Solo

I am pondering the question whether the James of the so-called "pillars" in Gal 2:9, is the James, brother of the Lord of in 1:19 and before whose emissaries Cephas dissembled kosher compliance in 2:12.

Have any of the learned friends here read any dissenting opinions on that ? Specifically, have there been any scholarly voices recently which identified the three pillars as the three witnesses to the Transfiguration ? I guess that the timeline (in Acts) would be one issue to consider 2:9 as referrring to James the Zebedee.

A short synopsis would be much appreciated.

Jiri

andrewcriddle

If we accept Acts as a reasonably reliable historical source then James the son of Zebedee the Apostle and witness to the transfiguration had been executed before the events of Galatians 2:9 (see Acts 12:2)

Andrew Criddle

dongiovanni1976x

James ben Zebedee died c. 44 CE, whereas James the Just, the lord's brother, mentioned in Galatians 1:19, lived another 18 years (c. 62 CE). Since King Herod Agrippa I died in 44 CE (Antiquities 20.5.2) and he is the one whom Acts 12 states ordered James' death, we must assume this is referring to James son of Zebedee.

Assuming that is, as Andrew points out, that Acts is a reliable enough account of these events.

Solo

Thanks, Andrew. I understand that challenge.

Any view of Paul's view of those οι δοκουντες στυλοι ειναι ? My initial surprise was that Paul after seventeen odd years in the business needed to rely on third parties to identify the functionaries in the church. The problem with accepting that James the Just was merely "appearing" to be just another pillar, is that everyone knew who he was and Paul himself showed in Galatians that he understood the relative standing of Peter and that James very well. BTW, I am not committed on this, just curious if anything interesting pops up. (Garry Wills in Why I am Catholic (or via: amazon.co.uk) thinks the "so-called pillar" epithet was meant as as a way of dissing Peter.)

Jiri

dongiovanni1976x

I'm curious...could you ellaborate on what Mr. Wills said. I read his book Papal Sin but never read his early book.

Solo

Sure, chapter 5 of the book open with this little paragraph:

Chesterton calls Peter a snob and a coward - which is small potatoes by the standard of the New Testament, where Paul calls him a hypocrite (Gal 2:13), a "so-called pillar" (Gal 2:9), and perhaps, dismissively a "big-shot apostle" (2 Cor 11.5). Jesus himself is much harsher on Peter, calling him not only an obstacle blocking his mission (Mt 16:23) but "Satan" (Mk 8:33).

Jiri

Solo

Sure, I understand, however once you get through Haenchen, you will probably agree that Acts are of limited value to a historian. His view essentially is that the death of James the Z. which receives an incoprehensibly meager notice, (and would have been illegal under Mishnaic law) serves as a opening mini-ploy in the narrative of the arrest and escape of Peter: to enhance the danger to him and his miraculous deliverance.

Also, I don't know if you are aware of James' legendary miraculous resurrection (the Catholic tradition calls it "translation") and subsequent preaching mission in Spain, where he died a second time and was buried as patron Sant Iago de Compostela.

Ah, these Christians, they don't make it easy, do they ?

Jiri

andrewcriddle

The tradition of James being active in Spain may possibly involve confusion between the latin for Jerusalem. Hierosolyma and the Latin for Spain Hispania

Andrew Criddle

bookworm14

And Peter is the rock on which the Church was founded. Harsh words indeed.
bookworm14

Solo

For this reason, I believe the incident at Caesarea Philippi originated in a real incident between the two. Theologically, there was no reason for the outburst of HJ. Peter could have been made dumb - not understanding the mission - even obstructing it through his lack of insight. But no way Peter's protective gesture could have been seen as an act of malice or evil. The incident was remembered, like that of Jesus speaking to himself (the prophets) that led to the "Transfiguration" theophany, or him grasping for figs that were out of season, because Jesus' behaviour seemed bizzare to his village companions.

Jiri