mentioned above, the Apostles instructed the whole body of believers to
select from their number seven men, to whom should be intrusted the
charitable work of the Church. These men were not deacons, in the sense
in which this term has come to be applied, nor are they thus termed
anywhere in the Acts of the Apostles. The office remained, but the
duties changed; after the breaking up of the Christian community in
Jerusalem by persecution, these "deacons" devoted themselves to the more
attractive work of preaching, and from this time the ministry of good
works fell naturally into the hands of the women.
Very early in the history of the Church there came into existence an
order of female deacons, or deaconesses. It is more particularly in the
Gentile congregations planted by Paul that we find this institution. In
his Epistle to the Romans, among many other matters of a personal
interest, we find the Apostle saying: "I commend unto you Phoebe our
sister, who is a deaconess of the church that is at Cenchreas;" and he
requests them to receive her worthily of the saints and to assist her in
whatsoever matter she may have in hand, for that she "hath been a
succorer of many, and of mine own self." It is extremely probable that
Phoebe was the bearer of this letter to the Romans. She may have been
travelling to the city on affairs of her own, or it may be that Paul is
referring to some commission from the Church which had been imparted to
her by word of mouth.
He also sends greeting to Tryphaena and Tryphosa, who, with Persis, were
probably deaconesses serving the church at Rome. Euodias and Syntyche,
who are mentioned in the Epistle to the Philippians, were, there is
every reason to believe, in this same order of the ministry. The Apostle
testifies to the earnest cooperation in his work for which he is
indebted to these two women; but from his exhortation that they "be of
the same mind," we may infer that there was some disagreement among
them. Absolute harmony was not always maintained, even among the saints
of the early Church. Saintliness has never yet been able entirely to
eradicate from human nature all that is unseemly; and it is more than
likely that if it were only possible for us to gain an intimate and
personal knowledge of the conditions which prevailed in the Apostolic
Church, we should not be greatly discouraged by a comparison of those
days with our own times. The glamour of extraordinary holiness which
succeeding centuries have thrown over that age was not perceptible to
Paul. The lapse of time is of itself sufficient to idealize, and even to
apotheosize, remarkable personages who in reality were not without their
weaknesses.
What were the precise duties of these female servants we do not know. In
the uncrystallized organism of early Christianity it is likely that
their field of activity was not closely defined. From the Apostle's rule
we know that they did not take part in the public ministrations. "Let
the women," says he, "keep silence in the churches." In his idea of
Christianity, the family is the unit, with the man as the responsible
head. "If they would learn anything, let them ask their own husbands at
home; for it is shameful for a woman to speak in the church." And yet,
in what he says in the eleventh chapter of his first Epistle to the
Church at Corinth, he seems to admit that the women have the right both
to pray and prophesy in the congregation. But it may be the Apostle is
judging the question not as _per se_, but in accordance with the
prevailing ideas of his time. He who was "all things to all men," in
order to win them, concluded that it was the duty of women to keep
silent rather than to arouse prejudice by trampling on custom and thus
endangering the success of the Gospel. The women of the Corinthian
Church seem to have abandoned the traditions of their time and people in
this respect and were in the habit of praying and prophesying in the
congregation, and, moreover, without the customary veil. In regard to
this last-mentioned departure, Paul is emphatic: "Every woman praying or
prophesying with her head unveiled dishonoreth her head. Judge ye among
yourselves, is it seemly that a woman pray unto God unveiled?" On this
subject Dr. McGiffert comments as follows: "The practice, which was so
out of accord with the custom of the age, was evidently a result of the
desire to put into practice Paul's principle that in Christ all
differences of rank, station, sex, and age are done away. But Paul, in
spite of his principle, opposed the practice. His opposition in the
present case was doubtless due in part to traditional prejudice, in part
to fear that so radical a departure from the common custom might bring
disrepute upon the Church, and even promote disorder and licentiousness.
But he found a basis for his opposition in the fact that by creation the
woman was made subject to the man. Paul's use of such an argument from
the natural order of things, when it was a fundamental principle with
him that in the spiritual realm the natural is displaced and destroyed,
must have sounded strange to the Corinthians; and Paul himself evidently
felt the weakness of the argument and its inconsistency with his general
principles, for he closed with an appeal to the custom of the churches:
'We have no such custom, neither have the churches of God,' therefore
you have no right to adopt it. This was the most he could say. Evidently
he was on uncertain ground."
Those same restrictive traditions, which prevented the deaconesses from
taking part in public instruction or ministering in the congregation,
rendered their service imperatively necessary in many of the private
activities of the Christian Church. They instructed female catechumens
in the first principles of the new religion; they prepared them for
baptism, and by their attendance disarmed inimical criticism when this
sacrament was administered to women. To their hands was committed the
ministry of mercy. They relieved the sick, instructed the orphans,
consoled their sisters when in trouble, encouraged those who were
condemned to martyrdom, and were the official embodiment of that
characteristic fraternalism in the early Church which induced even their
heathen enemies to exclaim: "How these Christians love."
