SarapanPagi Biblika

KITAB DIDAKHE

Tanya :
Apakah Kitab Didakhe itu?, apakah diakui sebagai kitab yang benar atau
tidak?

JAWAB :


"DIDAKHE" adalah karangan Kristen yang memuat tentang etika Kristen dan peraturan gereja. Siapa penulisnya tidak dapat dipastikan lagi.

Judul selengkapnya adalah 'didakhê kuriou dia ton dodeka apostolon', artinya "Pengajaran Tuhan menurut Dua Belas Rasul", namun biasa disingkat 'didakhê' saja. Dari mana asalnya karangan ini juga tidak jelas lagi. Bentuk aslinya terdapat dalam buku ketujuh dari Konstitusi Apostolik. Kebanyakan teolog menduga karangan ini berasal dari abad pertama atau permulaan abad kedua. Karangan ini memperlihatkan kehidupan jemaat yang terpencil, mungkin di Syria. Pengarang mengenal Injil Matius, Lukas dan kemungkinan juga Injil Yohanes. Didakhe juga memperlihatkan hubungan dengan Surat Barnabas dan Gembala Hermas.

Naskahnya ditemukan oleh P. Bryennios di biara Makam Suci, Konstantinopel pada tahun 1875 dan diterbitkan pada tahun 1883. Isinya terdiri dari 16 pasal :
- Pasal 1-6 memuat tentang dua jalan yaitu Jalan Kehidupan dan Jalan Kematian. Bagian ini banyak mengutip ayat-ayat Khotbah di Bukit.
- Pasal 7-15 berisi petunjuk tentang baptisan, puasa, doa, ekaristi, dan bagaimana memperlakukan nabi, uskup, dan diaken.
- Pasal 16 memuat nubuat tentang anti Kristus dan parousia (kedatangan Kristus Yesus yang kedua).

Karangan ini memuat banyak tentang tata-ibadah gereja yang mula-mula.
Doa Bapa Kami dimuat selengkapnya. Baptisan dilaksanakan dengan penyelaman jika keadaan memungkinkan ataupun tiga kali dengan cara pemercikan. Puasa diadakan pada hari Rabu dan Jumat. Ada dua doa ekaristi di mana hal ini tidak biasa dalam gereja yang mula-mula. Di samping uskup dan diaken, terdapat nabi yang berkeliling dan mereka dapat dan diperbolehkan merayakan ekaristi.

Baik dalam Katolik, kitab ini juga tidak dimasukkan dalam kanon mereka. Artinya kitab ini mungkin hanya dijadikan kitab 'pendamping' saja.

Kitab 'Didakhe' baru ditemukan oleh P. Bryennios di biara makam suci Konstantinopel di tahun 1875 sedangkan King James Version sudah diterjemahkan sebelumnya yaitu tahun 1769.
Biar bagaimanapun, 'Didakhe' tidak punya 'otoritas' setinggi 'otoritas' Alkitab.

Kitab 'didakhe' memberi petunjuk tentang baptisan, dilakukan dengan penyelaman jika memungkinkan, atau tiga kali dengan cara percik. Puasa diadakan pada hari Rabu dan Jumat. Ada dua doa ekaristi di mana hal ini tidak biasa dalam gereja yang mula-mula. Di samping uskup dan diaken, terdapat nabi yang berkeliling dan mereka dapat dan diperbolehkan merayakan ekaristi. Dan beberapa tata-cara ibadah lainnya.

Hal-hal diatas bisa menjadi rujukan yang baik dalam tata-cara ibadah gerejawi. Tetapi ketentuan/tata-cara tsb sifatnya hanyalah agamawi, dimana Kristus tidak mengajarkan hal-hal itu dan tidak menentukan ketentuan itu.
Karena itu, saya rasa referensi yang mereka miliki dan terangkum dalam Kitab ini hanyalah kumpulan-kumpulan teks klasik Yunani. Bisa saja salah/ tidak perlu, bisa saja tidak.



Sumber : Yohannes/ Biblika

KITAB DIDAKHE
'didakhê kuriou dia ton dodeka apostolon'
"Pengajaran Tuhan menurut Dua Belas Rasul"


Kitab Didakhê Isinya terdiri dari 16 pasal.

Pasal 1-6 memuat tentang dua jalan yaitu Jalan Kehidupan dan Jalan Kematian :


Chapter 1. The Two Ways and the First Commandment. There are two ways, one of life and one of death, but a great difference between the two ways. The way of life, then, is this: First, you shall love God who made you; second, love your neighbor as yourself, and do not do to another what you would not want done to you. And of these sayings the teaching is this: Bless those who curse you, and pray for your enemies, and fast for those who persecute you. For what reward is there for loving those who love you? Do not the Gentiles do the same? But love those who hate you, and you shall not have an enemy. Abstain from fleshly and worldly lusts. If someone strikes your right cheek, turn to him the other also, and you shall be perfect. If someone impresses you for one mile, go with him two. If someone takes your cloak, give him also your coat. If someone takes from you what is yours, ask it not back, for indeed you are not able. Give to every one who asks you, and ask it not back; for the Father wills that to all should be given of our own blessings (free gifts). Happy is he who gives according to the commandment, for he is guiltless.

Woe to him who receives; for if one receives who has need, he is guiltless; but he who receives not having need shall pay the penalty, why he received and for what. And coming into confinement, he shall be examined concerning the things which he has done, and he shall not escape from there until he pays back the last penny. And also concerning this, it has been said, Let your alms sweat in your hands, until you know to whom you should give.


Bab 1. Dua Jalan dan Perintah Pertama. Ada dua jalan, yang pertama adalah jalan kehidupan dan yang kedua adalah jalan kematian, dan ada perbedaan yang besar diantara kedua jalan ini. Jalan kehidupan, adalah seperti ini : Pertama, cintailah Allah penciptamu; kedua, cintailah sesamamu seperti engkau mencintai dirimu sendiri, dan jangan melakukan kepada sesamamu, apa saja yang kau pun tak ingin mereka lakukan padamu. Dan dari sabda ini, inti pengajarannya adalah : Berkatilah mereka yang mengutukmu dan berdoalah bagi musush-musushmu dan berpuasalah bagi orang-orang yang menganiayamu. Apakah pahalanya bagimu bila engkau hanya mencintai orang-orang yang mencintaimu? bukankan orang kafir juga berbuat demikian? Tetapi cintailah orang-orang yang membencimu, dengan demikian engkau tidak akan memiliki seorang pun musuh. Jauhkanlah dirimu dari nafsu daging dan duniawi. Jika ada yang menampar pipi kirimu, berikanlah pipi kananmu juga, dan kamu akan disempurnakan. Jika seseorang memintamu untuk menemaninya sejauh satu mil, pergilah bersamanya sejauh dua mil. Jika ada yang mengambil pakaianmu, berikanlah jubahmu juga. Jika apa yang menjadi milikmu diambil oleh orang lain, janganlah memintanya kembali, karena sebenarnya engkau memang tidak berhak. Berikanlah kepada semua orang yang meminta darimu, dan jangan pernah memintanya kembali, karena sesuai keinginan Bapa bahwa akan diberikan kepada semua orang berkatnya sendiri sendiri. Berbahagialah orang yang memberi sesuai Perintah Allah, karena ia tanpa noda.

Berdukalah orang orang yang menerima; jika ia menerima karena ia membutuhkan, ia tidak berdosa; tetapi ia yang menerima padahal ia tidak mebutuhkan, maka ia hendaknya membayar hukumannya, mengapa ia menerima dan untuk apa. Di dalam tahanan, ia akan diperiksa atas segala perbuatannya dan ia tidak akan dibebaskan sampai ia melunasi semua hukumannya. Mengenai hal ini juga ada dikatakan, Biarlah sedekahmu basah tergenggam dalam tanganmu sampai engkau tahu siapa yang patut kau beri.


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Chapter 2. The Second Commandment: Grave Sin Forbidden. And the second commandment of the Teaching; You shall not commit murder, you shall not commit adultery, you shall not commit pederasty, you shall not commit fornication, you shall not steal, you shall not practice magic, you shall not practice witchcraft, you shall not murder a child by abortion nor kill that which is born. You shall not covet the things of your neighbor, you shall not swear, you shall not bear false witness, you shall not speak evil, you shall bear no grudge. You shall not be double-minded nor double-tongued, for to be double-tongued is a snare of death. Your speech shall not be false, nor empty, but fulfilled by deed. You shall not be covetous, nor rapacious, nor a hypocrite, nor evil disposed, nor haughty. You shall not take evil counsel against your neighbor. You shall not hate any man; but some you shall reprove, and concerning some you shall pray, and some you shall love more than your own life.


