Corpus-Paul

[JOxford AT net1plus.com (Jim Oxford)]

At 9:30 4/30/99, Perry L. Stepp wrote:

>From: Errol Smith & Colleen Loo <ERROL.COLLEEN AT bigpond.com>
>
>>Jack Kilmon wrote:
>
>>> Given that Tim I & II and Titus reflect church structures not in place
>>> till long after Paul's death...and used by Theophilus of Antioch,
>>> Irenaeus of Lyon, and the Muratorian list..I have always suspected
>>> Polycarp.


Dear List Members,

The above quote reflects, it seems to me, an axiom in NT scholarship
concerning the dating and authorship of the pastoral epistles, one which
for years now I have grown to question.  Here are two main questions I
have:

Is there enough extant evidence at our disposal to begin to describe
accurately the nature of "church structure" during the years 33-90 CE?  If
there is not, is it not an assumption, then, rather than a "given," that
the  Pastoral Epistles should be dated late, certainly later than Paul's
lifetime?

To what extent should Jewish "synagogue structure" (or any other first
century community's "religious structuring," such as Qumran or even
Greco-Roman communities), be used in discussing this issue?  Can we make
inferences about church structures in early Christian communities based on
what we find in other religious communities, such as Qumran, for example?

Regards,

Jim Oxford


Jim Oxford
Ph D candidate in NT
Baylor University
joxford AT net1plus.com