From: Alan B. Thomas (a_b_thomas@yahoo.com)
Date: Sun Jan 14 2001 - 10:50:17 EST
> > It was natural for Jesus to transfer this word to
> the Church, God's new
> > congregation.
>
> I agree with Harold's response, which addresses the
> appropriateness of
> EKKLHSIA's use. Still, the question remains why it
> was chosen over the
> alternative word, SUNAGWGH.
D.W.
Could it be because SUNAGWGH was almost universally
thought of as a Jewish word, while EKKLHSIA enjoyed a
universal, non-Jewish connotation of a gathering of
people united by membership?
I would think that in the first century, SUNAGWGH
would bring to mind a Jewish worship place, while
EKKLHSIA would bring to mind a picture of a gathered
people, regardless of their national affiliation.
Since the new church was not a "Jewish" thing,
EKKLHSIA to me seems like the likely choice. Having
said that, I do think that SUNAGWGH could have been
used, since the church was not opposed to using Jewish
terminology. But in the dominant Greco-Roman world, I
think EKKLHSIA did not carry any "baggage."
=====
Sincerely,
Alan B. Thomas
"Just think how fast lightning would be
if it didn't zigzag."
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