So far in our series of articles, we have talked about how the Greeks, or the Greek philosophers, stole the Resurrection, how the Greeks stole the Millennium and how they stole Heaven. Now, we want to talk about how the Greeks stole Israel. I am speaking about the church’s precious biblical heritage of Israel and Jerusalem. I am speaking about beloved Zion, our spiritual destiny.
We have talked about how much of the early Greek thinking was formulated by Plato (429?–347 BC). We have discussed how other philosophers like Philo Judaeus of Egypt (d. 45-50 AD) following Greek philosophy led people to see much biblical truth as mere allegory. Later, another highly influential Egyptian philosopher was Plotinus (c. 205 – 270 AD). Plotinus became the founder of a system of thought that was later called Neoplatonism. He simply developed Plato’s philosophy, focusing on the “spiritual” and almost eliminating the natural. He greatly influenced Augustine, who in turn has influenced the church until the present day.
THE “SPIRITUAL” VERSUS THE NATURAL
We noted in our previous articles how correct biblical interpretation emphasized both the natural and the spiritual and kept them in good balance. The Greek philosophers generally mistrusted the natural world and tried to place the emphasis on their concepts of the “spiritual” world. They demeaned the flesh and certainly did not believe in a fleshly resurrection. They saw heaven as an ethereal place where people would be free of the world and the body. Their idea of heaven was lounging around in a bodyless existence forever. We might be shocked to see how closely the modern Christian concepts very much agree with the Greek philosophers instead of the biblical concept of our living with Christ eternally in the new heaven and the new earth.
THE EARLIEST CHURCH WAS A HEBREW CHURCH
Jesus, the founder of the church, was a Jew. Not only was Jesus a Jew, but his disciples were all Jewish. They were all born as Jews and they lived as Jews. They worshipped regularly at the Jewish temple in Jerusalem (Acts 2:46). The early church was a Jewish church, with a mostly Jewish constituency and Jewish leaders. We know from scripture that Jesus’ followers were first called “Christians” at Antioch, during the later New Testament era (Acts 11:26).
The earliest Hebrew Christians honored the Sabbath and Jewish festivals (Acts 13:13-15). Although the Apostle Paul was the disciple to Gentiles, he was still thoroughly Jewish. He loved Jerusalem and its temple. He and the earliest Christians showed deep respect toward the requirements of the Jewish law (Acts 21:20). However, these early Christians did not try to be justified by the law but they surely respected it. Their justification came from Jesus only.
The church in Jerusalem continued as a Jewish church for several generations. The Historian Eusebius reports that the first fifteen bishops of Jerusalem, until the time of Hadrian (AD 135), were all Hebrews. After the fifteenth bishop, Narcissus, we finally hear of Marcus, who is listed by Eusebius as being the first Gentile bishop of Jerusalem. He also reports that the whole church consisted of Hebrews. (Eusebius 192, 130) It is truly interesting that the earliest church, during the time of its greatest outreach, was led by Jews who honored and loved their Jewish heritage.
It is clear even in the early days of the Gentile church that it was closely connected to the Jewish church in Jerusalem. Paul apparently patterned the Gentile churches after those in Judea (1 Thess. 2:14). Paul also taught that God’s new creation would be the uniting of Jew and Gentile in Christ to form a new humanity (Eph. 2:11-21; 3:6). He taught that Gentile believers in Jesus were grafted into the ancient Jewish olive tree (Rom. 11:17). Thus, they were part of Israel. He taught Gentile churches of their great debt to the people of Israel. He even insisted that because of this great debt, the Gentile churches should take an offering for Jewish believers in Israel (Rom. 15:27). Even the first great church council of Acts 15 (AD 49) was directed in Jerusalem by Jews.
CHANGES IN THE SECOND CENTURY
It seems that Greek thinking, which allegorized and essentially eliminated Israel, turned the church against Israel and then prepared the ground for the actual persecution of God’s heritage. In the second century, the church became mostly a Greek-speaking church. Many of the leaders were not only Greek speakers but Greek thinkers. Unfortunately, the disease of antisemitism, which had already infected the world for several centuries, began to affect the early church. Perhaps this first stemmed from jealousy or fear or some of both. It certainly became possible with a church that was demeaning the Jews.
