Quote:
Originally Posted by Peter Debelak
Well, I...uh...well, this is just my speculation and I have not seen it seriously posited elsewhere. 
It comes from my study of the Greek word " presbuteros" and its use in the NT.
Presbuteros is used nearly 70 times in the New Testament. Of that number, almost half are clearly referring to leaders within the Jewish community. In the Jewish society of Christ’s time presbuteros was used to refer to the respected leaders of the community, the synagogues and the Jewish Sanhedrin. Such common phrases as "traditions of the elders," "elders of the people," "priests, scribes, and elders," "elders of Israel," are such examples.
It seems to me to be pretty self-evident from the Word that "eldership" was part of the Jewish tradition, even if not official offices in the synagogue. |
OK, so then, that makes two of us.
But there you go! The question I'd ask in that context is why would the appointment of elders fall to an apostle post-synagogue. Was there a practice of such appointment by someone else?