Acts 15:22-31

Acts 15:22-31

The Apostles and presbyters, in agreement with the whole Church,

decided to choose representatives

and to send them to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas.

The ones chosen were Judas, who was called Barsabbas,

and Silas, leaders among the brothers.

This is the letter delivered by them:

“The Apostles and the presbyters, your brothers,

to the brothers in Antioch, Syria, and Cilicia

of Gentile origin: greetings.

Since we have heard that some of our number

who went out without any mandate from us

have upset you with their teachings

and disturbed your peace of mind,

we have with one accord decided to choose representatives

and to send them to you along with our beloved Barnabas and Paul,

who have dedicated their lives to the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

So we are sending Judas and Silas

who will also convey this same message by word of mouth:

‘It is the decision of the Holy Spirit and of us

not to place on you any burden beyond these necessities,

namely, to abstain from meat sacrificed to idols,

from blood, from meats of strangled animals,

and from unlawful marriage.

If you keep free of these,

you will be doing what is right. Farewell.’”

And so they were sent on their journey.

Upon their arrival in Antioch

they called the assembly together and delivered the letter.

When the people read it, they were delighted with the exhortation.

Opening Prayer: Lord God, I love seeing the early Church figure things out slowly but surely. It encourages me to see that they didn’t have all the answers right away, but were guided by your Holy Spirit to all truth. Help me to contemplate more deeply what the pastoral leadership of Peter, the preaching and experience of Paul, and the pastoral concerns of James all mean for my life today.

Encountering the Word of God

1. Interpreting the Prophets on the Restoration of David’s Kingdom: After the Council of Jerusalem, the Apostles and presbyters sent a letter to the Church in Antioch about the decision they reached. Led by Simon Peter, the Church decided that the Gentiles did not have to follow many of the laws of the old covenant, especially those regarding circumcision. Many of the laws of Moses had a temporary character and were a cultural and social safeguard against contact with pagan Gentiles. That barrier of separation was being torn down in the forty years between Jesus’ death and the destruction of Jerusalem. At the Council, Paul and Barnabas confirmed Peter’s decision by relating how God was acting through them among the Gentiles. The apostle James also confirmed Peter’s decision and referred to the prophetic passages that described the return from exile and the restoration of Israel during the last days (Hosea 3:4-5; Jeremiah 12:15; Amos 9:11-12; and Isaiah 45:21). Jeremiah, for example, used the imagery of the Gentiles being built up like a building in the midst of Israel and this suggests their incorporation into the new temple, the Body of Christ. “Drawing on this imagery, James considers the gathering of the Gentiles in the midst of Israel to be the key to interpreting the Scriptures concerning the Gentile disciples during the last days” (Pimentel, Witnesses of the Messiah, 134). James also interprets the prophet Amos to mean that when God rebuilds the kingdom of David, it will be made up of all those – Gentiles included – who are united to the Messiah. 

2. The Church and the Gentiles: When James interprets the prophets, he understands that with the restored Kingdom of Jesus, there are not two separate people of God – Jews and Gentiles – but one People of God. The Deuteronomic covenant was national in character, but the Davidic covenant was always intended to be international and universal. “The collective message of the various prophetic texts that James alludes to or quotes is that in the last days, when the kingdom of David is restored by the Messiah, God will build a new temple in which the Gentiles may dwell with Him. According to the teaching of the apostles, the new temple is the Church (see 1 Peter 2:4-10; 2 Corinthians 6:16; Ephesians 2:19-22). The Gentiles can therefore be brought into the People of God without submitting to the Deuteronomic Law (see Acts 15:19). Nevertheless, James immediately proposes a decree for Gentile believers that contains four prohibitions that seem to be derived from the Mosaic Law (see Acts 15:20). In the words of the final decree, the Gentiles should ‘abstain from what has been sacrificed to idols and from blood and from what is strangled and from unchastity’ (Acts 15:29)” (Pimentel, Witnesses of the Messiah, 136). James understood that, even though many parts of the Mosaic Law were no longer binding on the Gentiles, they were in a transitional phase of overlap between the Old Covenant and the New. “During this transitional phase, the Mosaic Law was no longer binding but had not yet been externally removed by the destruction of the Temple” (Pimentel, Witnesses of the Messiah, 137).

3. The Apostolic Decree: The apostolic decree, communicating the decision of the Council to the Gentiles, had a temporary character. The three prohibitions about food only endured until the destruction of the Temple in A.D. 70. All four prohibitions, though, were inspired by Leviticus 17-18, which laid out precepts for the Gentiles living amid God’s people in the land of Israel. These four prohibitions, then, became the four precepts that James considered applicable to the Gentile disciples during the last days. Improper sacrifices were prohibited in Leviticus 7:8-9; the consumption of blood was prohibited in Leviticus 17:10-12; the prohibition of consuming animals not properly slaughtered was derived from Leviticus 17:13; and the prohibition of sexual immorality was found in Leviticus 18:6-23 and 26. In this way, what James did was seek a compromise with the “circumcision party,” i.e., those who wanted the Gentile converts to follow the entire Law of Moses. James was trying to soften the blow, since the apostolic decree expressly condemns the actions of the circumcision party (see Acts 15:24). Paul and Barnabas were sent to Antioch and the churches of Syria and Cilicia, along with Judas and Silas, to convey the decree and decision of the council. “To assure the Church’s survival and growth after Jerusalem falls, Paul continues with his missionary journeys in order to plant the Church securely among the Gentiles before Jerusalem is destroyed [in A.D. 70]. The Church has been born, but she is still attached by the umbilical cord to the womb of Jerusalem, and that cord will soon be cut. The People of God has undergone a transition of covenants and thus of covenantal laws, from the Deuteronomic Law to the New Law of the Spirit. The circumcision party grasped the implication of this transition and resisted it. If members of the People of God could remain outside the Deuteronomic Law, then the Deuteronomic covenant and the national boundaries that it upheld were no more. Thus, the apostolic decree clearly signaled that the People of God could no longer be identified with a single nation, but would henceforth embrace all nations. The judgment of Jerusalem [in A.D. 70] would complete the transition of covenants, replacing the Temple made with human hands with the new temple of the Holy Spirit” (Pimentel, Witnesses of the Messiah, 139-140).

Conversing with Christ: Lord Jesus, I contemplate today your Holy Spirit at work in the early Church. Contemplating the Council of Jerusalem, I realize that debates continue and will continue for centuries. In every age, the Church needs to discern how to live out the New Law that you gave and address the “new things” and “new situations” that arise.

Living the Word of God: How do I welcome or reject the teachings of the Pope and the bishops in communion with him? Am I excessively critical of every statement? Am I confident that I know what the Church actually teaches about social and political issues, bioethics, and human sexuality? How can I improve my receptivity toward the Church’s teaching and be an effective apostle of the truth about God, the world, and humanity?