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Contributors
Carol M. Anderson, PhD, Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh
Medical Center, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Edward R. Anderson, PhD, Department of Human Development and Family
Sciences, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas
Deidre Ashton, LCSW, Princeton Family Institute, Princeton, New Jersey
Leah Bloom, MSMFT, The Family Institute, Northwestern University,
Evanston, Illinois
Nancy Boyd-Franklin, PhD, Graduate School of Applied and Professional
Psychology, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Piscataway, New Jersey
Carrie Capstick, PhD, private practice, New York, New York
Carolyn Pape Cowan, PhD, Department of Psychology and Institute of Human
Development, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, California
Philip A. Cowan, PhD, Department of Psychology and Institute of Human
Development, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, California
David S. DeGarmo, PhD, Oregon Social Learning Center, Eugene, Oregon
Janice Driver, PhD, Eastside Parenting Clinic, Inc., Bellevue, Washington
Malitta Engstrom, PhD, LCSW, School of Social Service Administration, University
of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois
Marina Eovaldi, PhD, The Family Institute, Northwestern University,
Evanston, Illinois
Celia Jaes Falicov, PhD, Department of Family and Preventive Medicine
and Department of Psychiatry, University of California, San Diego,
La Jolla, California
Mona DeKoven Fishbane, PhD, Chicago Center for Family Health, Chicago, Illinois
Marion S. Forgatch, PhD, Oregon Social Learning Center, Eugene, Oregon
Peter Fraenkel, PhD, Department of Psychology, City College, City University
of New York, New York, New York
Chelsea Garneau, PhD, Family and Child Sciences, School of Human Sciences,
the Florida State University, Tallahassee, Florida
vi
Contributors vii
John M. Gottman, PhD, The Gottman Institute, Inc., Seattle, Washington
Robert-Jay Green, PhD, Rockway Institute for LGBT Psychology, California
School of Professional Psychology, Alliant International University,
San Francisco, California
Shannon M. Greene, PhD, Department of Human Development and Family Sciences,
University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas
E. Mavis Hetherington, PhD, Department of Psychology, University of Virginia,
Charlottesville, Virginia
Evan Imber-Black, PhD, Ackerman Institute for the Family, New York,
New York, and Marriage and Family Therapy Master’s Program, Mercy College,
Dobbs Ferry, New York
Melanie Karger, MA, Graduate School of Applied and Professional Psychology,
Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Piscataway, New Jersey
Carmen Knudson-Martin, PhD, Counseling and Family Sciences, Loma Linda
University, Loma Linda, California
Jay Lebow, PhD, The Family Institute, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois
Cassandra Ma, PsyD, The Family Institute, Northwestern University,
Evanston, Illinois
Monica McGoldrick, MSW, PhD(Hon.), The Multicultural Family Institute,
Highland Park, New Jersey
Kay Pasley, EdD, Family and Child Sciences, School of Human Sciences, Florida
State University, Tallahassee, Florida
Cheryl Rampage, PhD, The Family Institute, Northwestern University,
Evanston, Illinois
John S. Rolland, MD, Department of Psychiatry and Center for Family Health,
University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois
Gina Miranda Samuels, PhD, School of Social Service Administration,
University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois
Alyson F. Shapiro, PhD, School of Social and Family Dynamics, Arizona State
University, Tempe, Arizona
Tazuko Shibusawa, PhD, Silver School of Social Work, New York University,
New York, New York
Erica L. Spotts, PhD, Division of Behavioral and Social Research, National Institute
on Aging, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland
Catherine B. Stroud, PhD, The Family Institute, Northwestern University,
Evanston, Illinois
Amber Tabares, PhD, private practice, Bellevue, Washington
Froma Walsh, PhD, School of Social Service Administration, Department of
Psychiatry, and Center for Family Health, University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois
Catherine Weigel Foy, MSW, The Family Institute, Northwestern University,
Evanston, Illinois
Preface to the Paperback Edition
S ince the publication of the fourth edition of Normal Family Processes in
2012, families worldwide are continuing to become increasingly diverse,
complex, and fluid in composition and living arrangements. “New normal”
families vary in structure, gender arrangements, multicultural makeup, socio-
economic conditions, and life-cycle patterns. Many strains in family life are
generated by larger societal forces and by disruptive transformations in the
global economy. Vast social and economic disparities affect marriage pros-
pects, family stability, and wellbeing, especially for racial and ethnic minori-
ties and others facing marginalization and discrimination. Yet, as research
in this volume documents, most families raise their children well and show
remarkable resilience in surmounting their challenges and forging creative
new pathways forward.
There is increasing recognition and normalization of the wide spectrum
in human sexuality, including gender identity, sexual orientation, and rela-
tional bonds for gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender persons. A growing
body of research finds that children of lesbian and gay parents function as well
as—and often better than—those of heterosexual parents in terms of mental
health and parent–child relationships (Fedewa, Black, & Ahn, 2015; Green,
Chapter 8, this volume). Most noteworthy, in June, 2015, the United States
Supreme Court ruled in favor of nationwide marriage equality for same-sex
couples in Obergefell v. Hodges. This landmark decision will help same-sex
partners clarify their mutual commitments and obligations, and improve their
ability to take care of and provide for one another and their children in times
of illness or death. And yet, serious barriers persist. For instance, many states
lack legal protections against discrimination in employment and housing.
Many same-sex couples (especially those in conservative religious groups) face
rejection, discrimination, or violence from their families and communities.
Thus, challenges remain ahead.
viii
Preface to the Paperback Edition ix
The state-of-the-art research and clinical perspectives in this volume are
attuned to our times and varied social contexts. By illuminating the varied
challenges today’s couples and families face and the relational processes that
enable them to adapt and thrive, they enrich our understanding of effective
family functioning and can inform our best approaches to strengthening fami-
lies in distress.
Reference
Fedewa, A. L., Black, W. W., & Ahn, S. (2015). Children and adolescents with same-
gender parents: A meta-analytic approach in assessing outcomes. Journal of
GLBT Family Studies, 11, 1–34.
Preface (2012)
T he“thechanging landscape of family life in a turbulent world has become
new normal.” As families face unprecedented challenges and stitch
together a growing diversity and complexity of relational patterns, we need to
understand their struggles and their strivings. Drawing on the most current
research and practice perspectives, this volume illuminates the strengths and
challenges in the broad spectrum of contemporary families, identifying the
family processes that foster well-being, adaptation, and resilience.
The first edition of Normal Family Processes, published in 1982, was
hailed as a landmark volume in the clinical literature. It was the first text to
examine normality from a family systems orientation, presenting pioneering
research and conceptualization of well-functioning families. With traditional
clinical training and practice focused on family dysfunction and blind to fam-
ily strengths, I remarked that a “normal family” might be defined as one that
had not yet been clinically assessed! In drawing attention to transactional
processes in “nonclinical” average families and high-functioning families, the
book was influential in rebalancing the skewed clinical perspective from fam-
ily deficits to family strengths and resources.
The second and third editions (1993, 2003) advanced our understand-
ing of family functioning as families and society were becoming increasingly
diverse. In the mental health field and the larger society, those who did not
conform to the reified standard of “the normal family” tended to be patholo-
gized and stigmatized, reinforcing their sense of failure and deficiency. Inter-
ventions often aimed inappropriately to mold all families into a “one-size-
fits-all” model that didn’t fit their lives. Postmodern theory heightened our
awareness of the profound influence of socially constructed views of normal-
ity, filtered by cultural and professional values and biases.
This fourth edition updates and expands our knowledge and perspectives
on couples and families in the second decade of the 21st century. As clini-
cians, researchers, and social policy formulators move beyond assumptions
x
Preface (2012) xi
of a single model for healthy families, it is essential for efforts to be informed
by the most current research and conceptual advances. This volume examines
family life in sociocultural and developmental contexts and identifies key pro-
cesses in healthy functioning and resilience under stressful conditions. Chap-
ters in this volume address the challenges and strengths in the broad spectrum
of families today, considering their diverse cultural orientation and socioeco-
nomic circumstances; and their varied and fluid structural arrangements, gen-
der roles, sexual orientation, and passage over the life course and across the
generations. Whereas sociological surveys of family demographics can track
population trends such as marriage and divorce, this volume is unique in its
focus on the interior of family life, examining shared belief systems, organi-
zational patterns, and communication/problem-solving processes. Chapters
describe how families navigate their life challenges and the transactional pro-
cesses that can enable them to thrive. Implications for clinical and community
practice are woven throughout.
The authors in this new edition are at the forefront of research, theory
building, and clinical training. They present the latest data, identify trends,
and offer useful frameworks to guide intervention and prevention efforts
to strengthen families. Part I critically examines assumptions about normal
families. Chapter 1 grounds the volume in a systemic framework, with eco-
logical and developmental perspectives on family processes, adaptation, and
resilience. A broad conceptualization of the family is inclusive of diverse
values and structures, varied household composition, and extended kinship
networks. Through a sociohistorical lens, emerging trends in couple and
family life are highlighted, revealing the challenges and vitality of today’s
families in adapting to their changing social, economic, and global environ-
ment. Chapter 2 examines clinical perspectives on “normal” (i.e., average)
and “healthy” (i.e., optimal) family functioning as they influence assessment
of family dysfunction and therapeutic goals. The shift in focus from fam-
ily deficits to family strengths and resilience in family therapy theory and
practice is described, with recommendations for clinical training, practice,
and research.
