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The Seven Churches of Revelation , also known as the Seven Churches of the Apocalypse and the Seven Churches of Asia , are seven churches of early Christianity mentioned in the New Testament Book of Revelation . All of them are located in Asia Minor , present-day Turkey .

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65-613: According to Revelation 1:11 , on the island of Patmos in the far east of the Aegean Sea , Jesus instructed John of Patmos to "[w]rite in a book what you see, and send it to the seven churches, to Ephesus , to Smyrna , to Pergamum , to Thyatira , to Sardis , to Philadelphia , and to Laodicea ." The churches in this context refers to the community or local congregations of Christians living in each city. The seven churches are named for their locations. The Book of Revelation provides descriptions of each Church. The letters follow

130-484: A belief that they managed to do so because "it seems that the body had been thrown over the prison walls, without burial, probably by order of Herodias." What became of the head of John the Baptist is difficult to determine. Ancient historians Josephus , Nicephorus and Symeon Metaphrastes assumed that Herodias had it buried in the fortress of Machaerus . An Eastern Orthodox tradition holds that, after buried,

195-529: A common pattern. For example: the Lord first addresses each church and identifies Himself, then defines things that He knows about the church in question. After this, a challenge or reproach is given, followed by a promise. In all seven cases the admonition, "He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches", is appended, although sometimes this comes before the promise and sometimes after. Although

260-635: A descendant of Aaron on both his father's and mother's side. On the basis of this account, the Catholic as well as the Anglican and Lutheran liturgical calendars placed the feast of the Nativity of John the Baptist on 24 June, six months before Christmas. Elizabeth is described as a "relative" of Mary the mother of Jesus, in Luke 1:36. There is no mention of a family relationship between John and Jesus in

325-420: A different passage, Josephus states that the end of Herod's marriage with Aretas's daughter (after which John was killed) was only the beginning of hostilities between Herod and Aretas, which later escalated into the battle. Biblical scholar John Dominic Crossan differentiates between Josephus's account of John and Jesus, saying, "John had a monopoly, but Jesus had a franchise." To get baptized, Crossan writes,

390-495: A garment of hair and a leather belt. In Matthew, Jesus explicitly teaches that John is "Elijah who was to come" (Matthew 11:14 – see also Matthew 17:11–13); many Christian theologians have taken this to mean that John was Elijah's successor. In the Gospel of John, John the Baptist explicitly denies being Elijah. In the annunciation narrative in Luke, an angel appears to Zechariah, John's father, and tells him that John "will turn many of

455-501: A messenger being sent ahead, and a voice crying out in the wilderness. John is described as wearing clothes of camel's hair, and living on locusts and wild honey . John proclaims baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sin, and says another will come after him who will not baptize with water, but with the Holy Spirit. Jesus comes to John, and is baptized by him in the river Jordan. The account describes how, as he emerges from

520-495: A person went only to John; to stop the movement one only needed to stop John (therefore his movement ended with his death). Jesus invited all to come and see how he and his companions had already accepted the government of God, entered it and were living it. Such a communal praxis was not just for himself, but could survive without him, unlike John's movement. Matthew 14:12 records that "his disciples came and took away [John's] body and buried it." Theologian Joseph Benson refers to

585-570: A story of Michael, the guardian angel of Israel, being rebuked by God for the sins committed in the time of Ezekiel. So the original readers of Revelation might have assumed that the angels here are the guardian angels of the individual churches, sharing responsibility for the actions of the members. In the New Testament, the Greek word for angels ( άγγελος ) is not only used for heavenly angels, but also used for human messengers, such as John

650-508: A summary of the contents of the book of Revelation, that is to write what John had previously seen in the vision of the resurrected Christ (chapter 1), then the current explained condition of the apostolic churches ( chapters 2 - 3 ), and finally the culmination of history yet to be narrated in the following chapters ( chapters 4 - 20 ). John the Baptist John the Baptist ( c.  1st century BC – c.  AD 30 )

