The Letters to the Seven Churches of Asia and Their Place in the Plan of the Apocalypse
Overview
Letters and traveling go together, more often than not. Ramsay pairs the two subjects in this volume, showing the correspondences of the early Church, relating them to the history and growth of Christianity, and specifically focusing on the letters to the seven churches of Asia: Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, and Laodicea.
Top Highlights
“Philadelphia was founded more for consolidating and regulating and educating the central regions subject to the Pergamenian kings. The intention of its founder was to make it a centre of the Græco-Asiatic civilisation and a means of spreading the Greek language and manners in the eastern parts of Lydia and in Phrygia. It was a missionary city from the beginning, founded to promote a certain unity of spirit, customs, and loyalty within the realm, the apostle of Hellenism in an Oriental land. It was a successful teacher. Before a.d. 19 the Lydian tongue had ceased to be spoken in Lydia, and Greek was the only language of the country.” (Pages 391–392)
“Philadelphia was the only Pergamenian foundation among the Seven Cities. It derived its name from Attalus II., 159–138 b.c., whose truth and loyalty to his brother Eumenes won him the epithet Philadelphus.” (Page 391)
“The natural meaning must be taken. The threat is so expressed that it must be understood of a change in local position: ‘I will move thy Church out of its place’ (κινήσω ἐκ τοῦ τόπου αὐτῆς).” (Page 243)
“The angel of the Church seems to embody and gather together in a personification the powers, the character, the history and life and unity of the Church. The angel represents the Divine presence and the Divine power in the Church; he is the Divine guarantee of the vitality and effectiveness of the Church.” (Page 69)
“and yet one thing was lacking, the power of loving and of making themselves loved.” (Page 250)
- Title: The Letters to the Seven Churches of Asia and Their Place in the Plan of the Apocalypse
- Author: William Mitchell Ramsay
- Publisher: Hodder and Stoughton
- Publication Date: 1904
- Pages: 443
W. M. Ramsay (1851–1939) was professor of humanity at the University of Aberdeen. He was most well-known for his archaeological endeavors, as he traveled extensively throughout Asia Minor, studying the missionary journeys of Paul, conducting archaeological research, and writing numerous books on his findings and adventures.
He studied at Oxford, the University of Aberdeen, and Gottingen, and he later went on to become the first ever professor of classical archaeology at Oxford. Ramsey received awards for his work from Pope Leo XII, the University of Pennsylvania, the Royal Geographical Society, and the Royal Scottish Geographical Society. He was knighted in 1906.
His works include St. Paul the Traveller and Roman Citizen. His original intent was to disprove Christianity through archaeology, but through his research he realized that the Bible was accurate and converted to Christianity.
