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23 - Office, and Appointment to Office, in Early Christian Circles

from Part V - Contested Beliefs

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  23 August 2023

By
Alistair C. Stewart
Edited by
Bruce W. Longenecker  and
David E. Wilhite
Bruce W. Longenecker
Affiliation:
Baylor University, Texas
David E. Wilhite
Affiliation:
Baylor University, Texas
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Summary

In an earlier essay on the interplay between charisma and office, I listed the questions I had left unanswered:

the origin of bishops, deacons, and presbyters, the precise extent and scope of their duties (as part of which we should pose the, as much unasked as unanswered, question of how bishops and/or presbyters come to have the exclusive right of presidency at the Eucharist), the fate of the teacher in the second century, and the manner in which, despite the opposition of such figures as Clement, Hermas and Ignatius, the episcopate takes on an intellectual role in the second century.1

Although this list is not exhaustive, as new questions arise, this provides a starting point for an examination of questions related to office, and appointment to office, in early Christian communities, that had yet to receive satisfactory treatment.

Type
Chapter
Information
The Cambridge History of Ancient Christianity , pp. 536 - 558
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2023

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