715-829: A voice called out, an earthquake rumbled, and thunder struck, and the altar of the temple opened, revealing Zechariah's body. Elizabeth then buried John's body under this altar. Two Catholic churches and one mosque claim to have the head of John the Baptist: the Umayyad Mosque , in Damascus ( Syria ); the church of San Silvestro in Capite , in Rome ; and Amiens Cathedral , in France (the French king would have had it brought from

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780-454: Is a familial relative of Jesus whose birth was foretold by Gabriel. In the Gospel of John, John the Baptist himself sees the spirit descend like a dove and he explicitly preaches that Jesus is the Son of God. The Gospels vary in their depiction of John's relationship to Elijah . Matthew and Mark describe John's attire in a way reminiscent of the description of Elijah in 2 Kings 1:8 , who also wore

845-609: Is divided into 20 verses. Some early manuscripts containing the text of this chapter are among others: Among the Old Testament references in this chapter, about half of them in the verses 7–20 come from the Book of Daniel , especially Daniel 7 and 10 . Beale , therefore, regards this part of the chapter as a "midrash." (A midrash is an ancient commentary on part of the Hebrew scriptures.) Those two chapters of Daniel describe

910-469: Is divided into three primary sections: an introduction written by English clergyman and Biblical scholar H. B. Tristram, Svoboda's personal travel account visiting the Seven Churches sites, and an itinerary detailing Svoboda's route. The book also includes twenty full-page photographs of the Seven Churches sites, photographed by Svoboda. These images are the first produced and published photographs of

975-591: Is mentioned in all four canonical Gospels and the non-canonical Gospel of the Nazarenes . The Synoptic Gospels ( Mark , Matthew and Luke ) describe John baptising Jesus; in the Gospel of John this is inferred by many to be referred to in John 1:32. The Gospel of Mark introduces John as a fulfillment of a prophecy from the Book of Isaiah (in fact, a conflation of texts from Isaiah, Malachi and Exodus ) about

1040-663: Is revered as a major religious figure in Christianity, Islam, the Baháʼí faith , the Druze faith , and Mandaeism ; in the last of these he is considered to be the final and most vital prophet. He is considered to be a prophet of God by all of the aforementioned faiths, and is honoured as a saint in many Christian denominations . According to the New Testament , John anticipated a messianic figure greater than himself; in

1105-657: Is the first chapter of the Book of Revelation or the Apocalypse of John in the New Testament of the Christian Bible . The book is traditionally attributed to John the Apostle , but the precise identity of the author is a point of academic debate. This chapter contains the prologue of the book, followed by the vision and commission of John. The original text was written in Koine Greek . This chapter

1170-554: Is the one "who baptizes with the Holy Spirit" and John even professes a "belief that he is the Son of God" and "the Lamb of God". The Gospel of John reports that Jesus' disciples were baptizing and that a debate broke out between some of the disciples of John and another Jew about purification. In this debate John argued that Jesus "must become greater," while he (John) "must become less." The Gospel of John then points out that Jesus' disciples were baptizing more people than John. Later,

1235-605: Is the speaker here also, but clearly the view is mistaken; it is spoken by the ‘Lord God’ (RV) … the Almighty,” John received the vision as the occasion of his call to receive and write the book of Revelation while he had been banished to Patmos due to his preaching of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ . The manner he received his visions was similar to how Old Testament prophets Isaiah ( Isaiah 6 ), Jeremiah ( Jeremiah 1 ), Daniel ( Daniel 10 ), and Ezekiel ( Ezekiel 1 ) received theirs. This verse contains

1300-576: The Antiquities of the Jews (book 18, chapter 5, 2) by Flavius Josephus (37–100): Now some of the Jews thought that the destruction of Herod's [Antipas's] army came from God, and that very justly, as a punishment of what he did against John, that was called the Baptist: for Herod slew him, who was a good man, and commanded the Jews to exercise virtue, both as to righteousness towards one another, and piety towards God, and so to come to baptism; for that

