The Rise of the Bishops

The critical events of the decade of the 60's brought the curtain down on both Traditional Judaism and the early Jesus Movement, and put an end to the conflict between Paul and the Apostles.

Some Background:

The first leaders of the Christian communities after 70
seem to have been wandering prophets and teachers
according to the prototype of Jesus.
Paul is a primary witness to this situation;

But note that Paul has prefixed his own statement
to the list of the leaders of the existing communities:

It is Paul who is calling these communities a "church"
claiming that "God has appointed" these leaders;
implying that God has founded the "church."

1 Corinthians 12:28

    "And God has appointed in the church

But this Loose Charismatic Leadership
was soon Displaced by the Monarchical Episcopate,
a Priestly Hierarchy headed by an All-Powerful Bishop (EPISKOPOS)

Recall the Roots of this New Church Administration in Matthew 16:13ff.:

Matthew portrays Jesus as giving to Peter:

  1. the Keys to the Kingdom of Heaven
  2. the Authority to Bind and Loose
    on Earth and in Heaven.

This Spurious Passage was later adopted by the Proto-Orthodox Christian Faction
that established the "Monarchical Episcopate" as the leadership ideal of their Church.
This Passage is still being used today to keep the all-powerful Monarch Bishops in Power.

Matthew was the only Petrine Document allowed into the New Testament Canon.
Why is Matthew the first book in the New Testament?
Who decided the order of the books?

Matthew 16:13ff. suited well the purposes of the Monarchical Episcopate,
which was the Authority that Established the Canon in the first place.

Important Early Witnesses to the Creation of the Episcopate

Clement of Rome: The Epistle of Clement

The Earliest Witness to (Creator of?)
The Doctrine of the Apostolic Succession
Clement on the Apostolic succession

Ignatius of Antioch: The Epistles of Ignatius

The Bishop's Bishop
Ignatius on the Office of Bishop

According to Galatians 2:11-16

    Peter was originally caught in the middle between:

    Peter finally sided with James against Paul, as did Barnabas

The Issue:  Apostolic Succession

The Most Divisive Problem in Christian History?

*On one of the above Catholic sites:

"NIHIL OBSTAT: I have concluded that the materials
presented in this work are free of doctrinal or moral errors.
Bernadeane Carr, STL, Censor Librorum, August 10, 2004

IMPRIMATUR: In accord with 1983 CIC 827
permission to publish this work is hereby granted.
+Robert H. Brom, Bishop of San Diego, August 10, 2004"

A Roman Catholic even writing about Apostolic Succession
must receive permission and undergo censorship
from a Roman Catholic Bishop!

The Questions:

The Facts:

Bishops are Mentioned Nowhere in the Canonical Gospels

Matthew is the Only Canonical Gospel
that even Contains the Word "Church"
and even this passage is an interpolation

I. Bishops in the Pauline Literature

Paul is our best witness to the leadership structure
of the pre-70 Jesus movement.

Paul's Continuous Power Struggles against the Apostles
gave him many opportunities to Discuss Church Authority

1. Paul to the Corinthians:

Paul promotes Himself as a role model and
The Authority Figure . . . as a "Father"

4:14 I am not writing this to make you ashamed,
but to admonish you as my beloved children.
4:15 For though you might have ten thousand guardians in Christ,
you do not have many fathers.
Indeed, in Christ Jesus
I became your father through the gospel.
4:16 I appeal to you, then, be imitators of me. . .
4:18 But some of you, thinking that I am not coming to you,
have become arrogant.
4:19 But I will come to you soon, if the Lord wills,
and I will find out not the talk of these arrogant people but their power.

Paul Recognizes Apostles, Prophets, and Teachers
as the leaders in the pre-70 CE Church . . . 
But no Bishops

12:27 "Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it.
12:28 And God has appointed in the church

12:29 Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Do all work miracles?
12:30 Do all possess gifts of healing? Do all speak in tongues? Do all interpret?
12:31 But strive for the greater gifts. And I will show you a still more excellent way."

2. Paul to the Romans - More Politics

Paul provides a similar list to the Roman "Church"
Is it significant that he leaves out the Apostles?

12:3 "For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you
not to think of yourself more highly than you ought to think, 
but to think with sober judgment,
each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned.
12:4 For as in one body we have many members,
and not all the members have the same function,
12:5 so we, who are many, are one body in Christ,
and individually we are members one of another.
12:6 We have gifts that differ
    according to the grace given to us:

12:16 Live in harmony with one another;
do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly;
do not claim to be wiser than you are.
Physician, heal thyself."

3. Paul to the Philippians 1:1

"Paul and Timothy, servants of Christ Jesus,
to all the saints in Christ Jesus who are in Philippi,
with the bishops and deacons . . ."

Who are these Bishops and Deacons?

This is the first use of the word "bishop"
in all ancient Christian literature,
and the only mention of a "bishop"
in the genuine letters of Paul.

But the original etymological meaning
of the Greek word EPISKOPOS (episkopos)
is "one who looks over" or "overseer"

It was only later, in the early 2nd century CE,
in the times of Ignatius and the Pastoral Epistles
that the word became a terminus technicus
designating the official title of the Bishop Monarch.