Bab 2. Perintah Kedua : Dosa Berat Yang Dilarang. Dan dalam Perintah kedua diajarkan : Jangan terlibat pembunuhan, jangan terlibat percabulan, jangan terlibat pengkhianatan, jangan terlibat perjantanan (semburit), jangan terlibat perzinahan, jangan mencuri, jangan melakukan praktek-praktek gaib, sihir, jangan membunuh nyawa bayi melalui aborsi atau membunuh bayi yang lahir, Jangan mengingini (iri dengan) milik tetanggamu, jangan bersumpah, jangan bersaksi dusta, jangan berkata kotor, kamu tidak boleh menyimpan dendam. Kamu tidak boleh mempunyai pikiran ganda atau lidah ganda, karena lidah ganda berarti jaring kematian. Apa yang engkau ucapkan tidak boleh asal asalan, atau omong kosong belaka, tapi dipenuhi dengan niatan. Kamu tidak boleh cemburu, tamak ataupun rakus, dikuasai keinginan iblis, ataupun congkak. Kamu tidak boleh memberikan nasihat jahat (menghasut) kepada tetanggamu. Kamu tidak boleh membenci manusia manapun; namun beberapa hendaknya kamu beri kritik, dan beberapa orang yang lain hendaknya kamu doakan, dan beberapa yang lain lagi perlu engkau kasihi lebih dari nyawamu sendiri.


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Chapter 3. Other Sins Forbidden. My child, flee from every evil thing, and from every likeness of it. Be not prone to anger, for anger leads to murder. Be neither jealous, nor quarrelsome, nor of hot temper, for out of all these murders are engendered. My child, be not a lustful one. for lust leads to fornication. Be neither a filthy talker, nor of lofty eye, for out of all these adulteries are engendered. My child, be not an observer of omens, since it leads to idolatry. Be neither an enchanter, nor an astrologer, nor a purifier, nor be willing to took at these things, for out of all these idolatry is engendered. My child, be not a liar, since a lie leads to theft. Be neither money-loving, nor vainglorious, for out of all these thefts are engendered. My child, be not a murmurer, since it leads the way to blasphemy. Be neither self-willed nor evil-minded, for out of all these blasphemies are engendered.

Rather, be meek, since the meek shall inherit the earth. Be long-suffering and pitiful and guileless and gentle and good and always trembling at the words which you have heard. You shall not exalt yourself, nor give over-confidence to your soul. Your soul shall not be joined with lofty ones, but with just and lowly ones shall it have its intercourse. Accept whatever happens to you as good, knowing that apart from God nothing comes to pass.


Bab 3. Dosa-Dosa Lain Yang Dilarang. Anakku, menjauhlah dari semua hal yang jahat, dan semua yang mirip dengannya. Jangan mudah marah, karena kemarahan dapat merangsang nafsu untuk membunuh. Jangan cemburu atau suka mendebat, emosional, karena dari sinilah pembunuhan dimulai. Anakku, jangan hidup dalam kenafsuan, karena nafsu menggiringmu pada percabulan. Jangan suka bicara kotor, atau liar matamu, karena dari semua inilah percabulan dimulai. Anakku, jangan menjadi pengamat perbuatan yang baik, karena itu akan membawamu pada pengidolaan (pemujaan semu=berhala). Jangan menjadi si pemikat, atau ahli nujum, atau seorang purifier, ataupun tertarik untuk melihatnya, karena dari sinilah pengidolaan dimulai. Anakku, jangan menjadi pembohong, karena kebohongan membuatmu menjadi pencuri. Jangan menggilai harta, atau sombong karena gengsi, karena dari sini semua pencuri dilahirkan. Anakku, jangan suka menggosip, karena ini menjadi awal fitnah. Jangan cepat berprasangka atau punya pikiran jahat, ini semua juga menjadi awal fitnah. Namun, rendah hatilah, karena orang yang rendah hati mewarisi bumi. Jadilah pemaaf, mudah berempati, berterus terang dan lembut dan baik dan selalu tergerak oleh perkataan yang kamu dengar. Kamu tidak boleh memuji diri sendiri, atau jiwamu penuh percaya diri. Janganlah jiwamu bermegah, tetapi dengan jiwa jiwa yang adil dan sederhana-lah jiwamu hendaknya dipersatukan. Terimalah semua yang terjadi atasmu sebagai hal baik, karena tidak ada satupun yang dapat menandingi Allah.


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Chapter 4. Various Precepts. My child, remember night and day him who speaks the word of God to you, and honor him as you do the Lord. For wherever the lordly rule is uttered, there is the Lord. And seek out day by day the faces of the saints, in order that you may rest upon their words. Do not long for division, but rather bring those who contend to peace. Judge righteously, and do not respect persons in reproving for transgressions. You shall not be undecided whether or not it shall be. Be not a stretcher forth of the hands to receive and a drawer of them back to give. If you have anything, through your hands you shall give ransom for your sins. Do not hesitate to give, nor complain when you give; for you shall know who is the good repayer of the hire. Do not turn away from him who is in want; rather, share all things with your brother, and do not say that they are your own. For if you are partakers in that which is immortal, how much more in things which are mortal?
Do not remove your hand from your son or daughter; rather, teach them the fear of God from their youth. Do not enjoin anything in your bitterness upon your bondman or maidservant, who hope in the same God, lest ever they shall fear not God who is over both; for he comes not to call according to the outward appearance, but to them whom the Spirit has prepared. And you bondmen shall be subject to your masters as to a type of God, in modesty and fear. You shall hate all hypocrisy and everything which is not pleasing to the Lord. Do not in any way forsake the commandments of the Lord; but keep what you have received, neither adding thereto nor taking away there from. In the church you shall acknowledge your transgressions, and you shall not come near for your prayer with an evil conscience. This is the way of life.


Bab 4. Beberapa Petunjuk. Anakku, ingatlah siang malam akan mereka yang mengajarkan perkataan Allah padamu, hormatilah mereka seperti kamu menghormati Allah. Karena dimanapun hukum Allah diwartakan, Allah sendiri hadir disitu. Dan carilah setiap hari wajah para kudus, supaya kamu menjadi tenang karen perkataan mereka. Jangan tercerai berai, melainkan berlomba lombalah mencari kedamaian. Putuskanlah dengan benar, dan jangan menghormati orang orang yang suka mengutuki kesalahan. Kamu tidak boleh tidak punya pendirian walaupun sulit. Jangan menjadi perpanjangan tangan untuk menerima atau pengumpul untuk memberi. Kalau kamu memiliki sesuatu, melalui tangan tanganmu lah kamu harus membuat silih atas dosa dosamu. Jangan pernah ragu ragu untuk memberi, atau suka menggerutu ketika kamu memberi; karena kamu harus mengenal tuan pengupah yang selalu baik terhadap hamba hambanya. Jangan memalingkan muka dari mereka yang membutuhkan, tetapi, bagilah segala sesuatunya dengan saudaramu, dan jangan mengklaim semuanya milikmu. Karena jika kamu sudah ambil bagian dalam keabadian, ada berapa banyak lagi yang tersisa yang masih dapat musnah ? Jangan mengalihkan tanganmu (perhatianmu) dari anak anakmu, namun, ajarkan pada mereka untuk takut akan Allah sejak masa kanak-kanak. Jangan memberikan perintah saat kamu sedang sedih / gusar pada anak buah atau pembantumu, yang juga mendambakan keselamatan dari Allah yang sama, karena mereka bisa berbalik membenci Allah yang menaungi kalian; karena Ia tidak datang dengan membedakan penampilan luar, tapi bagi mereka yang telah dipersiapkan oleh Roh. Dan kamu para pengikut hendaknya memandang tuan tuanmu sebagai suatu type Tuhan, dalam kerendah hatian dan segan. Kamu hendaknya membenci orang orang yang munafik dan semuanya yang tidak menyenangkan bagi Tuanmu. Janganlah mengabaikan perintah Tuanmu; tapi simpanlah apa yang sudah kamu terima, jangan menambahkan atau mengambil darinya. Dalam gerejalah kamu bisa memahami kesalahanmu, dan kamu tidak boleh datang mendekat pada pendoa-mu dengan hati (kesadaran/niatan) yang jahat. Inilah jalan kehidupan.