It was not essential that a woman appointed to the office of a deaconess
should be free to devote her whole time to the service of the Church.
The two slave girls whom Pliny examined by torture upon the rack, and of
whom he wrote to the Emperor Trajan, were very probably deaconesses. The
order was composed of virgins who were tried and trained by a life of
chastity and devotion and finally set apart to the office at the mature
age of forty; or--and this was more commonly the case--of devout and
sober-minded widows. In all probability Paul is referring to this order
in that which he says of widows in his first letter to Timothy. There he
writes: "Let none be enrolled as a widow under threescore years old,
having been the wife of one man, well reported of for good works; if she
hath brought up children, if she hath used hospitality to strangers, if
she hath washed the saints' feet, if she hath relieved the afflicted, if
she hath diligently followed every good work. But younger widows refuse:
for when they have waxed wanton against Christ, they desire to marry;
having condemnation, because they have rejected their first faith. And
withal they learn also to be idle, going about from house to house; and
not only idle, but tattlers also and busybodies, speaking things which
they ought not. I desire therefore that the younger women marry, bear
children, rule the household, give none occasion to the adversary for
reviling."
It is very remarkable that we seem to be left to infer from the above
that the Apostle's indictment as to idling, tattling, gadding, and
meddling is not to be charged against widows of over threescore.
Some students have held that the passage quoted above refers, not to
deaconesses, but to a sort of female presbyters, like those who in the
age succeeding that of the Apostles had a certain oversight over the
widows and orphans of the congregations. On the other hand, Neander, the
ecclesiastical historian, considers that the widows referred to were
simply those who depended upon the Church for support and were
consequently expected to manifest their worthiness by an example of
special devoutness. But it is hardly believable that the Christian
conscience would have refused such assistance to widows under sixty
years of age or to those who had married the second time and had been
again widowed. The probabilities are in favor of the view that all
indigent and unfortunate Christian females were tenderly cared for by
the charity which abounded in the Apostolic Church; but from those
widows who had arrived at the age of sixty, and had shown themselves to
be fitted for such an office by especial devotion to good works and by
their approved trustworthiness, certain ones were enrolled for the
service of the Church in the order of deaconesses.
Thus one of the earliest effects of Christianity was to introduce into
its own society, in every city, an order of women who were looked up to
with respect and veneration and intrusted with power and authority such
as no women had previously enjoyed, except in the almost unique
instances of the vestals at Rome and the prophetesses among the ancient
Germans. This could not fail to raise the whole sex in general respect,
as well as in its own estimation.
As we have already noticed, the order of deaconesses did not consist
exclusively of widows; it was, however, confined to those females who
were free from all matrimonial obligations.
In the early Church, celibacy was held in exceeding high regard. Other
qualifications being equal, virginity greatly increased a woman's
reputation for sanctity. It is true that it is not until post-apostolic
times that we find this condition of life exalted to the contradiction
both of the laws of nature and the dictates of reason; but the
foundation for the belief that the virgin life is superior to the
married state was unquestionably laid by Paul himself. While he readily
admits that marriage is honorable, he, at the same time,
enthusiastically recommends celibacy to those who are able to persevere
in continence. To the Corinthians he wrote: "He that giveth (a daughter)
in marriage doeth well; but he that giveth her not in marriage doeth
better." Whence arose this idea of the moral superiority of virginity?
Surely not from Judaism; for among the Jews an unmarried woman was
regarded as being to the greatest degree unblessed. Nor did it come from
paganism; for though there were vestal devotees of the deities, the
materialism which governed Greek and Roman religion entirely precluded
any belief in a moral inferiority as resulting from the rightful
intercourse of the sexes. In the rebound from the materialism of
paganism, Christianity swung the thought of its adherents to the
opposite extreme. The body was considered as hopelessly corrupt until
regenerated by the resurrection. It is a dead weight, retarding the
development and the triumph of the spirit; its natural functions are
tainted with evil and should be ignored and mortified so far as
necessity will permit. The contemplation of the terrible licentiousness
which characterized paganism gave a great bias to the views of the early
Christians on this subject. The asceticism of celibacy seemed to them an
easier way to escape the contamination of the world than that which led
through the honorable path of married life.
In the seventh chapter of Paul's first letter to the Corinthians he is
wholly on the side of celibacy, though he was far too reasonable a man
not to recognize the possibility of purity in marriage. "I say to the
unmarried and to widows, it is good for them if they abide even as I.
