A fascinating  document, “To Diognetus,”  by an unknown second century author, gives us an amazing  description of the  Christians in the early Church.  The document, which is in the form of a letter in twelve chapters,  explains to its recipient how Christians acted in contrast with those around them.  Consider the following extracts:

“Christians are not distinguished from the rest of mankind either in locality or in speech or in customs. For they dwell not somewhere in cities of their own, neither do they use some different language…. But while they dwell in cities of Greeks and barbarians as the lot of each is cast, and follow the native customs in dress and food and the other arrangements of life, yet the constitution of their own citizenship, which they set forth, is marvelous, and confessedly contradicts expectation.

“They dwell in their own countries, but only as sojourners; they bear their share in all things as citizens, and they endure all hardships as strangers. Every foreign country is a fatherland to them, and every fatherland is a foreign country. They marry like all other men and they beget children; but they do not cast away their offspring…. They find themselves in the flesh, and yet they live not after the flesh. Their existence is on earth, but their citizenship is in heaven. They obey the established laws, and they surpass the laws in their own lives.

“They love all men, and they are persecuted by all. …They are in want of all things, and yet they abound in all things. They are dishonored, and yet they are glorified in their dishonor. They are slandered, yet they are vindicated. They are reviled, and they bless; they are insulted, and they respect. Doing good they are punished as evil-doers; being punished they rejoice, as if they were thereby given new life. The Jews war against them as heretics and the Greeks persecute them, although none of those that hate them can tell the reason of their hostility.”

Commonly dated between AD 130–180, it is possible that this is one of the first known works of Christian apologetics, but regardless of its exact date of origin and our lack of knowledge of who originally wrote the letter, and to whom,  the letter to Diognetus fits, at every point,  the biblical description of how Christians should be different from others.  We can only read this description of early Christianity and ask ourselves  how well it describes Christianity in the world in which we live, and if it describes each of us in particular.

Something to think about: In 2 Thessalonians 3:1b the apostle Paul makes a number of important points in the space of only a few words. His primary point, of course, is that the spreading of the gospel message involves prayer just as much as it involves preaching.  The second half of what he says in this verse shows us why this is the case.  Paul shows that our prayer for the gospel should include the request that it spread rapidly. But the Greek word treché translated "rapidly" means literally to "run" and connotes not just speed, but also running unimpeded. The apostle may have had in mind Psalm 147:15, "He sends his command to the earth; his word runs swiftly."

Next, Paul shows that we must pray that the gospel be honored – meaning not only that it be honored despite negative perceptions (such as, in Paul's day, the perception of many of the Jews that the gospel was heresy and of many of the Greeks that it was foolishness), but also that those who hear the word will honor it by accepting it and living by it in their lives (Acts 13:48).  Preaching, Paul reminds us, is never enough of itself, and our prayer should be that the word of God is honored as well as heard.

Scriptures in Question: Matthew 14:13-21, Matthew 15:32-16:10 and parallel accounts.

Those who try to find errors in the Bible sometimes claim that similar sounding stories – such as the miracle of the feeding of the five thousand and that of the feeding of four thousand by Jesus  – are examples of varying oral traditions regarding  events of which no one knew exactly what had happened or if they had ever happened at all.   The story of the miracles of the feeding of the crowds provides a good example of the fallacy in such thinking and how it completely misses the underlying message of the two stories. 

The “Feeding of the 5,000” is mentioned in  all four  Gospels (Matthew 14:13-21, Mark 6:31-44, Luke 9:10-17 and John 6:5-15).  The story tells us that Jesus fed the hungry crowd that followed him by dividing five loaves of bread and two fish.  After the miraculous feeding was completed, it is recorded that the disciples collected twelve baskets full of broken pieces that were left over.  The “Feeding of the 4,000” is recounted in the Gospels of Mark and Matthew (Matthew 15:32-16:10 and Mark 8:1-9) and that story tells us that seven loaves and several fish were divided among the crowd. After this miracle the disciples picked up seven basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over. 

Those who claim these are garbled varying accounts of the same event or story miss an essential piece of information. Mark and John tell us that the first miracle occurred on the western – Jewish – side of the sea of Galilee.  They  explain that Jesus and the disciples then crossed over to the eastern – Gentile – side of Galilee where the second miracle was performed. 

The eastern side of Galilee where Jesus went after feeding the five thousand was the region of the Syrian Decapolis – a separate Roman-controlled area inhabited almost exclusively by Gentiles.  The people on that side of the Sea were notorious to the Jews for their pagan beliefs and practices (Mark 5:11, etc.),  and both the Jewish Talmud and some of the Christian church fathers record the tradition that the inhabitants of the area of the Decapolis were the descendants of  the seven ancient Canaanite nations driven out of the Promised Land in the time of Joshua (Joshua 3:10; Acts 13:19). It is clear, for example, that these people kept swine (Mark 7:31) and doubtless both ate and sacrificed them – both abominations in biblical Jewish culture (see Isaiah  65:3-4, 66:3).  For most Jews of Jesus’ day, the inhabitants of the Decapolis personified pagan uncleanness, and their descent from the pagan Canaanites  seems to have been  commonly believed.

