Picture Book of Acts 6-9: Life and Death Quiz

Answer: Stephen

The image is 16th Century artist Vittore Carpaccio's take on the consecration of Stephen as it was envisioned in Renaissance Europe, with echoes of Byzantium. He imagines the apostle Peter standing at the top of the Temple steps, with Stephen kneeling below him to be anointed for service, and members of the congregation, including some of those widows perhaps, on and near the steps. On the left, the disapproving figures are members of the Sanhedrin or others of the religious establishment in Jerusalem.

The seven deacons mentioned in Acts 6 are Stephen, Philip, Procorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas, and Nicolas from Antioch, a convert to Judaism. Luke, the writer of Acts, goes on to give us stories of Stephen and Philip.

Answer: Abraham

Stephen's audience would have seen themselves as the descendants of the patriarchs Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (later called Israel). In his "disputation" (formal defense) Stephen begins with Abraham's step of faith when he left his original homeland to go to the place God sent him. Stephen shows his knowledge and understanding of the Torah, the first five books of the Bible, the part of "the law" most members of the Sanhedrin would have agreed upon.

He relates the story of Joseph in Egypt, then moves on to Moses.

While Stephen doesn't mention the most dramatic life or death event in the story of Abraham and Isaac, the image by Charles Foster (1897) depicts a compassionate father who is willing to give up his beloved son because he trusts God.

Answer: Moses killed an Egyptian who was mistreating an Israelite.

In Acts 7, Stephen mentions several life or death events in the history of the Jewish people as it is told in the Hebrew scriptures. He tells of Joseph almost being killed by his brothers but going on to save his family. He speaks of the patriarchs who died in Egypt and their burial at Shechem upon the people's return to Canaan.

He tells of the Egyptian cruelty at the time of the birth of Moses, when Israelites were forced to throw away their newborn babies. The event that caused Moses to leave Egypt happened when Moses defended one of his people by killing an Egyptian, only to have the act thrown back in his face later when seeking peace between two Israelite men.

He flees for his life because he realizes that his deed has become common knowledge.

Answer: They drag him outside the city and stone him for blasphemy.

St. Stephen is considered to be the first Christian to die for his faith and is sometimes call the "proto-martyr" because of this. He was killed by the traditional Biblical method of stoning, as the penalty for blasphemy. Undoubtedly, his listeners were comfortable identifying with the heroes of the Hebrew Bible, but when Stephen clearly places them with the killers of the prophets, they are outraged and take him outside the city for execution by stoning.

In most depictions of Stephen, he is shown with three stones, sometimes with a palm or crown to symbolize his martyrdom, and sometimes with a book or a miniature church or censor.

Answer: Saul

Acts 7:58 is our introduction to Saul of Tarsus, who would become Paul, the Apostle to the Gentiles. He is shown in an unfavorable light as the person who watches the belongings of those involved in the killing of Stephen, giving tacit approval to persecution that he would later pursue with zeal.

In Acts 8:3, we are told, "But Saul began to destroy the church. Going from house to house, he dragged off both men and women and put them in prison." The painting emphasizes the location of the execution of Stephen, outside the walls of the holy city, where the Torah states such punishments are to be carried out.

Answer: "May your money perish with you!"

While fantasies about Simon Magus (Simon the Sorcerer or Simon the Magician) appear outside the Bible, the only reference to him in canonical scripture is in Acts 8. Apocryphal stories describe Simon levitating and performing other feats of magic, paying the price for his pride and sorcery with a gory death, but Luke shows him in Acts asking for prayer in response to Peter's rebuke and condemnation.

The point of the story in Acts 8 is that one should not attempt to buy the things of God or confuse the moving of the Holy Spirit with magic or anything done for selfish gain or attention toward oneself.

The word for the sin of "simony" - trading in spiritual things for money - originates with this story. New Testament scholar J.B. Phillips wrote that the gist of Peter's words to Simon could be translated, "To hell with you and your money!"

Answer: Baptism

The eunuch initiates the act of baptism by suggesting to Philip that they use the water that is nearby as they travel along the road. Elsewhere in the New Testament (Romans 6:3-8, for example), baptism is equated with death, burial, and resurrection to new life in Christ.

As a eunuch, the Ethiopian would not have been allowed to worship in the Jerusalem Temple, but Philip does not hesitate to baptize him. We are not told the Ethiopian man's name, only that he is an important person in charge of the treasury of the queen of the Ethiopians. We also see that he wants to learn about the things of God, is able to read the Hebrew scriptures (most scholars think in the Greek Septuagint), and is eager to make his conversion complete through baptism.

The Bible tells us that he goes home rejoicing.

Answer: False

Paul (still called Saul at this time) was indeed "breathing out murderous threats against the Lord's disciples" as he traveled toward Damascus to seize them and take them to Jerusalem for trial and prossible death. But it was his sight that was temporarily taken away rather than his hearing and ability to speak; in fact, he heard the voice of Jesus, who asked Saul why he (Saul) was persecuting him (Jesus), and Saul was able to respond by asking Jesus who he was.

Although Saul was blind for three days, he was able to be "led by the hand into Damascus" and to spend that time in prayer, rather than lying in the road as if dead.

While the scene is often pictured as if Saul were riding rather than walking to Damascus, the Bible simply says he "fell to the ground" and was led the rest of the way.

Answer: He was let down in a basket.

Because he had been trying to kill or imprison followers of Jesus, Saul was initially feared by the believers in Damascus, but he became as zealous for "the Way" as he had been in opposition to it: "Saul grew more and more powerful and baffled the Jews living in Damascus by proving that Jesus is the Christ" (Acts 9:22).

A plot to kill him came to light, leading to the inventive escape in a basket. He went to Jerusalem, where people were again suspicious and amazed by his conversion until Barnabas reassured them of its reality.

His story line in Acts is interrupted for a time, because he is sent home to Tarsus. We can almost hear the sigh of relief in Acts 9:31 when Luke tells us: "Judea, Galilee, and Samaria enjoyed a time of peace"!

Answer: He prays alone with her and says, "Tabitha, get up."

The healing of Aeneas and Tabitha (Dorcas) are both depicted in the painting, the paralyzed man on the left and the revived woman on the right. These miracles take place in different towns, Lydda and Joppa, and an indeterminate amount of time passes between the two events, but in both the text in Acts and in the painting, the stories are juxtaposed and seem meant to go together. Peter speaks to Aeneas and Tabitha in a similar fashion, telling both the paralyzed man and the dead woman to get up. Luke (the writer of Acts) is careful to clearly identify this generous, industrious woman from a tiny town, marking down her name in two languages, as if she were an important historical figure whose identity we should get right. Centuries later, she is remembered for the clothing she made for the poor and the love she inspired in her neighbors.