Home > Pauline epistles
The term Pauline epistles refers to the thirteen or fourteen letters in the New Testament of the Christian Bible traditionally believed to have been written by the apostle Paul. The authorship of some of these letters (" epistles") has been called into question by more recent scholarship; these works are marked '(*)' in the list below. The theology of the Pauline epistles is in relative harmony, and those who doubt that some of the epistles are genuine works of Paul sometimes suggest they were written by some of his disciples.The Pauline epistles are:
- Romans
- First Corinthians
- Second Corinthians
- Galatians
- Ephesians (*)
- Philippians
- Colossians (*)
- First Thessalonians
- Second Thessalonians (*)
- First Timothy (*)
- Second Timothy (*)
- TitusThe Epistle to Titus is a book of the canonic New Testament, one of the three so-called "pastoral epistles" 1 Timothy 2 Timothy and the Epistle to Titus . It is offered as a letter from Paul to the Apostle Titus. Authorship and date Traditional view Accor (*)
- PhilemonPhilemon was a person in the Bible New Testament and the recipient of the Epistle to Philemon. He was an inhabitant of Colossae, and apparently a person of some note among the citizens ( Col. 4:9; Philemon 1:2). He was brought to a knowledge of the gospel
- HebrewsThe Epistle to the Hebrews (abbreviated Heb. for citations) is one of the two most consciously "literary" books in the New Testament. Although the author is unknown, it is written in a similar style to the letters of Paul to the early Christian churches, (*)
All of the epistles except the epistle to the Hebrews cite Paul as the author. The epistle to the HebrewsThe Epistle to the Hebrews (abbreviated Heb. for citations) is one of the two most consciously "literary" books in the New Testament. Although the author is unknown, it is written in a similar style to the letters of Paul to the early Christian churches, is something of a special case, being anonymous. Although other authors have been suggested, the vocabulary and theology are quite in harmony with the rest of the Pauline works. Some classifications do not include Hebrews as a Pauline epistle, listing it instead with the general epistlesGeneral epistles are books in the New Testament in the form of letters. They are termed "general" because for the most part their intended audience seems to be Christians in general rather than individual persons or congregations as is the case with the P.
The signed Pauline epistles may be classified into two sections: Paul's letters to new Christian churches of the first century (Romans through Second Thessalonians), and Paul's letters to individuals (First Timothy through Philemon). The former are named after the city or region the receiving church or churches were based in; the latter are named after the individual to whom the epistle was addressed. When more than one epistle was addressed to the same recipient, they are distinguished with "first" and "second," or else with Roman or Arabic numerals (e.g. II Timothy).
Paul's letters to churches are concerned with particular aspects of church doctrine Paul felt to be important to the recipient congregation. In most cases these letters were addressed to churches Paul had founded himself, and he wrote his letters to supply teachings he had not been able to give in person, or to correct misunderstandings of his doctrine. In some cases he answered specific questions put to him by letter or messenger. One prominent teaching in many of Paul's letters to churches is the problem of Judaizing teachersThe Judaizing teachers were a group of Jewish converts to Christianity who felt that converts to Christianity must convert to Judaism first. This group was very active in the church of the 1st century CE. They taught that before Gentiles could accept Chri; much controversy existed in the early churches as to how much if any of the religion of the Old TestamentThe Old Testament or the Hebrew Scriptures constitutes the first major part of the Christian Bible, usually divided into the categories law, history, poetry (or wisdom books) and prophecy. All of those books were written before the birth of Jesus. Canon o should be maintained in Christianity. In many cases such teachers arrived shortly after Paul's departure from a city where he had founded a church and began teaching the church to observe Old TestamentThe Old Testament or the Hebrew Scriptures constitutes the first major part of the Christian Bible, usually divided into the categories law, history, poetry (or wisdom books) and prophecy. All of those books were written before the birth of Jesus. Canon o religious laws that Paul did not believe were necessary for Christians, particularly GentileA Gentile refers to a non- Israelite; the word is derived from the Latin term gens (meaning " clan" or a "group of families") and is often employed in the plural. Christian translators of the Bible use this word to collectively designate the peoples and n Christians. While most of the letters to churches are concerned with a variety of topics, this is one common issue that many of them address.
Paul's letters to individuals are sometimes called the Pastoral epistles as most of them are addressed to young preachers and are concerned with the shepherding of the church. Timothy and Titus were two of Paul's fellow missionaries; the letters Paul wrote to them give advice and commandments for Christian preachers and for the appointing of bishops and deacons. The letter to Philemon is the most personal of all Paul's letters, being addressed to the owner of a runaway slave whom Paul had converted.
The Pauline epistles are also noteworthy for the personal relationships they mention. Paul greets many individuals by name, often giving details about the value of these friendships and the encouragement they gave him.