1365-606: The Black Sea island of Sveti Ivan (Saint John) and two years later, after DNA and radio carbon testing proved the bones belonged to a Middle Eastern man who lived in the 1st century AD, scientists said that the remains could conceivably have belonged to John the Baptist. The remains, found in a reliquarium, are presently kept in the Sts. Cyril and Methodius Cathedral in Sozopol . The Coptic Orthodox Church also have claimed to hold

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1430-601: The Catholic Cathedral of Siena , in Italy , both claim to have John the Baptist's right arm and hand, with which he baptised Jesus. According to the Catholic account, in 1464 Pope Pius II donated what was identified as the right arm and hand of John the Baptist to the Siena Cathedral. The donation charter identifies the relic as "the arm of blessed John the Baptist. And this is the very arm that baptized

1495-456: The Essenes , a semi- ascetic Jewish sect who expected a messiah and practised ritual baptism . John used baptism as the central symbol or sacrament of his pre-messianic movement. Most biblical scholars agree that John baptized Jesus , and several New Testament accounts report that some of Jesus's early followers had previously been followers of John. According to the New Testament, John

1560-489: The Gospels , he is portrayed as the precursor or forerunner of Jesus . According to the Gospel of Matthew , Jesus himself identifies John as "Elijah who is to come", which is a direct reference to the Book of Malachi (Malachi 4:5), as confirmed by the angel who announced John's birth to his father, Zechariah . According to the Gospel of Luke , John and Jesus were relatives. Some scholars think that John belonged to

1625-402: The "Son of man," which is used by John as a model in the framework of his writing, as partially listed in the following table: The prologue to this book, similar to the one of the Gospel of John , is a kind of overture, announcing the main themes while providing the readers with a vantage point to interpret the visions that follow. This part shares some features and forms an inclusio with

1690-418: The "voice of one crying in the wilderness". Upon literary analysis, it is clear that John is the "testifier and confessor par excellence ", particularly when compared to figures like Nicodemus . Jesus's baptism is implied but not depicted. Unlike the other gospels, it is John himself who testifies to seeing "the Spirit come down from heaven like a dove and rest on him". John explicitly announces that Jesus

1755-621: The 2nd century AD, and some proclaimed him to be the Messiah awaited by Jews . In modern times, the followers of John the Baptist are the Mandaeans , an ancient ethnoreligious group who believe that he is their greatest and final prophet. In the Roman martyrology , apart from Jesus and the Virgin Mary, John is the only saint whose birth and death are both commemorated. John the Baptist

1820-537: The Baptist ( Matthew 11:10 , Mark 1:2 , Luke 7:27 ) and God's prophets ( Revelation 22:8–9 ) C.I. Scofield has noted that "The natural explanation of the 'messengers' is that they were men sent by the seven churches to ascertain the state of the aged apostle ... but they figure any who bear God's messages to a church." In 1869, the London publishing firm Sampson Low, Son, and Marston published Alexander Svoboda's The Seven Churches of Asia . The Seven Churches of Asia

1885-409: The Gospel of Luke, John the Baptist explicitly teaches charity, baptizes tax-collectors, and advises soldiers. The text briefly mentions that John is imprisoned and later beheaded by Herod, but the Gospel of Luke lacks the story of a step-daughter dancing for Herod and requesting John's head. The Book of Acts portrays some disciples of John becoming followers of Jesus, a development not reported by

1950-421: The Gospel of Mark implies that the arrival of John the Baptist is the fulfilment of a prophecy from the Book of Isaiah , the words quoted ("I will send my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way – a voice of one calling in the wilderness, 'Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him.'") are actually a composite of texts from Isaiah , Malachi and the Book of Exodus . (Matthew and Luke drop

2015-399: The Gospel of Mark, John preaches of a coming leader, but shows no signs of recognizing that Jesus is this leader. In Matthew, however, John immediately recognizes Jesus and John questions his own worthiness to baptize Jesus. In both Matthew and Luke, John later dispatches disciples to question Jesus about his status, asking "Are you he who is to come, or shall we look for another?" In Luke, John

