St. Barnabas 16. Reflection on Antioch Years.       Continuing the story of St. Barnabas’ life, the next recorded event in the Bible is the first missionary journey of Barnabas, Saul, and Mark. But before we set on the journey with them we might reflect on Barnabas’ years in Antioch (probably three, but could be about five).       In past articles we’ve suggested that Barnabas was something of a mentor to Saul/St. Paul during their work together in Antioch. Historian Henri Daniel-Ropes writes, “[I]t was in Antioch that Saul concluded his studies in the art of apostleship, under the guidance of a truly wise and good teacher [Barnabas]. Antioch, we must remember, was the city in which the essential development in the Christian missionary outlook was even now taking shape.” [1]       This mentoring task may well have been through the influence of Barnabas’ goodness, gift of the Holy Spirit, and gift of faith ( Ac 11:24 ) ...

  St. Barnabas 15. Prison and Angelic Intervention. Starting in 37 AD and until his death in 41 AD, Emperor Caligula gradually had given kingship rule over all of Palestine to Herod Agrippa I, grandson of Herod the Great, the one who slaughtered the Holy Innocents. Herod Agrippa I is mentioned in Acts 12: “About that time [likely 43 AD] Herod the king laid violent hands upon some who belonged to the Church. He killed James the brother of John with the sword; and when he saw that it pleased the Jews, he proceeded to arrest Peter also.” ( Ac 12:1-3 .) Now Barnabas and Saul are still in Jerusalem on their famine relief mission, and it is the week following Passover ( Ac 12:3 ), Easter week for the Church. Luke tells the story solely focusing on Peter: Peter is in prison, asleep, chained between two guards. While the Church was in “earnest prayer” for him, an angel came, the chains fell off, the gates opened, and they walk out of prison. God’s marvelous intervention! Peter goes to ...

  St. Barnabas 14. Famine Visit. In our continuing series on the life of St. Barnabas, we last surmised that Barnabas would have been an excellent teacher to Gentile Christian converts of the virtues of charity and generosity for those suffering a famine in Judea ( Ac 11:27-30 ). St. John Chrysostom’s (344/354-407 AD) homily on this passage points out, “Do you see how for them the famine was an encouragement to salvation, an opportunity to give alms, and a harbinger of many blessings? ... The famine was foretold so that they might prepare themselves beforehand for almsgiving.” An interesting note on the purpose of prophecy: that people might prepare to respond to the call of the prophetic message with generosity. [1] The Acts also tells us that the Church in Antioch sent their relief “to the elders [in Jerusalem] by the hand of Barnabas and Saul” ( Ac 11:30 ). Notice that Barnabas continues to be named first as the leader. The term translated “elders” here is the word “presb...

  St. Barnabas 13. Prophecy of Famine.       “Now in these days prophets came down from Jerusalem to Antioch. And one of them named Agabus stood up and foretold by the Spirit that there would be a great famine over all the world; and this took place in the days of Claudius” ( Ac 11:27-28 ).       In the NT we hear much about the gift of prophecy. We also knew of prophets from the OT, but prophecy had ceased after Malachi in the late 5th Century BC. However, with the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, the gift of prophecy was poured out anew on the infant Church ( Ac 2 ).       Chronologically, it is now about 13 years since Pentecost, about 43 AD. By now, individual disciples are recognized as prophets (e.g., Ac 11:27-28 ; 13:1 ), and a few years later, St. Paul’s letters will show that the gift of prophecy was common (e.g., Ro 12:6 ; 1 Cor 12:10 , 28-29 ; 14 ; Eph 4:11 ). The Didache , written around 70-90 AD, t...

St. Barnabas 12. Commissioned to Antioch.       In St. Luke’s history of the early Church in the book of Acts, he begins with the story of the witness of the Apostles after Pentecost mostly in Palestine, and then transitions to the story of the witness of Saul/St. Paul mostly to the Gentiles. [1] The connecting person joining the two stories, or witnesses, is St. Barnabas, and the transition is found in Luke’s narration of Barnabas being sent by the Jerusalem Church to aid the Antioch Church, where he became something of a mentor to Saul ( Ac 11:19-26 ).       It is now about 41 AD, eleven years after the death of Christ and nine years after the death of St. Stephen, so disciples have already been evangelizing in Antioch for at least these nine years, both to Jews and Gentiles ( Ac 11:19-20 ). What was the result of these evangelization efforts at Antioch? “And the hand of the Lord was with them,” – a common OT expression signifying the presence o...

St. Barnabas 11. Events Leading Up to Assignment to Antioch.       Our series on the life of St. Barnabas has also brought us through the history of the Early Church. We are now up to about 35 AD, five years since Christ’s death and resurrection.       Luke sums up the next few years (probably 36-38 AD) as follows: “So the Church throughout all Judea and Galilee and Samaria had peace and was built up; and walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit it was multiplied” ( Ac 9:31 ). Years of rest and growth for the Church.       Barnabas undoubtedly continued evangelizing over the next few years, but whether in Palestine or Antioch or elsewhere, we are not given the specifics.       In regards to Saul (not yet called Paul), now in his home town of Tarsus (modern day eastern Turkey), it may be about 38/39 AD when he had a visionary experience of being “caught up to the third h...

Barnabas 10. Reconciliation with Saul.       During the early evangelization of the Church from around 32 to 34 AD which reached as far north as Antioch of Syria, another highly significant event occurred: the conversion of Saul, later known as St. Paul.       It was probably towards the end of 32 AD that the risen and glorified Christ Jesus appeared to Saul on the road to Damascus, Syria. Jesus identified Himself with His Church as His Body when He said, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute Me?” ( Ac 9:4 .) Saul, for his part, was “still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord” ( Ac 9:1 ), but Jesus said, “Why do you persecute Me?” and, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting” ( Ac 9:4, 5 ).       Now Saul tells the story of his conversion many times in the Bible ( Ac 22:6-16 ; 26:12-18 ; Gal 1 ; Phil 3:3-11 ). Damascus of Syria is east of Tyre and Sidon, and a great distance south of Antioch. Saul remai...