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Wedgeworth, “Good and Proper: Paul’s Use of Nature, Custom, and Decorum in Pastoral Theology”

February 3, 2021 /

An interesting article which could be considered a “hidden contribution to Pastorals scholarship“:

Wedgeworth, Steven. “Good and Proper: Paul’s Use of Nature, Custom, and Decorum in Pastoral Theology.” Eikon: A Journal for Biblical Anthropology 2.2 (2020): 88–97.

Eikon is the journal of the Council for Biblical Manhood and Womanhood, formally known as the Journal of Biblical Manhood and Womanhood. Wedgeworth’s article uses 1 Tim 2:8-15 as its primary text, thus contributing to the ever-increasing literature on that passage.

The essay does not have an abstract, but an excerpt from the beginning will serve to summarize: “This essay will investigate to what extent the Apostle Paul uses a sort of natural-law reasoning in his argument against women teaching or holding an office of authority in the church. The primary textual subject will be 1 Timothy 2:8–15, but parallel New Testament passages will be considered insofar as they provide additional support for understanding the logic of Paul’s argument. I will argue that Paul is making a kind of natural law argument, by way of custom and decorum. This is not a simple appeal to human intuition, neither is it a generalized observation of empirical data taken from nature. It is, however, an argument based on the concepts of basic honor to authority figures, an element of the natural law, and the social power of decorum, of what is proper or fitting for social relationships between men and women. These are concepts grounded in a particular philosophy of nature and the morally formative role of custom. While appropriately using language and categories from the creation order, Paul is indeed employing a particular kind of natural-law application of this biblical account in order to prescribe customary social relations between men and women in the church.”

The full issue of Eikon which includes Wedgeworth’s article is here, and an online version of the full article is here.

Kidson, Persuading Shipwrecked Men

February 1, 2021 /

Lyn Kidson, lecturer in NT at Alphacrucis College in Sydney, Australia, recently saw her dissertation published with Mohr Siebeck:

Kidson, Lyn. Persuading Shipwrecked Men: Rhetorical Strategies in 1 Timothy. Wissenschaftliche Untersuchungen zum Neuen Testament 2/526. Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck, 2020.

From the publisher’s website: “The plain-spoken rhetorical style of 1 Timothy belies a tension that simmers beneath the surface of the letter. This tension had already erupted in the removal of Hymenaeus and Alexander. Those who are addressed in the letter are warned that they may be heading toward the same catastrophic failure, shipwrecking their faith. This, according to Lyn M. Kidson, is the primary purpose of 1 Timothy. With particular focus on 1 Timothy 1, the author moves away from seeing the letter as a church manual; instead, she argues that its purpose is to command »certain men (and women)« not to teach the other educational program promoted by Hymenaeus and Alexander. This fresh approach to the interpretation of 1 Timothy 1 identifies the use of an ethical digression, which holds the seemingly divergent materials of the letter together.”

Schramm, “Der ‘Mantel des Paulus’ (2 Tim 4,13): vergessen, zurückgelassen, deponiert?”

January 29, 2021 /

Christian Schramm has produced an article of potential interest to students of the Pastorals:

Schramm, Christian. “Der ‘Mantel des Paulus’ (2 Tim 4,13): vergessen, zurückgelassen, deponiert? Eine Notiz mit Autorisierungspotenzial.” Biblische Zeitschrift 65.1 (2021): 86‒110.­­­

Abstract: “The short demand to bring Paul’s coat in 2 Timothy 4:13 has been a part of exegetical discussion for a long time. Especially the intention, the text pragmatics and the meaning of this verse are a matter of academic dispute. The point is: The interpretation of this verse has an important impact on the question of the authentic or pseudepigraphic character of 2 Tim. The following article focusses on an aspect that hasn’t been looked at much so far: the legal business of depositum as a possible historical backdrop. A third person’s (i.e. Timothy’s) mandate to pick up something deposited tells us much about his legitimacy as an authorized representative of the person who made the depositum (i.e. Paul). And possibly we also learn something about 2 Tim: 2 Tim as a letter could function as an authorizing document for the person sent out to pick up the coat – then 2 Tim 4:13 would work as a kind of certificate of authenticity of 2 Tim as an allegedly original Pauline letter.”

