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Title: The Didache
Author: Edward D. Andrews (the original 1st century Koine Greek text is anonymous)
Copyright Date: March 2024
Publisher: Christian Publishing House
Narrated by: Virtual Voice
Audio length: 3 hours, 20 minutes
Summary
(via amazon)
THE DIDACHE: The Teaching of the Twelve Apostles is a pivotal early Christian document that offers a glimpse into the life, practices, and beliefs of the first Christian communities. This comprehensive book serves as a bridge between the Apostolic Age and the developing Christian Church of the second century, providing profound insights into the ethical, doctrinal, and liturgical norms of early Christianity. Through meticulous analysis and commentary, the book explores the Didache’s guidance on living a virtuous life, instructions on baptism, prayer, fasting, and the Eucharist, as well as its teachings on leadership within the Church.
The book begins with an in-depth introduction and a scholarly examination of the Didache’s dating, utilizing linguistic and theological evidence to situate the text within the early second century. It delves into the significance of the Didache’s language, comparing it with the Koine Greek of the New Testament and other contemporary Christian writings to shed light on its origins and audience. The theological content is thoroughly analyzed to highlight the Didache’s biblical alignment and its reflection of early Christian beliefs and practices.
Special attention is given to the role of prophets in the early Church, the influence of Johannine writings, and the archaeological and patristic evidence supporting the Didache’s historical context. The book navigates the complex manuscript history of the Didache, tracing its textual witnesses and exploring its transmission through various translations and documents.
Each chapter of the Didache is meticulously explored through exegetical commentary, offering readers a deeper understanding of its teachings on the Two Paths of life and death, the importance of love and righteousness, guidance on living a virtuous life, and the early Church’s approach to hospitality, work, and community support. The book also addresses the challenges of false teachers and apostasy, underscoring the Didache’s relevance to contemporary Christian faith and practice.
APPENDIX A and B extend the exploration to the broader context of early Christianity, examining the contributions of the Apostolic Fathers, the expansion of the Christian faith, persecutions, heresies, the development of worship practices, and the early Church’s structure. This comprehensive study not only illuminates the Didache’s historical significance but also its enduring value for understanding the foundations of Christian doctrine and community life.
My Review
Since its rediscovery in the late 19th century, after having been lost for centuries, The Didache has become an important window into Church practices in the 1st and early 2nd century. Christians had known for centuries that the text once existed, because several other works from surviving early Church writers referred to it. Now we have the source material.
One of the key points of contention for the text is its dating. The author here makes an argument for it being an early 2nd century work. However, the majority view of scholars is that this is a 1st century work – perhaps as early as 50 AD – meaning the document might be earlier than quite a bit of the New Testament. The evidence suggests that The Didache was, in form, a Jewish catechetical work, adapted to the early Jewish Christians who had not entirely divorced their identity from Judaism. Early Christians viewed themselves as the only real Jews. However, the document itself (I’ll get to that below) sheds light on some intentional efforts even at this early stage of Church development to differentiate themselves from the non-convert Jews. The Didache appears to have been a composite work, meaning that it developed over a period of time. The majority view is that it began perhaps as early as 50 AD.
The document itself is not very long, however, it addresses a number of issues that would likely have arisen for the first generation of Christians. It is divisible into four primary sections.
- The Two Ways
In form, this is an instruction guide on how to live. The text describes two paths – one of life and one of death. The description of the path of life will sound very familiar to anyone who has read or been exposed to the Christian gospels. The format of using two paths was a common catechetical tool in the 2nd Temple Period and early Christians adopted the form and modified it for the Christian age.
Vices and Virtues
As the text continues, it also goes into specifics about behavior that is not permitted.
“You shall not murder. You shall not commit adultery. You shall not engage in pederasty. You shall not commit sexual immorality. You shall not steal. You shall not practice magic or witchcraft. You shall not murder a child by abortion, nor kill a newborn infant. You shall not covet your neighbor’s possessions. You shall not break an oath or bear false witness. You shall not speak evil of others or hold a grudge. You shall not be double-minded or double-tongued, for a double-tongue is a deadly trap. Your words shall not be false or empty, but backed by action. You shall not be greedy, rapacious, hypocritical, malicious, or arrogant. You shall not plot evil against your neighbor. You shall not hate anyone. Instead you are to correct some, pray for others, and love some more than your own life.”
My suspicion is that this is an inconveniently specific and early list of rules for a lot of modern Christians who perhaps like to engage in, or at least defend, some of these behaviors.
