Quote:
Originally Posted by OBW
Actually, there are two cities of Antioch. One is considered Syrian Antioch, and is along the Mediterranean coast in what is modern Turkey but near Lebanon. The other was considered Pisidian Antioch and is in Galatia, or roughly the middle of modern day Turkey. Pretty sure the appointment of elders was in Galatia.
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Just the sort of information to leave out of the historical account to poor Theophilus - not THIS Antioch but the OTHER Antioch! And both in Turkey, yet!
Ultimately, however, that's of no moment to my larger points which are:
(1) was it truly necessary for Paul to designate "elders," wherever exactly it was he did so, to help young ones to know the Lord's voice, as you have suggested? (Alternatively, is there really any value to the young ones in hearing Paul's endorsement since we all know that people can go bad after the apostle leaves?)
and
(2) presumably there were "elders" in both the younger assembly at the one Antioch (via Paul's appointment, at least) and in the older assembly in the other Antioch where the believers were first called Christians. (Of course, unless there's more Antiochs to account for!) So why didn't the dignitaries at Jerusalem, who identified themselves as "apostles and elders" as well as "brothers," discuss such important matters particularly with the "elders" in whichever Antioch was the intended recipient of the great edict of Jerusalem? (Choose your favorite Antioch.)
I'm doubting the wisdom of Paul's appointments as well as the motives of those gathered in Jerusalem.
Multiple Antiochs may cloud the situations somewhat but the questions remain clear in my mind.
The apostles considered that it was beneath them to serve tables for the widows and therefore chose 7 other disciples (one of whom hailed from some Antioch or other!) but it seems to me that they neglected washing feet as they were instructed and instead made some organizational appointments to take care of such business. Later, these same fellows promote their own positions in Jerusalem while declining to recognize others similarly situated.
That entire senario sounds awfully very familiar to me, frankly...