Ignatius of Antioch (died c. 108/140 AD) may have been the first Father of the church to slander the Jews. Ignatius lived in a time when Christianity was still closely connected to the faith of Israel. Just shortly before his days, the Apostles had celebrated Jewish feasts and kept the Jewish Sabbath. Yet Ignatius had stern words for Christians who would pattern after the Apostles. He remarked, “If anyone celebrates the Passover along with the Jews, or receives emblems of their feast, he is a partaker with those that killed the Lord and His apostles.” (Rausch 20)
The famous Justin Martyr (100-165? AD) in his lengthy Dialogue with Trypho, said many hateful and condescending things about the Jews. (Flannery 35) Later, Irenaeus, Bishop of Lyon (AD 130-202), declared the Jews “disinherited from the grace of God.” (Rausch 22) The trend toward what is now known as Triumphalism or Replacement Theology continued. Cyprian, Bishop of Carthage (ca. 200-258) was bold enough to demand that all Jews leave his diocese or die. (Rausch 22) We can see that in a very short time, Triumphalism had taken on deadly proportions.
In the theological arena, there is probably no other person who has done so much damage to the Hebrew roots of Christianity as Origen (185?-254?), the early church father from Alexandria. Origen was greatly influenced by Greek philosophy. He has been credited as being the father of the allegorical method of interpreting the scriptures. He insisted upon seeing almost all scripture in the allegorical sense, as we mentioned in our earlier articles. For instance, when Origen saw “Israel” in the scripture, he knew it was a reference to the church. (Gruber 11)
Gruber remarks, “It is Origen’s system of interpretation that produces the anti-Judaic ‘New Israel’ theology where the church replaces the Jews in the plan and purpose of God.” (Gruber 12) DeLange says: “He lost no opportunity, in his sermons, to attack Jewish literalism, and his powerful invective no doubt made its contribution to the later tragic persecution of Jews by Christians.” (De Lange 135) Although Origen was considered a heretic in his lifetime and was later officially branded as such by the church, his influence lived on and greatly increased.
A PARTING OF THE WAY
With the supposed conversion of the Roman Emperor Constantine, the nature of Christianity began to undergo a rapid and radical transformation. Constantine was eager to consolidate his gains and was determined to quell the various divisions within Christianity. In the year 325, the Council of Nicea was called together and presided over by the new Emperor.
Constantine’s letter to the churches is very instructive concerning the spirit of this council. In his letter he referred to the Jews as “…polluted wretches…blinded in their minds…(a) most odious fellowship…and murderers…” (Gruber 28-30) Constantine made clear the intent of this council by quickly forbidding Jews to proselytize. He also forbade them to live in their own city, Jerusalem. (Rausch 23)
The opinion of the Council was not to be taken lightly. Now the church had behind it the full power of the Roman Empire. Any dissent would be looked upon as criminal. From this point on the sword of the Empire and not the sword of the Spirit would determine church doctrine and practice.
HOW THE CHURCH DOCTRINES PRODUCED EVIL FRUIT
These early attitudes later bore their evil fruit with the Crusades, beginning in 1095 at the Council of Clermont and running for almost two hundred years. Before the Crusaders had even arrived in the Holy Land they had already murdered some 10,000 European Jews en route. Once in Israel they created a bloodbath with both Jews and Moslems.
After the Crusades, there were blood libels, where Jews were accused of abusing the communion elements. Many died in these rampages. The Jews suffered forced conversions and many other abuses. This trail of abuse and slaughter finally led up to the Holocaust where six million Jews were murdered, many in the lands where the Protestant Reformation began.
All this trail of bitter sorrows and murder was partly the result of Greek philosophy in the church, which discounted the natural and saw Israel only as a type or allegory with no continuing relevance for the church. Today for millions of Christians, Israel and Jerusalem have no special significance. In fact, several large church denominations are involved today in the BDS movement. How amazing it is that the whole purpose of this movement is to boycott, divest and sanction Israel at every opportunity.
-Jim Gerrish
wordofgodtoday.com
Published 2022
Eusebius Pamphilus, Ecclesiastical History, Popular Edition (Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1976).
David A. Rausch, A Legacy of Hatred: Why Christians Must Not Forget the Holocaust (Chicago: Moody Press, 1984).
Edward H. Flannery, The Anguish of the Jews, Twenty-Three Centuries of Antisemitism (Mahwah: New York: Paulist Press, 1985).
Daniel Gruber, The Church and the Jews: The Biblical Relationship (Springfield, MO: General Council of the Assemblies of God, 1991).
Nicholas DeLange, Origen and the Jews, Studies in Jewish-Christian Relations in Third -century Palestine. London: Cambridge University Press, 1976).