326. Despite denials . . . the
Twelve and the Apostles were originally the same group. But quite early this
office was extended by name to others. The evidence for this is as follows:
St. James, "the brother of
the Lord," is called an Apostle by clear implication in Gal. 1:19
when St. Paul says, "But other of the Apostles I saw none, save James, the
Lord's brother." The only doubt about this case arises from the
possibility that this same "James" may be "James, the son of
Alphaeus," the hence one of the original Twelve. But most scholars think
this unlikely.
St. Barnabas is twice called an
Apostle. St. Paul implies this clearly in I Cor. 9:5-6 when he says,
"Have we no right to lead about a wife that is a believer, even as
the rest of the Apostles, and the brethren of the Lord, and Cephas? Or I
only and Barnabas, have we not a right to forbear working? And in
Acts 14:14 we read, "But when the Apostles, Barnabas and Paul,
heard of it, etc." There is no chance of Barnabas having been a member of
the original Twelve. Hence this case is quite clear. It is not permissible to
try to escape by suggesting that in Acts 14:14 apostles (messengers) of
the Church of Antioch are meant. For Gal. 1:1 shows that St. Paul would
decisively reject this interpretation; and it is not likely that his intimate companion,
St. Luke, would take a lower view of St. Paul's Apostleship. Nor is it likely
that the word was intended to apply to St. Barnabas in a different sense than
to St. Paul. Besides, the passage in I Corinthians is decisive, even if
it stood alone.
In Romans 16:7 we read of
"Andronicus and Junias . . . who are of note among the Apostles, who also
have been in Christ before me." it is probable that we have another case
here, though this is not certain, for it is possible that the meaning of
"among the Apostles" is "in the opinion or esteem of the
Apostles."
In II Cor. 11 and 12, we
find several references to "the very chiefest Apostles," which is
invariably rendered in the margin of the American Revised Version as
"those preeminent Apostles." At first sight we might be inclined to
interpret the former translation as referring to the same outstanding Apostles
who are called "pillars" in Galatians. But the marginal rendition,
which is certainly to be preferred, is not favorable to this view. And several
things said about these particular Apostles in this section of the Epistle and elsewhere
in the same Epistle are very unlikely to have been said by St. Paul of St.
Peter, St. James, or St. John. So others are very probably meant. These others
may be "apostles (messengers) of the Jerusalem Church." At least they
seem to have had recommendatory letters from others. But they may also be Apostles
in the same full but "extended" sense as Barnabas.
In I Thess. we find the
Epistles signed by "Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy." Then, in I Thess.
2:6 we read "when we might have claimed authority (or been
burdensome) as Apostles of Christ." Here it is clearly implied that
more than one of the signatories is an Apostle, and the natural meaning is that
all three are included. Thus St. Silvanus and St. Timothy are added to St. Barnabas,
and possibly or probably to St. James, "the Lord's brother,"
Andronicus and Junias, and "those preeminent Apostles" who were
causing trouble at Corinth as men who are definitely called Apostles by St.
Paul or St. Luke but who were not members of the original Twelve. (Felix L.
Cirlot, Apostolic Succession: Is it True? An Historical and Theological
Inquiry [El Paso, Tex., 1949], 238-39)