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Chapter 5. The Way of Death. And the way of death is this: First of all it is evil and accursed: murders, adultery, lust, fornication, thefts, idolatries, magic arts, witchcrafts, rape, false witness, hypocrisy, double-heartedness, deceit, haughtiness, depravity, self-will, greediness, filthy talking, jealousy, over-confidence, loftiness, boastfulness; persecutors of the good, hating truth, loving a lie, not knowing a reward for righteousness, not cleaving to good nor to righteous judgment, watching not for that which is good, but for that which is evil; from whom meekness and endurance are far, loving vanities, pursuing revenge, not pitying a poor man, not laboring for the afflicted, not knowing Him Who made them, murderers of children, destroyers of the handiwork of God, turning away from him who is in want, afflicting him who is distressed, advocates of the rich, lawless judges of the poor, utter sinners. Be delivered, children, from all these.


Bab 5. Jalan Kematian. Dan jalan kematian adalah seperti ini : Pertama tama jalan ini jahat dan dikutuk: pembunuh, percabulan, hawa nafsu, perzinahan, pencurian, pengidolaan (pemujaan semu=berhala), hal hal yang berbau mistis, sihir, pemerkosaan, kesaksian palsu, kemunafikan, berhati ganda, kebohongan, kecongkakan, kebejatan, keras kepala, ketamakan, berbicara kotor, kecemburuan, terlalu percaya diri, keangkuhan, suka pamer; penyiksa kaum yang benar, membenci kebenaran, mencintai dusta, tidak mengenal upah dari kebenaran, tidak bergantung pada kebaikan atau keputusan yang benar, bukan melihat yang baik, melainkan yang jahat; yang menjauhkanmu dari kerendah-hatian dan keteguhan, mencintai kesia-siaan dunia, menyimpan dendam, tidak mengasihani orang yang miskin, tidak memperkerjakan yang susah, tidak mengenal Dia yang telah menciptakan mereka, pembunuh anak-anak, pemusnah pekerjaan tangan Allah, memalingkan diri dari mereka yang membutuhkan, menjatuhkan mereka yang sedang berkesusahan, membela kaum kaya, sewenang wenang terhadap orang miskin, pendosa sejati. Menjauhlah, anak anakku, dari semuanya ini.


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Chapter 6. Against False Teachers, and Food Offered to Idols. See that no one causes you to err from this way of the Teaching, since apart from God it teaches you. For if you are able to bear the entire yoke of the Lord, you will be perfect; but if you are not able to do this, do what you are able. And concerning food, bear what you are able; but against that which is sacrificed to idols be exceedingly careful; for it is the service of dead gods.


Bab 6. Melawan Ajaran Palsu, dan Makanan Untuk Berhala. Ketahuilah bahwa tidak ada yang dapat membuatmu bersalah dengan cara pengajaran yang demikian, karena mereka mengajarkannya kepadamu diluar Tuhan. Karena jika kamu mampu menanggung semua beban Tuhan, kamu adalah sempurna; tapi karena kamu tidak mampu melakukannya, lakukanlah yang bisa kamu lakukan. Dan mengenai makanan (yang diberikan untuk berhala), pikulah apa yang kamu mampu, tapi melawan persembahan kepada berhala bersikaplah sangat hati hati; karena ini adalah upacara untuk Allah yang mati (dewa kematian).

Pasal 7-15 berisi petunjuk tentang baptisan, puasa, doa, ekaristi, dan bagaimana memperlakukan nabi, uskup, dan diaken :


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Chapter 7. Concerning Baptism. And concerning baptism, baptize this way: Having first said all these things, baptize into the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, in living water. But if you have no living water, baptize into other water; and if you cannot do so in cold water, do so in warm. But if you have neither, pour out water three times upon the head into the name of Father and Son and Holy Spirit. But before the baptism let the baptizer fast, and the baptized, and whoever else can; but you shall order the baptized to fast one or two days before.


Bab 7. Mengenai Pembabtisan. Dan mengenai pembabtisan, babtislah dengan cara ini: Pertama tama, babtislah dalam nama Bapa, dan Putera dan Roh Kudus, dengan air kehidupan. Tapi jika tidak ada padamu air kehidupan, baptislah kedalam air yang lain, dan kalau kamu tidak dapat melakukannya dalam air dingin, lakukanlah dengan yang hangat. Tapi kalau kamu tidak juga punya semua itu, curahkanlah air tiga kali diatas kepala dalam nama Bapa dan Putera dan Roh Kudus. Namun sebelum pembabtisan hendaknya pembabtis berpuasa, dan yang dibabtis, dan siapapun yang dapat melakukannya, tapi kamu harus meminta orang yang akan dibabtis untuk berpuasa sehari atau dua hari sebelumnya.


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Chapter 8. Fasting and Prayer (the Lord's Prayer). But let not your fasts be with the hypocrites, for they fast on the second and fifth day of the week. Rather, fast on the fourth day and the Preparation (Friday). Do not pray like the hypocrites, but rather as the Lord commanded in His Gospel, like this:

Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth, as it is in heaven. Give us today our daily (needful) bread, and forgive us our debt as we also forgive our debtors. And bring us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one (or, evil); for Thine is the power and the glory for ever..

Pray this three times each day.


Bab 8. Puasa dan Berdoa (Doa Bapa Kami). Tapi janganlah puasamu seperti orang orang munafik (farisi), karena mereka hanya berpuasa pada hari kedua dan kelima dalam satu minggu. Sebaliknya, berpuasalah pada hari keempat dan pada hari Persiapan (Jumat). Jangan berdoa seperti orang orang munafik (farisi), sebaliknya seperti yang diperintahkan Tuhan dalam GerejaNya, seperti ini :

Bapa Kami yang berada di dalam surga, dimuliakanlah nama Mu. Datanglah kerajaan Mu. Jadilah kehendak Mu diatas bumi, seperti didalam surga. Berilah kami rejeki pada hari ini, dan ampunilah kesalahan kami seperti kami pun mengampuni yang bersalah kepada kami. Dan janganlah membawa kami kepada pencobaan, tapi jauhkanlah kami dari yang jahat; karena segala Kekuasaan dan Kemuliaan adalah milikmu untuk selama lamanya.


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Chapter 9. The Eucharist. Now concerning the Eucharist, give thanks this way. First, concerning the cup:

We thank thee, our Father, for the holy vine of David Thy servant, which You madest known to us through Jesus Thy Servant; to Thee be the glory for ever..

And concerning the broken bread:

We thank Thee, our Father, for the life and knowledge which You madest known to us through Jesus Thy Servant; to Thee be the glory for ever. Even as this broken bread was scattered over the hills, and was gathered together and became one, so let Thy Church be gathered together from the ends of the earth into Thy kingdom; for Thine is the glory and the power through Jesus Christ for ever..

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."


Bab 9. Ekaristi. Sekarang mengenai Ekaristi, berterimakasihlah dengan cara ini. Pertama tama mengenai piala:


Kami berterima kasih Tuhan, Bapa kami, untuk anggur suci Daud hamba Mu, yang Engkau berikan kepada kami melalui perantaraan Yesus, bagi Mu lah kemuliaan untuk selama lamanya.


Dan mengenai pemecahan roti:


Kami berterima kasih Tuhan, Bapa kami, untuk kehidupan dan pengetahuan yang Engkau berikan kepada kami melalui perantaraan Yesus; bagi Mu lah kemuliaan selama lamanya. Meskipun roti ini berasal dari dari bukit bukit, dan dikumpulkan dan menjadi satu, biarlah Gereja Mu dipersatukan dari ujung-ujung dunia kedalam kerajaan Mu; karena milik Mu-lah segala Kemuliaan dan Kekuasaan melalui Yesus Kristus untuk selama lamanya…

Tapi jangan memperbolehkan seorangpun makan atau minum dari Ekaristi mu, sebelum mereka dibabtis dalam nama Tuhan; karena mengenai ini juga Tuhan telah berkata, “Jangan memberikan apa pun yang suci kepada anjing anjing.”


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Chapter 10. Prayer after Communion. But after you are filled, give thanks this way:

We thank Thee, holy Father, for Thy holy name which You didst cause to tabernacle in our hearts, and for the knowledge and faith and immortality, which You modest known to us through Jesus Thy Servant; to Thee be the glory for ever. Thou, Master almighty, didst create all things for Thy name's sake; You gavest food and drink to men for enjoyment, that they might give thanks to Thee; but to us You didst freely give spiritual food and drink and life eternal through Thy Servant. Before all things we thank Thee that You are mighty; to Thee be the glory for ever.

Remember, Lord, Thy Church, to deliver it from all evil and to make it perfect in Thy love, and gather it from the four winds, sanctified for Thy kingdom which Thou have prepared for it; for Thine is the power and the glory for ever. Let grace come, and let this world pass away. Hosanna to the God (Son) of David! If any one is holy, let him come; if any one is not so, let him repent. Maranatha. Amen..

