Day 42
Whole lotta Paul today. To be honest, not all of these were written by Paul but are still attributed to him. The verses people often hate the most from Paul were either inserted at a later date by an unknown author or come from letters where his authorship is doubted. Anyway, I’m breaking my rules for this project, but I can’t help it. I had a ruthless but wonderful professor that had us spend an entire semester on Galatians. In Greek. It was glorious…but it also involved a lot of conversations about circumcision.
I’m continuing my practice of reading these with curiosity. These were letters sent to a specific community for very specific reasons. Sure, there’s relevance for today, but I still want to imagine what was going on in these communities. Galatia was especially annoying Paul.
It’s interesting to think about these letters through a systems lens. These are clearly underlining organizational growing pains for the early church. Amidst that, there’s been swift persecution of Christians in nearly every community Paul writes a letter to. Imagine balancing that. You’re a brand new community and here you are fearing for your life — but you continue, because you believe. And just when you might give up, here comes a letter of encouragement from Paul. They really are fascinating in that way. They also give shape to the hopes of the community. “Endure for just a little while longer, then our salvation will come!” There are many a thing people endure in this world. What end — what conclusion — will bring about salvation in this life for them?
One Word for Galatians: Rebuke
One Word for Ephesians: Grace
One Word for Philippians: Vulnerability
One Word for Colossians: Protection
One Word for First Thessalonians: Character
One Word for Second Thessalonians: Sustain
Parts of the Text That Stayed With Me
- Gal 1:6-9, Competition. Paul mentions people in the Church in Galatia following different understandings of the Gospel. He is not pleased by this.
- Gal 3:1, I’ve Had Enough! “You foolish Galatians!” Yeah. I told you he isn’t pleased.
- Gal 3:28, Earliest Creed. Some would call this text the earliest semblance of a creed in Christianity: “There is no longer Jew or Greek, there is no longer slave or free, there is no longer male and female; for all of you are one in Christ Jesus.”
- Gal 6:9, Doing What’s Right Is Tiring. Paul says it plain as day: “Grow weary in doing what is right.” It’s more of a directive than anything…sort of a “Keep Calm and Carry On” for Biblical times.
- Eph 2:8-9, Always Grace. We are not saved by our works “so that no one may boast.” Someone please remind ministers of that one.
- Eph 4:31, After We Disagree. Put away your bitterness, Paul counsels. We live in a rather bitter society, don’t we?
- Eph 5:22-24, The Wife Thing. Many of Paul’s verses that subjugate women were inserted into the text at a later date. The authorship of Ephesians by Paul is in doubt but the verses are troubling nonetheless. In letters where Paul is likely the author, there are examples of women leading the church.
- Eph 6:14-17, Armor of God. I’ve always found this symbolic text to be interesting. What would it look like to put on the armor of my faith?
- Phil 1:13, Paul Imprisoned. This is considered one of Paul’s finest letters and the authorship isn’t disputed. Sometimes you really learn who someone is when they face significant trials — and here is Paul contemplating his own death in prison. It really is a great piece of writing.
- Phil 4:8, Whatever. “…whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.”
- Col 3:13, More Armor. Not really. But “clothe yourselves with compassion.” If only we could all remember that.
- Col 4:16, The Lost Letter! Paul references a letter to the Laodiceans here! It has yet to be found. But just imagine if it was…how would or could that rock Christianity? The Bible would need to be updated!
- 1 Thess 4:16-17, Rapture! Here’s the verses traditionally used to suggest a rapture before the end time.
- 1 Thess 5:12-22, Ethical Guidance. Encourage the fainthearted. support the weak. Be patient. Do not repay evil for evil. Seek to do good. Rejoice always. Pray without ceasing. Give thanks. Also in here is a verse that was foundational for American Unitarians: “Prove all things, hold fast that which is good.” (5:21)
- 2 Thess 2:15, Keep to Tradition. “Stand firm and hold fast to the traditions you were taught by us…” Sure thing!
This post is part of a lager series where I read the entirety of Hebrew & Christian scriptures in 45 days. Take a look a the original post for more info, as well as links to other reflections on this journey.