At all times, elders personified wisdom and experience. In their hands was always the power that they were given, since they possessed a serious store of knowledge. They symbolized the veneration of folk customs and traditions. An elder is a person who could lead the social and economic life of the clan’s clan and resolve all disputes arising within it. All controversial issues were carefully studied and discussed, and then submitted to the popular council.
Elder is ...
Tribal communities or tribes had their own council of elders, which considered burning issues, resolved disputes arising between neighboring tribes, clans, or clans. An elder of a tribe or clan participated in the resolution of disputes in economic activity or in any other joint activity. And to study this topic, it is best to plunge into ancient history, where you can see how, after the emergence of statehood in Ancient Greece, the council of elders was reformatted to the Areopagus, in Ancient Israel - to the Sanhedrin, in Ancient Rome - to the Senate.
Elder kind
In our modern world, some peoples still have elders of the clan, for example among the Chechens, Ingush and the small population of the Batsbians. The Turkic peoples of their elders are called aksakals, that is, gray beards.
And here's another interesting thing: in some European parliaments there is still a council of elders, whose members are elected from representatives of factions. It seems surprising, but the German Bundestag also has a similar body. He was present in the Russian Empire until the October Revolution of 1917.
Council of Elders in the USSR
Speaking on the topic “Elder - who is this?”, It should be noted that the council of elders also referred to as the deliberative working body in the Supreme Council of the USSR. Until 1989, he was not legally fixed and worked by virtue of the prescribed traditions. The Council of Elders, according to the "Rules of Procedure of the Congress of People's Deputies of the USSR" of December 20, 1989, adopted a legal status (Article 62).
It was created in each of the chambers according to the quota: one representative from deputies, two representatives from the union republics and one from the autonomous ones, as well as one from the regional and autonomous districts, were included in the council of elders of the Council of Unions.
They were tasked with making preliminary decisions on the organization of work of the Supreme Council (working hours, agenda, procedure for discussing reports, etc.).
France at the end of the 18th century
But in France in 1795, the Council of Elders called one of the chambers of parliament. By the way, it was eliminated by the coup d'etat of the 18th Brumaire (November 10, 1799). It was Napoleon Bonaparte who destroyed the governing bodies like the Council of Elders and the Council of Five Hundred. He rose in power and created his new government.
So, analyzing the topic “Elder - who is this?”, First of all, it is necessary to focus on the fact that an accidental person of advanced age could not be called an elder. At all times, these were the best representatives of a clan, tribe, or clan who could give practical advice by linking together the true history and experience of their ancestors. It is unfortunate, but often their advice was neglected by many, and then they received proper instructive lessons from life itself, which teaches better than any sage.