writings. He is described as an ancient man who was a hearer of John, Eusebius adds that Papias was Bishop of Hierapolis around the time of Ignatius of Antioch. In this office Papias was presumably succeeded by Abercius of Hierapolis, the name Papias was very common in the region, suggesting that he was probably a native of the area. The work of Papias is dated by most modern scholars to about 95–120, later dates were once argued from two references that now appear to be mistaken. One dating Papias death to around the death of Polycarp in 164 is actually a mistake for Papylas, another unreliable source in which Papias is said to refer to the reign of Hadrian seems to have resulted from confusion between Papias and Quadratus. Eusebius refers to Papias only in his book, and thus seems to date him before the opening of his fourth book in 109. He is also called a companion of the long-lived Polycarp, for all these reasons, Papias is thought to have written around the turn of the 2nd century. From the daughters of Philip, who settled in Hierapolis, Papias learned still other traditions, one side of the debate holds, with the longstanding opinion of 20th-century scholarship, that in Papias day written statements were held at a lower value than oral statements. Despite indications that the work of Papias was still extant in the late Middle Ages, extracts, however, appear in a number of other writings, some of which cite a book number. MacDonald proposes the following reconstruction of the five books, following a presumed Matthaean order. #1 Papias provides the earliest extant account of who wrote the Gospels, Eusebius preserves two verbatim excerpts from Papias on the origins of the Gospels, one concerning Mark and then another concerning Matthew. For one thing, it is not even explicit that the writings by Mark, the word logia —which also appears in the title of Papias work—is itself problematic. But the parallelism implies a meaning of things said or done, the apparent claim that Matthew wrote in Hebrew—which in Greek could refer to either Hebrew or Aramaic—is echoed by many other ancient authorities. Modern scholars have proposed numerous explanations for this assertion, in light of the prevalent view that canonical Matthew was composed in Greek, one theory is that Matthew himself produced firstly a Semitic work and secondly a recension of that work in Greek. Another is that others translated Matthew into Greek rather freely, another is that Papias simply means Ἑβραίδι διαλέκτῳ as a Hebrew style of Greek. Another is that Papias refers to a work now lost. Yet another is that Papias was simply mistaken, Eusebius, after quoting Papias, goes on to say that Papias also cited 1 Peter, where Peter speaks of my son Mark, as corroboration
33.
Yale Divinity School
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The Divinity School at Yale University, in New Haven, Connecticut is one of twelve graduate or professional schools within Yale University. Congregationalist theological education was the motivation at the founding of Yale, the school had maintained its own campus, faculty, and degree program since 1869, and it has become more ecumenical beginning in the mid-19th century. Since the 1970s it has been affiliated with the Episcopal Berkeley Divinity School and has housed the Institute of Sacred Music, Theological education was the earliest academic purpose of Yale University. A professorship of divinity was established in 1746, in the same motion, Second Great Awakening theologian Nathaniel William Taylor was appointed to become the first Dwight Professor of Didactic Theology. Taylor was considered the figure in the schools founding, and he was joined in 1826 by Josiah Willard Gibbs, Sr. a scholar of sacred languages. After a significant period of enrollment decline, the school began fundraising from alumni for new faculty, Divinity Hall was constructed on the present-day site of Calhoun College between 1869 and 1871, featuring two classroom wings, a chapel. Around the time of the new campus construction came the arrival of new faculty, including James M. Hoppin, George Edward Day, George Park Fisher, the first Bachelor of Divinity was conferred in 1867, and the department became a separate School of Divinity in 1869. The school remained across from Old Campus until 1929, when a new campus was constructed on the edge of the university campus. Berkeley Divinity School affiliated with Yale Divinity School in 1971, while Berkeley retains its Episcopal Church connection, its students are admitted by and fully enrolled as members of Yale Divinity School. The Jonathan Edwards Center at Yale University, a division of the Divinity School, maintains a collection of primary source materials about Jonathan Edwards. The Yale Institute of Sacred Music is jointly-affiliated with the Divinity School and School of Music and it offers programs in choral conducting, organ performance, voice, and church music studies, and in liturgical studies and religion and the arts. The buildings, designed by Richard Morris Hunt, were demolished under the college plan. In 1929, the trustees of the estate of lawyer John William Sterling agreed that a portion of his bequest to Yale would be used to build a new campus for the Divinity School. The Sterling Divinity Quadrangle, completed in 1932, is a Georgian-style complex built at the top of Prospect Hill and it was designed by Delano & Aldrich and modeled in part on the University of Virginia. A $49-million renovation of Sterling Divinity Quadrangle was completed in 2003, poling Peter L. Pond, human rights activist and philanthropist who adopted 16 Cambodian orphans. Adam Clayton Powell, Sr. George Rupp Father V. C
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Sporades
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The Sporades are an archipelago along the east coast of Greece, northeast of the island of Euboea, in the Aegean Sea. They consists of 24 islands, four of which are permanently inhabited and they may also be referred to as the Thessalian Sporades. Sporades means those scattered, and was used from Classical Antiquity to refer to the Aegean island groups outside the archipelago of the Cyclades. In modern geographical parlance, there are five different Sporades groups, as a part of the 2011 Kallikratis government reform, the regional unit Sporades was created out of part of the former Magnesia Prefecture, region of Thessaly. The regional unit is subdivided into 3 municipalities and these are, Skiathos Skopelos Alonnisos The island of Skyros with a few uninhabited islets of its area is part of the regional unit of Euboea and the administrative region of Central Greece. Skyros – Britannica Concise, Britannica Concise,2006, webpage, Skiathos Villas Sporades The Official website of the Greek National Tourism Organisation Skopelosweb. gr Since 1999 Alonnisos. net VivaSporades. com Love skiathos
35.