Parts II, III, and IV address the diversity and complexity of patterns in
family functioning relative to varied structural forms, life challenges, and
sociocultural and developmental contexts. Family risk, coping, adaptation,
and resilience are considered in relation to the interplay of intrafamilial and
environmental stressors. As the chapters demonstrate, some family patterns
and adaptive strategies may be more functional than others in mastering a
particular set of challenges—be it dual-earner families, stepfamily integra-
tion, transnational migration, or conditions of poverty, racism, or other forms
of discrimination. Drawing on research and clinical experience, three ques-
tions frame the discussion:
1. What are the “normal” (i.e., common, expectable) family challenges
and adaptive strategies under various conditions or stressors?
xii Preface (2012)
2. Can we identify key family processes that enable coping and mas-
tery of challenges (e.g., in successful single-parent families; in resil-
ient postdivorce families; among people with serious illness or disabil-
ity)?
3. How can scholarly findings and insights inform clinical practice?
Part II, “Varying Family Forms and Challenges,” includes topics such as
interactional patterns in successful couple relationships, by Janice Driver and
Gottman research colleagues; navigating work and family challenges in dual-
earner families, by Peter Fraenkel and Carrie Capstick; risk and resilience
after divorce, by Shannon M. Greene and research colleagues; single-parent
households, by Carol M. Anderson; remarriage and stepfamily life, by Kay
Pasley and Chelsea Garneau; gay and lesbian family life, by Robert-Jay Green;
kinship care, by Malitta Engstrom; and adoptive families, by Cheryl Rampage
and colleagues. In Part III, “Cultural Dimensions in Family Functioning,”
the topics include culture and concepts of normality, by Monica McGoldrick
and Deidre Ashton; race, class, and poverty, by Nancy Boyd-Franklin and
Melanie Karger; immigrant family processes, by Celia Jaes Falicov; changing
gender norms, by Carmen Knudson-Martin; and the spiritual dimension of
family life, by Froma Walsh. Part IV, “Developmental Perspectives on Family
Functioning,” includes topics such as the family life cycle, by Monica McGol-
drick and Tazuko Shibusawa; family resilience, by Froma Walsh; normative
family transitions, couple relationship quality, and healthy child development,
by Philip A. Cowan and Carolyn Pape Cowan; family challenges with illness,
disability, and genetic conditions, by John S. Rolland; and the value of rituals
in family and community life, by Evan Imber-Black.
In Part V, “Advancing Family Systems Research and Practice,” Jay Lebow
and Catherine B. Stroud survey the state-of-the-science in assessment of couple
and family functioning. The concluding two chapters affirm the importance of
a biopsychosocial systems orientation in family research, theory, and practice.
Erica L. Spotts examines gene–environment interplay and family processes
and Mona DeKoven Fishbane addresses neurobiology and family processes.
This volume is designed to serve as a core textbook for clinical training
and practice in psychology, social work, marriage and family therapy, coun-
seling, psychiatry, and nursing; as a sourcebook for practitioners in a wide
range of mental health, healthcare, and human service professions; for schol-
ars and students in the social sciences; and for those formulating family policy
in public and private arenas. It is intended as a resource for all who strive to
improve the quality of family life and the well-being of all family members
from the newborn to the eldest. The cutting-edge knowledge and perspectives
presented here, all by distinguished authors at the forefront of the field, can
inform and enrich intervention and prevention efforts, family research, social
policy, and community-based programs, shifting focus from how families fail
to how they can succeed.
Preface (2012) xiii
Acknowledgments
On behalf of all the authors, I would like to express our deep appreciation
to the families who have let us into their lives, informed our research, and
enriched our teaching and practice. We are also grateful to our loved ones and
close friends who support and encourage our endeavors and nourish our spir-
its. I want to thank the staff of The Guilford Press, particularly Senior Editor
Jim Nageotte and his assistant, Jane Keislar, for their valuable contributions
to this new edition. I also wish to thank Claire Whitney for her keen eye and
insightful feedback on chapters in this volume.
This new edition is dedicated to the everyday families who strive to do
their best and to care lovingly for one another, as they navigate the stressful
challenges of family life and weather the economic turmoil of our times.
Contents
Part I. OVERVIEW
Chapter 1. The New Normal: Diversity and Complexity 3
in 21st‑Century Families
Froma Walsh
Chapter 2. Clinical Views of Family Normality, 28
Health, and Dysfunction:
From a Deficits to a Strengths Perspective
Froma Walsh
Part II. VARYING FAMILY FORMS AND CHALLENGES
Chapter 3. Couple Interaction in Happy 57
and Unhappy Marriages:
Gottman Laboratory Studies
Janice Driver, Amber Tabares, Alyson F. Shapiro,
and John M. Gottman
Chapter 4. Contemporary Two‑Parent Families: 78
Navigating Work and Family Challenges
Peter Fraenkel and Carrie Capstick
Chapter 5. Risk and Resilience after Divorce 102
Shannon M. Greene, Edward R. Anderson, Marion S. Forgatch,
David S. DeGarmo, and E. Mavis Hetherington
xiv
Contents xv
Chapter 6. The Diversity, Strengths, and Challenges 128
of Single‑Parent Households
Carol M. Anderson
Chapter 7. Remarriage and Stepfamily Life 149
Kay Pasley and Chelsea Garneau
Chapter 8. Gay and Lesbian Family Life: 172
Risk, Resilience, and Rising Expectations
Robert‑Jay Green
Chapter 9. Family Processes in Kinship Care 196
Malitta Engstrom
Chapter 10. Adoptive Families 222
Cheryl Rampage, Marina Eovaldi, Cassandra Ma,
Catherine Weigel Foy, Gina Miranda Samuels, and Leah Bloom
Part III. CULTURAL DIMENSIONS
IN FAMILY FUNCTIONING
Chapter 11. Culture: A Challenge to Concepts of Normality 249
Monica McGoldrick and Deidre Ashton
Chapter 12. Intersections of Race, Class, and Poverty: 273
Challenges and Resilience
in African American Families
Nancy Boyd‑Franklin and Melanie Karger
Chapter 13. Immigrant Family Processes: 297
A Multidimensional Framework
Celia Jaes Falicov
Chapter 14. Changing Gender Norms in Families and Society: 324
Toward Equality amid Complexities
Carmen Knudson‑Martin
Chapter 15. The Spiritual Dimension of Family Life 347
Froma Walsh
xvi Contents
Part IV. DEVELOPMENTAL PERSPECTIVES
ON FAMILY FUNCTIONING
Chapter 16. The Family Life Cycle 375
Monica McGoldrick and Tazuko Shibusawa
Chapter 17. Family Resilience: Strengths Forged through Adversity 399
Froma Walsh
Chapter 18. Normative Family Transitions, Couple Relationship 428
Quality, and Healthy Child Development
Philip A. Cowan and Carolyn Pape Cowan
Chapter 19. Mastering Family Challenges in Serious Illness 452
and Disability
John S. Rolland
Chapter 20. The Value of Rituals in Family Life 483
Evan Imber‑Black
Part V. ADVANCING FAMILY SYSTEMS RESEARCH
AND PRACTICE
Chapter 21. Assessment of Effective Couple 501
and Family Functioning:
Prevailing Models and Instruments
Jay Lebow and Catherine B. Stroud
Chapter 22. Unraveling the Complexity 529
of Gene–Environment Interplay
and Family Processes
Erica L. Spotts
Chapter 23. Neurobiology and Family Processes 553
Mona DeKoven Fishbane
Index 575
Pa r t I
OVERVIEW
Chapter 1
The New Normal
Diversity and Complexity
in 21st‑Century Families
Froma Walsh
All happy families are alike; every unhappy family
is unhappy in its own way.
—Tolstoy
All happy families are more or less dissimilar;
all unhappy ones are more or less alike.
—Nabokov
F amilies and the world around them have changed dramatically over recent
decades. Many traditionalists, sharing Tolstoy’s view, have contended that
families must conform to one model—fitting a cultural standard of “the nor-
mal family”—to be happy and raise children well. As families have become
increasingly varied over a lengthening life course, our conceptions of normal-
ity must be examined and our very definition of “family” must be expanded
to encompass a broad spectrum and fluid reshaping of relational and house-
hold patterns. This is the “new normal.” Supporting Nabokov’s view of happy
families, a substantial body of research attests to the potential for healthy
functioning and well-being in a variety of family arrangements. In our turbu-
lent times, family bonds are more vital than ever. It is important to understand
the challenges families face and the family processes that can enable them to
thrive.
This overview chapter seeks to advance our knowledge of the diversity
and complexity of contemporary families. First, we consider the social con-
struction of family normality and clarify four major perspectives from the
clinical field and the social sciences. The value of a systems orientation is
highlighted, to understand “normal” family processes in terms of average and
optimal family functioning. Next, a sociohistorical lens is used to survey the
3
4 OVERVIEW
emerging trends and challenges for today’s families. Chapter 2 then examines
the influence of assumptions about family normality and dysfunction in clini-
cal training and practice.
What Is a Normal Family?
