How did the early Christians understand/experience The Word

[PeterJP]

I am a bit puzzled by how St. Paul successfully managed to use Jewish Scripture to introduce Gentiles to the concept/meaning of Christ. (I’m told that many of the Gentile converts were the God Fearers that Luke mentions, i.e. already familiar with Judaism). But I am even more puzzled by St. John’s use of The Word, a concept that seems very subtle, even if some from a Jewish background were already familiar with Wisdom and some Gentiles were already pre-disposed to embracing eternal principles/the godhead. So, my question: how do you think most of the early Christians understood/experienced The Word? When they first heard/read St. John use that term, what do you think it meant to them?

Thanks
PeterJP

 

[The_GreyPilgrim]

I am a bit puzzled by how St. Paul successfully managed to use Jewish Scripture to introduce Gentiles to the concept/meaning of Christ. (I’m told that many of the Gentile converts were the God Fearers that Luke mentions, i.e. already familiar with Judaism). But I am even more puzzled by St. John’s use of The Word, a concept that seems very subtle, even if some from a Jewish background were already familiar with Wisdom and some Gentiles were already pre-disposed to embracing eternal principles/the godhead. So, my question: how do you think most of the early Christians understood/experienced The Word? When they first heard/read St. John use that term, what do you think it meant to them?

Thanks
PeterJP

John used the term “Logos” which the Greeks I believe would be very familiar with by reading Aristotle. John used the philosophic term and personified it. Its just like when Paul was in Athens at the Aeropagus and he used the statue of the “unknown god” to proclaim Jesus to them.

 

[PeterJP]

Grey - thanks, but you see that is part of my problem. It just seems to me (of course, i could be wrong) highly unlikely that most (or even a few) of the Gentiles the apostles encountered in those early days would have had occasion to read Aristotle, or anything even remotely similar. The notion that the Gentile Christians would’ve immediately appreciated and been devoted to “Logos” simply because the intellectual of the day had philosophized about it seems hard to accept.

 

[The_GreyPilgrim]

Grey - thanks, but you see that is part of my problem. It just seems to me (of course, i could be wrong) highly unlikely that most (or even a few) of the Gentiles the apostles encountered in those early days would have had occasion to read Aristotle, or anything even remotely similar. The notion that the Gentile Christians would’ve immediately appreciated and been devoted to “Logos” simply because the intellectual of the day had philosophized about it seems hard to accept.

Don’t take for granted Greek influences in Rome, even during the first century. Because of pax-romana there was widespread travel throughout the empire. Many Roman citizens sent their kids to school to study grammer, logic, and rhetoric. And commonplace in those studies was a heavy dose of Plato and Aristotle. School was not merely for the elites, but even for classes as low as the trade and merchant classes as well. And many early converts to Christianity were Romans of great influence, not just the poor.