Tertullian
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Tertullian, full name Quintus Septimius Florens Tertullianus, c.155 – c.240 AD, was a prolific early Christian author from Carthage in the Roman province of Africa. Of Berber origin, he was the first Christian author to produce a corpus of Latin Christian literature. He also was an early Christian apologist and a polemicist against heresy, Tertullian has been called the father of Latin Christianity and the founder of Western theology. Though conservative in his worldview, Tertullian originated new theological concepts and he is perhaps most famous for being the first writer in Latin known to use the term trinity. According to The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, Tertullians trinity not a triune God, other Latin formulations that first appear in his work are three persons, one substance as the Latin tres personae, una substantia. He wrote his understanding of the three members of the trinity after becoming a Montanist, scant reliable evidence exists to inform us about Tertullians life. Most history about him comes from passing references in his own writings, Roman Africa was famous as the home of orators and this influence can be seen in his style with its archaisms or provincialisms, its glowing imagery and its passionate temper. He was a scholar with an excellent education and he wrote at least three books in Greek. In them he refers to himself, but none of these are extant, according to church tradition, Tertullian was raised in Carthage and was thought to be the son of a Roman centurion, Tertullian has been claimed to have been a trained lawyer and an ordained priest. These assertions rely on the accounts of Eusebius of Caesarea, Church History, II,4, and Jeromes De viris illustribus chapter 53. Jerome claimed that Tertullians father held the position of centurio proconsularis in the Roman army in Africa, however, it is unclear whether any such position in the Roman military ever existed. Further, Tertullian has been thought to be a based on his use of legal analogies and an identification of him with the jurist Tertullianus. Although Tertullian used a knowledge of Roman law in his writings, the writings of Tertullianus, a lawyer of the same cognomen, exist only in fragments and do not denote a Christian authorship. Finally, any notion of Tertullian being a priest is also questionable, in his extant writings, he never describes himself as ordained in the church and seems to place himself among the laity. His conversion to Christianity perhaps took place about 197–198, but its immediate antecedents are unknown except as they are conjectured from his writings, the event must have been sudden and decisive, transforming at once his own personality. He said of himself that he could not imagine a truly Christian life without such a conscious breach, two books addressed to his wife confirm that he was married to a Christian wife. In middle life, he was attracted to the New Prophecy of Montanism, in the time of Augustine, a group of Tertullianists still had a basilica in Carthage which, within that same period, passed to the orthodox Church. It is unclear whether the name was another for the Montanists or that this means Tertullian later split with the Montanists
36.