The Social Construction of Normality
Clinicians and family scholars have become increasingly aware that defini-
tions of normality are socially constructed, influenced by subjective world-
views and by the larger culture (Hoffman, 1990). Most influential theory and
research on the family were developed by white, middle-class scholars and
professionals, predominantly male, and from a Euro-A merican cultural per-
spective. Family therapists have become wary of the term “normal,” taking to
heart Foucault’s (1980) criticism that too often in history, theories of normal-
ity have been constructed by dominant groups, reified by religion or science,
and used to pathologize those who do not fit prescribed standards. Notions of
normality sanction and privilege certain family arrangements while stigmatiz-
ing and marginalizing others.
The very concept of the family has been undergoing redefinition as pro-
found social, economic, and political changes of recent decades have altered
the landscape of family life (Coontz, 1997). Amid the turmoil, individuals
and their loved ones have been forging new and varied relationship patterns
within and across households as they strive to build caring and committed
bonds. These efforts are made more difficult by questions about their nor-
mality. Our understanding of family functioning—from healthy to average to
dysfunctional—must take into account these challenges and changes in family
life in our changing world.
Although some might argue that the growing diversity and complexity
of families make it impossible or unwise even to address the topic of normal-
ity, the very subjectivity of constructions of “the normal family” makes it
all the more imperative. They powerfully influence all clinical theory, prac-
tice, research, and policy. It is crucial to be aware of the explicit and implicit
assumptions and biases about normal families that are embedded in our cul-
tural, professional, and personal belief systems.
Varied Conceptions of Family Normality
Defining family normality is problematic in that the term “normal” is used to
refer to quite different concepts and is influenced by the subjective position of
the observer and the surrounding culture. The label may hold quite different
meanings to a clinician, a researcher, or a family concerned about its own nor-
mality. Our language confounds understanding when such terms as “healthy,”
“typical,” and “functional” are used interchangeably with the label “normal.”
In an overview of concepts of mental health in the clinical and social science
The New Normal 5
literature, Offer and Sabshin (1974) were struck by the varied definitions of a
“normal” person. Building on their synthesis of views of individual normal-
ity, four perspectives can be usefully distinguished to clarify conceptions of a
normal family: (1) normal as problem-free (asymptomatic); (2) normal as aver-
age; (3) normal as healthy; and (4) normal in relation to basic transactional
processes in family systems.
Normal Families as Problem‑Free
From this clinical perspective grounded in the medical/psychiatric model,
the judgment of normality is based on a negative criterion: the absence of
pathology. A family would be regarded as normal—and healthy—if members
and their relationships are asymptomatic. This perspective is limited by its
deficit-based skew, focused on symptoms of distress and severity of problems,
and inattention to positive attributes of family well-being. Healthy family
functioning involves more than the absence of problems and can be found in
the midst of problems, as in family resilience (Walsh, 2003; see also Walsh,
Chapter 17, this volume). As Minuchin (1974) has emphasized, no families
are problem-free; all families face ordinary problems in living. Thus, the pres-
ence of distress is not necessarily an indication of family pathology. Similarly,
freedom from symptoms is rare: As Kleinman (1988) reported, at any given
time, three out of four persons are “symptomatic,” experiencing some physi-
cal or psychological distress. Most define it as part of normal life and do not
seek treatment.
Further problems arise when therapy is used as the marker for family
dysfunction, as in research comparing clinical and nonclinical families as dis-
turbed and normal samples. “Nonclinical” families are a heterogeneous group
spanning the entire range of functioning. What is defined as a problem, and
whether help is sought, varies with different family and cultural norms. Wor-
risome conflict in one family might be considered a healthy airing of differ-
ences in another. Distressed families most often attempt to handle problems
on their own, more frequently turning to their kin or spiritual resources than
to mental health services (Walsh, 2009d). Moreover, as mental health profes-
sionals would avow, seeking help can be a sign of health.
Normal Families as Average
From this perspective, a family is viewed as normal if it fits patterns that are
common or expectable in ordinary families. This approach disengages the
concept of normality from health and absence of symptoms. Since stressful
challenges are part of everyday life, family problems or distress would not nec-
essarily signal family abnormality or pathology. Yet family patterns that are
common are not necessarily healthy; some, such as violence, are destructive.
Social scientists have traditionally used statistical measures of frequency
or central tendency in the “normal distribution,” or bell-shaped curve, with
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Par by: Ezek. i. 4. Acts ii. 4. 72 Lhe Holy Spirit in the New
Testament the vision of Ezekiel by the river Chebar’.. Yet there was a
new feature in the fire of Pentecost, for which the Old Testament
had no precedent, the distribution of the tongues of flame, and the
settling of one of them on each individual in the assembly’. The
distribution of the sacred fire evidently pointed to the truth that the
Paraclete had come to dwell not only with the society as a whole,
nor only with the officers of the society, but with all its members. As
for the tongue-like form of the flames, events led to their being
interpreted as emblems of new powers of utterance bestowed upon
believers by the Spirit of Christ. Zhey were all filled with Floly Spirit’,
and began to speak with other (ἑτέραις) tongues’, according as the
Spirit gave them to utter (ἀποφθέγγεσθαι). This power, whatever it
was, was an immediate proof, both to themselves and to all
Jerusalem, that they were under the influence of a new force, which
they knew to be the promised Paraclete. There is no historical
statement in the New Testament which is more difficult to interpret
than St Luke’s account of the Pentecostal gift of tongues. It is
scarcely possible, without abandoning the * In the last two cases the
fire follows or is accompanied by wind. * With διαμεριζόμεναι
compare Heb. ii. 4 πνεύματος ἁγίου μερισμοῖς ; and with ἐκάθισεν
ἐφ᾽ ἕνα ἕκαστον, 1 Cor. xil. 4 ff. διαιρέσεις δὲ χαρισμάτων εἰσίν...
ἑκάστῳ δὲ δίδοται ἡ φανέρωσις. * See ἢ. 13, note 1. pte δὴ xiv. oe
(isa: xavan. 11) Mee? evi a Ss has γλώσσαις λαλήσουσιν καιναῖς, but
Kawais is omitted by good MSS. (C*LAW),
The Pentecostal Outpouring of the Spirit 73 natural
meaning of the words, to escape from the conclusion that the
historian represents the gift as meeting the needs of a polyglott
multitude. But to what extent was the multitude polyglott ? Could
not every one in the crowd, whether Jew or proselyte, have
understood either a dialect of Aramaic or the colloquial Greek which
was spoken everywhere in the basin of the Mediterranean’? Are we
to understand that the newly baptized brotherhood found
themselves able with quickened powers of utterance to use either
Aramaic or Greek, so that they could reach the whole of the pilgrims
both from East and West? In what language was St Peter’s long
speech delivered, or was it delivered first in one language, and then
in another? It is clear that the difficulties of the narrative are not
altogether removed by supposing, as the Christian student has the
right to suppose, that a unique miracle was wrought to signalize the
coming of the Paraclete. To regard the gift of tongues, as many of
the Fathers of the Church did, as having answered the wider
purpose of qualifying the Apostles and other early missionaries for
their work of evangelizing the world is scarcely possible“ It 21s. ἠδ,
ol. fhe cleatest: Sions' ΟἹ a Divine preparation of the world for the
Gospel that the command to preach it everywhere came at a time
when one language gave access to almost every nation in the
Roman world. The various peoples to whom the missionaries of the
Cross were sent were scarcely more polyglott than the crowds
present * This point is well put in Hastings’ D. B. Iv. 795. Part I. v.
Part ον: Acts ii. 5 ff. Acts ii. 7 (ἐθαύμαζον). Acts 11.012
(διαχλευάζοντες... Τλεύκους μεμεστωμένοι εἰσίν). ων 74 The Holy
Spirit in the New Testament at Jerusalem on the day of Pentecost,
nor is there any evidence that the gift of tongues, so far as it
continued in exercise, was actually used for the purpose of
preaching to the heathen. Thus the purpose of the miracle, if it is to
be regarded in that light, was not to lighten the labour of the
Christian missionary, but to call attention at the first outset to the
advent of the Paraclete, to demonstrate the reality of the heavenly
gift, and to symbolize the vanishing of racial distinctions before the
progress of a catholic Church. Whatever may be the true explanation
of the Pentecostal gift of tongues regarded as a historical fact, its
spiritual significance is best understood when it is placed in the light
of such considerations as these. 4. At the sound of the roaring wind’,
the crowd gathered quickly round the brethren who meantime seem
to have entered the Temple Court. When they heard themselves
addressed in their several tongues by these men of Galilee their first
feeling was one of perplexed amazement, which in some of the
baser sort presently gave place to ribaldry : they are filled, some
shouted, wth sweet wine*. While to the devout the utterances of the
brethren were revelations of the mighty works of God, those who
had no spiritual capacity heard nothing but the confused *
yevopevns...77s φωνῆς ταύτης: A.V. “when this was noised abroad,”
as if φωνῆς were φήμης ; cf. Vulg. “ facta...hac voce.” The φωνή
seems to be that of the ἦχος πνοῆς φερομένης (v. 2). ἡ Τλεῦκος is
properly the juice fresh from the grape (Vulg. musto). The word
suggests that the speakers professed to be reminded of the shouts
and songs and revelry of the vintage.
