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Apostolical Church Directory

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(αἱ διαταγαὶ αἱ διὰ Κλήμεντος καὶ κανονες ἐκκλησιαστικοὶ τῶν ἁγίων Ἀποστόλων ), a work which originated at the beginning of the 3d century, and is extant in several Ethiopic and Arabic manuscripts, and in one Greek. Although it agrees in many points with the seventh and eighth books of the Apostolical Constitutions, as well as with the Epistle of Barnabas, it is yet independent of both. It seems to have originated in a work connected with the Epistle of Barnabas, and which, at the same time. was probably made use of by the author of the seventh book of the Constitutions. The Church Directory is divided into 35 articles, and contains prescriptions of John, and ecclesiastical rescripts of the other apostles on bishops, elders, readers, deacons, and widows, the duties of laymen, and on the question whether women are to take part in conducting reliious services. It concludes with an exhortation of Peter to observe these prescriptions. Bickell (Geschichte des Kirchenrecits, Giessen, 1843, p. 87 sq.) has been the first to call again attention to this collection, which had almost wholly fallen into oblivion. He has also given (p. 107-132), from a Vienna manuscript, the Greek text with German translation, and added the various readings of the Latin translation of the Ethiopic text (from Hiob Ludolf's Commentarius in historiam AEthiopicam, p. 314 sq.), the only one which had heretofore been printed. There are important, although not decisive, reasons for the assumption that the "Διδαχα ί of the Apostles," mentioned by Eusebius (Hist. Ecclesiastes 1:3, ch. 25), are identical with the Apostolical Church Directory (Bickell, p. 98). — Herzog, Real- Encylopadie, 1, 452.