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2080-424: The Gospel relates that Jesus regarded John as "a burning and shining lamp, and you were willing to rejoice for a while in his light". All four Gospels start Jesus' ministry in association with the appearance of John the Baptist. Simon J. Joseph has argued that the Gospel demotes the historical John by depicting him only as a prophetic forerunner to Jesus whereas his ministry actually complemented Jesus'. Although

2145-967: The Holy Land after the Fourth Crusade ). A fourth claim is made by the Residenz Museum in Munich, Germany, which keeps a reliquary containing what the Wittelsbach rulers of Bavaria believed to be the head of Saint John. According to the Christian Arab Ibn Butlan , the church of Cassian in Antioch held the right arm of John the Baptist until it was smuggled to Chalcedon and later to Constantinople. An Orthodox Christian monastery in Cetinje , Montenegro , and

2210-879: The Lord." The relic is displayed on the high altar of the Siena Cathedral annually in June. Topkapi Palace , in Istanbul, claims to have John's right hand index finger. John the Baptist's right hand is allegedly preserved in the Armenian Apostolic Church of St. John at Chinsurah, West Bengal , in India, where each year on "Chinsurah Day" in January it blesses the Armenian Christians of Calcutta . The decapitation cloth of Saint John,

2275-476: The Seven Churches. Photographs from Svoboda's Seven Churches project were exhibited in the rooms of the Arundel Society in London in 1868. [REDACTED]  This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain :  Herbermann, Charles, ed. (1913). " Apocalypse ". Catholic Encyclopedia . New York: Robert Appleton Company. Revelation 1#Verse 11 Revelation 1

2340-448: The account of the beheading of John, and adds two elements: that Herod Antipas wants John dead, and that the death is reported to Jesus by his disciples. Matthew's approach is to shift the focus away from Herod and onto John as a prototype of Jesus. Where Mark has Herod killing John reluctantly and at Herodias' insistence, Matthew describes him as wanting John dead. The Gospel of Luke adds an account of John's infancy, introducing him as

2405-470: The castle I before mentioned, and was there put to death. Now the Jews had an opinion that the destruction of this army was sent as a punishment upon Herod, and a mark of God's displeasure to him. According to this passage, the execution of John was blamed for the defeat Herod suffered. Some have claimed that this passage indicates that John died near the time of the destruction of Herod's army in AD 36. However, in

2470-448: The churches as the prelates of the church is that St. John speaks of them as falling from their first charity, which is not true of the angels. Others would say that the falling away relates to the churches, not to the messengers, as each of the seven letters conclude with the words "He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches." The Amplified Bible states that Revelation 2:2 through to 3:18, "your" and "you" are in

2535-816: The cloth which covered his head after his execution, is said to be kept at the Aachen Cathedral , in Germany. According to Armenian tradition, the remains of John the Baptist would in some point have been transferred by Gregory the Illuminator to the Saint Karapet Armenian Monastery . In 2010, bones were discovered in the ruins of a Bulgarian church in the St. John the Forerunner Monastery (4th–17th centuries) on

2600-485: The crowds, it was heard audibly, John did say in his witness that he did see the spirit coming down "out of heaven" (John 12:28–30, John 1:32). In Matthew, the voice from heaven does not address Jesus personally, saying instead "This is my beloved son, in whom I am well pleased." In the Gospel of John, John the Baptist himself sees the spirit descend as a dove, testifying about the experience as evidence of Jesus's status. John's knowledge of Jesus varies across gospels. In

2665-440: The dead. It then explains that John had rebuked Herod for marrying Herodias , the ex-wife of his brother (named here as Philip). Herodias demands his execution, but Herod, who "liked to listen" to John, is reluctant to do so because he fears him, knowing he is a "righteous and holy man". The account then describes how Herodias's unnamed daughter dances before Herod, who is pleased and offers her anything she asks for in return. When

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2730-564: The early councils which we share with the West." Chapters 2–3 of the Revelation have specific messages for each of the seven angels of the seven churches. The message of each of the seven letters is directed to the angel of the particular church that is mentioned. Origen explains that these "angels" are the guardian angels of the churches, a view upheld by Henry Alford . But Epiphanius explicitly rejects this view, and, in accordance with

