CHAPTER 1
Now, for the pastoral letters. This is the first of three letters from Paul that are different
from the rest. First, they are
addressed to individuals instead of congregations. Second, they are about how to be a good minister to a flock,
which wasn’t the point of any of the previous letters. Finally, these are three letters that
Biblical scholars overwhelmingly believe weren’t actually written by Paul. Oh, there are other ones before now that are
of disputed authorship, but with these letters, there really isn’t much dispute
in the Biblical scholar community. They
are seen as just plain not Paul.
These letters deal with issues affecting the churches in
either the late first century AD or perhaps even early second century AD. Some people from that era believed that
their point of view was right, and the best way to win that argument was to
claim Paul was on their side – so they wrote these letters, claiming they were
from Paul.
Much of the first chapter here is generic stuff. The most interesting part to me was when
“Paul” pleaded to be unworthy of the role God assigned to him. I don’t care if this is an actual Paul
letter or not – whoever wrote it was doing some nice work here. He promoted the grace of God, the Almighty’s
willingness to help us out, even when we don’t deserve it. That’s one of the most beautiful parts of
Christianity and one of the big draws to it.
CHAPTER 2
This is where our letter writer really doesn’t sound too
much like the actual Paul. In this
chapter, he starts getting down to specifics with Timothy on how to handle a
church. Most notably, “Paul” says that
women should be silent and “under completely control.” This sounds like Paul in Corinthians I
Chapter 14 – but modern studies have shown that the anti-woman statements there
were not part of the original letter, but something later added in by a
scribe.
In fact, this “Paul” goes even further, saying, “I do not
permit a woman to teach or have authority over a man. She must be quiet.” And
then our “Paul” goes back to Adam and Eve to justify this. Problem: the actual Paul did exactly what
this “Paul” claims he didn’t. Go back
to the end of Romans when Paul is giving thanks – the first person he mentions
is a female, who Paul says is a minister.
In another letter Paul says there is neither male nor female in
Christ. The actual Paul is typically
pretty progressive in gender relations.
It’s the imitation Pauls that give him a bad rap.
Oh, there is one point of overlap. The historic Paul did call on women to be veiled in services, and
this Paul says women “should adorn themselves with proper conduct, with modesty
and self-control, not with braided hairstyles and gold ornaments or pearls or
expensive outfits.”
CHAPTER 3
Now we reach the real problem with Timothy I, the part that
most distinguishes this from the actual Paul. This chapter describes how church
leaders should act – bishops and deacons, both. (Note: there is no priest, just
deacons then bishops. I guess a deacon
then is like what a priest is now. I
guess. More on that later). Much of the advice makes sense and sound
practical and pragmatic. Bishops
shouldn’t be drunks, for instance. But
there is a central problem in it all: since when did Paul’s churches have any
real hierarchy of governance.
Go back to the Corinthians letters for a second. Now there was a messed up congregation, with
all kinds of internal upheaval and dissension, and one man even living with his
dad’s wife. Paul did many things to try
to get that group back on path. He spoke of the Holy Spirit. Paul spoke of his own work there. He spoke of Christ and all that. But two words he never mentioned: bishop and
deacon. Those words never came up.
I’m completely taking this from Biblical scholarship by the
way. It’s probably from one of those
Bart Ehrman books. But the point is
simple: Paul never appealed to any church hierarchy in those letters, and if
you dig into his theology it’s apparent why he didn’t. Paul thinks Christ will return PRONTO. Not just soon – but it’s already
beginning. In one of his letters Paul
said that this world is already passing away, getting ready for the next
one.
If that’s the case, then there is less need for any
elaborate structure to run the community with.
By the time it’s set up, it wouldn’t be needed any more. So Paul doesn’t talk of any official
structure. Just let the people blessed
by the Holy Spirit with the gift of prophecy do the talking, male or female.
But, of course, Christ’s return came later than
expected. You need a structure for the
long haul. People did it – and then
wanted to get Paul’s OK for the system created after his death. So you write letters like this under his
name.
Also, aside from that we learn at least one other telling
item – church leaders weren’t celibates.
One rule “Paul” gives in this letter is that a bishop should be able to
have his kids under control. Yeah, that
means bishops have sex. Paul explicitly
says deacons can marry, but only once.
(I assume this means a widower is forever a widower, not that others
could engage in polygamy). Sure, deacons marry nowadays – but they aren’t the
guys directly below bishops in the current Catholic hierarchy.
CHAPTER 4
Hey Timothy – avoid false doctrine and don’t go cussing
people out.
CHAPTER 5
Among other rules, Timothy is told how to treat widows, with
“Paul” distinguishing between widows and “true widows.” Huh?
Apparently a true widow is someone with no children or other family to
take care of her – she is truly at the mercy of the church and its alms. Oh.
That said, of the many references to widows so far in the Bible (they’re
mentioned all over the place in Leviticus, for example), this is the first time
we’ve seen any kind of hierarchy of widowhood brought up.
In fact, “Paul” tells Timothy to exclude young widows from
his good work when he can, because “for when their sensuality estranges them
from Christ, they want to marry.” Wow –
can you be a bigger dick in describing why someone might want to remarry? It’s a doubly dick thing to say given that
“Paul” has already noted that these widows often have no one to rely on for
help. I don’t know what’s the bigger
dick statement – where he blames their sensual nature for their interest in
remarriage, or stating that remarriage estranges them from Christ.
Oh, it turns out that it’s OK for the deacon or bishop or
whatever to have some wine sometimes.
CHAPTER 6
If you’re a slave, be a good slave. And if you’re a master, be a good one. That’s the second or third time we’ve gotten
that message in Paul’s letters. No
wonder William Lloyd Garrison admitted that the Bible was pro-slavery.
“Paul” also tells us about wealth. He has to be more pragmatic than Jesus on this matter. No more camels trying to squeeze through
needles. Instead, he lays down one of
the most famous lines in the Bible: “the love of money is the root of all
evils.” The full quote is, “For the
love of money is the root of all evils, and some people in their desire for it
have strayed from the faith and have pierced themselves with many pains.” That’s nice. The same chapter that defends slavery also gives one for people
who don’t like the high and mighty ruling over them. The Bible is a mixed bag –
which is a large part of its appeal.
Being wealthy isn’t the sin here, it’s how you handle it.
CONCLUDING THOUGHTS
This chapter is a forgery, but I have some sympathy for the
forger. You’ve got to adjust the church
to the fact that Paul’s timetable was badly off the mark. Much of the advice here is just practical,
common sense thoughts. OK, so much of
it doesn’t hold up well to modern ears (slavery being the most obvious
example). But this was about keeping a
church functioning, not a social revolution.
The author does come off like a dick – just for his views on
widows if nothing else. But people are
rarely ever all bad or all good. There
is plenty of common sense in here.
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