Bart D. Ehrman
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Bart Denton Ehrman is an American professor and scholar, currently the James A. Gray Distinguished Professor of Religious Studies at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He is one of North Americas leading scholars in his field, having written and edited 30 books and he has also achieved acclaim at the popular level, authoring five New York Times bestsellers. Ehrmans work focuses on criticism of the New Testament, the historical Jesus. Ehrman grew up in Lawrence, Kansas, and attended Lawrence High School and he began studying the Bible and the Biblical languages at Moody Bible Institute, where he earned the schools three-year diploma in 1976. He is a 1978 graduate of Wheaton College in Illinois, where he received his bachelors degree and he received his PhD and M. Div. from Princeton Theological Seminary, where he studied under Bruce Metzger. He received magna cum laude for both his BA in 1978 and PhD in 1985, in Misquoting Jesus Ehrman recounts becoming a born-again, fundamentalist Christian as a teenager. He recounts being certain in his enthusiasm that God had inspired the wording of the Bible. His desire to understand the words of the Bible led him to the study of ancient languages. During his graduate studies, however, he convinced that there are contradictions. He remained a liberal Christian for 15 years but later became an agnostic atheist after struggling with the problems of evil. Ehrman has taught at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill since 1988, at UNC he has served as both the Director of Graduate Studies and the Chair of the Department of Religious Studies. Wallace, Richard Swinburne, Peter J. Williams, James White, Darrell Bock, Michael L. Brown and Robert M. Price. In 2006 he appeared on The Colbert Report and The Daily Show, to promote his book Misquoting Jesus, and in 2009 reappeared on The Colbert Report with the release of Jesus, Interrupted. Ehrman has written widely on issues of the New Testament and early Christianity at both an academic and popular level, much of it based on criticism of the New Testament. His thirty books include three college textbooks and five New York Times bestsellers, Misquoting Jesus, Jesus, Interrupted, Gods Problem, Forged and his books have been translated into 27 languages. In The Orthodox Corruption of Scripture, Ehrman argues that there was a relationship between the social history of early Christianity and the textual tradition of the emerging New Testament. He examines how early struggles between Christian heresy and orthodoxy affected the transmission of the documents, Ehrman is often considered a pioneer in connecting the history of the early church to textual variants within biblical manuscripts and in coining such terms as proto-orthodox Christianity. In Truth and Fiction in The Da Vinci Code, Ehrman expands on his list of ten historical and factual inaccuracies in Dan Browns novel, in Misquoting Jesus, Ehrman introduces New Testament textual criticism
37.
International Standard Book Number
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The International Standard Book Number is a unique numeric commercial book identifier. An ISBN is assigned to each edition and variation of a book, for example, an e-book, a paperback and a hardcover edition of the same book would each have a different ISBN. The ISBN is 13 digits long if assigned on or after 1 January 2007, the method of assigning an ISBN is nation-based and varies from country to country, often depending on how large the publishing industry is within a country. The initial ISBN configuration of recognition was generated in 1967 based upon the 9-digit Standard Book Numbering created in 1966, the 10-digit ISBN format was developed by the International Organization for Standardization and was published in 1970 as international standard ISO2108. Occasionally, a book may appear without a printed ISBN if it is printed privately or the author does not follow the usual ISBN procedure, however, this can be rectified later. Another identifier, the International Standard Serial Number, identifies periodical publications such as magazines, the ISBN configuration of recognition was generated in 1967 in the United Kingdom by David Whitaker and in 1968 in the US by Emery Koltay. The 10-digit ISBN format was developed by the International Organization for Standardization and was published in 1970 as international standard ISO2108, the United Kingdom continued to use the 9-digit SBN code until 1974. The ISO on-line facility only refers back to 1978, an SBN may be converted to an ISBN by prefixing the digit 0. For example, the edition of Mr. J. G. Reeder Returns, published by Hodder in 1965, has SBN340013818 -340 indicating the publisher,01381 their serial number. This can be converted to ISBN 0-340-01381-8, the check digit does not need to be re-calculated, since 1 January 2007, ISBNs have contained 13 digits, a format that is compatible with Bookland European Article Number EAN-13s. An ISBN is assigned to each edition and variation of a book, for example, an ebook, a paperback, and a hardcover edition of the same book would each have a different ISBN. The ISBN is 13 digits long if assigned on or after 1 January 2007, a 13-digit ISBN can be separated into its parts, and when this is done it is customary to separate the parts with hyphens or spaces. Separating the parts of a 10-digit ISBN is also done with either hyphens or spaces, figuring out how to correctly separate a given ISBN number is complicated, because most of the parts do not use a fixed number of digits. ISBN issuance is country-specific, in that ISBNs are issued by the ISBN registration agency that is responsible for country or territory regardless of the publication language. Some ISBN registration agencies are based in national libraries or within ministries of culture, in other cases, the ISBN registration service is provided by organisations such as bibliographic data providers that are not government funded. In Canada, ISBNs are issued at no cost with the purpose of encouraging Canadian culture. In the United Kingdom, United States, and some countries, where the service is provided by non-government-funded organisations. Australia, ISBNs are issued by the library services agency Thorpe-Bowker
