Stewards, prophets, keepers of the Word : leadership in the early church / Ritva H. Williams.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Williams, Ritva H., 1960-

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Christian leadership--History.

Christian leadership.

Christian sociology--History--Early church, ca. 30-600.

Christian sociology.

History.

Physical Description:

xii, 228 pages ; 23 cm

Place of Publication:

Peabody, Mass. : Hendrickson Publishers, [2006]

Summary:

Stewards, prophets, keepers of the word-these roles reflect the hierarchical social structures, religious experiences, and faithfulness to tradition found in ancient Mediterranean cultures, and, as Ritva Williams argues, influenced the development of early Christianity. The linear progression of leadership (apostles to bishops or apostles to presbyters or charismatics to office holders, etc.) commonly thought to have emerged in the early church does not appear in early Christian texts from the mid-first to early second centuries. Instead, what these texts reveal is a variety, diversity, and plurality of ways that Christ-followers adopted and adapted these dynamic roles from antiquity as they struggled to organize and live in their local situations.

Contents:

1 The Social Setting of the Early Churches 8

Houses 8

In Galilee 9

In Jerusalem 11

Jerusalem Jesus Group 14

Pauline Mission 15

Other Groups 18

Implications 19

Households 21

Characteristics 21

Organization of the Jesus Movement as "Household" 26

Challenge of the Jesus Movement to "Traditional" Households 27

Challenge of Post-Resurrection Groups to "Traditional" Households 30

Jesus, Paul, and Their Successors 37

Patronage 38

Social Networks 38

Jesus as Broker 42

Epistle of James 47

Paul's Undisputed Letters 49

Johannine Texts 51

Pastoral Epistles and Ignatius of Antioch 52

2 Stewards 55

Stewards in the Greco-Roman World 55

Household Management as the Basis of Civic Offices 55

Financial Management, Status, and Honor 57

Stewards and Patronage: The Case of Arion 58

Stewards as Officials in Municipal Government and Civic Organizations 62

Stewards and Managerial Slaves in the Gospels 63

Luke 12:41-48 63

Related Synoptic Parables 65

Luke 16:1-8 69

Stewards in Pauline and Other Early Jesus-Group Texts 76

Paul's Undisputed Letters 76

Other Texts 83

Pauline Trajectories 84

Ignatius of Antioch 86

3 Prophets 93

Jesus 101

Paul 104

Luke-Acts 107

Didache 111

Matthew 115

The Gospel of John and I John 119

Gospel of Thomas 126

Ignatius 130

4 Keepers of the Word 137

Writing and Reading in a Predominantly Oral Culture 137

Characteristics of Oral Cultures 138

Transmission of Information 139

Rudimentary Writing Skills and Resources 141

Preference for Oral Transmission 142

Rhetorical Training, Jesus, and New Testament Authors 144

Social Memory (A.K.A. Collective Memory or Cultural Memory) 146

Keeping the Words of Jesus 151

The Lost Sayings Source "Q" 151

Q/Luke 11:47-51 as Social Memory 153

Q/Luke 11:47-51 in Jesus' Context 155

Q/Luke 11:47-51 in Paul's Context 156

The Words of Jesus in Paul's Letters 157

The Words of Jesus in the Didache 162

The Words of Jesus in the Gospel of Thomas 173

The Words of Jesus in the Gospel of John 180

5 Conclusions and Implications 184

Jesus 184

Paul 188

Stewards in the Early Church and Today 192

Prophets in the Early Church and Today 193

Keepers of the Word in the Early Church and Today 196.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages [199]-210) and indexes.

ISBN:

9781565639492

1565639499

OCLC:

64486445

Publisher Number:

9781565639499