DYNAMIS!
A publication of St. George Orthodox Christian Cathedral
Wichita, KS
1 Timothy 5:11-21 (12/8) Epistle for Tuesday of the
Twenty-Seventh Week after Pentecost
Church As Community II ~ Presbyters
and Pastors: 1 Timothy 5:11-21 (and vs. 22), especially vs. 17: “Let the elders who rule well be counted worthy of
double honor, especially those who labor in the word and doctrine.” Four
readings this week from First Timothy address the status and needs of
particular groups or classes of persons within the Church. In the present passage the Apostle
instructs us concerning Elders or Presbyters, the clergy that we
call Priests today - those who provide on-site, pastoral leadership in our
churches for our Bishops.
In an earlier chapter (1 Tim. 3:1-13), we observed that the
Apostle did not mention Presbyters or Elders. At the same time, we noted that the
earliest organization of the ordained ministry had a different appearance from
the pattern we are accustomed to today.
Thus, toward the end of his letter, speaking from the context of the
early Church,
Very early in Church organization, the Pastors of local
congregations appear to have been Bishops, men appointed by the Apostles (1
Tim. 3:1-7). From the records we
have, it appears that as the Church grew, there soon came to be multiple
congregations of the Faithful in different neighborhoods, but under a single
Bishop. The Bishops began to assign
Presbyters to carry on their pastoral work in their subsidiary
congregations. The growth of the
Church led from such temporary assignments to the actual development of
dioceses as we understand them today.
In the era during which First Timothy was written, Presbyters acted as a
committee, mostly at one locale, assisting the Bishop in “...word and
doctrine” (vs. 17). The
Deacons, during that period, bore much of the responsibility for the management
of money and other material assets.
However, official laborers in ministry have been named
throughout history - Bishops, Presbyters, Elders, Priests, Pastors - today, as
in Saint Paul’s day, any man who serves in these capacities with local
congregation “...is worthy of his wages” (vs. 18). The need for fair and equitable
compensation does not change.
However, if there is a need that remains unfulfilled in the contemporary
Church, it is adequate compensation for pastors, those clergy who give up so much
time from their families to serve the Family of God. May we never forget that they and their
families, like all of us, have material needs and expenses.
Another issue that arose even in
The Apostle is most explicit in cautioning us against
negative remarks concerning the clergy: “Do not receive an accusation
against an elder except from two or three witnesses” (vs. 19). When matters reach the point where there
are witnesses with specific charges of violations of morality or Church
teaching, then it is necessary for our Bishops to intervene. However, much gossip and whispering
about the clergy serves only to degrade fellowship within the Church.
When there are problems, it is the Bishops’ task to
rule on such matters. Our hierarchs
are to “...observe these things without prejudice, doing nothing with
partiality” (vs. 21). This
requires our Bishops to be careful in the first place about ordination, not to
“...lay hands on anyone hastily...” and so to “...share in
other people’s sins...” (vs. 22). Let us not fault our Bishops when the
clergy fail the Church, for not all sins or good works are plainly evident, and
our chief Pastors have much to sort through in the relations between parishes
and their Pastors.
Bless, O Lord, our Bishops, the honorable Priesthood, the
Diaconate and all Thy people.
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