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  • From: John Lupia <JLupia2 AT excite.com>
  • To: Corpus-paul <corpus-paul AT franklin.oit.unc.edu>
  • Subject: Re: The Dutch Radical Approach to the Pauline Epistles
  • Date: Sat, 28 Jul 2001 15:39:02 -0700 (PDT)


Fabrizio, palaeography is an area that requires many years of research. One
cannot pick it up in a few months without making serious errors in judgment.
It is an area of specialization that requires IMHO at least a decade of
erudite study to make serious palaeographic assertions. So, caution should
be given when reading critisms of experts by non-specialists. This is a
point I already made in my previous post. You cited The Encyclopedia of New
Testament Textual Criticism, under the entry "paleography"
(http://www.skypoint.com/~waltzmn/ShortDefs.html#paleog)
But I refer you to http://www.skypoint.com/~waltzmn/ where it reads: "It
should also be noted that I (Robert Waltz) am not a recognized textual
critic, and that the information on this page has not been peer reviewed.
While I have done all I could to ensure its accuracy, this page probably
should not be used as a bibliographic reference."

I know Rich Elliott and Bob Waltz by means of the tc-list since we are list
members of the Text Criticism List owned by James R. Adair, Jr
(tc-list AT rosetta.atla-certr.org) The point Bob Waltz's entry makes is the
reference to time frames for proximate dating which is exactly what you
asked regarding gaussian dispersion allowances. At this point I see the
discussion going in circles. As for David Parker's conservative view it is
already well known among text critics. Being "cautious' is never a bad
thing. However, when a sound and solid argument is given like that of Kim
even a conservative must take new evidence into consideration which is what
Comfort & Barrett did. Again, I have said all of this before. As for
Daniel Wallace's comment: "I have spoken with many NT textual critics to get
their feedback on Kim's article (including Bruce Metzger, Gordon Fee, Bart
Ehrman, Eldon Epp, Michael Holmes, Thomas Geer, and J. K. Elliott), and not
one had any substantive arguments against Kim's evidence. A few years ago,
in the textual criticism group at the Society of Biblical Literature, an
Oxford Ph.D. student in papyrology presented a paper in which all of Kim's
arguments were refuted. It was a convincing piece of work." I would point
out that the senior scholarship of Metzger, Fee, Ehrman, Epp, Holmes, Geer,
and Elliot, with all due respect, is not simply dismissed and over ridden by
a Ph.D. candidate at Oxford who has, perhaps, some new insights. I would
like to read that paper and examine the evidence myself. However, I think
it is going to be miraculous to completely refute the evidence compiled by
Kim.

As for my carefully reading of the various articles you cited I think the
real problem lies not with me but in the extremely poor scholarship of the
authors. For example, you cited Detering's, Der Gefalschte Paulus, which is
riddled with errors too vast for me to correct without devoting many days or
perhaps weeks to do it.

As a case in point Detering states: Can a document consisting of some 32-35
papyrus pages be accepted without further ado as a writing that was sent
from Rome to Corinth with the intention of actual correspondence? First,
according to which papyrological study or method does he deduce the size of
the papyrus required? Then what papyrological specimens does he present as
evidence of comparative epistolary size in the first century?

Then Detering goes on to say: "Apart from the fact that the size of an
average letter in antiquity, as one can determine from collections of
ancient papyrus letters we possess,  was not substantially different from
our letters today and consisted of one to two pages (rather less than more,
since writing was such an arduous affair in antiquity),  the situation in
which the author intervenes with the pen, the party conflict in Corinth,
required great haste! If he wanted to accomplish something with his writing,
he could hardly sit there and spend weeks or months drafting a writing whose
size surpasses that of many ancient books, especially since in view of
conditions of conveyance in the ancient world he would have had to reckon
with considerable delay in delivery. With the passing of one or two months"

First, Giuseppe Ricciotti, Paul the Apostle, (Milwaukee: Bruce Publ. Co.,
Alba I. Zizzamia, trans., 1953, of the original: Paolo apostolo: biografia
con introduzione e illustrazioni. Roma, 1946) "The physical act of writing
letters like those of Paul was a long and heavy labor which we find it hard
to imagine today. … Since Paul probably devoted only the hours of the
evening or the nighttime to his letters (for he worked by day to earn a
living), and since a scribe [Paul seems to have dictated most of his
letters.] ordinarily could not work more than two or three hours at a
stretch (he wrote crouched on the ground and holding the paper on a tablet
in his left hand), we must conclude that ordinarily Paul’s epistles were in
the writing several weeks. … The longest epistle, that to the Romans, which
contains 7101 words, required fifty sheets [of papyrus] and more than
ninety-eight hours’ writing time." (pages 144ff). As for antique letter size
compare Diogenes Laertius Epistle to Herodotus, for example, is the first
and the longest of the three letters sometimes called the Lesser Epitome to
distinguish it from the Greater Epitome. You do realize an epitome is a
treatise or book! There are numerous examples of extensive and lengthy
epistles in secular antiquity. But when one is critiquing the size of a
written letter one must consider they category or class the letter
corresponds to. According to Pseudo Demetrius, Typoi Epistolikoi, there are
twenty-one epistolary styles or classes:

(1) FILIKOS, the familial or familiar letter; (2) SUSTATIKOS, the
commendatory letter; (3) MEMTIKOS, the blaming letter; (4) DNEIDISTIKOS, the
reproachful letter; (5) PARAMUQHTIKOS, the condolence letter; (6)
EPITIMHTIKOS, the censorious letter, (7) NOUQETHTIKOS, the admonishing
letter; (8) APEILHTIKOS, the threatening letter; (9) YEKTIKOS, the
vituperative letter, (10) EPAINETIKOS, the praising letter; (11)
SUMBOULEUTKOS, the advisory letter; (12) ACIWMATIKOS, the supplicatory
letter, (13) EPWTHMATIKOS, the inquiring letter; (14) APOFANTIKOS, the
responding letter; (15) ALLHGORIKOS, the allegorical letter; (16)
AITIOLOGIKOS, the accounting letter; (17) KATHGORIKOS, the accusing letter;
(18) APOLOGHTIKOS, the apologetic letter, (19) SUGCARHTIKOS, the
congratulatory letter; (20) EIRWNIKOS, the ironic letter; (21)
APEUCARISTIKOS, the thankful letter.

To these can be amended the (22) PRESBEUTIKOS, or diplomatic letter; (23)
the administrative letter; (24) invitations which were studied by Kim
(1975); (25) hUPOMNHMATIKOS, memoranda written by hUPOMNHMATOGRAFOS or
memorandum writers. These were also a type of commentary; (26) H EPISTOLH
SUSTATIKH, letters of introduction studied by Keyes (1935); (27) letters of
recommendation, which are cited by Paul in 2 Corithians 3:1. The class of
letters of recommendation have been studied by Kim (1972); (28) letters of
petition; (29) embedded letters, were letters within a letter so that the
reader could read to another a section intended for them while remaining
sections were intended for either the reader alone and/or another (s); (30)
letters of safe conduct; (31) MAXAMOTIKOS, soldier letters.

In the field of papyrology we distinguish between documentary papyri and
literary papyri. Common letters exchanged in antiquity are classed as
documentary papyri. The epistles of St. Paul are literary papyri. They are
not common letters of exchange but lengthy exhortative letters laden with
theological instructions and doctrine. In this sense the comparison I gave
to Diogenes Laertius Epistle to Herodotus is more appropriate. To compare
St. Paul's epistles' length, say for example, to a letter of inquiry
regarding the sale or purchase of property shows a serious lack of knowledge
regarding documentary papyri and epistolary documentary types.

So, Detering's unscholarly exaggerations regarding length and the time to
produce an epistle do not attract informed scholars who have a greater
knowledge in these areas. If St. Paul could easily have written the epistle
to the Romans in 2 weeks then any other epistle would have been completed in
a shorter span of time. How can you expect serious scholars to respond to
every weak argument proposed by these researchers? As for Detering's very
inept knowledge regarding the amount of time it took for the dissemination
of information in antiquity I refer you to Thompson (1998) as well as an
extensive bibliography that amply demonstrates that Detering is extremely
ill informed.

Thompson cites Lionel Casson of Columbia University, NY, Travel in the
Ancient World (London, 1974): 150-152 on (page 62) "Travelers from the
empire's capital on their way to Greece could choose either an all-water
route through the straits of Messina and around the Peloponnese to Corinth
(at least five days, but usually between one and two weeks), or they could
follow the Appian Way to Brindisium, the gateway to the east, and take a
shorter sailing across the Adriatic and through the Gulf of Corinth to the
harbor on the west side of the isthmus." (cf. Michael B. Thompson, "The Holy
Internet: Communication Between Churches in the First Christian Generation"
in Richard Bauckham ed., The Gospels for All Christians (Edinburgh, 1998).


So, Fabrizio, St., Paul could have written any epistle in 2 weeks or less
and they could have reached their destination in a relatively brief span of
time. Can you now see how far off Detering's views are?

For additional bibliography on ancient travels see:

Joseph Wiesner, Fahren und Reiten in Alteuropa und im alten Orient.
(Hildesheim, New York, Olms Presse, 1971).
SERIES Der Alte Orient ; Bd. 38, Heft 2-4
Documenta hippologica

Albrecht Dihle, Die Griechen und die Fremden
(Munchen : C.H. Beck, 1994).

Giorgio Camassa, Silvana Fasce, Idea e realta del viaggio : il viaggio nel
mondo antico (Genova : ECIG, 1991).
SERIES Nuova atlantide

Marion Giebel, . Reisen in der Antike (Dusseldorf : Artemis & Winkler,
1999).

Cristina Corsi, .Le strutture di servizio del cursus publicus in Italia :
ricerche topografiche ed evidenze archeologiche / Cristina
Corsi. (Oxford, England : J. and E. Hedges : Distributed by Hadrian
Books, 2000).
SERIES BAR international series ; 875

William West Mooney, Travel among the ancient Romans, (Boston, 1920)

Eugene N. Borza, Travel and communications in classical times : a guide to
the evidence : a pilot study
(University Park, Pa. : Pennsylvania State University, 1969).

