Tag: 1 Timothy (Page 8 of 10)

Newell, “Biblical Veganism: An Examination of 1 Timothy 4:1–8”

March 15, 2021 /

In a journal not known for its extended treatments of the biblical text, a new article on 1 Timothy has appeared:

Marcello Newall, “Biblical Veganism: An Examination of 1 Timothy 4:1–8.” Journal of Animal Ethics 11.1 (2021): 11–35.

Abstract: “1 Timothy 4:1-8 is often used as a proof text against veganism; this is especially true among certain fundamentalist Christian groups and conspiracy theorists. This article argues that a closer look at its linguistic, historical, and theological context reveals that Paul is in reality seeking to uphold the goodness of creation, as described in the first chapters of Genesis, against the dualistic proto-Gnostic creation story that saw the material world as evil. In this sense, 1 Timothy 4:1-8 appears to be a point-by-point rebuttal of the proto-Gnostic view of creation, which is contrasted with the account in Genesis. In particular, the apostle is denouncing a harsh asceticism, and food restriction/deprivation, described as ‘bodily exercise,’ which by severely mortifying the body sought deliverance from the material world. The article goes on to analyze ancient forms of asceticism as well as dietary patterns in the ancient Mediterranean in order to show how contemporary veganism differs sharply from the kind of mortification that is being condemned. 1 Timothy 4:1-8 highlights how food, generally understood, and creation should be received with thanksgiving as they are both gifts from God, which were pronounced good. Furthermore, 1 Timothy underlines that true Christian holiness does not consist in the harsh mortification of the body but in an inner holiness based on love and faith in the incarnation, death, and resurrection of Christ. Ultimately, veganism, far from being anti-Christian, as God’s original ideal, can be seen as a sign of hope pointing to the coming of the Kingdom of God and the restoration of creation beyond all violence, suffering, and death.”

Learning of this article reminded me of another in the same journal, broader in scope, but having the Pastorals in its ambit: Carl Frayne, “On Imitating the Regimen of Immortality or Facing the Diet of Mortal Reality: A Brief History of Abstinence from Flesh-Eating in Christianity,” Journal of Animal Ethics 6.2 (2016): 188–212.

A significant amount of scholarly attention has been given to 1 Tim 4:1-5 in the last twenty years, not least because of the juxtaposition of rising environmental concerns and the passage’s emphasis on the goodness of creation. Italian scholarship has made significant contributions: see Roberto Amici, “Tutto ciò che Dio ha creato è buono” (1Tm 4,4). Il rapporto con le realtà terrene nelle Lettere pastorali, RivBSup 48 (Bologna: Dehoniane, 2007); Giuseppe de Virgilio, “Πᾶν κτίσμα θεοῦ καλόν (1Tm 4,4). La positività della creasione e la sua dimensione salvifica nelle Lettere Pastorali,” in Creation and Salvation in the Bible, ed. M. V. Fabbri and M. Tábet (Rome: EDUSC, 2009), 361–76. As well, note Boudewijn Dehandschutter, “The History-of-Religions Background of 1 Timothy 4:4: ‘Everything that God Has Created Is Good,’” in The Creation of Heaven and Earth: Re-interpretations of Genesis 1 in the Context of Judaism, Ancient Philosophy, Christianity, and Modern Physics, ed. Geurt Hendrik van Kooten, Themes in Biblical Narrative: Jewish and Christian Traditions 8 (Leiden: Brill, 2005), 211–21; Jeremy Mann, “A Consecrated Cosmos? First Timothy 4:1–5 in Exegetical and Theological Perspective,” Bulletin of Ecclesial Theology 4.2 (2017): 79–88; Dillon T. Thornton, “Consecrated Creation: First Timothy 4:1–5 as an Underused Remedy for the Cosmological Dualism Prevalent in the Church,” Bulletin of Ecclesial Theology 4.1 (2017): 15–25; Paul R. Trebilco, “The Goodness and Holiness of the Earth and the Whole Creation (1 Timothy 4.1‒5),” in Readings from the Perspective of Earth, ed. Norman C. Habel (Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 2000), 204‒20.

Beck, Witwen und Bibel in Tansania: Eine leserinnenorientierte Lektüre von 1 Tim 5,3-16

February 10, 2021 /

A new volume in the Bible in Africa Studies series provides a study of the passage on widows in 1 Timothy 5.