But if they have not continency, let them marry." It is very probable
that the Apostle was a widower; for very few Jews of his time lived
without marrying to the age which we may reasonably suppose he had
attained before his conversion. He also says: "Now concerning virgins I
have no commandment of the Lord; but I give my judgment, as one that
hath obtained mercy of the Lord to be faithful." We are to understand
this mercy of which he speaks, not as referring to any deliverance from
past marital encumbrances, but to the gift of faithfulness. Then he says
that in view of the present distress from persecution, while it is good
to be married, it is at least not less good to be single. "But and if
thou marry, thou hast not sinned; and if a virgin marry, she hath not
sinned. Yet such shall have tribulation in the flesh, and I would spare
you." The tribulation he speaks of refers to the double portion of the
"present distress" to which the married would be subject. His principal
argument in favor of the unwedded state is that those who remain in it
are enabled to devote themselves more completely to the service of God.
But there was no sign in the Apostolic Church of that morbid enthusiasm
for virginity which fills the pages of the post-Nicene writers. We know
that Peter was married; and there is evidence that he took his wife with
him on his missionary journeys. "Have we not," says Paul, "power to lead
about a sister, a wife, as well as other apostles, and the brothers of
the Lord, and Cephas?" Tradition also informs us that Peter had a
daughter whose name was Petronilla. The Apostle Philip had three
daughters. Eusebius quotes from a letter written by Polycrates, who was
bishop of the church at Ephesus, to Victor, Bishop of Rome, in which he
says: "Philip, one of the twelve Apostles, sleeps in Hierapolis, and his
two aged virgin daughters. Another of his daughters, who lived in the
Holy Spirit, rests at Ephesus." Eusebius also in the same passage
speaks, on the authority of Proculus, of "four prophesying daughters of
Philip;" but it is most likely that he here confounds the deacon Philip
with the apostle of the same name. From Acts we learn that the former
had four daughters who prophesied and labored with their father at
Cæsarea in Palestine.
Paul, in his Epistles, gives the names of about eighty friends and
disciples; about twenty more are referred to in the Acts of the
Apostles. Quite a large proportion of these are women, to whom the
Apostle sends kindly greeting. His mention of them is always in the
terms of respectful regard, and never merely complimentary or carefully
polite. To many of these women he was deeply indebted for the care with
which they had ministered to his comfort as he journeyed to and fro on
his missionary tours; the names of some of them were treasured in his
memory as those of zealous and valued fellow laborers in the cause of
the Gospel. In both these relations, and also, perhaps, in that of his
dearest female friend, stood Priscilla, the wife of Aquila. She is the
most frequently mentioned of all the women of the Apostolic Church, but
always in conjunction with her husband. These people were Jews whose
home was at Rome, but owing to the edict by which Claudius banished from
the city all of their nationality they were living in Corinth when Paul
first met them. In the Acts of the Apostles we learn that he was drawn
to them because they were tent-makers like himself. "He abode with them
and they wrought.... And he reasoned in the synagogue every Sabbath." In
this picture is seen the whole simple machinery of apostolic missions.
Paul's first inquiry in Corinth is for a man of his own trade. He hears
of Priscilla and Aquila, and at once finds with them a welcome both to
lodging and also employment. Their work was such as could be readily
carried on in the room which served for a lodging, and required but
little in the way of implements, so that they could freely and easily
move from one city to another. The work probably consisted in the making
of tent cloth. This material was of goats' hair, which was plaited into
strips, these being joined together. We see the three sitting together,
and, with hands busy at the monotonous toil, which was not exacting in
the matter of attention, reasoning of the things pertaining to the
kingdom of God. It was probably thus that the conversion of this husband
and wife was brought about. Then on the Sabbath they would repair to the
Jewish synagogue, where Paul would in public expound the new and strange
doctrine. We can imagine how Priscilla would prepare for that week-end
preaching. There would be no Jewess within her circle of acquaintances
but would receive notice, with the admonition not to fail to be present.
It is the inception of the "woman's auxiliary" in missionary work; but
how simple was this first propaganda!
There was no board of managers either to hamper or advise; the workers
were responsible only to the spirit that moved within them. There were
no collections, nor any hindrance for lack of funds. Paul, Aquila, and
Priscilla labored with their own hands, and they were free and enabled
to go everywhere preaching the Gospel. The result of their work was that
in Corinth, the city devoted to a lustful worship and exemplifying the
worst corruptions of paganism, there was to be seen a band of men and
women whose lives were glorified and purified by devotion to the
teachings of Jesus.
It is noteworthy that the name of Priscilla is placed in the book of
Acts, and also elsewhere, before that of her husband. Possibly this may
indicate that she was of a higher rank or a nobler family; but we prefer
to think that it is a tribute and a testimony to her zeal and greater
prominence in the Church. It is not unlikely that Aquila was known as
the husband of the successful female missionary Priscilla.