The Pentecostal Outpouring of the Spirit 75 noise which
might come from half-intoxicated revellers. St Peter, ever ready to
act, and now prompted by the Spirit, accepted the challenge and
poured out a flood of inspired eloquence. ‘There was another
explanation to be given of the miracle they had witnessed, and it
could be found in the book of the prophet Joel. The last days
foreseen by the prophet had come at last, the gift of the Spirit was
no longer limited to a few chosen servants of God; henceforth it was
for all the Lorad’s people, for young and old, for women as well as
for men, for the servant as well as for the master. Your sons and
your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams,
your young men shall see vistons ; and also upon the servants and
upon the handmaids in those days will 7 pour out my Spirit. So Joel
had foretold, and that day they had witnessed the beginning of this
great effusion of spiritual power and life, the dawn of the great and
glorious’ day of the Lord when all who called on the name of the
God of Israel should be saved.’ Neither the Prophet nor the Apostle
who quoted him could have seen all that was implied in this
prophecy, or how it would work itself out in the history of the
Church. In the thought of both, αὐ fiesh seems to have borne the
narrow sense ‘all Israelites and all proselytes to the religion of Israel
from among the Gentiles. Yet the Apostle can already see further
than the pre-Christian prophet ; 1 ἐπιφανῆ, Heb. δὲ), ‘aweful’: the
whole phrase occurs again in Mal. iii. 23=iv. 4 (Heb. and LXX.). Part
I. v. Acts ii. 14 (ἀπεφθέγEaro; cf. v. 4 (ἀποφθέγyer Oat). Joel ii. 28.
Π: ΞΞ τ᾿ ΤΠ Heb.), Numb. xi. 29. Actsit, 174, Acts ii. 20.
Parti vy, Acts ii. got 30. Cf. Acts i. 6. Acts i. 14 (σταθεὶς δὲ ὁ
Πέτρος σὺν τοῖς ἕν δεκα). 76 The Holy Spirit in the New Testament
‘afterwards’ becomes in his interpretation zz the last days’, and by
these he understands the Messianic age, which he recognizes as
already begun. The discourse of St Peter, as reported by St Luke’, isa
witness to the reality of the spiritual crisis through which the speaker
had passed. It is evident that if it truly represents the substance of
what St Peter said, as there is good reason to suppose that it does,
the Apostle had ‘received power’ from some new source. The Peter
of the Day of Pentecost is a new man, far other than the Peter of the
Passover; his words shew not only the freedom of speech
(παρρησία) which was characteristic of this Apostle, but a blending
of courage, wisdom, and skill which we do not associate with him as
he appears in the Gospels, and an insight into the work of the
Messiah and the nature of His Kingdom such as even to the last day
of the Lord’s stay upon earth was certainly beyond his reach*, And
in courage and general understanding of the new situation Peter was
not alone; the whole company of believers was filled with the same
spirit ; the rest of the Twelve stood up with him, identifying
themselves with his words. From that day forward a new strength,
which was not their own, marked all * Acts i. 17 ἐν tats ἐσχάταις
ἡμέραις. In Joel ii. 28 (=i. 1) the Heb. is simply 2-8 (LXX. μετὰ
ταῦτα). * On the trustworthiness of the reports of St Peter’s
speeches in the Acts see Bp Chase’s third Hulsean Lecture
(Credibiiity, p- t22 it.) * The question in Acts i. 6 is attributed to the
Eleven, but Peter is doubtless their spokesman; the voice is the voice
of Simon son of John.
The Pentecostal Outpouring of the Spirit 77 the sayings and
deeds of the Apostolic Church. It is in this great change of mental
and spiritual attitude rather than in the external signs of wind and
fire or in strange powers of utterance that we recognize the supreme
miracle of the day of Pentecost. After his quotation from Joel, St
Peter twice again refers to the coming of the Spirit, and each of
these references increases our sense of his grasp of the significance
of that great event. In the first place he boldly connects it with the
Ascension of Part I. v. Acts iv. 13, LO; a05v, aof., 41 f. Jesus Christ.
Having been by the right hand of Actsii. 33. God lifted up, and
having recewed from the Father the promise of the Floly Spirit, he
poured forth’ this which ye both see and hear. ‘The visible and
audible manifestations of Pentecost were the lowest links in a chain
which reached from heaven to earth ; the furthest streams of a river
which was welling out from the Throne of God. They indicated the
‘presence of the Spirit in the Church, but ‘the presence of the Spirit
was the fulfilment of a Divine promise that could not find its
accomplishment until the Son of Man had been glorified. If this was
in the Apostle’s mind, whence could he have learnt it except from
the last discourse of the Lord, which the Spirit of Christ brought back
to his memory and enabled him for the first time to understand? He
now saw that the Pentecostal outpouring was direct evidence that
Jesus was with the Father ; it was the ripe fruit of the Passion and
the Resurrection 1 Ἐξέχεεν is Joel’s word (ii. 28, LXX. ἐκχεῶ). Cf.
Acts x. 45, Rom. vy. 5, Tit. ili. 6. Cf. Apoc. ΧΙ τὶ Cf. Jo. xiv. 26.
Part is Vv, Actsii. 38f. See Acts Say ἘΠ, 78 The Holy Spirit in
the New Testament consummated and crowned by His Ascension
into heaven. This great gift had come from the hands of the exalted
Christ; He had poured it out, and the invisible act had been
proclaimed by visible and audible tokens. But the Apostle goes
further. All who heard him, Jews or proselytes, might themselves
experience the power of the Spirit. Repent, and let each one of you
be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ unto remission of your sins,
and you shall recewve the gift of the Holy Spirit, for to you ts the
promise and to your children’, and to all who are afar, as many as
the Lord our God shall call to himself’. St Peter sees that to Israelites
and proselytes the only conditions necessary for their participation in
the Spirit are repentance and faith expressed by the receiving of
baptism in the name of Jesus Christ. The baptized would in all cases
obtain the promised gift. But his words must not be made to bear a
meaning which could not as yet have been present to his mind. It is
clear from the subsequent chapters of the Acts that years passed
before he realized that baptism with its attendant gifts of remission
and the Spirit could be given to the uncircumcised Gentile. The
Pentecostal outpouring of the Spirit did not at once illuminate every
corner of the understanding, or solve problems for which a solution
could be gained by experience; but it had already thrown a 1 Cf. Ps.
Sol. vill. 39 ἡμῖν καὶ τοῖς τέκνοις ἡμῶν ἡ εὐδοκία εἰς TOV αἰῶνα. ΤΘΘ
6, Joell. 32) ΓΞ ΝΕ 1G,
The Pentecostal Outpouring of the Spirit 79 broad path of
light across the darkness, and the day of a fuller knowledge had
dawned. 5. St Luke does not say that the three thousand who were
baptized that day received the gift of the Spirit immediately, or that
they spake with tongues as the original company of believers had
done when: the: Spirit “came “to: then = Yet his account of the life
upon which they entered shews that they were at once animated by
a new spirit which was a greater and more permanent manifestation
of the Spirit of Christ. The Pentecostal outpouring of the Holy Spirit
was far more than a miraculous display of spiritual power, intended
to arrest attention and invite enquiry into the new faith. It was the
beginning of a new era: an advent of the Spirit, as the Incarnation
was the advent of the Son. Not as though either the Son or the
Spirit had been absent from the world before the Advent. Each
coming was a new manifestation, and the beginning of a new
mission. God sent forth his Son, and when the mission of the Son
had been fulfilled, He sent forth the Spirit of his Son to take up the
work under new conditions. The Pentecost inaugurated this second
Divine Mission. But the mission was greater and more far-reaching
than the wonders of the Pentecost might suggest. The Spirit was to
find a still more excellent way of revealing His presence and power
than by the rushing wind and selfdistributing tongues of fire, or the
seeing of visions, the dreaming of dreams, the gift of tongues and
Fart Ly vo (rally. 2) 6. Tr (or, Sis aT;
Part lb. ¥: Acts ll. 42 —4780 The Holy Spirit in the New
Testament prophecy. The closing verses of the second chapter of the
Acts, with their picture of the simple, joyful, strenuous life of the
newly baptized in the days that followed the Pentecost, reveal even
more than the miracles of the Pentecost itself the nature of the
Power which had come to dwell with the Church.