The Pastorals in NTA 64.2

January 27, 2021 /

614. Castiglioni, Luca. “Uguaglianza battesimale e differenze carismatiche: Il pensiero della differenza sessuale nella tradizione Paolina (II) [“Baptismal equality and charismatic differences: The thought of sexual difference in the Pauline tradition (II).”].” Scuola Cattolica 148.1 (2020): 7–35 [addresses 1 Tim 2:8–15 and appears to have relevance for whether husbands/wives are in view in the passage or men/women more generally].

662. Majtán, L’ubomír. “Timotej a charizma v 1Tim 4,14 Ratifikácia alebo transfer pri vkladaní rúk starších? [Timothy and Charisma in 1 Tim 4:14: A Recognition or a Transfer through the Laying on of Hands by the Elders?]” Studia Biblica Slovaca (Bratislava) 11.2 (2019): 103–19.  [Slovak]

663. Barclay, John M. G. “Household Networks and Early Christian Economics: A Fresh Study of 1 Timothy 5:3–16.” New Testament Studies 66.2 (2020): 268–87.

697. Bechmann, Ulrike. “Essen eint, essen trennt.” Bibel und Kirche 75.1 (2020): 21–29. [includes discussion of a shift from cultically pure to morally unclean in the LTT, e.g., 1 Tim 4:1–5; Titus 1:15]

703. Hedrick, Charles. “Myth and Mystery: Profiling the Early Christian Mind.” The Fourth R 32.5 (2019): 7–10, 20. [includes engagement of “myth” and “mystery” in their usages in the LTT]

(p. 291) O’Donovan, Oliver. “Neither Sober nor of Sound Mind: Timothy’s Spirit of sōphronismos.” Pages 346–62 in One God, One People, One Future: Essays in Honor of N. T. Wright. Edited by John Anthony Dunne and Eric Lewellen. Minneapolis: Fortress, 2018.

(p. 295) Jacob, Sharon. “Imagined Nations, Real Women: Politics of Culture and Women’s Bodies: A Postcolonial, Feminist, and Indo-Western Interpretation of 1 Tim. 2:8–15.” Pages 407–16 in T&T Clark Handbook of Asian American Biblical Hermeneutics. Edited by Uriah Y. Kim and Seung Ai Yang. London: Bloomsbury T&T Clark, 2019.

(p. 312) Ehrensperger, Kathy. “Διδάσκαλος ἐθνῶν—Pauline Trajectories According to 1 Timothy.” Pages 88–104 in The Early Reception of Paul the Second Temple Jew: Text, Narrative and Reception History. Edited by Isaac W. Oliver and Gabriele Boccaccini with Joshua Scott. Library of Second Temple Studies 92. London: Bloomsbury T&T Clark, 2019. Repr., in Searching Paul: Conversations with the Jewish Apostle to the Nations; Collected Essays. Wissenschaftliche Untersuchungen zum Neuen Testament 429. Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck, 2019.

(p. 312) Ehrensperger, Kathy. “Striving for Office and the Exercise of Power in the ‘House of God’: Reading 1 Timothy 3:1‒16 in the Light of 1 Corinthians 4:1.” Pages 104‒23 in The Bible in Church, Academy and Culture: Essays in Honour of the Reverend Dr. John Tudno Williams. Edited by Alan P. F. Sell. Eugene, OR: Wipf & Stock, 2011.Repr., in Searching Paul: Conversations with the Jewish Apostle to the Nations; Collected Essays. Wissenschaftliche Untersuchungen zum Neuen Testament 429. Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck, 2019.

(p. 318) Thompson, James W. Apostle of Persuasion: Theology and Rhetoric in the Pauline Letters. Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2020. [discusses Pauline theology and rhetoric in the LTT]

(p. 321) Elengabeka, Elvis. “La rhétorique de la temporalité dans les épîtres pastorales.” Pages 377–95 in Perceptions du temps dans la Bible. Edited by M. Staszak and M. Leroy. Etudes Bibliques 77. Leuven: Peeters, 2018.

Gourgues, “‘…Lui qui veut que tous soient sauvés et arrivent à la connaissance de la vérité’ (1 Tm 2,4). Quelle vérité?”