Lionel Casson, Travel in the ancient world. (London, Allen & Unwin, 1974)

Caroline, A. J. Skeel, Travel in the first century after Christ, with
special reference to Asia Minor (Cambridge, University press, 1901).

Raymond Chevallier, Voyages et deplacements dans l'empire romain (Paris : A.
Colin, 1988).

Denys Gorce, Les voyages, l'hospitalite et le port des lettres dans le monde

chretien des IVe et Ve siecles. (Wepion-sur-Meuse (Belgique) Monastere du
Mont-Vierge; Paris, A. Picard, 1925).

Alain Billault, ed., Heros et voyageurs grecs dans l'Occident romain : actes
du
colloque organise au Centre d'etudes et de recherches sur
l'Occident romain de l'Universite Jean Moulin-Lyon III,
janvier 1996 (Lyon : Le Centre ; Paris : Diffusion, De Boccard, 1997).
SERIES Collection du Centre d'etudes romaines et gallo-romaines ; nouv.
ser., no 15

David A. Dorsey, The roads and highways of ancient Israel (Baltimore : Johns
Hopkins University Press, 1991).
SERIES The ASOR library of biblical and Near Eastern archaeology

Moshe Fisher, Roman roads in Judaea. II : the Jaffa-Jerusalem roads / Moshe
Fischer, Benjamin Isaac, Israel Roll. (Oxford, England : Tempus Reparatum,
1996).
SERIES BAR international series ; 628

Miguel Antonio Barriola, . El Espiritu Santo y la praxis cristiana : el tema
del camino en la teologia de San Pablo / Miguel Antonio Barriola ; prefacio
de S. Lyonnet. (Montevideo : Instituto Teologico de Uruguay, 1977).

Markus Philipp Zehnder, Wegmetaphorik im Alten Testament : eine semantische
Untersuchung der alttestamentlichen und altorientalischen Weg-Lexeme mit
besonderer Berucksichtigung ihrer metaphorischen Verwendung (Berlin : De
Gruyter 1999).
SERIES Beihefte zur Zeitschrift fur die alttestamentliche Wissenschaft
; 268

Otto Cuntz et Joseph Schnetz, eds., Itineraria romana. Ed. stereotypa
editionis primae (1940) ; indicem composuit et
adiecit Marianne Zumschlinge. (v. 2)
(Stuttgart : B.G. Teubner, 1990).
CONTENTS Vol. 1. Itineraria Antonini Augusti et Burdigalense / edidit
Otto Cuntz -- Vol. 2. Ravennatis Anonymi Cosmographia et
Guidonis Geographica / edidit Joseph Schnetz.

Roldan Hervas, Jose Manuel, Itineraria hispana : fuentes antiguas para el
estudio de las vias romanas en la Peninsula iberica (Valladolid:
Departamento de Historia Antigua, Universidad de Valladolid, c1975.
SERIES Anejo de Hispania antiqua

Annalina Calo Levi, Mario Attilio Levi, Itineraria picta. Contributo allo
studio della Tabula peutingeriana. [Di] Annalina Levi [e] Mario Levi.
(Roma, L'erma di Bretschneider, 1967).
SERIES Studi e materiali del Museo dell'Impero romano, n. 7
(Museo della civilta romana. Studi e materiali ; n. 7).

Konrad Miller, Itineraria romana. Romische reisewege an der hand der Tabula
peutingeriana. (Stuttgart, Strecker und Schroder, 1916).

Nigel H. H. Sitwell, Roman roads of Europe (New York : St. Martin's Press,
1981).

Hermann Schreiber, Auf Romerstrassen durch Europa (Munchen : List, 1985).

Aldo Mario Tazzi, Le strade dell'antica Roma : dal IV secolo a.C. al V
secolo d.C.
in Europa, Asia e Africa (Roma : Librerie Dedalo, 1998).

Firmin O'Sullivan, .The Egnatian Way. (Newton Abbot, David and Charles;
Harrisburg, Stackpole Books, 1972).

L. Gounaropoulou, M.B. Hatzopoulos, Les milliaires de la Voie Egnatienne
entre Heraclee des Lyncestes et Thessalonique (Athenes : Centre de
recherches de l'antiquite grecque et romaine, Fondation nationale de la
recherche scientifique, 1985).
SERIES Meletemata ; 1

Gottlieb Lukas Friedrich Tafel, De via militari Romanorum Egnatia, qua
Illyricum, Macedonia, et Thracia iungebantur (London : Variorum Reprints,
1972).
SERIES Variourum reprint ; B9
Reprint of the 1842 ed. published by H. Laupp, Tubingen.

Cordially in Christ,
John
<><

John N. Lupia
501 North Avenue B-1
Elizabeth, New Jersey 07208-1731 USA
JLupia2 AT excite.com
<>< ~~~ <>< ~~~ <>< ~~~ ><> ~~~ ><> ~~~ ><>
"during this important time, as the eve of the new millennium approaches . .
. unity among all Christians of the various confessions will increase until
they reach full communion." John Paul II, Tertio Millennio Adveniente, 16





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