NI. THE LIFE OF THE EARLY PALESTINIAN CHURCH. Lh 5 \
2 7 Τότε Πέτρος πλησθεὶς πνεύματος ἁγίου εἶπεν πρὸς αὐτούς ΧᾺ a
an \ v4 PXOVTES τοῦ λαοῦ Kai πρεσβύτεροι KTH. \ , 2 A 9 7 ς , ‘5 ®
5 Καὶ δεηθέντων αὐτῶν ἐσαλεύθη ὁ τόπος ἐν ᾧ ἦσαν A \ A ee A 7
συνηγμένοι, καὶ ἐπλήσθησαν aTavTes τοῦ ἁγίου πνεύματος, \ 2 / ν᾽ A
A rn \ tf na \ Kal ἐλάλουν τὸν λόγον τοῦ θεοῦ μετὰ παρρησίας. τοῦ
δὲ 7 A 7 3 7ὕ \ \ / \ πλήθους TOV πιστευσάντων ἦν καρδία Kal ψυχὴ
μία...καὶ Xx e / n δυνάμει μεγάλῃ ἀπεδίδουν τὸ μαρτύριον οἱ
ἀπόστολοι τοῦ 5 na an 5 κυρίου ᾿Ιησοῦ τῆς ἀναστάσεως, χάρις τε
μεγάλη Hy ἐπὶ Σ 4 πάντας αὐτούς. >) Ay ¢ A / Iwond δὲ ὁ ἐπικληθεὶς
BapvaBas ἀπὸ τῶν ἀποστόλων, Ὁ 5 if \ 7 ὃ ἐστιν μεθερμηνευόμενον
Tios παρακλήσεως κτλ. x La 7] ς n \ / Ch / Διὰ τί ἐπλήρωσεν ὁ
σατανᾶς THY καρδίαν σου Wevtcacbai \ a A ’ > 7 > ,7ὔ > \ A σε TO
πνεῦμα TO ἅγιον ;...0UK ἐψεύσω ἀνθρώποις ἀλλὰ τῷ An “ al \ ἴω /
θεῴ....τί ὅτι συνεφωνήθη ὑμῖν πειράσαι τὸ πνεῦμα Κυρίου ; \ an an \
‘ Kai ἡμεῖς ἐσμὲν μάρτυρες τῶν ῥημάτων τούτων, Kal TO fa) \ ih rn
nr A πνεῦμα TO ἅγιον ὃ ἔδωκεν ὁ θεὸς τοῖς πειθαρχοῦσιν αὐτῷ. 5 5
7 7 nr 3 ᾿πισκέψασθε δέ, ἀδελφοί, ἄνδρας ἐξ ὑμῶν μαρτυρουμένους
e / / 7 \ / Ν 2 7 7 ἑπτά, πλήρεις πνεύματος καὶ σοφίας... καὶ
ἐξελέξαντο Yrév 7] if: φανον, ἄνδρα πλήρη πίστεως καὶ πνεύματος
ἁγίου.. Στέφανος \ / 7 Ν “ δὲ πλήρης χάριτος καὶ δυνάμεως ἐποίει
τέρατα καὶ σημεῖα / n A n aA ’ & \ μεγάλα ἐν τῷ λαῷ...καὶ οὐκ ἴσχυον
ἀντιστῆναι TH σοφίᾳ Kal A ' Δ / τῷ πνεύματι ᾧ ἐλάλει. «ς n 322% a
s A ς , ’ 7 e ¢ Ὑμεῖς ἀεὶ τῷ πνεύματι TO ἁγίῳ avTiTimTEeTEe’ ὡς οἱ /
ς A \ an πατέρες ὑμῶν καὶ ὑμεῖς. 5: Heo: . 6 Acts iv. 8. Acts iv. ar a.
Acts iv. 36. Acts v.31. 9. Picts Ne 32. Acts vi. 3 ff. Acts vi. 5. Acts vi.
8. Acts vi. Io. Acts vii. ae
Part I. vi. Acts vii. 55. Acts viii. 15---20. Acts viii. 29, 39.
Acts 1x. 17. Acts ix. 31. Acts x. 19, 345 38, 44 —47 (cf. xi. 15 ff;).
Acts xi. 27 ΤΟΙ χα, ἢ, 10). Actsxv. 28. 82 The Holy Spirit in the New
Testament ς A \ Ld f. € , 3 / 3 \ Trrapyov δὲ πλήρης πνεύματος
ἁγίου, ἀτενίσας εἰς TOV > \ i) 60 θ a \ A a ¢€ a > ὃ la a οὐρανὸν
εἶδεν δόξαν θεοῦ καὶ ᾿Ιησοῦν ἑστῶτα ἐκ δεξιῶν τοῦ εοῦ. 7 \ >) a “ /
a er IIpoonvEavto περὶ αὐτῶν ὅπως λάβωσιν πνεῦμα ἅγιον" ᾽ ’ ’ a UA
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/ a / 3 a βεβαπτισμένοι ὑπῆρχον εἰς TO ὄνομα τοῦ κυρίου ‘Inaod. Uj
Ν a i \ UZ A τότε ἐπετίθεσαν τὰς χεῖρας ἐπ᾽ αὐτούς, Kal ἐλάμβανον
πνεῦμα ,“ ION Ve 7ὔ “ \ an 2 (2 A a A ἅγιον. ἰδὼν δὲ ὁ Σίμων ὅτι διὰ
τῆς ἐπιθέσεως τῶν χειρῶν TOV \ Cola t ’ a / ἀποστόλων δίδοται TO
πνεῦμα, προσήνεγκεν αὐτοῖς χρήματα id 4 2 ΝΥ \ 3 ᾿ ! 7, 5 3. 2 θ
fon) λέγων Δότε καμοὶ τὴν ἐξουσίαν ταύτην, va @ ἐὰν ἐπίθω a a / \
be BY Tas χεῖρας λαμβάνῃ πνεῦμα ἅγιον. Lértpos δὲ εἶπεν πρὸς A > 3
΄ “4 Ν αὐτὸν Τὸ ἀργύριόν σου σὺν σοὶ εἴη εἰς ἀπώλειαν, ὅτι τὴν la a
i / na δωρεὰν Tod θεοῦ ἐνόμισας διὰ χρημάτων κτᾶσθαι. 9 Ν \ a A ἢ
Εἶπεν δὲ τὸ πνεῦμα τῷ Φιλίππῳ κτλ. a 7 f Πνεῦμα Κυρίου ἥρπασεν
τὸν Φίλιππον. > na SaaS , an Απῆλθεν δὲ “Avavias καὶ εἰσῆλθεν εἰς
τὴν οἰκίαν, καὶ 3 Ν 3 >) 3 ἃ x lal 3 \ > / ς / ἐπιθεὶς ἐπ’ αὐτὸν τὰς
χεῖρας εἶπεν Σαοὺλ ἀδελφέ, ὁ κύριος 3 / / “ > / \ A tf ἀπέσταλκέν
με.. ὅπως avaBr ys καὶ πλησθῆς πνεύματος ἁγίου. τ \ a / 7, H μὲν
οὖν ἐκκλησία καθ᾽ ὅλης THs ᾿Ιουδαίας καὶ 1᾿αλιλαίας Ν / , A t a , \ A
καὶ Σαμαρίας...πορευομένη τῷ φόβῳ τοῦ κυρίου καὶ TH / Ae ae 7 Ie ’
, παρακλήσει τοῦ ἁγίου πνεύματος ἐπληθύνετο. a Ἂς lA nr € Tod δὲ
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αὐτὸν ὁ θεὸς πνεύματι ἁγίῳ Kal δυνάμει...ἔτε λαλοῦντος τοῦ / 7 x an
¢ (¢ ΠΠέτρου...ἐπέπεσε TO πνεῦμα TO ἅγιον ἐπὶ πάντας τοὺς > i x A
\ lol ry ἀκούοντας τὸν λόγον. καὶ ἐξέστησαν οἱ ἐκ περιτομῆς...ὅτι ΝΣ
ΔΨ i a A i καὶ ἐπὶ τὰ ἔθνη ἡ δωρεὰ τοῦ πνεύματος τοῦ ἁγίου
EKKEYUTAL bd Ν 3 a Uj U ἤκουον Yap αὐτῶν λαλούντων γλώσσαις
καὶ μεγαλυνόντων ᾿ , A Uh τὸν θεόν. τότε ἀπεκρίθη Ἰ]έτρος Μήτι τὸ
ὕδωρ δύναται a) Zz rn \ lal , n κωλῦσαί τις TOD μὴ βαπτισθῆναι
τούτους οἵτινες TO πνεῦμα ΔΎ τὰ 7 ¢ a TO ἅγιον ἔλαβον ws Kal
ἡμεῖς ; “ > \ ᾽ \ ip] Κατῆλθον ἀπὸ ᾿Ιερουσαλὴμ προφῆται εἰς
᾿Αντιόχειαν' 3 Ν δὲ Ἷ 5 9: a “τ ” 5] s ὃ \ a ἀναστᾶς δὲ εἷς ἐξ αὐτῶν
ὀνόματι ἔΑγαβος ἐσήμαινεν διὰ τοῦ / πνεύματος κτλ. “ES Ν A , wend
Z ΟΝ a οξεν yap τῷ πνεύματι τῷ ἁγίῳ καὶ ἡμῖν.
The life of the early Palestinian Church 83 Tue Day of
Pentecost was the beginning of a Divine economy which is to
continue to the end of the present age. The Paraclete had come to
stay. While the tokens of His coming, the wind and fire, were
momentary, and certain of His gifts ceased or were suspended after
a few generations, His own presence in the Christian brotherhood
was, from the Pentecost, permanent and assured. Yet the
manifestations of the Spirit were variable, and have varied in fact,
according to the requirements of periods, Churches, and individuals.
In the Acts we learn how the Spirit revealed itself in the experience
of the Apostolic age. The Book falls into two nearly equal parts, of
which the first shews us the Paraclete at work in the Churches of
Palestine, while the second relates the extension of His mission to
the Gentiles. 1. The Apostles in the power of the Spirit rose at once
to their new duties. They shewed themselves capable of teaching
and ruling the Church, and representing their Master in the face of
the world. ‘They instructed the newly baptized, wrought signs and
wonders in Jerusalem, proclaimed the Resurrection of Jesus and the
hope which it held forth to mankind; through their preaching
multitudes of men and women were added to the Church; even
among the Jewish priesthood the faith gained a crowd of adherents.
We cannot err in attributing ‘ Secret adherents, perhaps, like the
Sanhedrists Nicodemus and Joseph; under a Sadducean high-
priesthood they could scarcely have professed their faith openly, at
least in great numbers. 6—2 Part I. vi. Jo. xiv. 16. Cio Cor. xiii. 8.