Nevertheless, Matthew and Mark both make it clear that Jesus went to these people, preached to them and compassionately healed their sick.  His miracles on Galilee’s  far side also spoke to God’s desire to include the people of that region in His outreaching mercy.  Just as we are told twelve baskets of leftover food were picked up on the western side of Galilee – doubtless suggesting the spiritual food available for all the twelve tribes of Israel; so seven baskets of food were picked up on the eastern side of Galillee – doubtless symbolizing all those of the seven peoples of the Gentile Decapolis.   A careful reading of the Gospel narratives shows that the details of the two similar miracles were not garbled, but completely meaningful  in what they symbolized.  

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*We first published this post last year, and are running it again this year in honor of  U.S. Mother's Day!

Despite differences in some parts of the world (such as in Spanish-speaking countries where both the father’s and mother’s names are often passed on to their children), in many cultures it is the father’s name that is passed down to children. Looking back in history, without good records, the mother’s name is not always known in such cultures.

Although Judaism determines individual Jewish identity by means of matrilineal descent, in biblical times patrilineal descent was utilized for determining things such as tribal affiliation, priestly status and royalty. Detailed family records certainly were kept, as we find genealogies going back a great many generations. Nevertheless, we have only to look at the Books of Kings and Chronicles to see that the ancient kings of Judah and Israel are usually listed as being the son of a named father.

But there are some interesting exceptions – or perhaps we should say “additions” to this fact.  In some cases the name of the king’s mother is given.  What is interesting is the breakdown of which kings have their mothers' names recorded.  In a few instances the mothers of bad kings are listed, and in these cases the women seem to have been a negative  influence on the king (for example, Rehoboam, son of a foreign woman; Ahaziah, son of the daughter of the evil Jezebel). Perhaps more significant is the fact that the mother is listed for every one of the kings of the divided monarchy of whom the Bible says they ruled well.   

The fact that the mothers of the bad kings are not usually recorded, but the mothers of the good kings always are, can hardly be the result of simply incomplete records. It would seem that the biblical writers are consciously giving credit to the mothers of the good kings.  David himself wrote: “Truly I am your servant, Lord; I serve you just as my mother did …” (Psalm 116:16), and although his father appears to have been a very upright man, David clearly honors his mother’s influence in what he says in this psalm.

So, next time we read the name of a mother given in the biblical account, we should realize that the mother’s name is probably not just a footnote to the story. We should give credit to those women whose children became good rulers and be encouraged by the lesson they give us – of how important a mother can be in the development of her children’s character.

There are many of them out there. Some Protestant denominations refer to them as “backsliders,” and in the Catholic Church they are known as “apostates.” Who are they?  They are those who came into their respective churches at some point, but then, through outer circumstance or inner feelings they became rejected and/or self-rejected as they did not fit the mold of their group, did not meet its standards, or in some way realized that they just felt unwelcome.

There are many reasons why people end up on the down side of denominational and personal faith.  Sometimes it is substance abuse, sometimes guilt over adultery or other problems, or perhaps just poor social skills, but the end result is the same.  People in this situation often do not fellowship, they stay away from their own religious group’s meetings and eventually begin to regard themselves as religious loners or outcasts, unworthy and in many cases, unsalvageable. It is not uncommon for them to say “I used to be a (fill in religious denomination).”

Almost a decade ago, author John R. Mabry  devoted a whole chapter to this group in the religio-sociological study  Faith Styles: Ways People Believe (Morehouse, 2006) and his work is still relevant. Mabry showed that often these people not only feel estranged from God and fellow believers, but also begin to see God as an angry judge whom they cannot please. Yet they may still have strong spiritual beliefs which they cannot fulfill because of their feelings of lack of acceptance.

Even a cursory reading of the New Testament makes it clear that many of the people Jesus helped were living on the down side of faith. The prostitutes, tax collectors, lepers and others who were shunned doubtless felt estranged from God as well as from the religious groups of their day, yet some nevertheless had deep spiritual feelings, as the Gospels show.  Such people came to him because they recognized his acceptance, not because he radiated a higher standard that everyone must meet. Estranged from God or not, many of these individuals clearly sought God’s help when they saw God’s acceptance of them.

We read the stories, but do we see them in lives around us?  Those on the down side of faith are out there. Whether we know one or more of them now, or discover them in the future, it’s more than likely that we will run into them as we go along. And when we do, we need to remember the special difficulties these people face and the acceptance they need.  As Mabry states in his book, although we may not be able to solve their problems, we may find opportunity to show them a kinder response than they have experienced before. And that is something that can go a long way. It may only be a first step, but for some it may be the vital first step on the road to restored faith.