II. Bishops in the Pseudo-Pauline Literature

1. Luke's Book of the Acts of the Apostles:

Acts reports that Paul appointed "elders" (presbyters) in his "churches"

14:23 And after they had appointed elders for them in each church,
with prayer and fasting they entrusted them to the Lord in whom they had come to believe.

2. The Pseudo-Pauline Pastoral Epistles to Timothy and Titus

Fifty years after Paul's death . . .
letters fabricated in Paul's name,
witnessed to a church power structure
completely different from that which Paul knew.
Jesus had not returned;
the Apostles were long dead;
leadership in Paul's "churches" has been taken over
by the Bishops, Priests (presbyters), and Deacons.

I Timothy:  

The first pseudepigraphical letter of Paul to Timothy 
mentions the offices of Bishop, Priest (elder), and Deacon.

3:1 "The saying is sure:
whoever aspires to the office of bishop
desires a noble task.

3:2 Now a bishop must be

3:3 not

3:4 He must manage his own household well,
keeping his children submissive
and respectful in every way--
3:5 for if someone does not know
how to manage his own household,
how can he take care of God's church?

3:6 He must not be a recent convert,
or he may be puffed up with conceit
and fall into the condemnation of the devil.

3:7 Moreover, he must be well thought of by outsiders,
so that he may not fall into disgrace and the snare of the devil.

3:8 Deacons likewise must be

3:9 they must hold fast to the mystery of the faith with a clear conscience.
3:10 And let them first be tested; then,
if they prove themselves blameless,
let them serve as deacons.

3:11 Women likewise must be

3:12 Let deacons be married only once, and
let them manage their children and their households well;
3:13 for those who serve well as deacons
gain a good standing for themselves and
great boldness in the faith that is in Christ Jesus.

5:17 Let the elders who rule well be considered worthy of double honor,
especially those who labor in preaching and teaching;
5:18 for the scripture says,
"You shall not muzzle an ox while it is treading out the grain," and,
"The laborer deserves to be paid."
5:19 Never accept any accusation against an elder
except on the evidence of two or three witnesses.

Titus:  

The pseudepigraphical epistle to Titus
confuses the offices of Presbyter (elder, priest) and Bishop.
The writer tries to establish a connection between these officials
and the authority of Paul as mediated by Titus.
Paul himself is presented as directing Titus
to appoint (ordain?) Presbyters and Bishops.

1:4 To Titus, my loyal child in the faith we share:
Grace and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Savior.

1:5 I left you behind in Crete for this reason,
so that you should put in order what remained to be done, and should
appoint elders in every town, as I directed you:

1:6 someone who is

1:7 For a bishop, as God's steward, must be blameless;

1:8 but he must be

1:9 He must have a firm grasp of the word
that is trustworthy in accordance with the teaching,
so that he may be able both to preach with sound doctrine
and to refute those who contradict it.

The Combatants in this Conflict:

Matthew of Antioch: 

Jesus gives the Keys to the Kingdom to Peter, 
as Prophet/Teacher?
as Bishop?

Pseudo-Petrine Literature:

Gospel of Peter, 
The Acts of Peter
The Apocalypse of Peter
The Kerygmata of Peter 
The Epistles of Peter

The Ascension of Isaiah - Text (chs. 6-11)

    Obvious Christian Passages

    The Long Lost Gospel of the Christian Prophets?
    The Leaders of the post-Apostolic Jesus Movement
        before the Bishops/Priests/Deacons took it over?

    My Article arguing that the Ascension of Isaiah
    was dependent upon the Protevangelium of James.
    Were both scriptures of the Christian Prophets?
        from the latter part of the 1st century CE?

The Ascents of James

    The Long Lost Jewish-Christian Acts of the Apostles?
    Heavily edited by pro Bishop Clementine Recognitions?

Ignatius of Antioch: Ignatius on the Office of Bishop

Pseudo-Pauline Literature:

The Pastoral Epistles: pro Bishops - anti Docetic
The Epistle to the Hebrews
The Epistle to the Laodiceans
The Acts of Paul
The Acts of Paul and Thecla
The Acts of Peter and Paul
The Apocalypse of Paul
Fragments of another Apocalypse of Paul
The Revelation of Paul
The Vision of Paul
The Correspondence of Paul and Seneca

Referee Between Peter and Paul?

The Didache (Syria: late 1st/early 2nd century CE)
intermediary position between Prophets/Teachers and Bishops;
may represent a transitional stage between the two types of leadership.

The Bishops win . . .

A Footrace between John and Peter:

Are two Apostles actually racing against each other?
Or is the competition really between the Churches (Bishops?)
    of Ephesus and Antioch, vying for power in the "Catholic" Church?

Maps: Parthia-Rome Border - Parthia vs. Rome - Parthia Attacks Rome - Rome Attacks Parthia

Newly Discovered Documents of the Original East Syrian Church:

The Gospel of Thomas
 The Acts of Thomas
 The Book of Thomas the Contender

Other Pseudo-Thomasine Literature

The Infancy Gospel of Thomas