But permit the prophets to make Thanksgiving as much as they desire.


Bab 10. Doa setelah Komuni. Dan setelah kamu makan, berterima kasihlah dengan cara ini:


Kami berterima kasih kepada Mu, Bapa yang Kudus, untuk nama Mu yang Kudus, keajaiban Mu membuat tabernakel (tempat tinggal Allah) di dalam hati kami, dan untuk pengetahuan dan iman dan kekekalan, yang engkau berikan kepada kamu melalui perantaraan Yesus; bagi Mu lah kemuliaan untuk selama lamanya. Engkau, Allah yang maha kuasa, keajaibanmu menciptakan segala hal untuk kemuliaan nama Mu; Engkau berikan makanan dan minuman untuk dinikmati manusia, sehingga mereka bisa berterima kasih kepada Mu; tapi bagi kami oleh keajaibanmu Engkau memberikan makanan roh dan minuman dan kehidupan kekal melalui perantara Mu. Untuk semuanya ini kamu berterima kasih kepada Mu karena engkaulah yang maha kuasa; bagi Mu lah kemuliaan untuk selama lamanya. Ingatlah, ya Tuhan, akan Gereja Mu, hindarkanlah dari semua kejahatan dab sempurnakanlah dalam cinta Mu, dan kumpulkanlah dari keempat penjuru, kuduskanlah kerajaan Mu yang telah Engkau persiapkan untuk itu; karena segala Kekuasaan dan Kemuliaan adalah milikmu untuk selama lamanya. Biarlah rahmatmu tercurah, dan bumi ini musnah. Hosana untuk Allah putera Daud! Jikalau ada seseorang yang kudus, biarlah ia datang; jika tidak, biarlah dia menyesal. Maranatha. Amin.


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Chapter 11. Concerning Teachers, Apostles, and Prophets. Whosoever, therefore, comes and teaches you all these things that have been said before, receive him. But if the teacher himself turns and teaches another doctrine to the destruction of this, hear him not. But if he teaches so as to increase righteousness and the knowledge of the Lord, receive him as the Lord. But concerning the apostles and prophets, act according to the decree of the Gospel. Let every apostle who comes to you be received as the Lord. But he shall not remain more than one day; or two days, if there's a need. But if he remains three days, he is a false prophet. And when the apostle goes away, let him take nothing but bread until he lodges. If he asks for money, he is a false prophet. And every prophet who speaks in the Spirit you shall neither try nor judge; for every sin shall be forgiven, but this sin shall not be forgiven. But not every one who speaks in the Spirit is a prophet; but only if he holds the ways of the Lord. Therefore from their ways shall the false prophet and the prophet be known. And every prophet who orders a meal in the Spirit does not eat it, unless he is indeed a false prophet. And every prophet who teaches the truth, but does not do what he teaches, is a false prophet. And every prophet, proved true, working unto the mystery of the Church in the world, yet not teaching others to do what he himself does, shall not be judged among you, for with God he has his judgment; for so did also the ancient prophets. But whoever says in the Spirit, Give me money, or something else, you shall not listen to him. But if he tells you to give for others' sake who are in need, let no one judge him.


Bab 11. Mengenai Para Pengajar, Pewarta dan Nabi. Siapapun, yang datang dan mengajar kamu semua hal yang telah dikatakan sebelumnya, terimalah dia. Namun jika pengajar itu sendiri berbalik dan mengajarkan doktrin lain yang menghancurkan ajaran itu sendiri, janganlah mendengarkan dia. Namun jika ia mengajar sedemikian rupa untuk meningkatkan kebenaran dan pengetahuan akan Tuhan, terimalah pengajarannya seperti anda menerima ajaran Tuhan. Namun mengenai Para Pewarta dan Nabi, bersikap dan berbuatlah sesuai dengan perintah Gereja. Biarlah setiap Pewarta yang datang padamu diterima sebagai pewartaan Tuhan. Tapi dia tidak boleh tinggal lebih dari satu hari; atau dua hari, kalau diperlukan. Namun kalau dia tetap ada setelah tiga hari, dia adalah pewarta palsu. Dan ketika Pewarta tersebut pergi, jangan memberinya apa-apa kecuali roti sebagai bekal perjalanan. Jikalau ia meminta uang, ia juga seorang pewarta palsu. Dan setiap Pewarta yang berbicara dalam bahasa Roh engkau tidak boleh mencobai ataupun menghakimi; karena setiap dosa akan diampuni, tapi dosa seperti ini tidak. Tapi tidak semua orang yang berbicara dalam bahasa Roh adalah seorang Pewarta; melainkan hanya jika dia mengajarkan jalan Tuhan. Karenanya dari ajarannyalah kita dapat mengenal para pewarta dan nabi palsu. Dan setiap pewarta yang meminta makanan dalam Roh tidak memakannya, kecuali ia benar benar nabi yang palsu. Dan setiap pewarta (nabi), yang terbukti benar, berusaha menjelaskan misteri Gereja di dunia, dan tidak mengajarkan untuk melakukan apa yang dia sendiri lakukan, hendaknya tidak kamu hakimi, karena Tuhan lah yang akan menghakiminya; sama seperti para nabi jaman dahulu. Namun siapapun berkata kata dalam Roh, berilah aku uang, atau yang lain, engkau hendaknya tidak mendengarkannya. Tapi jika ia mengatakan padamu untuk memberikan milikmu bagi orang yang membutuhkan, janganlah menghakiminya.


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Chapter 12. Reception of Christians. But receive everyone who comes in the name of the Lord, and prove and know him afterward; for you shall have understanding right and left. If he who comes is a wayfarer, assist him as far as you are able; but he shall not remain with you more than two or three days, if need be. But if he wants to stay with you, and is an artisan, let him work and eat. But if he has no trade, according to your understanding, see to it that, as a Christian, he shall not live with you idle. But if he wills not to do, he is a Christ- monger. Watch that you keep away from such.


Bab 12. Menerima Orang Kristen. Namun terimalah semua orang yang datang dalam nama Tuhan, dan buktikan dan kenalilah dia kemudian; karena hendaknya kamu bisa mengenali kanan dan kiri. Jika ia datang sebagai pengelana, bantulah dia sebisamu; namun dia tidak boleh tinggal bersamamu lebih dari dua atau tiga hari, kalau diperlukan. Namun kalau ia ingin tinggal bersamamu, dan ia bisa bekerja, biarkan dia bekerja dan makan. Namun kalau ia tidak punya kemampuan apa-apa, seperti penilaianmu, lihatlah bahwa, sebagai seorang Kristen, dia tidak boleh tinggal denganmu tanpa melakukan apapun. Dan kalau ia menolak, dia adalah seorang Christ-monger. Perhatikan bahwa kamu harus menghindar dari orang-orang yang seperti ini.


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Chapter 13. Support of Prophets. But every true prophet who wants to live among you is worthy of his support. So also a true teacher is himself worthy, as the workman, of his support. Every first-fruit, therefore, of the products of wine-press and threshing-floor, of oxen and of sheep, you shall take and give to the prophets, for they are your high priests. But if you have no prophet, give it to the poor. If you make a batch of dough, take the first-fruit and give according to the commandment. So also when you open a jar of wine or of oil, take the first-fruit and give it to the prophets; and of money (silver) and clothing and every possession, take the first-fruit, as it may seem good to you, and give according to the commandment.


Bab 13. Dukungan Untuk Para Pewarta (Nabi). Namun setiap pewarta (nabi) sejati yang ingin tinggal di antara kamu hendaknya hidup dengan usahanya sendiri. Sehingga seorang pewarta (nabi) sejati layak disebut demikian, seperti seorang pekerja, menghidupi dirinya sendiri. Setiap ‘buah-pertama’, dari pemerasan anggur dan penumbukan (padi / biji-bijian), dari lembu dan domba, harus kamu bawa dan berikan kepada pewarta-pewarta (nabi-nabi) tersebut, karena mereka adalah imam agung mu. Namun jika engkau tidak mempunyai (pewarta/nabi/imam), berikanlah kepada mereka yang miskin. Jika kamu memiliki uang berlebih, sisihkanlah dan berikan kepada yang patut menerima sesuai dengan urutannya. Sehingga ketika engkau membuka sebotol anggur atau minyak, sisihkanlah (ambilah buah-pertamanya=first fruit) dan berikanlah kepada pewarta (nabi); dan tentang uang (perak) dan pakaian dan setiap milikmu, sisihkanlah yang terbaik menurut kamu, dan berikanlah kepada yang patut menerima sesuai dengan urutannya.


