Meanwhile, back in Anatolia ... (Gal. 1)

At an early stage in his ministry, Paul started a community of believers in his own home territory, in Anatolia. We don't know exactly why he began preaching to them. He suggests that it was not during one of the happier periods of his life -- he was tormented by a painful physical ailment. Yet, somehow, a church was established. People began meeting regularly, studying the LXX [1], and discussing the implication of the life and ministry of Jesus of Nazareth, God's revelation, and Savior.

Then, they went off the rails:

Gal 1:6 Sizi Mesih'in lütfuyla çağıranı bırakıp değişik bir müjdeye böylesine çarçabuk dönmenize şaşıyorum.
Gal 1:7 Gerçekte başka bir müjde yoktur. Ancak aklınızı karıştırıp Mesih'in Müjdesi'ni çarpıtmak isteyenler vardır.
Gal 1:8 İster biz, ister gökten bir melek size bildirdiğimize ters düşen bir müjde bildirirse, lanet olsun ona!

Mess with someone's children, and you can expect to provoke some SERIOUS wrath. In the last decade of the 19th century, immigrant parents marched on public schools with torches and pitchforks. Paul regarded these Galatian Christians as his spiritual children. He had invested in them, and expected them to carry his values, his message, forward into the future. Let's look at a few words:

• İster biz -- if we
  
• ister gökten bir melek -- if a from-heaven angel
  
• bildirdiğimize -- makes known to you
  
• müjde -- gospel, good news
  
• lanet olsun -- accursed / let him be
  

Gotta watch out for angels with new messages! In America, we have to deal with Mormons, a cult founded by a guy named Joseph Smith, who claimed that an angel gave him a newer testament, engraved on golden plates. Smith's new religion made him a rich man, and filled his marriage bed with a harem of willing additional wives.

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[1] The Septuigent, abbreviated LXX - the Roman Numerals for 70 -- was the Greek translation of the Old Testament that the Christians quickly adopted as their own holy book.