January 25, 2021 /

Michel Gourgues has just published a new article on ἀλήθεια and religious pluralism in the Pastorals:

Michel Gourgues, “‘…Lui qui veut que tous soient sauvés et arrivent à la connaissance de la vérité’ (1 Tm 2,4). Quelle vérité?” Science et Esprit 73.1­-2 (2021): 65-77.

As the title indicates, the article is in French, but Science et Esprit provides an English-language abstract. Note that the article contains excellent bibliographies of 1 Tim 2:1-7 (n. 6) and 1 Tim 4:9-10 (n. 15).

Abstract: Truth is one of the most important notions in the First Letter to Timothy, as is the case for all the Pastoral Letters, which overlap on this matter (except the beginning and the end of 2 Tim). Taking account of other uses of the word alētheia, we observe that in 1 Tim 2:4 “the knowledge of the truth” is the same as the revelation offered by God in Jesus Christ. So God’s will to save everyone (1 Tim 2:3-5) coincides with his will that all human beings greet revelation and thus come to faith in Christ, unique mediator. Two chapters further on, 1 Tim 4:10, while introducing faith in Christ as the privileged way of having access to God’s salvation, nevertheless suggests that this way is not exclusive. As present-day theology of religious pluralism focuses on 1 Tim 2:4, it would surely benefit from paying a similar attention to the complementary witness offered by 1 Tim 4:10.

Adebayo, “The Politics of the Term γραφή in the Pastoral Epistles”

January 22, 2021 /

Oluwarotimi Paul Adebayo has produced an article addressing the referent of γραφή in its two occurrences in the Letters to Timothy:

Adebayo, Oluwarotimi Paul. “The Politics of the Term γραφή in the Pastoral Epistles.” Scriptura 119.2 (2020): 1–11.

The article may be found online here.

Abstract: “The understanding of the term Scripture in early Christianity is best described as an evolving concept that can be categorised into various stages. This can best be seen in the most popular Greek term the NT uses in designating Scripture, γραφή and its cognates. Γραφή was used 50 times in the NT to represent Scripture, and in each of these instances, it refers to more than just a mere writing which is what the term originally meant in Greek prior to the NT’s consistent use of it as a technical term for sacred writing.
“This study attempts to reflect briefly on (part of) the evolution γραφή underwent on the pages of the NT especially within the Pastoral Epistles (PE) – a product of the early second century CE. This study bears in mind that the recognition of books as Scripture is not a series of clearly defined steps, but rather a long and complicated process involving creativity and powerplay. This study therefore serves to enhance a more accurate understanding of the transition the concept of Scripture in the PE, most especially pertaining to the use of the term γραφή.
“The question regarding the scope of the term γραφή in the NT and especially in the PE is open to debate – especially the use of the two different words, ἱερὰ γράμματα and γραφή for Scripture in 2 Tim. 3:15–16. So is the reference to Jesus’ words as Scripture in 1 Tim. 5:18. These have raised questions of a possible shift in the PE’s understanding of γραφή. “Findings from this research include the extensive use of γραφή in the PE to accommodate more than just the Jewish Scripture, as it has evolved to include emerging earlier writings of the NT; the author of the PE was creative in adopting and adapting to a new understanding of sacred writings which serves the context of his time.
“This unveils the influence a community exerts on recognition of authoritative Scripture while teasing out the politics intertwined in the recognition of Scripture and the identity of a people, as this later became the path to canonicity of Scripture.”

The Pastorals at ETS and SBL 2020

January 20, 2021 /

Due to the blog being down for several months, we were unable to post in anticipation of Pastorals-related sessions at ETS and SBL 2020. In retrospect, however, we provide that information here for the record.