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Chapter 14. Christian Assembly on the Lord's Day. But every Lord's day gather yourselves together, and break bread, and give thanksgiving after having confessed your transgressions, that your sacrifice may be pure. But let no one who is at odds with his fellow come together with you, until they be reconciled, that your sacrifice may not be profaned. For this is that which was spoken by the Lord: "In every place and time offer to me a pure sacrifice; for I am a great King, says the Lord, and my name is wonderful among the nations."


Bab 14. Christian Assembly on the Lord's Day. Namun pada setiap "hari milik Tuhan" (hari Minggu, KURIAKÊ HÊMERA) berkumpulah bersama, pecahlah roti, dan saling berterima kasihlah setelah kamu mengakui kesalahanmu, sehingga korbanmu dapat disucikan. Dan jangan biarkan siapapun yang bermusuhan dengan sahabatnya berada bersamamu, sampai mereka saling memaafkan, sehingga korbanmu tidak menjadi najis. Karena inilah perkataan Tuhan: “Di setiap tempat dan kesempatan, persembahkanlah padaku korban yang suci; karena Aku lah Raja yang agung, kata Tuhan, dan nama Ku indah diantara bangsa bangsa.”


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Chapter 15. Bishops and Deacons; Christian Reproof. Appoint, therefore, for yourselves, bishops and deacons worthy of the Lord, men meek, and not lovers of money, and truthful and proved; for they also render to you the service of prophets and teachers. Therefore do not despise them, for they are your honored ones, together with the prophets and teachers. And reprove one another, not in anger, but in peace, as you have it in the Gospel. But to anyone that acts amiss against another, let no one speak, nor let him hear anything from you until he repents. But your prayers and alms and all your deeds so do, as you have it in the Gospel of our Lord.


Bab 15. Uskup dan Diakon; Cara Orang Kristen Mengkritik/Memberi Tahu . Tunjuklah, karenanya, untukmu, para uskup dan diakon yang layak dihadapan Tuhan, orang-orang yang sederhana, dan tidak gila harta, yang berbuah dan sudah terbukti; untuk memberikan kepadamu pelayanan seperti para nabi dan guru. Karenanya janganlah membenci mereka, karena mereka adalah orang orang yang patut kamu hormati, sama seperti para nabi dan guru. Dan saling mengkritiklah satu sama lain, tidak dalam kemarahan, tapi dalam damai, seperti yang telah kamu dapat di dalam Gereja. Tapi untuk orang yang berbuat jahat kepada sesamanya, jangan biarkan siapapun berkata kata, atau membiarkan dia mendengar apapun dari kamu, sampai ia menyesal. Namun biarkanlah doamu, dan sedekahmu dan semua perbuatanmulah yang melakukannya, seperti engkau mengalaminya di dalam Gereja Tuhan.

Pasal 16 memuat nubuat tentang anti Kristus dan parousia (kedatangan Yesus yang kedua) :


Chapter 16. Watchfulness; the Coming of the Lord. Watch for your life's sake. Let not your lamps be quenched, nor your loins unloosed; but be ready, for you know not the hour in which our Lord will come. But come together often, seeking the things which are befitting to your souls: for the whole time of your faith will not profit you, if you are not made perfect in the last time. For in the last days false prophets and corrupters shall be multiplied, and the sheep shall be turned into wolves, and love shall be turned into hate; for when lawlessness increases, they shall hate and persecute and betray one another, and then shall appear the world-deceiver as Son of God, and shall do signs and wonders, and the earth shall be delivered into his hands, and he shall do iniquitous things which have never yet come to pass since the beginning. Then shall the creation of men come into the fire of trial, and many shall be made to stumble and shall perish; but those who endure in their faith shall be saved from under the curse itself. 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 -- yet not of all, but 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.


Bab 16. Berjaga-jagalah; Kedatangan Tuhan. Berjaga-jagalah demi Nyawamu sendiri. Jangan sampai pelita-mu padam, atau ikat pinggangmu terjuntai; tapi selalulah siap siaga, karena kamu tidak tahu pada jam berapa Tuhanmu akan datang. Dan berkumpulah bersama, untuk mencari hal hal yang sesuai bagi jiwamu: karena imanmu seumur hidup tidak akan berguna bagimu, kalau tidak engkau sempurnakan pada akhirnya. Karena pada hari hari terakhir nabi nabi palsu dan para koruptor akan digandakan, dan domba domba akan berubah menjadi serigala, dan cinta akan berubah menjadi kebencian; karena ketika ketidak pastian hukum meningkat, mereka akan membenci dan menindas dan saling berkhianat satu sama lain, dan kemudian penipu dunia akan muncul sebagai Anak Allah, dan akan membuat tanda-tanda dan keajaiban-keajaiban, dan dunia ini akan diserahkan kedalam tangannya, dan dia akan melakukan tindakan tindakan jahat yang tidak pernah dilakukan sejak semula. Dan kemudian penciptaan manusia akan sampai kepada api pencucian, dan banyak yang akan gagal dan musnah; tapi mereka yang bertahan dalam imannya akan diselamatkan dari kutukan. Dan kemudian akan nampak tanda kebenaran: pertama, surga akan terbuka, kemudian akan terdengar suara terompet. Dan yang ketiga, kebangkitan orang orang mati – namun tidak semua, tapi seperti yang tertulis: “Tuhan akan datang dan semua orang suci akan bangkit bersama Nya.” Kemudian dunia akan melihat Allah datang dalam awan surga.

DIDACHE

By : Solomon Schechter - Kaufmann Kohler



A manual of instruction for proselytes, adopted from the Synagogue by early Christianity, and transformed by alteration and amplification into a Church manual. Discovered among a collection of ancient Christian manuscripts in Constantinople by Bryennios in 1873, and published by him in 1883, it aroused great interest among scholars. The book, mentioned by Eusebius ("Hist. Eccl." iii. 25) and Athanasius ("Festal Letters," 39) in the fourth century, had apparently been lost since the ninth century. The most acceptable theory among the many proposed on the character and composition of the "Didache" is that proposed by Charles Taylor in 1886, and accepted in 1895 by A. Harnack (who in 1884 had most vigorously maintained its Christian origin)—that the first part of the "Didache," the teaching concerning the "Two Ways" ("Didache," ch. i.-vi.), was originally a manual of instruction used for the initiation of proselytes in the Synagogue, and was converted later into a Christian manual and ascribed to Jesus and the Apostles. To it were added rules concerning baptism, fasting, and prayer, the benedictions over the wine and the bread and after the communion meal, and regulations regarding the Christian community (ch. vii.-xvi.). The Jewish student is concerned chiefly with the first part, the title and contents of which are discussed here.


Title of the Book.

The composite character of the "Didache" is shown by the double title or heading. The first words, "Teaching of the Twelve Apostles," form the general title, and therefore need not now be considered. But of the second heading, which refers to the original book, ch. i.-vi., only the words "Teaching of the Lord to the Gentiles" are genuinely Jewish; the words "through the Twelve Apostles," which assume that the word "Lord" refers to Jesus, are a Christian interpolation. The book known to Christians as the "Teaching of the Two Ways" corresponded probably with the "Hilkot Gerim" (Rules Regarding Proselytes) referred to in Ruth R. i. 7 and 16 as having been studied by Ruth under the direction of Naomi, the words ("way") and ("walk") in both verses being taken as indications that the necessary instruction in the "Two Ways" had been duly given to Ruth (compare Baraita Yeb. 47a, and Massek. Gerim, the abrupt beginning of which gives evidence of the existence of other rules concerning the admission of proselytes during the Temple time).



Contents of the "Didache."


The whole teaching is summarized in the first two verses (ch. i. 1-2): "There are two ways, one of life and one of death, and wide is the difference between. The way of life is this: First, thou shalt love God thy Maker [after Deut. vi. 5]; second, thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself [after Lev. xix. 18]. Now the teaching of these two words is this: 'Whatsoever thou wouldst not have done unto thee, neither do thou to another.'"
Here is a great lacuna, nothing being said about what love of God implies; and what follows is only very loosely connected with the preceding verses. Whether taken from an old Essene document (see Hippolytus, "Refutatio Hæresium," ix. 23 [18]) or from some Christian collection of "Sayings" older than Matt. v. 39-48 and Luke vi. 27-39, verses 3-4 are certainly out of place; they interrupt the order. So do verses 4-5, in which "the commandment of charity" is treated from the Jewish point of view, though they have parallels in Matt. v. 26; Acts xx. 35.

