Who was the 1st Christian?

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John the Baptist, he knew who he was the second he saw him.

or the shepherds who came in from the fields when he was born.

Mary…
Joseph…
 
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I can’t imagine any of the earliest Christians saying it was anyone but the Blessed Virgin. Except perhaps the Blessed Virgin herself; I wouldn’t be surprised if she deflected the question.

Seems an odd thing to ask, though.
 
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Well, not the second he saw him, but the one who told him to baptize also told him that the one on which the spirit landed was the one he should look for…

I keep reading about that. And it’s amazing. So much went on behind the scenes that we don’t actually know about… 🙂
 
I think you could certainly argue for Peter since Jesus established the Church and Peter was the first pope of it. Paul would also be a good choice as would be Mary though less is known of her. It’s really hard to p(name removed by moderator)oint the 1st but you could name the first 12, the Apostles
 
A mother is always first… that’s too easy. 😉

Besides, Mary would have followed Jesus even if He wasn’t the Savior of the World, after all He was a gift given to her by God.

Outside family I still say it’s either the shepherds in the fields or John the Baptize… the one who shouted “ Look , the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world…
 
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Mary should be our first answer, and it’s a good one. Perhaps second would be her cousin Elizabeth when Jesus was in the womb and we have that great scene which we recall in the rosary. Then of course was the presentation in the temple, another wonderful biblical scene, with Simeon greeting the holy family.
 
neophyte said:
Seems an odd thing to ask, though.
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Yes. Also, I thought Mary was Jewish. When did she go from being Jewish to Christian? And what did that involve? Did she continue following Mosaic Law up to a certain point?

Jesus was buried according to Jewish custom. Doesn’t that mean that they were all still Jewish?
 
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It’s moot in a sense. She was the greatest saint from the first moment of her conception. Thus she was a Christian in every sense that counts. That said, I assume she was baptized at some point (not out of necessity, but out of obedience and for the sake of others - as Christ himself was baptized) - that would be the technical transition from Judaism to Christianity.
Even then she would have remained a Jew. Jews who become Christians don’t cease being Jews. Christianity is the fulfillment of Judaism.
 
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Before the Council of Jerusalem, being Jewish and being Christian wasn’t mutually exclusive.

I think many people (not you) take the “Jesus was jewish” thing too far. Yes, He followed Jewish customs (and Mary too); but, as God, he also added significant Revelation and dogmas, and I would argue that in an ideal world all the Jewish religion would morph into Christianity (from Christ’s point of view).
 
Traditionally, the answer is the Blessed Virgin.

Technically it could be argued that the first Christians came into existence at the same time in the upper room on Pentecost.
 
It depends on what you mean by “Christian.” The Greek word for Christian (used in the Bible) is “Christianós” which means “Christ follower.” Now many people would call themselves a Christian or identify as “Christian” but haven’t actually accepted Christ as their Lord and Savior and are not sons/daughters of God. So is a Christian someone who follows the teachings of Christ or is a Christian a saved child of God?

Abraham believed God and it was “counted to him as righteousness.” He was a saved child of God. And so were many others who lived before Christ. They were saved by God through faith God.

Mary recognizes God as her Savior in Luke 1:47 when she says, “my spirit rejoices in God my Savior.” Based off of this I would say that Mary was saved by God through faith in God like Abraham. (I realize that many catholics see Mary as without sin and without a need for a savior and I know that I am on a catholic site but bear with me as I seek to understand what scripture says in Luke 1:47.)

But I’m wouldn’t call Abraham a “Christian.” He did not follow Christ. He did however believe God and receive salvation.

As for Mary, the new testament doesn’t speak about Mary after Christ’s birth until Acts 1:14 where it lists Mary the mother of Jesus as one who was praying together with the apostles in the upper room after Christ ascended into heaven. Based off of this I would say that she was a Christ follower.

But was Mary the first Christian, the first Christ follower? Again, it depends on your definition. She surely wasn’t the first saved by faith in God. And there were many others who choose to follow Christ while he was on this earth and who came together to form the first church in Acts. Would we call her the first because she was Christ’s mother? What about the disciples who literally followed Christ and served along side Him?

Not a simple question to answer…
 
1Lord1Faith said:
Yes. Also, I thought Mary was Jewish.
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Ummm… all of the first Christians were Jewish. In fact, in the beginning a lot of folks thought that you couldn’t be a Christian unless you were a Jew.
 
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I think a more pertinent question is when did Christianity begin? As all of the disciples were Jews, and so were all believers in the passion narrative of Christ, I posit that the Church begins at Pentecost. Christ says at the Ascension to wait in Jerusalem for the spirit to come, and upon the arrival of the spirit in the Upper Room, the diaspora and growth of the faith begins. With this in mind, my suggestion is that all of those in the Upper Room share the title as first Christians, because they receive the fruits of the spirit, and come into full communion with the church, as well as begin to fulfill the Great Commission.
 
yoboy said:
As for Mary, the new testament doesn’t speak about Mary after Christ’s birth until Acts 1:14 where it lists Mary the mother of Jesus as one who was praying together with the apostles in the upper room after Christ ascended into heaven.
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I thought she was there at the foot of the cross. I thought she was there outside a home wanting to see her son? She was also there when Jesus changed the water into wine after his baptism by John the Baptist… right?
 
In a precise way, probably the Centurion. Surely this was the Son of God!

In a time-honored traditional view, the Mother of God, the Glorious Forerunner, Precursor and Baptist, John, any of the Apostles. Lots of good answers there.

The best Christian is, was, and ever shall be, the all-spotless, Glorious, and ever-virgin Mary, the Mother of God.

Deacon Christopher
 
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