ETS Annual Meeting 2020 (program)

The Pastoral Epistles study group sponsored three (virtual) presentations and fielded responses in a virtual session moderated by Greg Couser:

Stanley E. Porter, “Arguments For and Against Pauline Authorship of the Pastoral Epistles”

Mark Baker, A ‘Perfect’ Elder? Blamelessness in the Qualifications for Elders and Deacons in the Pastoral Epistles”

Ben Merkle, “The Authority of Deacons in Pauline Churches”

In addition, note:

Charlie Ray III, “A Lawful Use of the Law: The Use of the Law in 1 Timothy and Its Implications for the Church”

SBL Annual Meeting 2020 (abstracts available here)

Andrew R. Guffey, “Paul, the Pastorals, and Encratite Origins”

Gary G. Hoag, “Slaves and Masters, Diversity and Unity: Locating the Benefactor of 1 Timothy 6:1–2a”

Lyn Kidson, “Funding Widows in 1 Timothy 5: The Economy of Asia Minor and the Limits of Benefaction”

Mona Tokarek LaFosse, “Women and ‘the Faith’ in 1 Timothy 5: A Battle for Faith and Faithfulness”

Kelsi Morrison-Atkins. “Performing Piety: ‘Dress Codes’ and the Construction of Gender in 1 Timothy”

Angela Standhartinger, “The Pastoral Epistles among Ancient Letter Collections”

Note that there was a book review session focusing on Christopher Hutson’s volume on the Pastorals in the Paideia series; Daniel Darko presided over an invited panel consisting of Lyn Kidson, Michael Bird, and Thomas Hoklotubbe. Lyn Kidson has posted her review and Hoklotubbe’s review on her blog here. Mike Bird’s review can be found on his blog here.

The Pastorals in NTA 64.1

January 18, 2021 /

Following are items pertinent to Pastorals studies in New Testament Abstracts 64.1 (2020). We’ve noted a number of them previously, and have provided links to posts with abstracts where possible. Note that NTA has chosen not to abstract the responses to the articles in JSPL 9.1–2 noted below.

(231) Jens Herzer. “Narration, Genre, and Pseudonymity: Reconsidering the Individuality and the Literary Relationship of the Pastoral Epistles.” Journal for the Study of Paul and His Letters 9.1–2 (2019): 30–51. [link]

(232) Rob van Houwelingen. “The Meaning of ἐπιφάνεια in the Pastoral Epistles.” Journal for the Study of Paul and His Letters 9.1–2 (2019): 89–108. [link]

(233) Jermo van Nes. “The Pastoral Epistles: Common Themes, Individual Compositions? An Introduction to the Quest for the Origin(s) of the Letters to Timothy and Titus.” Journal for the Study of Paul and His Letters 9:1–2 (2019): 6–29. [link]

(234) George Kudilil. “Paul’s ‘Pressure of Anxiety for All the Churches’ (2 Cor 11:28) and His Exhortation to Timothy in 2 Tim 4:2.” Bible Bhashyam 45.3 (2019): 81–99.

(235) Greg A. Couser. “The Believer’s Judgment in 2 Timothy, Part 2.” Bibliotheca Sacra 176.704 (2019): 444–58. [link]

(236) Janusz Wilk. “Personalia w drugim liście do Tymoteusza 4,9–15 [References to Persons in 2 Timothy 4:9–15].” Collectanea Theologica 87.1 (2017): 49–74. [Polish; English-language abstract at end]

(237) D. I. Manomi. “Towards an African Biblical Virtue Ethics? Reflections on the Letter to Titus through a Progressive-Negotiated-Ethics.” Acta Theologica 39.2 (2019): 114–29.

(238) Peter-Ben Smit. “Supermen and Sissies: Masculinities in Titus and 1 Timothy.” Journal for the Study of Paul and His Letters 9:1–2 (2019): 62–79. [link]

(239) Jermo van Nes. “Who are ‘Our People’ (οἱ ἡμέτεροι) in Titus 3,14?” Ephemerides Theologicae Lovanienses 95.4 (2019): 661–65. [link]

(p. 127) Deborah Krause, “1 Timothy,” “2 Timothy,” and “Titus.” Pages 311–22 in The Preacher’s Bible Handbook. Edited by O. Wesley Allen. Louisville: Westminster John Knox, 2019.

(p. 130) Suzanne W. Henderson, New Testament Conversations: A Literary, Historical, and Pluralistic Introduction. Nashville: Abingdon, 2019. [Pastorals treated on pp. 339–44]

(p. 132) Jens Herzer. “Goethes Quark und Holtzmanns Drillinge: Die Pastoralbriefe in Geschichte und Gegenwart.” Pages 125–135 in Update-Exegese 2.2: Grundfragen gegenwärtiger Bibelwissenschaft. Edited by Wolfgang Kraus and Martin Rösel. Leipzig: Evangelische Verlagsanstalt, 2019.