Beck, Stefanie. Witwen und Bibel in Tansania: Eine leserinnenorientierte Lektüre von 1 Tim 5,3-16. Bible in Africa Studies 27. Bamberg: University of Bamberg Press, 2020.

The volume is the published version of a dissertation completed under Joachim Kügler at the University of Bamberg (Otto-Friedrich-Universität). The table of contents is available here. The entire volume is available online here. The following description is provided:

“After the death of their husbands African women, who are living in patriarchal societies, experience cruel mourning and purification rituals, which they have to undergo and they are often stigmatized and accused of being witches. In this fatal situation, God is often their only anchor, God, who already appears in the Bible as the protector and father of widows and orphan. In the Old Testament, two book are named after widows, the Book of Ruth and Judith, and in the New Testament there are numerous widow stories, primarily in Luke, which are all characterized by a special relationship with God. However, the reality in the ancient world was as follows: there was a large number of widows, working in the churches, which displeased the officials of the communities. They didn’t only take over charitable activities, but they missionized and were even paid for it. 1Tim 5:3–16, which categorizes widows, was read and interpreted by widows in Tanzania. It is demonstrated how they deal with a text, which was written for them as widows. They didn’t allow themselves to be influenced by restrictions, in fact they drew out positive results. It is also highlighted how the widows interpret 1Tim on their cultural background, how they position themselves and see themselves as brides of Christ.”

As a final note, the fact that the dissertation was completed under the direction of Joachim Kügler, and the reference to Tanzanian widows seeing themselves as “brides of Christ” brought to mind the following essay by Kügler:

Kügler, Joachim. “Junge ‘Witwen’ als Bräute Christi (1 Tim 5,11f.). Der Gender-Impuls der Jesus-Tradition und seine Umsetzung in paulinischen Gemeinden vor dem religionsgeschichtlichen Hintergrund religiös motivierter Ehelosigkeit von Frauen.” Pages 483–97 in Erinnerungen an Jesus: Kontinuität und Diskontinuität in der neutestamentlichen Überlieferung. Festschrift für Rudolf Hoppe zum 65. Geburtstag. Edited by Ulrich Busse, Michael Reichardt, and Michael Theobald. Bonner Biblische Beiträge 166. Gottingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 2011.

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.”

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 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.

Wieland, “Re-Ordering the Household: Misalignment and Realignment to God’s οἰκονομία in 1 Timothy”

August 21, 2020 /

Students of 1 Timothy will be interested in a newly available essay on “sin and its remedy” in 1 Timothy written by a well-known student of the Pastorals:

George M. Wieland, “Re-Ordering the Household: Misalignment and Realignment to God’s οἰκονομία in 1 Timothy.” Pages 147–60 in Sin and Its Remedy in Paul. Contours of Pauline Theology. Edited by Nijay K. Gupta and John K. Goodrich. Eugene, OR: Cascade, 2020.

Wieland has made this biblical theological essay available on his Academia page (click here), where he gives this brief description: “An investigation of references to sin in 1 Timothy suggests that in this letter sin is whatever opposes or steps out of alignment with God’s oikonomia, as expressed both in the Law and in the gospel. The remedy is a realignment to God’s saving rule over creation, the world, and the church, and in that enterprise faithful, health-giving teaching is crucial.”

Hoag, “Demystifying Gender Issues in 1 Timothy 2:9–15, with Help from Artemis”

August 18, 2020 /

I received notice today of a new article on that most controversial of Pastorals passages in 1 Timothy 2:

Gary G. Hoag, “Demystifying Gender Issues in 1 Timothy 2:9–15, with Help from Artemis.” Evangelical Review of Theology 44.3 (2020): 242–49.

Abstract: “1 Timothy 2:9-15 is a source of considerable debate over women’s role in the church. Many aspects of the passage have long mystified interpreters. This article shows how a little-noticed contemporary love story from Ephesus may enable us to unlock this influential and often troublesome text. “

I have not seen the article yet, but it apparently draws upon Hoag’s work on the passage in his dissertation-turned-monograph, Wealth in Ancient Ephesus and the First Letter to Timothy: Fresh Insights from Ephesiaca by Xenophon of Ephesus (BBRSup 11; Winona Lake, IN: Eisenbrauns, 2015), in which he engages the socio-rhetorical methodology of Vernon Robbins in conjunction with 1 Timothy and an ancient novel.

« Older posts Newer posts »

© 2026 Pastoral Epistles

Theme by Anders Noren — Up ↑