Acts il. 2.1, ii: 6: ν. 12 ff. Acts iv. 7% 29. Acts v. 14. Acts vi. 7 (πολὺς
ὄχλος τῶν ἱερέων ὑπήκουον TH πίστει).
Part I. vi. Acts iv. 5 f. Acts iv. 13. Acts iv. 8. Me. xiii. τῆ: 84
The Holy Spirit in the New Testament to the Spirit of Christ this great
accession of strength. Moreover, these new powers were found to
endure the test of suffering. Quite early in the course of the history
we see Peter and John standing before the Sanhedrin, which was
still led by Annas and Caiaphas. A few weeks before the situation
would have filled them with alarm. Now the Apostles are fearless,
and speak with as much freedom’ and conviction as if they were
addressing a Temple crowd. It was borne in upon the assembly that
these disciples were animated by the same spirit which had
characterized the Master; they had been with Him so long that they
had caught His manner, and inherited the independence, the
directness, the incisiveness. of His spirit.. But, in truth, ‘their
boldness was not due so much to their having been long in the
company of Jesus, as to His presence in them by. the Spirit.. -Peter,
as: St. Luke explains, was filled with Holy Spirit; the Lord was
fulfilling to him the promise to His disciples that when they stood
before rulers and kings for His sake, it should be ‘given them in that
hour what they should speak.’ Even as they stood before the Council
they could scarcely have failed to recall these words of Christ, or to
attribute their courage to its true source. But if they did, no doubt
could have been left when on their return to their own 1 Their
φόβος τῶν Ἰουδαίων (Jo. xx. 19) had given place to παρρησία. ‘This
setting loose of the tongue in the service of Christ and the Gospel is
one of the normal signs of the Spirit’s working ; cf. e.g. Ps. 11. 1315.
The life of the early Palestinian Church 85 company, as they
prayed for strength to persist in their witness to Jesus Christ, the
place τη which they were gathered together was shaken, and they
were all filled with the Hloly Spirit and continued to speak the word
of God with boldness. As the wind and fire had assured them of the
original coming of the Paraclete, so the earthquake’ spoke of His
continued presence in their midst, under new and threatening
conditions, and of His irresistible might. The Sanhedrin itself was
powerless in the grip of the spiritual force which had begun to shake
heaven and earth. For the presence and power of the Spirit were felt
not by the Apostles only, but by the whole Church. Reference has
been made to the new life which filled the Christian Society even in
the days that immediately followed the Pentecost. The sudden
addition of three thousand members to the little community might
easily have overtaxed its strength. The peace of the young Church
might have been at once imperilled by the conflict of interests
certain to arise in so large a clentéle of untaught members; many
who joined it in the excitement of Pentecost might have been
expected to fall away when they realized the demands which their
new faith made upon them. But none of these things happened; on
the contrary the newly baptized persevered in the teaching of the
Apostles and the ? The earthquake is a frequent symbol in the O.T.
of the presence and power of God. See Exod. xix. 18, 1 Kings xix.
11, Pss. xcvl. 9, cxiv. 7, Joel ili. 16. Part I. vi. Acts iv. 31. Heb. xii. 26
f. Acts li. 42.
86 The Holy Spirit in the New Testament Part I. vi.
fellowship of the body, zz the Breaking of the Bread Actsii. 46f. Acts
iv. 32. Acts ii. 44. Acts iv. 32 ff. Acts iv. 36 f. and the Prayers’; they
readily accepted the discipline of the Christian life. Believers were
known in those early days for their joyous, single-hearted piety, and
earned the good will of the whole population. The brotherhood was
marked by a unity of purpose such that it seemed to be moved by a
common life, and to have one heart and one soul. 2. This early
manifestation of the Spirit provoked after a time a counter-
manifestation of evil. The first outbreak of evil in the Church of
Jerusalem arose out of an excess of zeal which in itself was good.
From the first this Church had lived a common life, whether because
it was fired by the example of the Essenes, or (as is more probable)
in imitation of the first disciples of the Lord during the days of the
Ministry. It would seem as if with the fresh illapse of spiritual power
recorded in Acts iv. 31, the first enthusiasm for this life revived, and
believers who still owned property in lands or houses began to strip
themselves of it and devote the proceeds to the good of the
community. Among those who did so was one Joseph, a Hellenistic
Levite from Cyprus, to whom the Apostles, following the example of
the Master, had given the descriptive surname Barnabas, interpreted
by St Luke as Sox of Paractests*. The act of Joseph Barnabas was ᾿
Ταῖς προσευχαῖς : “in templo maxime ” (Blass). * The meaning of
Barnabas is not certain, see Dalman, Gramm. a. Aramatsch, p. 142,
and Deissmann, Bzdle Studies, Ὁ. 307 ff. The gift of παράκλησις is
connected with the Holy Spirit (Acts ix. 31), and with the office of
the prophet (1 Cor. xiv. 3).
The life of the early Palestinian Church 87 the simple
outcome of the inner life of the spirit of Part I. vi. unselfish love. But
there were some whose motives were less pure, and two of the
converts, a man and his wife, agreed upon a plan which seemed to
promise them a high place in the esteem of their fellow-believers
without a corresponding’ sacrifice. The man presented part of the
price of the land which he had sold as if it had been the whole, and
his wife, when questioned, told the same tale. ‘This insincerity,
worthy of the Pharisaic ‘hypocrites,’ met with a punishment that once
for all vindicated in the eyes of the Church the awefulness of the gift
which it had received. Ananias had suffered Satan to fill a heart
which ought to have been full of the Spirit of God. He and his wife
had, at the suggestion of the evil spirit, attempted to decezve the
Holy Spirit, to lie not to men, to Peter and John or to the whole
brotherhood, du¢ to God’. They had dared to ¢empt the Spirit of the
Lord, to put to the trial His power to detect and to punish. It was a
sex unto death, although it may be hoped that the loss of temporal
life did not in this instance carry with it the infinite penalty of the
second death. But in any case the impression produced was great
and salutary: great fear came upon the whole Church and upon all
that heard these things. \t was felt on all hands that if the coming of
the Spirit had transfigured and in a sense deified human life, it had
also invested it 1 Ψεύσασθαι τὸ πνεῦμα τὸ ἅγιον... οὐκ ἐψεύσω
ἀνθρώποις ἀλλὰ τῷ θεῷ. Blass: ““ψεύδεσθαί τινα γαζίογε... Ἐψεύσω
c. dat. ut λέγειν etc. revi.” Acts v. 9 (συνεφωνήθη ὑμῶν). Acts v. 3f
Acts 3ve.9 (πειράσαι τὸ πνεῦμα Κυρίου). I Jo. v. 6. Circ ar wo ΕΣ 30
ff. Ἀρέθιν. ΤῊΣ
Part I. vi. Acts vi. I. Acts vi. 3. Acts vi. 2, 88 Lhe Holy Spirit
in the New Testament with a sacredness which could not be violated
without incurring the severest penalties. He that 2s near me, the
Lord is reported to have said, zs near the fire’; but after the
Pentecost the Church had the fire not near only but within her, and
there was a peril in the possession as well as infinite gain. 3. A
second trouble, which arose within the. Church perhaps shortly
afterwards, ended more happily. The internal peace of the Church,
hitherto unbroken, was threatened by a feeling of jealousy on the
part of the Hellenists towards their Aramaicspeaking brethren.
Before a rupture could occur the Apostles intervened, and the matter
which gave rise to complaint was placed in the hands of seven
persons chosen by the whole body and appointed by the Twelve with
prayer and laying on of hands. In selecting the Seven the Church
was charged by the Apostles to see that they were not only men of
approved life (μαρτυρουμένους), but full of spirit and wisdom. ‘his
provision is the more noteworthy because the duties of the Seven
were not directly spiritual ; it was their part to ‘“‘serve tables,” i.e. to
provide for the daily meals of the needy members of the community,
leaving the Apostles free for che work of prayer and the service of
the word, Yet 1 Ὁ ἐγγύς μου ἐγγὺς τοῦ πυρός (cited by Didymus on
Ps. lxxxviii. 8). The second half of the saying is less often quoted but
is necessary to its completeness: 6 δὲ μακρὰν am’ ἐμοῦ μακρὰν ἀπὸ
τῆς βασιλείας. There is danger either way, but most danger in
distance from Christ. * Τῇ διακονίᾳ tod λόγου, as contrasted with
the διακονία τῶν τραπεζῶν (UV. 2). SS EES er σῶον του GRR Rt τ a
ial A Bal ΣΡ Be.
