Reading the Apostolic Fathers

A Student's Introduction

Jefford, Clayton N.

• Publisher: Baker Academic
• Year: 2012
• ISBN:
  9781441240378
• Edition: 2
• Topic: Theologie & Religion
• Subtopic: Kirchengeschichte

The Apostolic Fathers is a critically important collections of texts for studying the first century of Christian history. Here a leading expert on the Apostolic Fathers offers an accessible, up-to-date introduction and companion to these diverse and fascinating writings. This work is easy to use and affordable yet offers a thorough overview for students and others approaching these writings for the first time. It explains the context and significance of each document and points to further reading. This new edition of a well-received text has been updated throughout and includes a new chapter on the fragments of Papias.

1

The Letter of Barnabas

1.1 Answers

1.1.1	Manuscript tradition—two Greek texts (complete); nine short Greek texts (chapters 5–21) combined with Polycarp; one Latin text (chapters 1–17); quotations in Clement of Alexandria; brief Syriac fragments; reflections in Apostolic Church Order; parallel in Didache 1–6
1.1.2	Literary form—letter constructed from a homily (or treatise) and a code of conduct
1.1.3	Authorship—unknown Christian (name of Barnabas applied for authority)
1.1.4	Date—AD 70–135 (perhaps closer to AD 96–100)
1.1.5	Setting—most likely Egypt (probably Alexandria) or perhaps Syria
1.1.6	Purpose—to support Christian faith with the knowledge of God’s three doctrines
1.1.7	Primary elements—redefinition of Judaism; concern for end times; superior knowledge
1.1.8	Special images—scapegoat; red heifer; Jesus revealed in the number 318
1.1.9	Relationship to scripture—primary focus on thematic collections of Old Testament texts; specific focus on Jewish and allegorical interpretations of scripture

1.2 Questions

1.2.1 Where did we get our text?

The text of Barnabas appears in numerous places in our collections of ancient manuscripts. Of these instances, two complete sources are considered to be among the primary witnesses for the text:

(a) The oldest complete copy of the text of Barnabas is contained in Codex Sinaiticus (commonly indicated by the Hebrew letter א). This fourth-century manuscript was identified by the German scholar Constantin von Tischendorf in 1844 at St. Catherine’s monastery on Mount Sinai. Here one can find both the Old (in part) and New Testaments, followed immediately thereafter by the texts of Barnabas and Shepherd of Hermas. This manuscript, which has been identified with the Alexandrian textual tradition, suggests that Barnabas was somehow closely associated with manuscript preservation and research in ancient Christian Egypt. Its inclusion toward the end of such an important collection of biblical texts suggests its important status for that tradition. Several later corrections have been made to the manuscript that date to the seventh century.

(b) The second important copy of the text is the Greek version of Barnabas included in Codex Hierosolymitanus (previously known as Codex Constantinopolitanus). This codex was identified in 1873 by Archbishop Philotheos Bryennios of Nicomedia in the Holy Sepulcher Church of Constantinople (modern Istanbul). According to a note that was preserved together with the codex, this text was copied by an otherwise unknown eleventh-century scribe, Leo. The text has been dated to June 1056. Along with this copy of Barnabas, the manuscript contains a Synopsis of the Holy Scriptures compiled by John Chrysostom, the only complete texts of the Didache, Greek versions of 1–2 Clement, the long form of the Letters of Ignatius (thirteen of them), and an explanation of the genealogy of Jesus. The text of Barnabas that appears here is similar to the one in Codex Sinaiticus, as described above.

Elsewhere, the text of Barnabas has been preserved in abbreviated forms only. Some of these are quite important to a clear understanding of the manuscript tradition. They include the following:

(c) Nine Greek texts contain a defective (partial) form of Barnabas that is attached to Polycarp’s letter to the Philippians. As a result of some scribal confusion, in each text the materials of Polycarp’s Letter to the Philippians 1–9 are followed immediately by Barnabas 5–21 without a break, suggesting that the entire work was attributed to the bishop Polycarp by the tradition. The oldest example of these texts has been traced to the eleventh century. The manuscripts undoubtedly should be considered together as a family of witnesses, all of which stem from a single literary tradition.