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Jesus
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In Christology, the Person of Christ refers to the study of the human and divine natures of Jesus Christ as they co-exist within one person. There is no discussion in the New Testament regarding the dual nature of the Person of Christ as both divine and human. Hence, since the days of Christianity theologians have debated various approaches to the understanding of these natures. In the period following the Apostolic Age, specific beliefs such as Arianism and Docetism were criticized. On the other end of the spectrum, Docetism argued that Jesus physical body was an illusion, docetic teachings were attacked by St. Ignatius of Antioch and were eventually abandoned by proto-orthodox Christians. However, after the First Council of Nicaea in 325 the Logos, historically in the Alexandrian school of christology, Jesus Christ is the eternal Logos paradoxically humanized in history, a divine Person who became enfleshed, uniting himself to the human nature. The views of these schools can be summarized as follows, Alexandria, Antioch, Logos assumes a specific human being The First Council of Ephesus in 431 debated a number of views regarding the Person of Christ. At the same gathering the council debated the doctrines of monophysitism or miaphysitism. The council rejected Nestorianism and adopted the term hypostatic union, referring to divine, the language used in the 431 declaration was further refined at the 451 Council of Chalcedon. However, the Chalcedon creed was not accepted by all Christians, because Saint Augustine died in 430 he did not participate in the Council of Ephesus in 431 or Chalcedon in 451, but his ideas had some impact on both councils. On the other hand, the major theological figure of the Middle Ages. The Third Council of Constantinople in 680 held that both divine and human wills exist in Jesus, with the divine will having precedence, leading and guiding the human will. John Calvin maintained that there was no element in the Person of Christ which could be separated from the person of The Word. Calvin also emphasized the importance of the Work of Christ in any attempt at understanding the Person of Christ, the study of the Person of Christ continued into the 20th century, with modern theologians such as Karl Rahner and Hans von Balthasar. Balthasar argued that the union of the human and divine natures of Christ was achieved not by the absorption of human attributes, thus in his view the divine nature of Christ was not affected by the human attributes and remained forever divine
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Jesus in Christianity
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Christians believe that Jesus is the Messiah and believe that through his death and resurrection, humans can be reconciled to God and thereby are offered salvation and the promise of eternal life. The choice Jesus made thus counter-positions him as a new man of morality and obedience, most Christians believe that Jesus was both human and divine—the Son of God. Jesus, having become fully human in all respects, suffered the pains and temptations of a mortal man, as fully God, he defeated death and rose to life again. According to the Bible, God raised him from the dead and he ascended to heaven to sit at the Right Hand of God, and he will return to earth again for the Last Judgment and the establishment of the Kingdom of God in the World to Come. Although Christian views of Jesus vary, it is possible to summarize key elements of the shared beliefs among major denominations based on their catechetical or confessional texts. Christian views of Jesus are derived from biblical sources, particularly from the canonical Gospels. Christians predominantly hold that these works are historically true and those groups or denominations committed to what are considered biblically orthodox Christianity nearly all agree on the following points, Christians believe that the mother of Jesus was a virgin. Christians believe that Jesus was a human being who was also fully God, Christians believe that Jesus came into the world as the son of only one earthly parent, Mary. Christians believe that Jesus never sinned or did anything wrong, Christians believe that Jesus was eventually martyred, was buried in a tomb, and then on the third day came back to life. Christians believe that because he rose from the tomb on the third day, Christians believe that Jesus eventually ascended back to God the Father. Christians believe that Jesus will come back to earth a second time, the five major milestones in the gospel narrative of the life of Jesus are his Baptism, Transfiguration, Crucifixion, Resurrection and Ascension. These are usually bracketed by two episodes, his Nativity at the beginning and the sending of the Paraclete at the end. The gospel accounts of the teachings of Jesus are often presented in terms of specific categories involving his works and words, e. g. his ministry, Christians not only attach theological significance to the works of Jesus, but also to his name. Devotions to the name of Jesus go back to the earliest days of Christianity and these exist today both in Eastern and Western Christianity—both Catholic and Protestant. Christians predominantly profess that through Jesus life, death, and resurrection and his death on a cross is understood as a redemptive sacrifice, the source of humanitys salvation and the atonement for sin which had entered human history through the sin of Adam. But who do you say that I am, only Simon Peter answered him, You are the Christ, the Son of the living God — Matthew 16, 15-16 Jesus is mediator, but…the title means more that someone between God and man. He is not just a third party between God and humanity…, as true God he brings God to mankind. As true man he brings mankind to God, most Christians generally consider Jesus to be the Christ, the long awaited Messiah, as well as the one and only Son of God