2795-613: The epilogue ( Revelation 22:6 – 21 ). Behold, He is coming with clouds, and every eye will see Him, even they who pierced Him. And all the tribes of the earth will mourn because of Him. Even so, Amen. Although Revelation 1:8 is sometimes used to assert Jesus Christ is God. nearly all scholarly authorities on the book of Revelation have interpreted the speaker in Rev 1.8 as God the Father, not Jesus Christ. G.R. Beasley-Murray says of Jesus therein, “Older expositors sometimes thought that Jesus

2860-457: The fate of Jesus. The Gospel of Matthew account begins with the same modified quotation from Isaiah, moving the Malachi and Exodus material to later in the text, where it is quoted by Jesus. The description of John is possibly taken directly from Mark ("clothing of camel's hair with a leather belt around his waist, and his food was locusts and wild honey"), along with the proclamation that one

2925-464: The first part of the reference.) The gospels differ on the details of the Baptism. In Mark and Luke, Jesus himself sees the heavens open and hears a voice address him personally, saying, "You are my dearly loved son; you bring me great joy". They do not clarify whether others saw and heard these things. Although other incidents where the "voice came out of heaven" are recorded in which, for the sake of

2990-420: The girl asks her mother what she should request, she is told to demand the head of John the Baptist. Reluctantly, Herod orders the beheading of John, and his head is delivered to her, at her request, on a plate. John's disciples take the body away and bury it in a tomb. The Gospel refers to Antipas as "King" and the ex-husband of Herodias is named as Philip, but he is known to have been called Herod . Although

3055-470: The gospels except for the early case of Andrew , Simon Peter's brother. The fourth gospel describes John the Baptist as "a man sent from God" who "was not the light", but "came as a witness, to bear witness to the light, so that through him everyone might believe". John confirms that he is not the Christ nor Elijah nor 'the prophet' when asked by Jewish priests and Pharisees; instead, he described himself as

3120-452: The great influence John had over the people might put it into his power and inclination to raise a rebellion, (for they seemed ready to do any thing he should advise,) thought it best, by putting him to death, to prevent any mischief he might cause, and not bring himself into difficulties, by sparing a man who might make him repent of it when it would be too late. Accordingly he was sent a prisoner, out of Herod's suspicious temper, to Macherus ,

3185-757: The head was discovered by John's followers and was taken to the Mount of Olives , where it was twice buried and discovered, the latter events giving rise to the Orthodox feast of the First and Second Finding of the Head of St. John the Baptist . Other writers say that it was interred in Herod's palace at Jerusalem; there it was found during the reign of Constantine , and thence secretly taken to Emesa (modern Homs, in Syria) , where it

3250-472: The imagery of the passage, explains it as the bishops . John sees a vision of the Son of man , who walks among seven lampstands and has seven stars in his right hand. Revelation 1:20 states that "The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches, and the seven lampstands are the seven churches." The comparison of a teacher to a star is scriptural . Augustine of Hippo 's reason for interpreting angels of

3315-538: The letters differ in length in accord with the needs of each community, all conclude with an appeal to hold fast and to listen to what the Spirit is saying to the churches. Each church is promised that everyone who conquers will be rewarded by Christ. Some historicists typically interpret the seven churches as representing seven different periods in the history of the Western Church from the time of Paul until

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3380-446: The miraculous son of Zechariah , an old priest, and his wife Elizabeth , who was past menopause and therefore unable to have children. According to this account, the birth of John was foretold by the angel Gabriel to Zechariah while he was performing his functions as a priest in the temple of Jerusalem. Since he is described as a priest of the course of Abijah and Elizabeth as one of the daughters of Aaron , this would make John

3445-478: The origins of the story. Since it shows signs of having been composed in Aramaic, which Mark apparently did not speak, he is likely to have got it from a Palestinian source. There are a variety of opinions about how much actual historical material it contains, especially given the alleged factual errors. Many scholars have seen the story of John arrested, executed, and buried in a tomb as a conscious foreshadowing of