(d) There is one Latin version of Barnabas that contains chapters 1–17 only. These chapters are somewhat abbreviated in form in comparison with the longer Greek witnesses. It is not clear whether this abbreviation was made deliberately by the scribe who translated the text from the Greek or instead represents a shortened Greek source itself.

This version was produced in the late second century. It has been preserved by a ninth-century manuscript (Codex Corbeiensis), now stored at St. Petersburg in Russia.

(e) In his well-known text Stromateis, Clement of Alexandria quotes at least seven times from Barnabas and uses similar materials on numerous other occasions. The early church historian Eusebius of Caesarea observes that Clement had also written a commentary on the text, though that work is now lost to scholars. Clement ascribed something of a scriptural authority to Barnabas and undoubtedly possessed a dependable manuscript version as a result of his proximity to the famous library of Alexandria.

(f) Fragments of Barnabas 1.1; 19.1–2, 8; 20.1 have been preserved in the Syriac language. Unfortunately, the value of such a small portion of the text is generally limited for the purposes of manuscript study.

(g) Some scholars have indicated that portions of the text of Barnabas (specifically 1.1; 19.2a, 9b; 21.2–4) were incorporated into the later Ethiopic Apostolic Church Order. Although this is possible, it seems more likely that the Apostolic Church Order has used parallel materials otherwise preserved in Didache 1–6.

(h) Barnabas 18–20 contains the so-called Two Ways tradition, which reflects materials that are primarily Jewish in origin. The Two Ways concept was widely regarded throughout the ancient world, having both Jewish and Hellenistic roots, and appears in parallel materials such as Didache 1–6 and Manual of Discipline 3.13–4.26 from Qumran. Some common heritage is suggested, though it is difficult to trace a firm historical relationship among these texts. In the case of the Didache, early scholars once argued either that Barnabas 18–20 was dependent on Didache 1–6 or that the Didache relied on Barnabas. Most recent authorities agree that the two texts have probably borrowed from some common source, though this matter remains an important point of debate.

1.2.2 What form does the text take?

The text of Barnabas is offered as a letter, or, by virtue of its formal nature, one might refer to it as an epistle. In this respect the text contains all of the classic sections that characterize ancient letters. The reader finds here, for example, an introduction (1.1), a section of appreciation for the reader and the reason for writing (1.2–5), the body or main message (1.6–17.2), a call for ethical behavior (18.1–20.2), and a closing greeting (21.1–9). Authors throughout antiquity used this standard letter style, as is illustrated by the letters of Paul in the New Testament.

The current letter format of the text of Barnabas is not necessarily original to the work. Instead, some unknown editor most likely fashioned the current structure by combining two separate literary sources, neither of which was itself a letter. A close examination of the text reveals the presence of the first source in chapters 1–17, a passage that originally may have served as an ancient essay on the Old Testament. Most scholars believe that these chapters may even preserve an early form of a homily or sermon. Chapters 18–20 most likely come from a separate tradition, on the other hand, and contain materials associated with the well-known Two Ways pattern of instruction or code of conduct. This form of instruction was commonly used to teach Christians about what it meant to live an appropriate lifestyle. (For another example of this Two Ways pattern, the reader should consult the materials in Didache 1–6.) A later editor, or perhaps even the author on a separate occasion, probably joined these two sources and added words at either end of the text (1.1–5 and 21.1–9) to provide the framework of a letter to surround the combined texts. This may have been achieved in order to transmit both the treatise (or homily) and the Two Ways materials together to some other community. The motivation for circulating the material remains otherwise unknown.

In conformity with the letter format, Barnabas has been carefully crafted to include all of the typical elements of letters from the late first-century period. After the opening words of greeting and thanks for the presence of God’s Spirit among the recipients, an extensive discussion arises around three elements of doctrine and belief: hope and faith, righteousness and judgment, joy and righteousness. These elements form the primary framework on which selected Christian themes are raised and thereafter discussed. One might consider these materials to form the statement of the letter. In response to this discussion, the Two Ways materials that follow serve as a command to the audience to respond appropriately to the themes that have just been offered. One might say that these latter materials form the charge of the letter. The reader thus receives a statement of doctrine and faith and thereafter is charged to fulfill the requirements of that statement. In conclusion, the author offers final warnings and blessings to the readers. This pattern of elements appears throughout most letters from antiquity, both in ordinary letters between family members and in correspondence between royal officials.