When the Apostle left Corinth these two fellow workers accompanied him
as far as Ephesus. There he left them, with affectionate promises to
return. Priscilla and Aquila settled in Ephesus for a time, and an
opportunity was afforded them to perform a service for the Church, the
effect of which it is impossible for us now to estimate. Apollos was a
great name in the Apostolic Church. He came to have a large following
among the Corinthian Christians; and he was probably the author of the
Epistle to the Hebrews. This man, who is described as "eloquent and
mighty in the Scriptures," was by Priscilla and her husband brought to a
full knowledge of the Gospel.
When Paul was writing his first letter to the Corinthians he included
greetings from Priscilla and Aquila, and also "from the church that is
in their house," indicating that the home of this couple was the meeting
place of the Christians of Ephesus. He again mentions them in his letter
to the Romans: "Greet Priscilla and Aquila, my helpers in Christ Jesus,
who for my life laid down their own necks; unto whom not only I give
thanks, but also all the churches of the Gentiles." It is impossible to
ascertain what was the instance here referred to of their devotion to
him; perhaps it relates to the experience of the Apostle when he "fought
with beasts at Ephesus."
There dwelt in the Macedonian city of Philippi a woman named Lydia, who
had come there from Thyatira. She was engaged in the business of selling
purple, whether the color itself or garments so dyed cannot be
determined; but as women of that time were often employed in the
manufacture of drugs and chemicals, it is likely that she prepared that
dye which was so popular in the ancient Roman world. She had become a
convert to Judaism. There seem to have been few Jews in Philippi, for it
is evident that they had no synagogue, but were in the habit of meeting
in the open air, on the banks of the river Strymon. Lydia, like many of
the women of her time, was an earnest seeker after religious truth. When
Paul came to Philippi, on the first Sabbath he went to the place of
prayer, "and spake unto the women which resorted thither." This is a
remarkable expression, inasmuch as it seems to indicate that only women
were present, an extremely unusual congregation in the ancient world.
But Paul, unlike the Jewish rabbis, did not deem a gathering of women
unworthy of his most solicitous efforts. Lydia justified his exertions,
for she became a convert to Christianity and was baptized with her whole
household. She was a person of considerable means. The selling of purple
was a very remunerative business. In gratitude for the new light which
she had received, and desirous to learn more of the Gospel, Lydia
importuned the Apostle and his friends to take up their abode in her
house, which, at least for the time, became the gathering place of the
church in Philippi.
There is no possibility of overestimating the debt that Christianity
owes to the fostering care of the early female converts. Its story has
never been written from the standpoint of the women; if it could be so
written, it would be seen that the labors of love which were
accomplished by the feminine nature were no less fruitful than those
which are recorded of the more public masculine activities.
While Paul was in Philippi, he encountered another woman, of a station
and occupation very different from that of Lydia. She was a slave girl,
who was in all probability what is known nowadays as a clairvoyant. The
people believed that she was inspired by the Pythian Apollo. The
narrative in the Acts of the Apostles says that she "was possessed of a
spirit of divination," and that "she brought her masters much gain by
soothsaying." There seems to have been a company or syndicate which, by
means of the mysterious powers of this girl, traded upon the
superstitions of the people. But Christianity was in opposition to this
form of spiritualism. The girl, we are told, followed Paul and his
friends and gave loud testimony to their divine mission. Very likely she
heard the Apostle's preaching, and received an impression that resulted,
owing to the peculiar condition of her mind, in an acute perception of
the true character of the missionaries. Paul, however, had no desire to
be introduced by any such medium as this. He exorcised the evil spirit
which, according to Jewish notions, possessed the damsel; that is, by
the influence of suggestion probably, he freed the girl from the
thraldom of the abnormal condition of mind which had hitherto made her
doubly a slave.
While we are engaged with the subject of Paul's female converts and
acquaintances, it ought not to seem out of place if we give a little
notice to that remarkable piece of literature which was popular in the
early Church, and is known as the _Acts of Paul and Thecla_. It is
certain that the main facts set forth in this legend were credited by
such prominent ancient writers and theologians as Cyprian, Eusebius,
Augustin, Gregory Nazianzin, Chrysostom, and Severus Sulpitius.
Chrysostom especially gives a very clear indication of his belief in the
story of Paul and Thecla. Basil of Seleucia wrote the history of Thecla
in verse. Baronius, Archbishop Wake, and also the learned Grabe consider
the facts as being authentic history. On the other hand, Tertullian says
that it was forged by a presbyter of Asia, who confessed that he
invented the account out of respect for Paul. And again, it is held that
The _Acts of Paul and Thecla_, as we have it, is not the original book
of the early Christians.
At any rate, even though it be nothing more than an imaginative
creation, inasmuch as an account of Thecla and her companionship with
Paul was extant early as the second century, as is proved by its being
mentioned by Tertullian, it is surely worthy of attention for it shows,
at a time so contiguous, how the age of the Apostles was pictured.