The text also warns strongly against eating food sacrificed to idols – which is a familiar warning a St. Paul gave the same one in 1 Corinthians.
Rituals
The text gives instructions regarding baptism. The baptisms were to occur “in the Name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit” and include triple immersion in “living” water. Some translations describe this as running or flowing water. The Didache makes allowances, though, for not baptizing in streams or rivers, suggesting that “if you do not have running water, baptize in other water. If you cannot baptize in cold water, use warm water. If you have neither, pour water on the head three times in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.”
The text also suggests – though it does not demand – that the baptizer and the one being baptized should fast before the ritual, for one or two days, as should those who witness the baptism.
I’m not certain that this is clear enough to avoid a lot of the modern in-fighting that sometimes occurs around this topic. It does not directly address the baptism of infants, for example, though early Church records indicate that this was happening. However, it does open the door to allow a form of baptism that *can* be used on infants (as far as I know, it has never been common baptismal practice for infants to be fully immersed in streams and rivers.)
Fasting
The document instructs believers to fast on Wednesday and Friday, as opposed to the Jewish practice of fasting on Monday and Thursday. This admonition is an example of early Christians intentionally setting themselves apart from the non-believing Jewish community.
Daily Prayer
The text instructs believers to pray three times per day, and to say The Lord’s Prayer when they do so. The text does not say precisely what times the prayers are to be said, though this is a replacement for the traditional Jewish practice of praying three times per day (morning, afternoon, and evening.)
It’s noteworthy also that the text’s recitation of The Lord’s Prayer includes the doxology (“for yours is the power and the glory for ever”) that is familiar to Protestants, but not included in the Gospels.
The Lord’s Prayer doxology derives from 1 Chronicles 29:11–13, and though it is not part of the Gospel text of the prayer, The Didache indicates that it was included as a form of the prayer in the earliest days of the Church.
Instructions on the Eucharist
This document is the earliest recorded use of the term “Eucharist” which is Greek for ‘Thanksgiving.”
The text describes the ceremony, starting with the drinking of the cup of wine, followed by the breaking of the bread. This is opposite to the order given in the Gospels and also opposite to the commonly practiced ritual today.
The text includes two unique prayers.
“First, for the cup, we thank you, our Father, for the holy vine of David Your servant, which You made known to us through Jesus Your Servant; to You be the glory for ever.”
“And for the broken bread, we thank You, our Father, for the life and knowledge which You made known to us through Jesus Your Servant; to You be the glory for ever. Even as this broken bread was scattered over the hills, and was gathered together and became one, so let Your Church be gathered together from the ends of the earth into Your kingdom; for Yours is the glory and the power through Jesus Christ for ever.”
The text also gives instructions on who is not allowed to participate in the Eucharist.
“But let no one eat or drink of your Eucharist, unless they have been baptized into the name of the Lord; for concerning this also the Lord has said, “Give not that which is holy to the dogs.”
The Didache describes the eating of a meal after the Eucharist, before giving instruction on a prayer after the meal is eaten. The text does not give instruction on the meal’s specifics.
On Itinerant Teachers, Apostles, and Prophets
The text gives communities instructions on how to deal with itinerant teachers. The community costume is to care for and provide for itinerant teachers, however, this also made communities vulnerable to abuse. The text provides directions on how to avoid abuse and how to identify to whom they should listen.
The modern parlance for what they are being instructed on here, is how to identify and deal with grifters.
Assembly on the Lord’s Day
This document indicates that it was a Christian practice, as early as the time of the Apostles, to gather on Sunday for worship. This practice distinguished them from the Jewish community from which they originated.
Watchfulness for the Lord’s Coming
The document ends with a focus on the end of time and the Lord’s coming. The document warns of “a world-deceiver” who will have dominion over the whole world and describe himself as “the son of God.” This is the person we would describe today as “the Antichrist.”
The document ends as follows:
And then shall appear the signs of the truth: first, the sign of an outspreading in heaven, then the sign of the sound of the trumpet. And third, the resurrection of the dead, but not of all: rather, as it is said, “the Lord shall come and all His saints with Him.” Then shall the world see the Lord coming upon the clouds of heaven.
I suspect that this is not sufficient to put to rest any modern “End Times” theological debates. But perhaps it is a good reminder to do as the text instructs and to be ready.
Overall, I enjoyed this. It’s a really fascinating glimpse into the type of instruction one might have received during the time of the Apostles, before the existence of an established written canon, and even before a magistrate was well-established.