Ch. ii. 1 begins as if the first part of the Decalogue, comprising the law of the love of God, had been treated in the preceding chapter: "And the second commandment of the Teaching [that is, love of our fellow man] is: Thou shalt not kill" (Ex. xx. 13; see verse 2).
2: "Thou shalt not commit adultery" (Ex. xx. 14). (This includes: "Thou shalt not commit sodomy nor fornication.") "Thou shalt not steal" (Ex. xx. 15). . . . "Thou shalt not use witchcraft nor practise sorcery" (Ex. xxii. 18; Lev. xix. 26). (This belongs obviously to the eliminated first part comprising the duties toward God.) "Thou shalt not procure abortion, nor shalt thou kill the new-born child" (compare Wisdom xii. 5). (This is the amplification of Ex. xx. 13, and belongs to verse 1.) "Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's goods" (Ex. xx. 17; see verse 6).

3-5: "Thou shalt not forswear thyself." . . . (This again belongs to the eliminated first part.) "Thou shalt not bear false witness" (Ex. xx. 16). "Thou shalt not speak evil nor bear malice. Thou shalt not be doubled-minded nor double-tongued, for duplicity of tongue is a snare of death. Thy speech shall not be false nor vain, but filled with deed."

6: "Thou shalt not be covetous nor rapacious [amplification of Ex. xx. 17], nor a hypocrite, nor malignant, nor haughty. Thou shalt not take evil counsel against thy neighbor" (amplification of Ex. xx. 16).

7: "Thou shalt not hate any one; but some thou shalt rebuke [Lev. xix. 17], and for some thou shalt pray [compare Tosef., B. K. ix. 29 with reference to Job xlii. 8; Gen. xx. 17; see Matt. v. 44], and some thou shalt love above thine own soul" (compare "Epistle of Barnabas," xix. 11, and another "Didache" version, Harnack and Gebhard, "Texte u. Untersuchungen," xiii. i. 7 et seq.). (This is the interpretation of Lev. xix. 18; compare above, i. 3.)

Ch. iii. 1 dwells on lighter sins, and begins by laying down the following principle: "My child, flee from every evil and from whatsoever is similar to it." This well-known maxim, , is ascribed in Tosef., Hul. ii. 24 to R. Eliezer of the second Christian century, and in Ab. R. N. ii. (ed. Schechter, pp. 8, 9) to Job, and is explained: "Avoid light sins in order to escape grosser sins" (compare also Hul. 44b; Derek Erez Zuta, viii.; I Thess. v. 22; and Bacher, "Die Agada der Tannaiten," i. 113, 281). In this sense are the commandments of the Decalogue further amplified:
2 warns against anger and contention as leading to murder.
3, against lust, lascivious speeches and looks as leading to fornication and adultery.
4, against divination, astrology, and other heathen practices as leading to idolatry.
5, against lying, avarice, and vanity as leading to theft.
6-9, against an irreverential and presumptuous attitude toward God as leading to blasphemy.
10, enjoining the disciple to accept every seemingly evil happening as good because coming from God.

Ch. iv. 1-13 refers again to the duty toward God, stating that the honor of God includes the study of His Word; the honor of the teacher, the support of the students and practisers of the Law; the honor of the father, the support of the household; and after having positively enjoined hatred of hypocrisy and of whatever is evil (see Ab. R. N. xvi. [ed. Schechter, p. 64]), it declares in a genuinely Jewish spirit that "the commandments of the Lord should all be kept; none to be added, and none to be taken away" (compare Deut. iv. 2, xiii. 1 [xii. 32]).

Ch. v. recapitulates the prohibitory laws under the heading "This is the Way of Death"; the enumeration, however, shows lack of order.

Ch. vi. contains a warning against false teachers, and addressing the proselyte in verse 2, it says: "If thou art able to bear the whole yoke of the Lord, thou wilt be perfect; if not, do what thou canst." This is obviously an allusion to the two classes of proselytes Judaism recognized: the full proselyte, who accepted all the laws of the Torah, including circumcision, Sabbath, and the dietary laws; and the semi-proselyte, who accepted only the Noachian laws as binding. For the latter verse 3 contains the warning not to eat meat which has been offered to idols, which is forbidden also to the Noachidæ.



The "Two Ways."


As a matter of course, this Jewish manual could not be used in its entirety by the Church from the moment when she deviated from Jewish practices and views. Just as the Shema' Yisrael in the saying of Jesus (Mark xii. 29) was dropped by the other Gospel writers, so was the whole first part of the "Didache," dealing with monotheism, tampered with by the Christian editor. The whole book has fallen into disorder, and much of it is misunderstood and misinterpreted by Christian scholars, who judge it only from the point of view of the Church. The fundamental ideas of the "Didache" are indisputably Jewish. The teaching of the "Two Ways," the one of life and the other of death, runs as a leading thought throughout Jewish literature. Just as Moses set before the people of Israel "life and good, death and evil" (Deut. xxx. 15-19; Jer. xxi. 8), so is the choice between the two roads to be made ever anew (Ps. i. 6; Prov. ii. 12-20, vi. 23; Ecclus. [Sirach] xv. 17; Slavonic Enoch, xxx. 15; IV Ezra iii. 7, iv. 4; Pirke R. El. xv.; Gen. R. viii., ix., xxi.; Targum to Gen. iii. 22; Enoch, xciv. 2 et seq.; Baruch iv. 2; Apoc. Baruch, xlii. 5 et seq., lxxxv. 13; Book of Jubilees, xxii. 17-29; Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs, Asher, 1; Abot R. N. xv.; Ber. 28b; Sifre, Debarim, 43, 54, based on ["the way"]; Deut xi. 28; Gen. R. lxx. to Gen. xxviii. 20; Ex. R. xxx.; Deut. R. iv.; Midrash, Tehillim to Ps. ii. 3, with reference to ; Isa. ii. 3; Ps. xxvi. 5, xxxix. 2, xl. 2, lxviii. 21, cxix. 9, cxlvi. 9; Midrash Prov. i. 15 []. This twofold way was especially emphasized in the preaching to the Gentiles, who were to be won over to the right way (Sibyllines, Proœmium 24; iii. 11, 233, 721; viii. 399). And a faint reminiscence of the twofold way appears to be preserved in the later Halakah insisting that the applicant for admission into Judaism be informed of the death-penalties attached to certain transgressions (see Yeb. 47a, b; compare Ruth R. i. 17 with reference to the Biblical words "Where thou diest will I die"). Another leading idea of the "Didache" is the twofold duty: love of God and love of man; both being prefaced by the word = "And thou shalt love" (Deut. vi. 4; Lev. xix. 18; see Sifre, Debarim, 32; Ab. R. N. xvi. [ed. Schechter, p. 64]; Gen. R. xxiv, end). Upon God as "the Maker of man" rests the claim of the fellow man to love (Job xxxi. 15).

It is noteworthy that the "golden rule" is given in the "Didache" according to the traditional Jewish interpretation—negatively: (see Targ. to Lev. xix. 18; Tobit iv. 15; Philo in Eusebius, "Præparatio Evangelica," viii. 7; "Apostolic Constitutions," i. 1;; compare Taylor, "Sayings of the Jewish Fathers," 2d ed., p. 142), exactly as Hillel and Akiba taught it when instructing the proselyte regarding the chief commandment of the Law (Shab. 31b; Ab. R. N., B, xxvi. [ed. Schechter, p. 53]). On the other hand, the New Testament (Matt. vii. 12; Luke vi. 31) hasit in a positive form (compare Matt. xxii. 35-40 and Mark xii. 29-31, which discussion is based on the "Didache," not vice versa).



Based on the Decalogue.


A third characteristic of the teaching is the use of the Decalogue as the exponent of ethics in its twofold aspect: duty to God, and duty to man (compare Taylor, l.c. pp. 216 et seq.). Evidently the original "Didache" contained a systematic exposition of the Ten Commandments, whereas the "Didache" in its present shape has preserved only fragments, and these in great disorder.

Thus, for instance, iv. 9-11, and possibly iv. 1, 2, dwelling on the relations of the members of the household to one another, refers to the fifth commandment, nor is it likely that the Sabbath commandment was omitted (compare xiv. 1, where the Christian Sabbath is referred to). The Decalogue and the Shema', as fundamental elements of Judaism, were recited every morning in the Temple (Tamid v. 1), and only because the early Judæo-Christians (Minim; see Irenæus, "Adversus Hæreses," iv. 16) claimed divine revelation exclusively for the Ten Commandments, discarding the other Mosaic laws as temporary enactments, was the recital of the Decalogue in the daily morning liturgy afterward abolished (Yer. Ber. i. 3c). Philo still regarded the Decalogue as fundamental ("De Decem Oraculis"; compare Pes. R. xxi.-xxiv.; Num. R. xiii. 15). The later Halakah insists that the proselyte should be acquainted instead with the 613 commandments of the Law (Yeb. 47b), whereas the Christian Apostles laid all the greater stress on the second part of the Decalogue (Rom. xiii. 9).

