John chrysostom ad 347407, bishop of constantinople, wrote a series of homilies that have been preserved. This could be as simple as being a witness of jesus ministry sharing the gospel with others or it could mean. If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to. They are well known to the apostles, and they were in christ before me. Jan 02, 2020 it is unlikely that junia was an apostle, but romans 16. The word apostle, from the greek word apostolos, has a similar range of meanings as the word missionary, from the latin word missionis the more straightforward reading of romans 16. Joanna certainly qualifies as being an apostle according to the traditional understanding of apostolic prerequisites e. Greet andronicus and junia, my kinsmen and my fellow prisoners.
Saint junia and saint andronicus of the seventy were relatives of the holy apostle paul. Blame martin luther for people thinking the bibles female. Paul calls her first among the apostles, but some translators in the 1500. Yet this sexchange operation occurred without a shred of evidence or even an attempt at persuasion. Salute andronicus and junia, my kinsmen and fellow prisoners, who are of note among the apostles, who also were in christ, before me romans 16. Salute andronicus and junia, my kinsmen and fellow prisoners, who are of note among the. The identity of junia as a woman apostle was not questioned until the middle ages when translators tried to change the gender of the name to the masculine junias. Saint andronicus apostle of the seventy and saint junia were relatives of the holy apostle paul. Its an open secret that paul calls junia an apostle and yet she is rarely mentioned in histories of christianity. Chrysostom provides credible objective evidence that junia was an apostle. Perhaps junia is the wife of andronicus, and they were simply referred to as a team. That would leave only being an apostle like barnabas an apostle in the sense of one who is simply sent to proclaim the truth or one who was with christ before his death and saw him after his resurrection.
Junia, the first woman apostle by harkness professor of biblical literature emeritus at case western reserve university and president of the society of biblical literature is not so much a text on junia, mentioned in chapter 16. The epistle to the romans, new international commentary on the new testament by douglas moo. Further, she was involved in the formation of the early church in rome. Maybe junia was with the followers for the entire time of jesus ministry speculation. Junias story is an important one to consider for two reasons. They are outstanding among the apostles, and they were in christ before i was. In addition to origen and chrysostom, other greek fathers and commentators unanimously understood junia to be a female apostle, including. Nevertheless, beginning with erasmus in 1516, all greek new testament translations except one consider junia female.
Certainly junia and andronicus are not members of the twelve, nor share the particular calling of paul as a singular apostle to the gentiles. For too long have women been prevented to take any office in the church other than admin and being prayer warriors because of. A former mk from japan, she lives in southern california with her husband of 44 years, and enjoys spending time with her family, especially her eight grandkids. In different translations of the bible, the spelling of junia is where the disagreement is and whether the greek word for junia is masculine or feminine. A new article by yiijan lin, a professor at yale divinity school. The view among most modern new testament scholars is that this person was a woman named junia, but a common view in the past was that it was a man named junias. In orthodox tradition, however, the title of apostle does not necessarily confer the kind of position that the twelve had from christ. Yolanda powell under the auspices of the epic global network.
Grenz tentatively mentions that biblical commentators up until about 1200 were in large agreement that junia was a woman, and according to him. The name junia was a very common womans name, but the name junias was unknown in antiquity and girls werent named boy names and viseversa. To read the previous posts, click here for part one, here for part two, and here for part three. The view among most modern new testament scholars is. Chrysostoms statements about these women are particularly convincing especially in light of his misogynist views toward women. Since apostles are in place of authority, then junia demonstrates that women can be in authority. Junia is the subject of debate within the academic world concerning the implications of a female apostle leading within the early church, that it might suggest the ordination of women. First, it really is significant that paul called her an apostle.
Though widely accepted as a woman apostle throughout early church history, in later translations an s was added to the end of her name, making it into a. Further, junia was a common enough latin name and, since this was pauls letter to the romans, one might expect to see a few latin names on the list. For too long have women been prevented to take any office in the church other than admin and being prayer warriors because of misinterpretation of scriptures. En is a greek preposition, much like our english in.
Most likely, junia was a female apostle who served alongside her husband. The jewish woman who was imprisoned with paul marg. In romans 16 the apostle paul mentions three women who have been recently become the subject of a great deal of conversation and. Junia became junias simply because a woman could not possibly be an apostle. Oct 29, 2008 the identity of junia named in romans 16.
This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the title junia. But even the data on this score can be deceptive, for the mans name junianas was frequent enough in latin and greek writings and, from my cursory examination of latin materials, the nickname. Many maintain that she was an apostle and that her life therefore becomes a basis for affirming an egalitarian view of gender roles in the ministries of the christian church. In this regard, 1 cor 15 seems to set these apart as apostles as different from others. First, disagreement exists as to whether junia was a male or female and second, was junia a female apostle, a position of authority and leadership. Junia arise is a revolutionary documentary film that unveils a seventeencenturyold biblical cover up of female leadership in society. However, she was recognized by the twelve as being an. Since his conversion occurred just a few years after the resurrection of christ, junia must have been one of the earliest converts to christianity and probably was. Some people have suggested that junia is the same person as joanna who is mentioned in luke 8. Well, it would mean that junia based on the definition of apostolos was sent, by someone in authority, to deliver a message. Either translation is possible within the scope of.
Yolanda powell brings us to a spectacular vision of the. For someone who is only mentioned once in the whole bible romans 16. Junia, a female apostle, prominent among the apostles. Junia or junias was a 1stcentury christian highly regarded and complimented by paul the apostle. In this important work, epp investigates the mysterious disappearance of junia from the traditions of the church. Junia was an apostle and was not the only woman so honored by the early church. Junia school of apostles is dedicated to providing learners with advanced studies designed to advance their understanding of endtime kingdom ministry. This film represents the breaking of the chains for all women, everywhere. In the earliest generation of christianity, there was a female apostle named junia whom paul said was prominent among the apostles before he himself was converted 1. Saint paul mentions them in his epistle to the romans.
Greet andronicus and junia, my fellow jews who have been in prison with me. For junia and andronicus perhaps her husband, being an apostle wasnt a matter of privilege, but prison. This breaks open our notions of what was possible for women in the early church and further reveals the significant ways that women contributed to the leadership and growth of the church in the first century. The junia project is named for junia, a woman apostle in the early church see romans 16. The phrase among the apostles can also be translated as to the apostles, placing junia within or outside this ministry category. Junia isnt one of the 12, nor an apostle like paul, or jesus, nor a false apostle. Jun 26, 2007 he concludes, because the weight of the evidence favors interpreting junia as an authoritative apostle, pauls greeting sufficiently opens the possibility that women served in this capacity.
The last stop in our tour of the women of romans 16 is verse 7. Aug 27, 2019 junia is a latin feminine name, ordinarly given to slaves or freedwomen of the junia family, of which some 250 examples have been found in roman evidence. Junia was the name of a christian in rome, a person whose name is mentioned in the letter to the romans in connection with andronicus, as being pauls relatives, who were in prison with him. It is unlikely that junia was an apostle, but romans 16. There is a female apostle in the bible named junia romans 16. Preato greet andronicus and junia, my fellow jews who have been in prison with me. Nevertheless, three of the scholars cited, al wolters, david huttar, and michael burer, continue to question junias. Culminating in a devastating forensic critique of the allegedly scholarly view that the greek should be translated as known to as opposed to outstanding among the apostles worth the. The modern scholarly controversy over this name rests on the presumption that no woman could rank as an apostle, and thus that the accusative form must refer to a male by the name of. Her ministry in partnership with andronicus and paul reminds us that gods intention is for men and women to partner together as equals in the home, the church, and the community.
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