3510-470: The other Gospels, and Raymond E. Brown has described it as "of dubious historicity ". Géza Vermes has called it "artificial and undoubtedly Luke's creation". The many similarities between the Gospel of Luke story of the birth of John and the Old Testament account of the birth of Samuel suggest that Luke's account of the annunciation and birth of Jesus are modeled on that of Samuel. Unique to

3575-459: The return of Jesus Christ. Scofield states that "these messages by their very terms go beyond the local assemblies mentioned." He is of the opinion that the letters have a prophetic purpose disclosing the seven phases of the spiritual history of the Church. Other writers, such as Clarence Larkin , Henry Hampton Halley , Merrill Unger , and William M. Branham also have put forward the view that

3640-478: The seven churches preview the history of the global Church. Historicism has been criticised by the Eastern Orthodox priest Dimitri Cozby, who writes that historicists take a greatly oversimplified view of church history: "Since dispensationalism is Protestant in origin its 'Church history' is strictly Western. The dispensations take into account almost nothing of Orthodox history after the period of

3705-402: The singular, referring to the angel of each church. Much of what is said is rebuke and admonishment, so if the angels are heavenly beings, they may serve in some way as representatives of the sinful people in their churches. Jewish tradition maintained that every nation and individual has a guardian angel, and that when God is about to punish a nation, He first punishes its angel. There is even

3770-508: The sons of Israel to the Lord their God," and that he will go forth "in the spirit and power of Elijah." The following comparison table is primarily based on the New International Version (NIV) English translation of the New Testament. The account of Flavius Josephus in Antiquities of the Jews was translated by William Whiston. John 10:40–42 An account of John the Baptist is found in all extant manuscripts of

3835-410: The washing [with water] would be acceptable to him, if they made use of it, not in order to the putting away [or the remission] of some sins [only], but for the purification of the body; supposing still that the soul was thoroughly purified beforehand by righteousness. Now when [many] others came in crowds about him, for they were very greatly moved [or pleased] by hearing his words, Herod, who feared lest

3900-530: The water, Jesus sees the heavens open and the Holy Spirit descends on him "like a dove", and he hears a voice from heaven that says, "You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased". Later in the gospel there is an account of John's death. It is introduced by an incident where the Tetrarch Herod Antipas , hearing stories about Jesus, imagines that this is John the Baptist raised from

3965-458: The wording clearly implies the girl was the daughter of Herodias, many texts describe her as "Herod's daughter, Herodias". Since these texts are early and significant and the reading is ' difficult ', many scholars see this as the original version, altered in later versions and in Matthew and Luke. Josephus says that Herodias had a daughter by the name of Salome. Scholars have speculated about

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4030-428: Was a Jewish preacher active in the area of the Jordan River in the early 1st century AD. He is also known as Saint John the Forerunner in Eastern Orthodoxy and Oriental Orthodoxy , John the Immerser in some Baptist Christian traditions, and Prophet Yahya in Islam. He is sometimes alternatively referred to as John the Baptiser . John is mentioned by the Roman Jewish historian Josephus , and he

4095-408: Was coming who would baptize with the Holy Spirit "and fire". The book of Matthew next has Jesus coming to John to be baptized, but John objects because he is not worthy because Jesus is the one that brings the baptism in the Spirit. Unlike Mark, Matthew describes John as critical of Pharisees and Sadducees and as preaching "the kingdom of heaven is at hand" and a "coming judgment". Matthew shortens

4160-408: Was concealed, the place remaining unknown for years, until it was manifested by revelation in 452, an event celebrated in the Orthodox Church as the Third Finding . An apocryphal tradition claims that after John's death, his mother Elizabeth was told by an angel to bury him where his father lay. She was then led by the angel to the temple in which John's father was killed by Herod I, at which point

4225-413: Was sentenced to death and subsequently beheaded by Herod Antipas around AD 30 after John rebuked him for divorcing his wife Phasaelis and then unlawfully wedding Herodias , the wife of his brother Herod Philip I . Josephus also mentions John in the Antiquities of the Jews and states that he was executed by order of Herod Antipas in the fortress at Machaerus . Followers of John existed well into

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