A Blast from the Past: Codices of the Four and Twenty Elders

By Charles Stephens

If you thought that the Apostles were all men, think again. Here are twenty-four career profiles of a dozen men (the Twelve) and a dozen women who launched the Great Commission. The breathtaking scope of this book stretches from the Iberian Peninsula and the British Isles, all the way across Europe, North Africa, and the Middle East to Persia and on to India. And from the Atlantic all the way to the Bay of Bengal. From the West to the East. From the Crimean Peninsula down to Ethiopia. The book is historical – carefully researched – but reads like fiction, so it is fresh and accessible. It is imaginative but not a figment of the imagination. It does not wander into story-telling for its own sake, but keeps close to the historical record. Some readers like to look at the timeline and the map first, although these are annexures. It is written from deep admiration and the author’s contagious fire-in-the-belly. Some of the narrative may sound familiar, but then you will turn a corner into uncharted terrain. The book is full of novelties and insights that will astound even historians and Bible scholars. Fasten your seatbelts for new insights and a unique interpretation of the Apostolic Age.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Austin Macauley Publishers
• Release date: Sep 30, 2021
• ISBN: 9781398445789

Charles Stephens

Charles Stephens is a Canadian of Irish and Scottish descent who settled in South Africa. Empathetic to a fault with the underdog, he became an activist, a change agent and a columnist. He is well-educated and speaks more than one language. He is biblically literate, which draws him close to readers of all races in Africa. He also taps many other sources – from ancient history to current affairs, being an avid reader. He has published several books locally in South Africa. A Blast from the Past is his first international effort.

Book preview

About the Author

Charles Stephens is a Canadian of Irish and Scottish descent who settled in South Africa. Empathetic to a fault with the underdog, he became an activist, a change agent and a columnist. He is well-educated and speaks more than one language. He is biblically literate, which draws him close to readers of all races in Africa. He also taps many other sources – from ancient history to current affairs, being an avid reader. He has published several books locally in South Africa. A Blast from the Past is his first international effort.

Dedication

May this book inspire and intrigue readers as much as I have enjoyed reading other books about these amazing people – the mamas and the papas of our Faith. May my book add value to the cloud of witnesses!

Copyright Information ©

Charles Stephens (2021)

The right of Charles Stephens to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by the author in accordance with section 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publishers.

Any person who commits any unauthorised act in relation to this publication may be liable to criminal prosecution and civil claims for damages.

A CIP catalogue record for this title is available from the British Library.

ISBN 9781398445772 (Paperback)

ISBN 9781398445789 (ePub e-book)

www.austinmacauley.com

First Published (2021)

Austin Macauley Publishers Ltd

25 Canada Square

Canary Wharf

London

E14 5LQ

Acknowledgement

The Desmond Tutu Centre for Leadership

Preamble

Book of Revelation 4:4

"And round about the throne were four and twenty seats: and upon the seats, I saw four and twenty elders sitting, clothed in white raiment; and they had on their heads crowns of gold."

Who were these four and twenty, I have pondered?

There were the Twelve, its inner circle of Three, an outer circle of Seventy, the 500… and then the host of witnesses. But four and twenty?

Then my eyes were opened. I had always been looking at it, but had never noticed it… So I wrote four and twenty throne speeches.

I love to tell the story

’Twill be my theme in Glory

To tell the old, old story

Of Jesus and his love

Who’s who?

Book of Acts chapter 1

¹²Then the apostles returned to Jerusalem from the hill called the Mount of Olives, a Sabbath day’s walk from the city. ¹³When they arrived, they went upstairs to the room where they were staying. Those present were Peter, John, James and Andrew; Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew; James son of Alphaeus and Simon the Zealot, and Judas son of James. ¹⁴They all joined together constantly in prayer, along with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brothers.

1

Let It Be

The month of Elul; thirteenth year of Tiberius

Beloved son, Joshua,

I miss you so much. It has been more than a mother could expect for you to have lived at home for as long as you did. But the way they treated you at the synagogue on your birthday, I could see that you need some space to do what you do best. People here in the hill country are not as open to change as those residing in cities along the coast of Gennesaret. Those folks are more open-minded because they trade with people of other cultures right across the lake from Capernaum, and up to the big cities. So I wish you well going forward and you can rest assured of my daily prayers.

Isn’t this new medium so exciting? Imagine me writing with a quill onto papyrus paper! And you can read my words within just a few days’ time when the messenger arrives in Capernaum from Nazareth! It is amazing. I first saw it in Egypt, during our sojourn there as political refugees. It was much more common there, already in everyday use. Here we are still pulling scrolls out of clay jars and unrolling them to read! This new medium lends itself so much better to messaging. The emperor’s father even established a courier service for official messages. But we use personal contacts for delivery. I spoke to a trader who sells your father’s tables and chairs in a furniture shop in Capernaum. He knows you from his many business visits to Nazareth over the years and will find you in Capernaum to hand-deliver this letter.

At the risk of sounding fatalistic, we can thank the Romans for many things – roads, the Pax Romana, and this amazing new medium. It was Julius Caesar, the emperor’s grandfather, who first made a habit of using Codex. He started the trending. But he used parchment and vellum more than papyrus. He later spent some time in Egypt where he fathered a son by Cleopatra. That is when this medium really took off – when he returned with her and his new son to Rome. The Nile Delta began to produce papyrus paper on a scale never seen before! Demand has been rising ever since. I think that our scrolls will soon be redundant?

I am writing in Aramaic, even though I can read Hebrew. I am not comfortable writing in an ancient language. Too many words are missing. How would you say Codex in Hebrew, for example? And I am not going to betray my own people and culture by writing in Greek.

Not when I write to you, my eldest son, my pride and joy. The rising hope of our oppressed people.

I hope that you will find time to write back once in a while? The controversy that you generated has not died down around here yet, so it is too soon to return. But it will eventually fade away. Even our own family is split, but rest assured that your young brother James, for one, looks up to you as more than just an older brother. He is still around helping your father in his carpentry shop. Father is not getting any younger, so having a son around to help with the heavy lifting is a big encouragement to him.

Father is not sure about what to think of your claims. He does remember the signs and wonders at the time of your birth. And a few years later, his dream – warning us to flee into Egypt. Funnily enough, that’s where we now get Codex from – from one of the furniture retailers that he supplied while we were dwelling there and still supplies once a year. When they send papyrus paper to us via the furniture traders, they always ask after you. But not all of your siblings agree with your younger brother James about you, so Father tries to stay above the controversy, to keep peace in our home. So let it be.

The distance between Nazareth and Capernaum is not very far. So I will send you more letters from time to time when I can. Have you thought of writing down some of your poems and parables?

Try to send us some salted fish. The fish from the Mediterranean are not as sweet. The furniture business is good right now, so Father is busy and we are comfortable. Our years as refugees in Africa make us appreciate the standard of living that we enjoy now. But that political storm that caused us to flee makes father very wary of your career. What you say and do is something like moving past parchment scrolls to papyrus paper! It’s radical, and our people are very traditional, very conservative. It will take time to be accepted.

Please find some time to hike and relax at the beach. Gennesaret is so beautiful at this time of year.

God be with you

Mother Mary

2

Gone Fishin’

The month of