1.2.3 Who was the author?

The text offers no reliable clues with respect to the actual identity of its author. Of course, it is true that the name “Barnabas” appears at two places in certain manuscripts. The first occurs in the title that opens the text. Scholars generally think that this is a secondary addition, especially since ancient authors, unlike modern ones, typically did not begin their manuscripts with titles. The second appearance occurs in the phrase “The Epistle of Barnabas,” which is appended at the conclusion of the text. The tendency to conclude, rather than to begin, a manuscript with a title or incipit was common among most ancient texts. The position of the title here thus more authentically reflects ancient literary practices. The question remains, however, whether the use of the name “Barnabas” should be considered as authentic. If so, to whom does the name refer?

Several early Christian writers, including the translator Jerome (in Rome) and both Clement of Alexandria and Serapion of Thmuis (in Egypt), believed that the author of the text was the apostle Barnabas. We know about Barnabas from the writings of the New Testament, where he is named in Acts 11–15 and Galatians 2 as an early Christian evangelist who accompanied the apostle Paul on the first of his four missionary journeys around the Mediterranean world. Few scholars continue to hold this view today, however, for two primary reasons. The late date of the text suggests that almost certainly it was written after the death of Barnabas, though there is no certainty about when that occurred. Furthermore, the decidedly anti-Jewish tone of the materials would not seem to support its having been written by someone sympathetic to Judaism, as was the apostle Barnabas. There are, of course, other ways to explain the presence of the name “Barnabas.” And these are as follows:

(a) The author may actually have been named “Barnabas,” but was someone different from the disciple who is known from the New Testament. This option is the least likely, primarily because the name is neither widely attested within the ancient church nor often used as a source of authority within early literary traditions. Nevertheless, this certainly is possible if not probable.

(b) The letter is a pseudepigraph; that is, the author offered the text under the identity of the apostle in order to gain some greater authority for the writing as it circulated among the early churches. This practice was widespread among ancient authors, who often used the names of great persons either to honor a prominent figure from some historical tradition or to gain acceptance for materials that were believed to be a close reflection of the person’s thought. This certainly is a strong possibility that should not be discounted, and many scholars follow this line of thought.

(c) The letter was written anonymously and was only later attributed to the apostle Barnabas, most likely in order to lend some apostolic legitimacy to the writing. As with the second option above, this too is possible and bears equal credibility. The tendency of ancient traditions to attribute an otherwise unknown work to a widely familiar historical figure is extensively recognized among scholars today.

The question of authorship perhaps raises the need for us to define what is meant by the term “author.” During the birth and expansion of the ancient church, the teachings of important persons and traditions were transmitted both in oral form and through various written texts. While it is almost certain that much of the material in the text of Barnabas comes specifically from a single person, it is also undoubtedly true that the text reflects numerous ancient sources that have been collected to form the basis of the larger document. The so-called author, therefore, may perhaps be better described by modern standards as a collector or editor. In this respect, the person who fashioned the text may be reflected best in the general theology of the work and less so in those sources from which the text borrows.

Apart from the name “Barnabas,” we know nothing about the occupation and status of the author. It is fair to say that this person was respected within the boundaries of the local church, primarily because the text’s broad selection of materials is delivered with an assumption of leadership. At the same time, the precise position of authority from which the writing is given remains obscure. Is this a church elder...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Dedication
• Contents
• List of Figures and Maps
• Preface to the Second Edition
• For the Reader
• Introduction
• 1 The Letter of Barnabas
• 2 The Teaching of the Twelve Apostles (The Didache)
• 3 The Letters of Ignatius
• 4 The Fragments of Papias
• 5 The Letter of Polycarp to the Philippians
• 6 The Martyrdom of Polycarp
• 7 The First Letter of Clement of Rome to the Corinthians (1 Clement)
• 8 The Second Letter of Clement of Rome to the Corinthians (2 Clement)
• 9 The Shepherd of Hermas
• 10 The Letter to Diognetus
• Glossary
• Index of Ancient Literature
• Back Cover