(p. 133) Lucy Peppiatt. Rediscovering Scripture’s Vision for Women: Fresh Perspectives on Disputed Texts. Downers Grove, IL: IVP Academic, 2019. [note esp. chap. 8, “A Final Barrier: 1 Timothy 2:8–15, pp. 140–157]

(p. 135) N. T. Wright and Michael F. Bird. The New Testament in Its World: An Introduction to the History, Literature, and Theology of the First Christians. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2019. [Chapter 22: “The Pastoral Epistles,” pp. 528–50]

(p. 146) Robert J. Banks. Paul’s Idea of Community: The Early House Churches in Their Cultural Setting. 3rd ed. Grand Rapids: Baker, 2020. [note “Appendix 1: The Drift of the Pastorals,” pp. 167–72).

(p. 146) Reimund Bieringer, ed. 2 Timothy and Titus Reconsidered / Der 2. Timotheus- und der Titusbrief in neuem Licht. Colloquium Oecumenicum Paulinum 20. Leuven: Peeters, 2018.

(p. 146) Bryan Blazosky. The Law’s Universal Condemning and Enslaving Power. BBR Supplement Series 24. University Park, PA: Eisenbrauns, 2019. [note chap 6, “1 Corinthians and the Disputed Pauline Epistles,” esp. pp. 180–85]

(p. 147) David J. Downs and Benjamin J. Lappenga. The Faithfulness of the Risen Christ: Pistis and the Exalted Lord in the Pauline Letters. Waco, TX: Baylor University Press, 2019. [Introduction focuses on 2 Tim 2:8–13]

(p. 151) Lee Gatiss and Bradley G. Green. 1–2 Thessalonians, 1–2 Timothy, Titus, Philemon. Reformation Commentary on Scripture 12. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity, 2019. [1 Timothy, pp. 110–211; 2 Timothy, 212–264; Titus, 265–306] [review]

(p. 153) Christopher R. Hutson. First and Second Timothy and Titus. Paideia. Grand Rapids: Baker, 2019. [review]

(p. 156) Marcos Aceituno Donoso. “Déu, el nostre Soter, a primera Tiemoteu. Teologia sobre la sobirania de Déu.” Pages 235–70 in Salvació i salvacions en els escrits bíblivcs i postbiblics. Scripta Biblica 17. Tarragona: Associació Biblica de Catalunya—Publicacions de l’Abadia de Montserrat, 2018. [Catalan; English-language summary]

(p. 158) Christiane Zimmermann. “Gott, unser Retter—Christus, unsere Hoffnung: Soteriologische Aspekte des 1. Timotheusbriefs.“ Pages 405­–426 in Sōtēria: Salvation in Early Christianity and Antiquity. Festschrift in Honour of Cilliers Breytenbach on the Occasion of his 65th Birthday. Edited by David S. du Toit, Christine Gerber, and Christiane Zimmermann. Leiden: Brill, 2019.

(p. 160) Andreas J. Köstenberger. “Faithful Stewardship in God’s Household: Discipleship in the Letters to Timothy and Titus.” Pages 193–212 in Following Jesus Christ: The New Testament Message of Discipleship for Today. Edited by John K. Goodrich. Grand Rapids: Kregel, 2019.

Bulundwe and Butticaz, “La critique paulinienne des ‘œuvres’ au regard de 4QMMT et des Pastorales”

September 10, 2020 /

An addition to the literature on the Pastorals may well be of interest to researchers interested in the intersection of the New Perspective on Paul and the Letters to Timothy and Titus:

Luc Bulundwe and Simon Butticaz. “La critique paulinienne des ‘œuvres’ au regard de 4QMMT et des Pastorales.” Semitica 62 (2020): 385–414.

Here’s a brief abstract: “This study reconsiders the meaning of ‘works of law’ in Paul from three perspectives: first, via a comparison with equivalents of the formula in the Dead Sea Scrolls; second, with an analysis of the phrase within Pauline contexts of communication (esp. Galatians); and finally with an exploration of its reception by the earliest readers of Paul in the Pastoral Epistles.”

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