Eusebius’ Church History 5

Study Guide Questions for Book 2.13-2.26

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Virtues/Vices/Great Ideas: (Find them in the Text)

Vice, License, Deception, Fear, Despotism

Grammar Questions: (The Information of the Text)

1. According to Eusebius, where did Simon the Sorcerer go after Peter rebuked him and what did he do?

2. According to Eusebius, from whom did Mark get the information he needed to write his gospel?

3. How did Eusebius describe the spiritual life and practices of the “Therapeutae”?

4. What are some of the kinds of books which Philo wrote (not names of books, but types)?

5. What kind of lawless activities took place among the Jewish priestly class during the middle of the first century A.D.?

6. What does Eusebius say happened as a result of Paul’s original trial in Rome after two years of house arrest?

7. What did the death of Festus create an opportunity for the Jewish leaders in Jerusalem to do?

8. What did Josephus say about Sadducees concerning when they sat “in judgment”?

9. What are some of the crimes of Nero which Eusebius mentioned in passing?

10. How long had Nero been ruling when the Jews started a full-scale revolt against Roman rule?

Logic Questions: (Interpreting, Comparing/Contrasting, Reasoning)

1. What does it mean to say that “Simon was the original author of all heresies”?

2. What did Philo mean when he said that the believers he was describing “regard the literal sense as symbolic of a reality hidden beneath the surface”?

3. Similarly to the previous question, what is meant by saying that when it comes to interpreting the Scriptures, “literal precepts for the body and hidden meanings for the soul”?

4. What might we infer about Eusebius’ opinion of the Jewish philosopher Philo? Explain the basis of your inference.

5. What should we infer about the Jewish priesthood from the report that Eusebius gives us about their internal quarrel?

6. Why did the unbelieving Jews kill James the Just shortly after the Procurator Festus had died?

7. Eusebius says the New Testament books of James and Jude were “doubted” by some as to their authenticity “since not many of the early writers quote” them. Why might it matter whether or not they were quoted by early Christian writers?

Rhetoric Questions: (The Analysis of Ideas in the Text)

1. Eusebius tells us, “Peter’s hearers, not satisfied with a single hearing or with the unwritten teaching of the divine message, pleaded with Mark, whose Gospel we have, to leave them a written summary of the teaching given them verbally, since he was a follower of Peter.” What are the strengths and weaknesses of having a written record of something important? Try to come up with several pros and cons. Why do you think God chose to preserve his word in a written form rather than only passing it on orally?

2. Eusebius described the ascetic practices of a particular group of believers living in and around Alexandria Egypt in the first century A.D. What is your impression of the concept of asceticism? Given that there is a long history of ascetic practices in the early church and into the Middle Ages, what value might there be in following an ascetic way of life? Do you think contemporary Christians could benefit from a more ascetic lifestyle or is this a thing best left in the past? Explain your answer.

Theological Analysis: (Sola Scriptura)

1.  Read Galatians 4:21-31. Based upon this reading, what would you say it means to interpret a biblical passage allegorically? What might be the danger of allegorical interpretations? How might one interpret a passage allegorically without losing faithfulness to the original text?