The life of the early Palestinian Church 89 even in this
lower office the Seven had need of a full measure of the wisdom
which comes from the Spirit of God. It was realized that as Bezalel
and Oholiab needed to be filled with the Spirit when they undertook
the building of the Tabernacle, so even the more secular duties of
the Christian worker called for His inspiration, especially when they
had to do with the building of the Church. None of the Seven seems
to have so entirely and immediately answered to this requirement as
did Stephen. He is described as full of faith and Holy Spirit, full of
grace and power. When he spoke in the synagogue, men were
powerless to withstand the wisdom and the spirit with which he
spoke; when he was brought before the Sanhedrin, his face was as
the face of angel. In the last scene he is still full of Floly Spirit as in
the first; gazing into heaven in a spiritual ecstasy he saw God’s glory,
and Jesus standing on the right hand of God; his dying prayers are
echoes of the prayers of the Lord upon the cross. Nowhere in the
history of the Apostolic Church is there a more suggestive picture of
the character which is inspired by the Spirit of Christ— a character at
once strong and tender, forceful and spiritual. “Towards the end of
his defence Stephen spoke with a severity which perhaps exceeded
the bounds of prudence: Stzf/necked and uncircumcised zn hearts
and ears, you always resist the Foly Spirit ; as your fathers did, so
do you. \t is scarcely surprising that they would hear no more. But
with the uncompromising sternness of the Hebrew prophets Part I.
vi. Exod. ΧΧΧΊΣ -πται, XXxV. 30 ff. Acts vi. 5, 8: 1ἸῸ; ἘΡ' Acts vii. 55:
Acts vii. BE.
Part I. vi. Acts vii. Acts Vili. rai Ci Acts ας 8 (καὶ Σαμαρίᾳ).
Acts viii. 6 (οἱ ὄχλοι). Acts vi. 6. 90 Lhe Holy Spirit m the New
Testament he united the spirit of love, and fell asleep with the
prayer, Lord, lay not this sin to thetr charge. Yet until he was
brought into notice by the necessity of providing for the
administration of the daily dole, Stephen had been but one of the
rank and file of the Jerusalem Church, and there were doubtless
others who in like circumstances would have exhibited not less
conspicuously the power of the Spirit of Christ. 4. Another of the
Seven, Philip by name, approved himself as an evangelist or itinerant
preacher of the word. Driven from Jerusalem by the great
persecution which followed the martyrdom of Stephen’, Philip found
a refuge at the czty of Samarta—Sebaste seems to be meant*—and
set himself to witness there to the Lord Jesus. Signs of the Spirit’s
presence at once appeared; the crowds who thronged the streets
gave heed with one accord to his preaching ; miracles were wrought
; the word was received with joy; men and women flocked to
baptism. Yet there was no effusion of the Spirit on the baptized,
such as Philip had perhaps expected to follow. Something was
wanting which Philip could not supply, and the Apostles Peter and
John, who were still in Jerusalem, came down to inspect and confirm
Philip’s work. As it belonged to the Apostles to lay their 1 For the
time neither the ‘service of tables’ nor the ‘service of the word’ could
be carried on at Jerusalem ; the Church there was broken up, only
the Apostles remaining at their posts (Acts Vill. 1). * Reading τὴν
πόλιν with SBA.
The life of the early Palestinian Church 91 hands with
prayer on the Seven, so now these two Apostles prayed for Philip’s
converts that they might receive Loly Spirit, and lard their hands on
them, and the simple ceremony’ was accompanied by the Heavenly
Gift; one after another? they received floly Spirit. So the admission
of the Samaritan converts to the full privileges of the Church was
ratified, and another step was taken towards the pouring out of the
Spirit upon all flesh. At Samaria as at Jerusalem the Spirit’s coming
was attested by signs which could not be misunderstood. Even
Simon the sorcerer saw that through laying on of the Apostles hands
the Spirit was being given. But his unspiritual mind misinterpreted
the fact. He supposed that these two men who had come from
Jerusalem possessed a magical power unknown to himself, and he
made overtures to them to sell him their secret. But the laying on of
hands and the prayer which accompanied it possessed no magical
efficacy which could be bought or sold. Τὴν silver go with thee to
destruction, is the white-hot answer of Peter, decause thou
thoughtest to purchase Jor thyself with money that which rs the gift
of God. Yet if the Apostolic laying on of hands was a merely
symbolical act which possessed no magical * On the Biblical
references to ‘laying on of hands’ see the writer’s article in Hastings’
D. B. 11. 184 f., and cf. Enc. Bibl. 1956. 2 "EAdpBavov, not ἔλαβον.
Dr Hort explains this imperfect differently, Zcclesta, p. 55: “that is,
shewed a succession of signs of the Spirit.” But, ἐλάμβανον
corresponds to ἐπετίθεσαν : as each in turn received the imposition
of hands he received also the gift of the Spirit. Part T::¥1; Acts viii.
raf. Joel ii. 28. Acts vili, 20.
Part I. vi. Acts xix. 6. Heb. vi. 2. Acts viii. 26. 92 The Holy
Spirit in the New Lestament virtue, it was a ministry with which God
was pleased to connect spiritual gifts. Whether it had been
employed from the day of Pentecost itself, or whether it had its
beginning with the new departure by which the work of the Church
was extended to Samaria, there is no evidence to shew. We know
only that it was used afterwards by St Paul, at least on one notable
occasion, and that then also it conveyed the Holy Spirit ; and that
the writer to the Hebrews seems to give it a place, after the teaching
of baptisms, among the first principles of Christ. It is a natural if
nota necessary inference that the Laying on of Hands became the
ordinary complement of Baptism both in the Jewish and the Gentile
churches of the Apostolic age, and was the means of imparting to
the baptized certain spiritual gifts over and above the new birth by
which they passed at their baptism into the life of faith. To return to
Philip. As the book proceeds, he is more than once associated with
the operations of the Holy Spirit. After his return to Jerusalem an
angel directs him to go southwards along the road to Gaza. 72 ἐς
desert, the historian says; and whether he means the city or the
road to it’, the words suggest that the purpose of the mission was
not easy to grasp. But Philip obeyed, and presently a chariot was
heard approaching from behind. At once a voice within him which he
recognized as the voice of the Spirit bade him join the chariot. He
went, * The authorities for these divergent views are given by Dr
Knowling, ad Joc. οὐ a laa -.----.
The life of the early Palestinian Church 93 and the result
was the conversion and baptism of Part 1. vi. the Ethtopian Eunuch.
In Philip’s interview with the Eunuch we observe the same skill in
interpreting the Old Testament which marked the Apostles after the
coming of the Spirit. The passage which the Eunuch was reading
happened to be Isaiah liii., and Philip without hesitation degznning
from this Acts viii. scripture proclaimed to him the gospel of Jesus. It
eens may be that the Christian interpretation of this aan prophecy
was already familiar to Philip, for our Le. xxii. Lord had applied the
passage to Himself; but it *” is not quoted elsewhere in the Acts,
and the meaning of Isa. lili, may have been suggested by the same
Spirit that had bidden Philip to join the Eunuch. As soon as the
Eunuch had received baptism Philip found himself under the control
of the Holy Spirit carried to Azotus, the Ashdod of the Old
Testament, and thence northward through Philistia and the Sharon,
till he reached the great Hellenistic city, Caesarea by the sea. The
historian represents this sudden change of route as a rapture: the
Spirit of the Lord caught away Philip, and the Acts viii. Eunuch saw
him no more’. Like much else in the *” Acts that relates to and
emanates from the Palestinian Church, the language is cast in an Old
Testament mould. Zhe Sprit of Jahveh, Obadiah said to : Kings
Elijah, shall carry thee whither I know not; and ~~ when at length
Elijah went up by a whirlwind, the 1 The ‘Western’ reading, πνεῦμα
ἅγιον ἐπέπεσεν ἐπὶ τὸν εὐνοῦχον, ἄγγελος δὲ Κυρίου ἥρπασεν τὸν
Φίλιππον, seems to be a correction based on villi. 26, x. 44.
Part I. vi. 2 Kings ii. 16; cf. Bel 36. Acts xxi. Sack Eph. iv. rr.
94 Lhe Holy Spirit in the New Testament sons of the prophets urged
that search should be made for him Zest peradventure the Spirit of
Jahveh hath taken him up and cast him upon some mountain or into
some valley. ‘Translated into prose, the words of St Luke may be
taken to mean that Philip was urged by an impulse which came from
the Holy Spirit to leave the Eunuch immediately after his baptism;
when the Ethiopian looked round to thank his unknown benefactor,
Philip was already out of sight. The ‘rapture’ could scarcely have
been a mere ecstacy’; for the next verse shews us Philip arrived at
Azotus and pressing on from thence to new scenes of work. At
Caesarea Philip seems to have taken up his abode. His work of
‘serving tables’ at Jerusalem may have come to an end with the
dispersion of the Church, and events had shewn that he possessed
the special gifts of a Christian teacher. A great field lay before him in
the half-heathen city which was the seat of the Roman Procurator
and the centre in Southern Palestine of Greek culture. Here Jews
and Greeks were mingled in proportions scarcely to be found
elsewhere in Palestine*?; and Philip, if he was a Hellenist, as is
probable, was well suited to do evangelistic work both among the
Jews of the city and their proselytes. Our interest in Philip’s
Caesarean residence lies in a fact which * Such as is described in 2
Cor. xii. 2 ff. (ἁρπαγέντα... ἡρπάγη). * In Vespasian’s time there
were 20,000 Jews at Caesarea in the midst of a much larger number
of heathen. See Schiirer, Jewish People, EH. tr. u. 1, p. 86 f. sein i
easiies
The life of the early Palestinian Church 95 comes to light in
the second half of the Acts. Twenty years or more after his arrival at
Caesarea his house in that city was for some days the restingplace
of St Paul on the last journey of the Apostle to Jerusalem*. Philip by
this time had four daughters, who followed the single life
(παρθένοι)", and were prophetesses. The Spirit of the Lord rested on
the children as it had rested on the father, but after a different
manner; to him was given the work of an evangelist, to them the
gift of prophecy. Already in this Christian household at Caesarea it
was shewn that the same Spirit distributes His gifts to every member
of Christ severally as He wills. 5. With the conversion of St Paul we
are not directly concerned, for it was effected not by the Spirit of
Christ but by the Lord in person. But the work of the Spirit finds a
place in the sequel. Three days after the vision Ananias was sent to
lay his hands on Saul, that he might vecover szght, and be filled with
Holy Spirit. ‘Thereupon there fell at once from Saul’s eyes as wt were
scales, and he vecovered sight, and arose and was baptized. Here
the laying on of hands precedes baptism, and 1s given by a disciple
who, so far as we know, held no office in the Church, but was
specially commissioned by the Lord and thus for the moment
possessed a ‘ Was it a community of interests between the
Evangelist of Caesarea and the Apostle of the Gentiles that led St
Paul to linger in the house of Philip with Jerusalem so near? > Cf. 1
Cor. vii. 34 ἡ παρθένος μεριμνᾷ τὰ τοῦ κυρίου. Part ΕΠ: Acts xxi. 9.
