The Early Church and St. Stephen

Apostles Apostles comes from the Greek meaning “to send out” Sent to preach the Good News (evangelize) Could also heal the sick and cast out demons Can you name the Apostles (there were 12)? Simon Peter; Andrew his brother; James the son of Zebedee; John his brother; Philip; Bartholomew; Thomas; Matthew the publican; James the son of Alphaeus; Labbaeus, who was surnamed Thaddaeus; Simon the Cananite; Judas Iscariot – Matthias replaced Judas

The First Christians were Jews The people the Apostles aimed to convert were non-believing Jews They followed Jewish law  Mosaic Law (circumcision, dietary rules, etc.) Membership was exclusively Jewish in the beginning

How they saw themselves Those being baptized did not see it as converting from Judaism to Christianity They did not view their actions as starting a new religion Saw themselves as Jews following Jesus’ way of life and teachings Called themselves “The Way” (The word Christian comes into use later)

Peter Leader of the Church – 1 st Pope Given this authority by Jesus  “You are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church” (Matthew 16:18) Why might the choice of Peter have been a surprising choice? He was a simple fisherman, uneducated, had a bad temper, and denied he knew Jesus three times

Location At first located entirely in Jerusalem Steadily began to spread to other Jewish communities in Palestine and the Roman Empire

Lifestyle Disdained riches (material wealth) The wealthy sold their property to assist the poor members of the community To be a Christian you also had to be a Jew

What news the Apostle’s spread Told people Jesus of Nazareth was alive That God had raised him from the dead Claimed Jesus was the Messiah/Christ  Christ is the Greek word for Messiah That He was sent by God to give freedom to the Chosen People

Trouble with Authorities Preached regularly in the Temple, and local synagogues(Jewish house of worship) Jewish leaders got tired of them quickly Apostles were jailed – but it didn’t stop them Harassment, imprisonment and executions increased

What does it mean to be a Christian? This question has been asked many times throughout history To early Christians, to be a Christian meant to die like Jesus did Martyrdom was the ultimate sign that you were a Christian

Saint Stephen the 1 st Martyr Was a Deacon – looked after material needs of the community Worked among the people performing “great wonders and signs” Seized by an angry mob He was cast out of the city stoned to death His last words, asked God to forgive his killers  Same as Jesus

Acts of the Apostles (7:51 – 8:1) 51 'You stubborn people, with uncircumcised hearts and ears. You are always resisting the Holy Spirit, just as your ancestors used to do. 52 Can you name a single prophet your ancestors never persecuted? They killed those who foretold the coming of the Upright One, and now you have become his betrayers, his murderers.prophet 53 In spite of being given the Law through angels, you have not kept it.'Law 54 They were infuriated when they heard this, and ground their teeth at him. 55 But Stephen, filled with the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at God's right hand.heavengloryJesusright 56 'Look! I can see heaven thrown open,' he said, 'and the Son of man standing at the right hand of God.'heaven manright

Acts of the Apostles cont. 57 All the members of the council shouted out and stopped their ears with their hands; then they made a concerted rush at him, 58 thrust him out of the city and stoned him. The witnesses put down their clothes at the feet of a young man called Saul.man 59 As they were stoning him, Stephen said in invocation, 'Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.' 60 Then he knelt down and said aloud, 'Lord, do not hold this sin against them.' And with these words he fell asleep. sin 1 Saul approved of the killing. That day a bitter persecution started against the church in Jerusalem, and everyone except the apostles scattered to the country districts of Judaea and Samaria.persecutionapostles

Saul Saul was at the stoning of Stephen He didn’t throw any stones He held the cloaks of those who stoned Stephen

Saul’s Views Saw that early Church as a threat to the covenant with God Jesus couldn’t have been the Messiah Worked hard to eradicate this radical group Sent many Christian men and women to prison Got warrants to arrest any Christian he could find in Damascus

Who is Saul? A pious Jew Highly educated in Jewish Law Born in Tarsus (south- central Turkey) – a major trading city Knowledgeable of Greek and Roman culture Spoke Greek primarily Held Roman citizenship

Road to Damascus Saul was on his way to Damascus His goal  to arrest as many Christians as possible Knocked off his horse by a blinding light A voice says, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?”

Conversion of Saul Paul is blinded for three days He is given his sight back by a man (Ananias) sent by Jesus Saul acknowledged Jesus as the Messiah He is then baptized