A fourth distinguishing feature of the "Didache" is the accentuation of the lighter sins and lighter duties as leading to graver ones: "Flee from every evil and from whatsoever is similar to it" (iii. 1). This is not a proof of "the superiority of the Gospel ethics over the law" (Schaff, note ad loc.), but the very essence of the Pharisaic interpretation of the Law. The same idea is expressed in Ab. R. N. ii. (ed. Schechter, pp. 8, 9, 12; comp. Ab. i. 1): "Make a fence around the Law"; (Schaff, note ad loc.), and in the adage "Go around the vineyard, they say to the Nazarite, but dare not to enter it" (Shab. 13a). Upon this principle the whole rabbinical code of ethics is built up, of which the Sermon on the Mount is only the echo (see Ab. R. N. l.c., and Ethics; compare Taylor, "The Teaching of the Twelve Apostles," pp. 24 et seq.). The later Halakah also sets down the rule that the proselyte has to be made acquainted with some of the lighter and some of the graver commandments— (Yeb. 47a).



Dependence upon Jewish Custom.


It must accordingly have been simply in imitation of the Jewish example which was offered by the "Didache" that the epistles of Paul, of Peter, and of John were made to close with moral exhortations, all of which point to a common source or archetype. Familiarity with the "Two Ways" of the "Didache" furthermore accounts for the term "way" or "way of God" given to the Christian religion as preached to Gentiles (Acts ix. 2; xviii. 25, 26; xix. 9, 23; xxii. 4; xxiv. 14, 22); and the expression "I am the Way and the Life" (John xiv. 6); also "the way of truth" and "the right way" (II Peter ii. 2, 15). Finally, the "Didache," after adaptation to Christian use, circulated in different versions. It was attached to the "Epistle of Barnabas" (xviii.-xx.); it was worked into the form of "Sayings of the Twelve Apostles" (.a...e. ....es.ast.... t.. .....), and as such propagated in the various churches of the East. An older version is attached to the "Didascalia" as the beginning of the seventh book of the "Apostolic Constitutions." Whether the latter part was also worked out after a Jewish model, or whether the whole Jewish "Didache" did not originally also contain rules concerning baptism, prayer, and thanksgiving similar to those of the Church manual, is difficult to say. Much speaks in favor of this hypothesis: on the one hand, the antagonistic spirit which transferred the Hebrew Ma'amadot fasts from Monday and Thursday, and on the other hand, the expression "Take the first-fruit and give according to the commandment" (xiii. 5, 7). But the dependence upon Jewish custom is especially indicated by the following thanksgiving formulas

(1) Over the cup: "We give thanks to Thee, our Father, for the holy wine of David Thy servant which Thou hast made known to us through Jesus Thy servant." This strange formula is the Jewish benediction over the wine,"Blessed be Thou who hast created the fruit of the vine" Christianized (compare Ps. lxxx. 15, Targum; cxvi. 13 refers to David at the banquet of the future life; Pes. 119b; John xv. 1; compare Taylor, l.c. pp. 69, 129).

(2) Over the broken bread: "We give thanks to Thee, our Father, for the life and knowledge which Thou hast made known to us through Jesus Thy servant. As this broken bread, scattered upon the mountains and gathered together, became one, so let Thy Church be gathered together from the ends of the earth into Thy Kingdom!" (compare the benediction "Rahem" according to Rab Nahman, which contains a reference to Ps. cxlvii. 2; Ber. 49a).

(3) Over the meal: "We thank Thee, O holy Father, for Thy holy name, which Thou hast caused to dwell [.ates....sa., reference to the Shekinah] in our hearts, and for the knowledge and faith and immortality which Thou hast made known to us through Jesus Thy servant. Thou, Almighty Lord, didst make all things for Thy name's sake; Thou gavest food and drink to men for enjoyment that they might give thanks to Thee, but to us Thou didst freely give spiritual food and drink and life eternal through Thy servant.... Remember, O Lord, Thy Church to deliver her from all evil and to perfect her in love of Thee, and gather her together from the four winds, sanctified for Thy Kingdom which Thou didst prepare for her. Let grace come and let this world pass away! Hosanna to the Son of David" (ix.-x. 6).


The original Jewish benediction over the meal was a thanksgiving for the food and for the Word of God, the Torah as the spiritual nurture, and a prayer for the restitution of the kingdom of David. The Church transformed the Logos into the incarnated son of God, while expressing the wish for His speedy return to the united congregation (the Church). It is the prayer of the Judæo-Christian community of the first century, and this casts light upon the whole Christianized "Didache."



Bibliography:
Editio princeps: Theoph. Bryennios, 'didakhê kuriou dia ton dodeka apostolon', Constantinople, 1883;
Rendel Harris, The Teaching of the Apostles (with facsimile text), Baltimore and London, 1887;
Ph. Schaff, The Oldest Church Manual, Called "The Teaching of the Twelve Apostles," New York, 1886, where all the literature is given;
C. Taylor, The Teaching of the Twelve Apostles, with illustrations from the Talmud (two lectures), Cambridge, 1886;
A. Harnack, Die Lehre der Zwölf Apostel, in Texte u. Untersuchungen zur Geschichte der Altchristlichen Literatur, ii. 2, Leipsic, 1884;
idem, Die Apostellehre u. die Jüdischen Beiden Wege, Leipsic, 1886, 1896;
O. Bardenhewer, Geschichteder Altkirchlichen Literatur, 1902, i. 83-86:
Iselin, Eine Bisher Unbekannte Version des Ersten Theils der Apostellehre, in Texte u. Untersuchungen, xiii. 1, Leipsic, 1895;
Herzog-Hauck, Real-Eneyklopädie, s.v.S. S. K.

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DIDACHE


DIDACHE, THE, or Teaching of the (twelve) Apostles,—the most important of the recent recoveries in the region of early Christian literature. It was previously known by name from lists of canonical and extracanonical books compiled by Eusebius and other writers. Moreover, it had come to be suspected by several scholars that a lost book, variously entitled The Two Ways or The Judgment of Peter, had been freely used in a number of works, of which mention must presently be made. In 1882 a critical reconstruction of this book was made by Adam Krawutzcky with marvelous accuracy, as was shown when in the very next year the Greek bishop and metropolitan, Philotheus Bryennius, published The Teaching of the Twelve Apostles from the same manuscript from which he had previously published the complete form of the Epistle of Clement.

The Didachë, as we now have it in the Greek, falls into two marked divisions: (a) a book of moral precepts, opening with the words, "There are two ways "; (b) a manual of church ordinances, linked on to the foregoing by the words, "Having first said all these things, baptize, &c." Each of these must be considered separately before we approach the question of the locality and date of the whole book in its present form.


1. The Two Ways.—The author of the complete work, as we now have it, has modified the original Two Ways by inserting near the beginning a considerable section containing, among other matter, passages from the Sermon on the Mount, in which the language of St Matthew’s Gospel is blended with that of St Luke’s. He has also added at the close a few sentences, beginning, "If thou canst not bear (the whole yoke of the Lord), bear what thou canst" (vi. 2); and among minor changes he has introduced, in dealing with confession, reference to" the church" (iv. 14). No part of this matter is to be found in the following documents, which present us in varying degrees of accuracy with The Two Ways:

(i) the Epistle of Barnabas, chaps. xix., xx. (in which the order of the book has been much broken up, and a good deal has been omitted);

(ii) the Ecclesiastical Canons of the Holy Apostles, usually called the Apostolic Church Order, a book which presents a parallel to the Teaching, in so far as it consists first of a form of The Two Ways, and secondly of a number of church ordinances (here, however, as in the Syriac Didascalia, which gives about the same amount of Tile Two Ways, various sections are ascribed to individual apostles, e.g. "John said, There are two ways," &c.);

(iii) a discourse of the Egyptian monk Schnudi (d. 451), preserved in Arabic (see Iselin, Texte u. Unters., 1895);