C+ Gor: > 4} OD oy &8 Acts ix. 171:
Part I. vi. Ch 1 Cor. ix. de Acts ix, 21: 96 The Holy Spirit in
the New Testament quasi-Apostolic authority. In the case of Saul,
again, it is not clear whether the gift of the Spirit preceded,
accompanied, or followed baptism ; nor is it necessary to distinguish
the stages of an illumination which was practically a single act. It is
important, however, to observe that even in his unique experience
the visible signs of the invisible Gift are not superseded. He who had
‘seen the Lord,’ and been changed by the sight, needed nevertheless
the ministry of the disciple ; he must receive baptism and the laying
on of hands like any other convert who had been brought to the
faith by the preaching of an Evangelist or an Apostle. 6. By this time
every part of Palestine had its Christian congregations ; and the
chapter which describes the conversion of the Apostle of the Gentiles
contains a glowing account of the Palestinian Church as a whole.
The church throughout all Judaea and Galilee and Samaria had
peace, being edified; and walking in the fear of the Lord and im the
conefort of the Holy Spirit was multiplted. So the Revised Version
translates Acts ix. 31, but there is some ambiguity in the Greek. Dr
Hort would render the second part of the verse, “and walking by the
fear of the Lord and by the invocation of the floly Spirit (probably
the invoking His guidance as Paraclete to the Ecclesia) was
multipled’,” while * Acts ix. 17 ὃ κύριος ἀπέσταλκέν με, Ἰησοῦς ὃ
ὀφθείς σοι. * Hort, £cclesia, p. 55. The meaning thus given to
παράκλησις seems to be without example in LXX. or N.T. Moreover
the attitude of the primitive Church towards the Spirit was rather
one
The life of the early Palestinian Church 97 others would
punctuate the sentence differently : being edified and walking in the
fear of the Lord; and by the comfort of the Holy Spirit was multipled.
The vital question is as to the meaning of παράκλησις τοῦ ἁγίου
πνεύματος. Coming to the Acts from the reading of the Fourth
Gospel, we are tempted to connect it with Παράκλητος ; but it may
be doubted whether that title of the Holy Spirit was known to St
Luke. It seems still more precarious to give to παράκλησις here only
in the N.T. the sense of ἐπίκλησις, ‘invocation.’ ‘Exhortation’ it can
scarcely mean here, but ‘encouragement,’ ‘comfort’,’ suits the context
well; of this the harassed Church had need, and this the Holy Spirit,
now that outward peace was restored, and His voice could again be
heard, was able to impart. Fear of God and comfort of the Spirit
characterized the religious life of the Church in those early days—the
fear of the Old Testament tempered by the freedom and joy of the
New. No real antinomy was felt to exist between the two: the sense
of awe that guards the Christian life from sin, and the sense of
peace and gladness that comes from the Spirit of Christ, are
complementary and not mutually exclusive principles. | 7 A new and
far wider field was opened by the of joyful welcome than of
invocation; the cry Venz, Creator Spiritus belongs to a later age,
when the Spirit was sought and perhaps expected, but not regarded
as a Guest Who had already come, and come to abide. 2 As in Acts
xv. 31. SH. S. | Part I. vi.
Part I. vi. Acts x. 19. Acts x. 38. Acts: x 443 link 5. Acts xi.
17. 98 The Holy Spirit in the New Testament baptism of Cornelius
and his friends at Caesarea. If Philip was in that city at the time, it is
significant that Peter was summoned from Joppa. The crisis was
such as to demand the presence of an Apostle and the leader of the
Apostolic College; for upon the decision which was to be taken the
future of the Church depended. The keys of the Kingdom had been
committed to St Peter, and it now fell to his lot to determine whether
the doors of the Kingdom should be thrown open to the
uncircumcised Gentile or shut against him. But the question was in
fact answered for him by the Holy Spirit. It was the Spirit who in the
first instance bade him go with the messengers of Cornelius: 20
wath them, nothing doubting, for 7 have sent them. When he
arrived and delivered his message, it was the Spirit who determined
his course of action by falling on all the uncircumcised and as yet
unbaptized hearers. As the Lord Jesus had been anointed with Holy
Spirit and with power, as the ascended Christ had baptized the
circumcised believers at Jerusalem with the Spirit on the day of
Pentecost, so now He sent the same Spirit on this company of
Gentiles; whzle Peter yet spoke...the Floly Spirit fell on them as on
Peter himself and the rest at the beginning. Could any doubt remain
| that these men who had been baptized with the Spirit might be
baptized with water in the name of the Lord? Jf God gave them the
like gift as He did unto Jewish believers, who was Peter or any
human minister that he could withstand God? A second Pentecost
had proclaimed the admissibility
The life of the early Palestinian Church 99 of Gentiles to
Christian baptism’, and thus laid the foundation of a Catholic Church.
8. While all believers, whether Jews or Gentiles, received the Spirit,
some received Him as the Spirit of prophecy and ‘prophesied,’ or
became ‘ prophets.’ Such were Judas and Silas and Agabus, and
others whose names are not given. At first, as might have been
expected, Jerusalem was the centre of prophetic activity, from which
prophets, singly or in bands, went forth to visit other churches, as
occasion arose. But the gift of prophecy was not limited to the
mother Church ; prophets are found ministering in the Church at
Antioch and afterwards at Tyre and Caesarea, and, as we shall see,
the order flourished also in the Pauline Churches. The gift of
tongues, which on the Day of Pentecost was the characteristic
possession of those who had received the Spirit, seems to have
fallen into disuse in the Palestinian churches* as the years went on
and prophecy took its place. Of all the ‘spiritual gifts’ prophecy was
the noblest and the most enduring, and for Jewish Christians it had
the advantage of appearing in the light of a revival of * Cf. Acts x.
45 καὶ ἐπὶ τὰ ἔθνη ἡ δωρεὰ τοῦ πνεύματος τοῦ ἁγίου ἐκκέχυται;: ΧΙ.
15 ἐπέπεσεν τὸ πνεῦμα τὸ ἅγιον ἐπ᾽ αὐτοὺς ὥσπερ καὶ ἐφ᾽ ἡμᾶς ἐν
ἀρχῇ. * At least it is mentioned in this connexion only in Acts x. 46,
on occasion of the ‘second Pentecost’ of the Gentile Church. On the
other hand prophecy, though not named in Acts ii. except in the
quotation from Joel, appears in Acts xi. 27, xiii. 1, xv. 32, aot Gf, 7—
2 GOLL. CHRISTI REGIS BIB, MAJ. TORONTON Part I. vi. Acts xi. 28,
XV. 32. Acts xiii. I. Acts xxi. 4,93 cf. XX. 23.
Part I, vi. Acts xv. 28. 100 Zhe Holy Spirit in the New
Testament the Old Testament gift which had so long been in
suspense. 9. One more reference to the Spirit in the éarly history of
the Church of Jerusalem may be noticed here. The conference of
Apostles and local Elders, held at Jerusalem to consider the position
of the new Gentile Churches, felt itself at liberty to claim the
presence of the Holy Spirit as Assessor. The decree which gives:the
decision of the conference begins, /¢ seemed good to the fToly Spirit
and to us. The Paraclete who was with believers individually was
assuredly also with the Church in her corporate capacity. This claim
must not be taken as one of infallibility or finality—some of the
defects of the decree were afterwards modified or abandoned—but
rather as a recognition of the fulfilment of the Lord’s promise that
the other Advocate should abide with them ; that where two or
three were met together in His name, there He by His Spirit would
be in the midst of them. At the end of the letter of the conference
the ‘Western’ text of the Acts adds words! which extend the Divine
Presence to the non-official members of the new Churches: Fave ye
well, borne on your course in the Floly Spirit. This has been
condemned as a Montanist gloss, but it does not exceed the sober
truth as it revealed itself to the Apostolic age. ‘There is an inspiration
which belongs to all believers in virtue of the indwelling of the Spirit
in the whole Body of Christ. 1 Ὁ reads: εὖ πράξατε, φερόμενοι (D'**
ferentes, Irenaeus 111. 14 ambulantes, Tertullian de pud. 12
uectantes uos) ἐν τῷ ἁγίῳ πνεύματι.
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