REL 415 - Pauline Literature III
The Prison and Pastoral Epistles of Paul
Study Topics and Assignments
Week 12 - The Epistle to Philemon
Scripture Readings
- Philemon
- Colossians 4:7-9
Textbook Resources
- pages 512-519 - Philemon
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This Week's Assignment : Fifteen Questions
- According to the textbook, where and when was the Epistle to Philemon probably written
- What other Epistle was probably written and sent at the same time as the Epistle to Philemon
- According to the textbook, who may Apphia and Archippus have been
- Where else in the Epistles is Archippus mentioned, and what were his instructions
- Some scholars have proposed that the Epistle to Philemon was written at a time when Paul was in prison in Ephesus, (not mentioned in Acts, but Paul does mention in 2 Corinthians 11:23 that he has frequently been in prisons). What reason do they give for this hypothesis? From the other Epistle which was written at the same time, and from the final greetings of Philemon, can you think of a reason why this hypothesis is probably not viable?
- What view doe the textbook put forward for the way in which Onesimus met up with Paul
- According to the textbook, how has Philemon been demonstrating his faith
- How does the textbook describe the relationship between Paul and Philemon
- What is the debt that Philemon probably owes to Paul, that enables Paul to ask for a favor on behalf of Onesimus
- What did Onesimus' name mean
- What were some of the things that a master could do to a slave in Graeco-Roman society
- What sort of picture of Roman society do you get from the article "Intercession for a Slave" on page 518 of the textbook
- Who was the secondary author of Philemon
- Why did Paul not just keep Onesimus with him, instead of sending him back to Philemon
- How did Onesimus becoming a Christian change the relationship between him and Philemon
Remember to cite your sources
Use MSWord or a text editor such as Notepad to prepare and save your work, then send it as an Attachment to, or pasted into, an email message to Dr. Rollinson at rollinsondr@yahoo.com,rollinsondr@hellokitty.com,rollinsondr@mail2world.com.
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