(iv) a Latin version, of which a fragment was published ‘by 0. von Gebhardt in 1884, and the whole by J. Schlecht in 1900. When by the aid of this evidence The Two Ways is restored to us free of glosses, it has the appearance of being a Jewish manual which has been carried over into the use of the Christian church. This is of course only a probable inference; there is no prototype extant in Jewish literature, and, comparing the moral (non-doctrinal) instruction for Christian catechumens in Hermas, Shepherd (Mand. i.-ix.), no real need to assume one. There was a danger of admitting Gentile converts to the church on too easy moral terms; hence the need of such insistence on the ideal as in The Two Ways and the Mandates. The recent recovery of the Latin version is o singular interest, as showing that, even without the distinctively Christian additions and interpolations which our full form of the Teaching presents, it was circulating under the title Doctrina aposlolorum.2


2. The second part of our Teaching might be -called a church directory. It consists of precepts relating to church life, which are couched in the second person plural; whereas The Two Ways uses throughout the second person singular. It appears to be a composite work. First (vii. I-X1. 2) Is a short sacramental manual intended for the use of local elders or presbyters, though such are not named, for they were not yet a distinctive order or clergy. This section was probably added to The Two Ways before the addition of the remainder. It orders baptism in the threefold name, making a distinction as to waters which has Jewish parallels, and permitting a threefold pouring on the head, if sufficient water for immersion cannot be had. It prescribes a fast before baptism for the baptizer as well as the candidate. Fasts are to be kept on Wednesday and Friday, not Monday and Thursday, which are the fast days of "the hypocrites," i.e. by a perversion of the Lord’s words, the Jews. "Neither pray ye as

• The MS. was found in the Library of the Jerusalem Monastery of the Most Holy Sepulcher, in Phanar, the Greek quarter of Constantinople. It is a small octavo volume of 120 parchment leaves, written throughout by Leo, "notary and sinner," who finished his task on the 11th of June ff56. Besides The Didachê and the Epistles of Clement it contains several spurious lgnatian epistles.

• The word twelve had no place in the original title and was inserted when the original Didachë or Teaching (e.g. The Two Ways) was combined with the church manual which mentions apostles outside of the twelve. It may be noted that the division of the Didachë into chapters is due to Bryennius, that into verses to A. Harnack.


The hypocrites; but as the Lord commanded in His Gospel." Then follows the Lord’s Prayer, almost exactly as in St Matthew, with a brief doxology—" for Thine is the power and the glory for ever." This is to be said three times a day. Next come three eucharistic prayers, the language of which is clearly marked off from that of the rest of the book, and shows parallels with the diction of St John’s Gospel. They are probably founded on Jewish thanksgivings, and it is of interest to note that a portion of them is prescribed as a grace before meat in (pseudo-) Athanasius’ De virginit ate. A trace of them is found it one of the liturgical prayers of Serapion, bishop of Thinui, in Egypt, but they have left little mark on the liturgies of the church. As in Ignatius and other early writers, the Eucharist, a real meal (x. I) of a family character, is regarded as producing immortality (cf. "spiritual food and drink and eternal life"). None are to partake of it save those who have been "baptized in the name of the Lord " (an expression which is of interest in a document which prescribes the threefold formula). The prophets are not to be confined to these forms, but may "give thanks as much as they will." This appears to show that a prophet, if present, would naturally preside over the Eucharist. The next section (xi. 3—xni.) deals with the ministry of spiritual gifts as exercised by apostles, prophets and teachers. An apostle is to be "received as the Lord "; but he must follow the Gospel precepts, stay but one or two days, and take no money, but only bread enough for a day’s journey. Here we have that wider use of the term " apostle "to which Lightfoot had already drawn attention. A prophet, on the contrary, may settle if he chooses, and in that case he is to receive tithes and first-fruits; " for they are your high priests." If be once approved as a true prophet, his words and acts arc not to be criticized; for this is the sin that shall not be forgiven. Next comes a section (xiv., xv,) reflecting a somewhat later development concerning fixed services and ministry; the desire for a stated service, and the need of regular provision for it, is leading to a new order of things. The Eucharist is to be celebrated every Lord’s Day, and preceded by confession of sins, "that your sacrifice may be pure . . . for this is that sacrifice which was spoken of by the Lord, In every place and time to offer unto Me a pure sacrifice. Appoint therefore unto yourselves bishops and deacons, worthy of the Lord, men meek and uncovetous, and true and approved; for they also minister unto you the ministration of the prophets and teachers. Therefore despise them not; for they are your honored ones, together with the prophets and teachers." This is an arrangement recommended by one Who has tried it, and he reassures the old-fashioned believer who clings to the less formal régime (and whose protest was voiced in the Montanist movement), that there will be no spiritual loss under the new system. The book closes (chap. xvi.) with exhortations to steadfastness in the last days, and to the coming of the" world-deceiver " or Antichrist, which will precede the coming of the Lord. This section is perhaps the actual utterance of a Christian prophet, and may be of earlier origin than the two preceding sections.


3. It will now be clear that indications of the locality and date of our present Teaching must be sought for’ only in the second part, and in the Christian interpolations in the first part. We have no ground for thinking that the second part ever existed independently as a separate book. The whole work was in the hands of the writer of the seventh book of the Apostolic Constitutions, who embodies almost every sentence of it, interspersing it with passages of Scripture, and modifying the precepts of the second part to suit a later (4th-century) stage of church development; this writer was also the interpolator of the Epistles of Ignatius, and belonged to the Syrian Church. Whether the second part was known to the writer of the Apostolic C/lurch Order is not clear, as his only quotation of it comes from one of the eucharistic prayers. The allusions of early writers seem to point to Egypt, but their references are mostly to the first part, so that we must be careful how we argue from them as to the provenance of the book as a whole. Against Egypt has been urged the allusion in one of the eucharistic prayers to "corn upon the mountains." This is found in the Prayer-book of Serapion (c. 350) but omitted in a later Egyptian prayer; the' form as we have it in The Didachë may have passed into Egypt with the authority of tradition which was afterwards weakened. The anti-Jewish tone of the second part suggests the neighborhood of Jews, from whom the Christians were to be sharply distinguished. Either Egypt or Syria would satisfy this condition, and in favor of Syria is the fact that the presbyterate there was to a late date regarded as a rank rather than an office. If we can connect the injunctions(vi. 3) concerning (abstinence from certain) food and that which is offered to idols with the old trouble that arose at Antioch (Acts xv. I) and was legislated for by the Jerusalem council, we have additional support for the Syrian claim. But all that we can safely say as to locality is that the community here represented seems to have been isolated, and out of touch with the larger centers of Christian life.


This last consideration helps us in discussing the question of date. For such an isolated community may have preserved primitive customs for some time after they had generally disappeared. Certainly the stage of development is an early one, as is shown, e.g., by the prominence of prophets, and the need that was felt for the vindication of the position of the bishops and deacons (there is no mention at all of presbyters); moreover, there is no reference to a canon of Scripture (though the written Gospel is expressly mentioned) or to a creed. On. the other hand the "apostles" of the second part are obviously not "the twelve apostles" of the title; and the prophets seem in some instances to have proved unworthy of their high position. The ministry of enthusiasm which they represent is about to give way to the ministry of office, a transition. which is reflected in the New Testament in the 3rd Epistle of John.

Three of the Gospels have clearly been for some time in circulation; St Matthew’s is used several times, and there are phrases which occur only’ in St Luke’s, while St John’s Gospel lies behind the eucharistic prayers which the writer has embodied in his work. There are no indications of any form of doctrinal heresy as needing rebuke; the warnings against false teaching are quite general. While the first part must be dated before the Epistle of Barnabas, i.e. before A.D. 90, it seems wisest not to place the complete work much earlier than A.D. 120, and there are passages which may well be later.
A large literature has sprung up round The Didachë since 1884. Harnack’s edition in Texte u. Unters. vol. ii. (1884) is indispensable to the student; and his discussions in Altchristl. Litteratur and Chronologie give clear summaries of his work. Other editions of the text are those of F. X. Funk, Pcftres Apostolici, vol. 1. (Tubingen, 1901); H. Lietzmann (Bonn, 1903; with Latin version). Dr J. E. Odgers has published an English translation with introduction and notes (London, 1906). Dr C. Taylor in 1886 drew attention to some important parallels in Jewish literature; his edition contains an English translation Dr Rendel Harris published in 1887 a complete facsimile, and gathered a great store of patristic illustration. Fext and translation will also be found in Lightfoot’s Apostolic Fathers (ed. mm.) The fullest critical treatment in English is by Dr Vernon Bartlet in the extra volume of Hastings’s Dictionary of the Bible; the most complete commentary on the text is by P. Drews in Hennecke’s Handbuch zu den N.T. Apocryphen (1904). Other references to the literature may be found by consulting Harnack’s Altchristi. Litteratur.



Source: 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica