122 Jon Ma.
Asgeirsson
keeps on developing as long as the myth is in use or even beyond its use in
terms of ~ure scholarly discussion (such as of the myths of "dead
religions"). 18 The scribe(s) of St Matthew is/are firmly based in the non-
censored phase of the trajectory but would they ever have added a tradition
about a little if at all known person from Nazareth on their own?
111
Cf. John G. Henderson, Scripture, Canon, and Commentary: A Comparison of
Confucian and Western Exegesis (Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1991).
All Those Who in Every Place Call on the Name
of Our Lord Jesus Christ
The Unity of the Pauline Churches
by
REIDAR HVALVIK
... ouv vciolv mi<; huclllD~l(
'tO 011~ 'tOU ICilplOU TpWll 'IJlOOU XplO'tOU
iv •crvd •ov~. crinwv K«t rpwv
(I Cor 1:2b)
Around A.D. 160 the church in Smyrna sends the account of the martyrdom
of bishop Po1ycarp to the church in Philomelium in Phrygia. 1 The opening
words are as follows: "The church of God that temporarily resides in
Smyrna to the church of God that temporarily resides in Philomelium, and
to all congregations of temporary residents everywhere, who belong to the
holy and universal church" (Kat mioaLc; -raic; Ka-ra ucivta -r6nov die; &:y£ac;
Kat Ka9oA.uci]c; EKKAT}O(ac; uapOLKLaLc;)_2 The conception of the church that
is expressed here would later be formulated as the faith in one, catholic
church - "unam, sanctam, catholicam et apostolicam ecclesiam" - as it is
stated in the Nicene creed.
Such formulations are far from the terminology used in modem New
Testament scholarship. To the extent ecclesiology still is a subject, one
seldom speaks about the church as a universal entity and about the unity of
the church. With reference to the early Christian communities, it has been
common to speak about Early Christianities3 rather than Early Christiani-
1
The dating of Polycarp's martyrdom is debated, cf. GERD BUSCHMANN, Das
Martyrium des Polyhlrp (Kommentar :w den Apostolischen Vatem 6; Gottingen:
Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 1998) 3940. An early dating seems likely; cf. B.
DEHANDSCHUlTER, 'The Martyrium Polycarpi: A Century of Research," in ANRW
IL27.1 (1993) 485- 522,esp. 497- 502.
1
Translation from BART D. EHRMAN, ed., The Apostolic Fathers (2 vols.; Loeb
Classical Library; Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 2003) 1:367.
3
See e.g., J. Z. SMmf, Drudgery Divine: On the Comparison of Early Christianities
and the Religions of Late Antiquity (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1994).
124 Reidar Hvalvik
4
ty. Even if the focus of research is limited to one of these Christianities, it
is usual to stress the diversity even within a limited geographical area. A
quotation from John Reumann may illustrate my point: ..Given the plural-
ism in bouse churches, our question for early Christianity becomes not,
'Why the differences?' but 'What held the communities of Jesus Christ
together?'" Consequently we have to ask, be continues: "what united the
several house churches in a given city region, even where the house
churches all bad the same missionary founder.''5
Against this background there are problems in speaking about unity
within the Pauline churches, and it appears as even more problematic to
speak about a unity among these churches. Nevertheless, in this article I
wilJ try to demonstrate that this makes sense. The term ' Pauline churches'
is used about the churches founded by Paul and his co-workers. In addition
I take into consideration the Christian community in Rome - both because
this community was located within Paurs mission area and because there
exists a letter from Paul to this community.6 The question we pose is: Did
the Pauline churches have a consciousness (and experience) of belonging
to a broader ecclesiological unity. a unity that comprised more than their
local EKKAT}OLa? If the answer is affirmative, the next question must be:
What united the Pauline churches?
It may be tempting to answer the last question by referring to their
common faith. Such an answer finds support within corpus Paulinum,
especially in Epb 4:13, speaking of the unity of faith (EVOtT)~ tf)~ lfLOtEwc;)
- at least as a goal. In addition. the same chapter also speaks about the
unity of the Spirit in the following manner: "one body and one Spirit, just
as you were called to the one hope of your calling, one Lord, one faith, one
baptism, one God and Father of all, who is above all and through all and in
all" (vv. 4-6).7
The problem with such an answer is, however, that it is utterly abstract.
One may postulate a common faith and a common confession, but this is
not the same as a unity in the sense of "an ecumenical fellowship ... It is
4
In 1977 JAMES D. G. DUNN still talked about the Earliest ''Christianity" in singular,
but he focused on its diversity and various forms; cf. his Unity and Diversity in the New
Testament: An Inquiry into the Character of Earliest Christianity (London: SCM, 1977),
esp. 235-366.
s JOHN REuMANN, ~ne Lord, One Faith, One God, but Many House Churches," in
Common Life in the Early Church: Essays Honoring Graydon F. Snyder (ed. Julian V.
Hills; Harrisburg, Penn.: Trinity Press, 1998) 106-117, 112-113.
6
In addition to the seven undisputed leuers of Paul I will include Colossians and 2
Thessalonians in the discussion.
7
Unless otherwise indicated, scripture quotations are from the New Revised Standard
Version of the Bible, copyright 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the
National Council of the Churches of Christ in USA.
All Those Who in Every Place Call on the Name of Our Lord Jesus Christ 125
certainly true that the common faith created a new fellowship - against
e.g., established social dividing lines. As among others Karl Olav Sandnes
bas shown, the early believers bad an experience of belonging to a new
family. 8 This fellowship was, however, expressed primarily at a local level,
i.e., in the bouse churches.
Paul was fully aware of this ecclesiological reality. His letters have
several references to these small communities (cf. Rom 16:5; 1 Cor 16:19;
Col4: 15).9 ln l Cor 14:23 we also have a reference to the gathering of "the
whole church" (Eav ouv ouvE.A9tJ Tj EtcdT)OLII oA.T) Ent to auto ... ). an
expression which seems to cover several house churches in Corinth {cf.
also Rom 16:23). 10 Paul's ecclesio1ogical horizon, however, is broader
than that. This comes to expression e.g., in Romans 10 where he is talking
about those who preached the gospel. Using words from Psalm 19 (Ps 18:5
LXX) be writes: "Their voice bas gone out to all the earth, and their words
to the ends of the world" (d~ •a
nE:pata •ii~ ottco1J1.1E~) (Rom 10: 18).
This is often interpreted as a hyperbolic statement, which prophesies the
worldwide success of Christian preaching. 11 It is certainly correct that Paul
does not say that all missionary work bad been accomplished (cf. 15:24). 12
Nevertheless the statement obviously refers to the preaching of the gospel
that actually bad taken place. 13 Paul himself stresses that be bad preached
the gospel from Jerusalem and as far afield as Illyricum (Rom 15:19)-
covering a large part of the Empire- and led people to faith.
The faith in Christ was thus an ecumenical phenomenon, in the sense
that believers were spread across the whole inhabited world (oLtcou~uhtT)) 14
8
KARL OLAV SANDNES, A New Family: Conversion and Ecclesiology in the Early
Churches with Cross-Cultural Comparisons (Studies in the lnterculturaJ History or
Christianity 91; Bern: Peter Lang, 1994}; cf. also CAROLYN OSIEK and DAVID L. BALCH,
Families in the New Testament World: Households and House Churches (The Family,
Religion, and Culture; Louisville, Ky.: Westminster John Knox, 1997).
9
On the house churches, see HANs-JOSEF KLAUCK, Hausgemeinde und Hauslcirche im
friihen Christentum (SBS 103; Stuttgart: Verlag K.atholisches Bibelwerk, 1981); VINCENT
BRANICK, The House Churches in the Writings of Paul (Zacchaeus Studies: New
Testament; Wilmington, Del.: Michael Glazier, 1989).
1
11
°Cf. SANDNES, A New Family, 96.
So ERNST K..i.sEMANN, Commentary on Romans (trans. G. W. Bromiley; Grand
Rapids, Mich.: Eerdmans, 1980) 294.
12
Cf. THOMAS R. SCHREINER, Romans (Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New
Testament 6; Grand Rapids, Mich.: Baker Books, 1998) 572.
13
Cf. WALTER SCHMJTHALS, Der Riimerbrief: Ein Kommentar (Giitersloh: Giiters-
loher Verlagshaus Gerd Moho, 1988) 383: "Paulus denkt in V.l8b an geographische
Raume (wie in- 15,15ff.), nicht an Personen. So verstanden, iibertreibt das Zitat also
nichL Uberall in den Zentren des Romischen Reiches kann man das Evanglium kennen-
lemen."
14
On this word, see H. BAIZ' article ~olKo~vTJ" in EDNT2:503-504.
126 Reidar Hvalvik
or more precisely, the Roman Empire (cf. Luke 2: I; Acts 24:5; Josephus,
J. W. I.633). Consequently, at an early stage the question about church
unity pointed beyond the individual churches in a limited geographical
area. Later in Romans Paul can refer to "all the churches of Christ" (at
iKKA.T}O(aL niiaaL •ou XpLotou) (Rom I6: I6). What did such a phrase mean
to the members of the Pauline churches? Did they have a conception of an
ecumenical 15 unity of believers from various churches and an experience of
a translocal fellowship?
It is my thesis that they had. It is further my conviction that Paul tried to
create a consciousness of an ecumenical unity between his churches. In
addition he made efforts to link the scattered churches together. This I will
try to demonstrate in what foUows.
I. An 'Ecumenical Horizon'
Throughout his letters Paul painted what I wiU call an ecumenical horizon
for his churches, a frame of reference that went beyond the local
congregations. This was done in various ways, and I shall briefly point out
some important elements which contributed to establish a consciousness of
a broader ecclesiological unity.
1) The affiliation to a greater community of faith was made evident by
Paul's direct references to other churches.
Let us start with Rom 1:8: "First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ
for all of you, because your faith is proclaimed throughout the world" (i}
n£on~; UIJ.WV Ka•ayyE.U.ETaL iv ol~ •c:} KOOIJ.~). Here the verb KaTayyEllw
is used, a verb Paul elsewhere uses in connection with the proclamation of
the gospel, the proclamation of Christ or his death (cf. e.g., 1 Cor 9:14;
11:26; Phil 1:17-18). In other words, the verb is used in connection with
the early Christian kerygma. In Romans I, however, the word is used about
the faith of the addressees. This means, as Jacob Jervell pointed out some
decades ago, that the faith of the Christians in Rome here denotes the
actual content of the kerygma: ''Thus the fact that a congregation is formed
or exists is a subject of proclamation.'' 16
15
"Ecumenical" may sound a little bit anachronistic, but it is here used in the sense
found in A. S. HORNBY, Oxford Advanced Leilmer's Dictionary of Current English (5.
ed. by J. Crowther; Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1995) 368: "involving members of
several Christian Churches." In theory an ecumenical fellowship is universal; in practice
it ma;: be somewhat more restricted.
1
JACOB JERVELL, UZur Frage der Traditionsgrundlage der Apostelgescbichte," Studia
Theologica 16 (1962) 25-41; repr. in English as "The Problem of Traditions in Acts," in
All Thos~ Who in Every Place Call on the Name of Our Lord Jesus Christ 127
The statement in Romans l is not unique. A parallel is found in I Thess
1:7-8 where Paul reports bow the Christians in Thessalonica received the
gospel
(8) so that you became an example to all the believers in Macedonia and in Achaia.
(9) For the word of the Lord has sounded forth from you not only in Macedonia and
Achaia, but in every place ( ev 11a:vri. -r611~) your faith in God bas become known, so
that we have no need to speak about it.
As Paul was a model for all his churches, here the Thessalonians are
depicted as a model or example for all the Christians in Macedonia and
Achaia. This is hardly a hyperbole. Behind the names of the provinces we
can think of the churches in Philippi, Beroea and Corinth. 17 When the
gospel was preached there, the Thessalonians were presented as examples
to be followed. And even beyond these cities - in every place where the
gospel was proclaimed - the faith of the Thessalonians was made known.
As Traugott Holtz rightly comments, the "ecumenical knowledge" of their
faith is to be understood on the background of the close connections
between the different cburches. 18
In his second letter to the Thessalonians, Paul 19 continues to praise their
faith. He says that be and his co-workers boast of them: •'Therefore we
ourselves boast of you among the churches of God (€v •ai~; EKKAT}OLaL~;
tou ~ou) for your perseverance and faith in the midst of all your persecu-
tions and afflictions which you endure" (I :4).
These texts show bow Paul and his co-workers from the very beginning
preached a message that drew the new believers' attention to the fact that
they belonged to a greater community of believers. Paul's message thus
created an "ecumenical horizon" for the young churches.
The concrete horizon for the early churches in Europe was in the fLCSt
place Macedonia and Acbaia But it did not stop there. In his fLCSt letter to
the Thessalonians Paul also mentioned other churches of God: ·~or you,
brothers and sisters, became imitators of the churches of God in Christ
Jesus that are in Judea (•wv EKdT}OLwv •ou ~ou •wv ooowv iv tij
'lou&x(q: iv X pLaTe:} 'IT}Oou) ... " (l Thess 2: 14). In this way the Christians
in Macedonia were reminded that they belonged to a much greater
idem, Luke and th~ People of God: A New Look at Luke-Acts (Minneapolis: Augsburg,
1972) 19-39; quote from p. 24.
11
Cf. TRAUGOTT HOLTZ, Der erste Brief an die Thessatonicher (EKKNT 13; ZUrich:
Benziger Verlag; Neuk:ircheo-Vluyo: Neukirchener Verlag, 1986) 51.
18
HOLTZ, Der erste Brief an die Thessalonichu, 52-53.
19
For a thorough advocacy of Pauline authorship of 2 Thessalonians, see now
ABRAHAM J. MALHERBE, The Letters to the Thessalonians (AB 32B; New York:
Doubleday, 2000) 349-375.
128 Reidar Hvalvik
fellowship, with lines back to Judea and Jerusalem - where the gospel had
its origin.
When the ecumenical horizon was created, Paul made sure that it was
maintained. This happens often seemingly accidentally when Paul - en
passant - mentions his travel plans. The church in Corinth, for example,
received a certain amount of information about Paul's travels to Macedo-
nia (cf. l Cor 16:5; 2 Cor 1:16; 2:13; 7:5). Frequently these travels were
closely related to PauJ's visits to Corinth- a fact that illustrated how the
churches actually were related. This relationship could even be more
concrete: In 2 Cor II :9 Paul seems to imply that his ministry in Corinth -
at least to a certain extent - was supported by the churches in Macedonia:
"when I was present with you and was in need, I was not a burden to
anyone; for when the brethren came from Macedonia they fully supplied
my need" (NASB). In all probability this means that his co-workers
brought money from the church in Philippi.20 There is no reason to think
that this situation was unique. Paul seems to have been quite consistent
with regard to receiving material support. As Peterman bas shown, Paul
rejected support from the congregation where be was working, but be
asked for travel money and gladly received mission support.21 By receiving
support for missionary work, it became evident that new churches were
indebted to the older ones. PauJ's attitude to material support thus made
visible bow the different churches were interrelated.
The relations between the churches are also evident in the references to
the collection in 2 Corinthians 8-9. Paul is talking about the grace of God
that had been granted the churches in Macedonia. They were poor, but they
"gave according to their means, and even beyond their means, begging us
earnestly for the privilege of sharing in this ministry to the saints" (8:3-4).
The reason for drawing attention to the churches in Macedonia was,
primarily, to give motivation for the collection among the Corinthians (cf.
8:6-7). Interestingly enough, Paul reveals that this was not the flist time be
had used this form of rhetoric. Earlier be bad used it in Macedonia: "I
know your eagerness, which is the subject of my boasting about you to the
people of Macedonia. saying that Achaia has been ready since Last year;
and your zeal has stirred up most of them" (2 Cor 9:2).
20
Cf. VICroR PAUL FuRNISH, II Corinthians (AB 32A; New York:: Doubleday, 1984)
507.
21
G. W. PETERMAN, Paul's Gift from Philippi: Conventions of Gift-Exchange and
Christian Giving (SNTSMS 92; Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1997), esp.
162-167. On the financial relations between Paul and his churches, see also BENGT
HOLMBERG, Paul and Power: The Structure of Authority in the Primitive Church as
Reflected in the Pauline Epistles (Philadelphia: Fortress, 1980) 89-93, and JOUETTE M.
BASSLER, God and Mammon: Asking for Money in the New Testament (Nashville, Tenn.:
Abingdon, 1991) 63-88.
All Those Who in Every Place Call on the Name of Our Lord Jesus Christ 129
But it did not even start there. The fliSt time Paul mentions the collec-
tion for the church in Corinth, he made the foUowing statement: "Now
concerning the collection for the saints, as I directed the churches of
Galatia. so do you also" (wanep OLEt~a -rate; EKKAT}OLaL<; •ilc; ra:.ta-r(ac;,
ou-rwc; Kat UI!Eic; troL~Oa:i:E) (1 Cor 16: l NASB). We notice bow the
different churches are connected with each other: In Achaia as in Galatia;
in Macedonia as in Achaia; in Acbaia as in Macedonia. All the churches
are bound together by an invisible chain, a chain that soon should be
concrete and visible- as we shall see below.
2) By his references to an ecumenical tradition Paul reminded his readers
of a broader fellowship of believers. The most obvious examples of this
feature are found in 1 Corinthians. In 7:17 (NASB) Paul admonishes the
Corinthians to walk "as the Lord bas assigned to each one, as God has
called each! ' And be adds: ..And so I direct in all the churches" (Kat ou-rwc;
ev TilL<; EKKAflOLilL<; naolll<; OLilTUOOfli.UIL). In other words, Paul does not
give an instruction unique to the situation in Corinth.22 Rather, be claims
that his instructions are the same for all his churches. In this way Paul
reveals his ecumenical way of thinking. And the Corinthians are taught to
think in the same way.
We find a similar expression in 1 Cor 4:16-17: "I appeal to you, then,
be imitators of me. For this reason I sent you Timothy, who is my beloved
and faithful child in the Lord, to remind you of my ways in Christ Jesus, as
I teach them everywhere in every church" (KilSW<; nllv-ra:xou ev
1fU01J
EKKAflOLif OLOO(Jl(W). The central phrase is "my ways in Christ Jesus." This
is an expression that evidently comprises both Paul's own conduct and his
teacbing.23 A parallel is found in Phil 4:9 where Paul is writing: ••Keep on
doing the things that you have learned and received and beard and seen in
me" (ii KilL E!!U9E'TE Kill napdUJM:-re Kat 1\Koooa-re KO:L ELMTE ev
E!!OL,
-rau-ra: npuooe-re). Both what Paul had said and what be bad done were
exemplary. Thus Timothy should remind the Corinthians both about Paul's
teaching and his conduct of life. This model was something they bad in
common with the other Pauline churches. It il1ustrates how Paul himself
22
Cf. ANDREAS LINDEMANN's commentary on I Cor 7:17 : "In 17c erganzt Paulus,
daS er dies in allen Kirchen dauernd anordnet (...), da.6 er also von den Korinthem nichiS
Au8ergewohnliches verlangt" (Der Erste Korintherbrief [HNT 9. 1; Tiibingen: Mohr
Siebeck. 2000) 170).
23
The firSt element is emphasized by the co nnection with verse 16 where Paul speaks
about following his example. The second eleme nt may be supported by the use of
6LOOOK<.> at the end of verse 17. Cf. LINDEMANN, Der Erste Korintherbrief, 116:
"Gemeint ist, wie die Fortsetzung zeigt, primiir die Lehre des Paulus (darunter auch, aber
nicht speziell, die Ethik), daneben aber sicher auch das Leben des Apostels (vgl. V. 9-
13)."
130 Reidar Hvalvifc
bound the churches together: A part of the glue was what they all bad
beard from him and seen in his life.
3) Paul linked the various churches to each other by conveying greetings.
We find many examples of Paul conveying greetings to his addressees
from his co-workers, from friends, and from other churches. A few
examples may illustrate their function. In 1 Cor 16: 19 be brings a greeting
from the ''churches in Asia" (at EKKAflOLaL tile; 'Ao£ru;). This is the only
place in his letters where Paul sends a greeting from all the churches in a
province. The phrase in itself is a reminder of a greater ecumenical fellow-
ship: all the churches in a province. The rhetorical function of the greeting
is certainly to remind the Corinthians that they belong to a greater commu-
nity of believers. 24 It is perhaps also an indication that contact already was
established between the churches in Achaia and those in Asia, or more
specifically between Corinth and Ephesus. The continuation in 1 Cor
16: 19b is at least rather tangible for the addressees: There Paul conveys a
greeting from Aquila and Prisca and their house church. Of course this is
not accidental. The couple had earlier lived and worked in Corinth (Acts
18: Iff). For that reason they certainly had close relationships with the
church there. In that way the ecumenical fellowship was made concrete.
It is possible that we also have a similar case in Phil 4:22 where Paul
writes: " All the saints greet you, especially those of the emperor's
household" ijuXA.Lo-ra oE: ot EK tile; Ka(aapoc; oidac;).2S This makes sense
when we take into consideration that Philippi was a Roman colony and that
the Jetter probably was written from Rome.26 It is quite plausible that
individuals in the emperor's service regularly travelled to his provincial
centres, and that believers among them bad become acquainted with fellow
Christians in Philippi.21 We can thus imagine that there existed ties of
friendship between members of the two churches. It is even possible that
24
So rightly GoRDON D. FEE, The First Epistle to the Corinihian.s (NICNT; Grand
RaJ>ids, Mich.: Eerdmans, 1987) 835, o. 7.
2S Concerning the emperor's household, see BEN WITHERINGTON m, Friendship and
Finances in Philippi: The Leiter of Paul to the Philippians (The New Testament in
Context; Valley Forge, Penn.: Trinity Press International, 1994) 135-137; see also the
classical treatment in J. B. LIGHTFOOT, Saint Paul's Epistle to the Colossians and to
Philemon (8. ed. London: MacMillan & Co., 1886).
26
So e.g., some of the most recent commentaries: PETER T. O' BRIEN, The Epistle to
the Philippians (NlGTC; Grand Rapids, Mich.: Eerdmans, 1991) 19-26; GoRDON D. FEE,
Paul's Lerrer to the Philippians (NICNT; Grand Rapids, Mich.: Eerdmans, 1995) 34-37;
MARKUS BOCKMUEHL, A Commentary on the Epistle to the Philippians (BNTC; London:
A & C Black, 1997) 25-32. So also Uoo SCHNELLE, Einleitung in das Neue TestamenJ
(2. ed.; Gottingeo: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 2002) 153-156.
21
WITHERINGTON, Friendship and Finances, 136.
All Those Who in. Every Place Call on the Name of Our Lord Jesus Christ 131
members of the two churches were related. This means that kinship28 and
friendship could play a part in making the unity among the churches
concrete and visible.
From a later period we see how this was the case. Eusebius recounts a
letter, written about 170, from Gallia, more precisely from the cities Lyon
and Vienna, reporting about persecutions and martyrdom (Hist. eccl. 5.1 ).
What is noteworthy is the fact that the letter is addressed to the churches in
Asia and Phrygia. There is reason to ask: why send this letter to remote
Asia Minor? The answer is found in the Jetter itself: We are informed that
at least two of the martyrs came from Asia Minor: Attalos from Pergamon
(5.1.17) and Alexander from Phrygia (5.1.49). This is a clear indication
that many Christians in Gallia originally came from Asia Minor.29 Among
them was also the bishop in Lyon, Irenaeus, who came from Smyrna.
Let us return to Paul and look at one more example of a collective
greeting, namely Rom 16:16: "All the churches of Christ greet you"
(ci0111l(OvtaL uj.Ltlc; at EKKAflOLaL 11'cXOal TOU XplOTOU). To whom does Paul
refer? As James Dunn rightly stresses, the expression may not be as
exaggerated as it may look at first sight. What Paul had in mind was, of
course, the churches be himself had founded. In other words, "all the
churches" is an abbreviated phrase for "all the churches with which I am
associated. " 30
How could Paul convey greetings from all these churches?31 Behind this
phrase we seemingly have the idea that an individual can represent a whole
church. The best examples of this thought are found in the letters of
Ignatius. On his way to Rome Ignatius received a great number of repre-
sentatives from the churches in the area, and speaks about "seeing" or
"receiving" an entire church through its representative. 32 In the presence of
these representatives he writes: "' greet you from Smyrna, along with the
28
The significance of family relations in Early Christianity was long ago emphasized
by the Norwegian scholar OLAF MOE, Kristendom og slegtskap: Familien.s betydning for
troen.s utbredelse i den f-rste kristenhet (Kristiania: Lutherstiftelsens Boghandel, 1915);
cf. SANDNES, A New Family, 99-111.
29
Cf. H. J. LAWWR and J. E. L. OULTON, Eusebius: The Ecclesiastical History and
The Martyrs of Palestine. Volume U: Introduction , Notes and Index (London: Society for
Promoting Christian Knowledge, 1928) 154-155.
30
JAMES D. G. DUNN, Romon.s (WBC 38; 2 vols.; Dallas, Tex.: Word Books, 1988)
2:899.
31
The problem has also been raised in connection with Paul's greeting in I Cor
16: 19; cf. LJNI>EMANN, Der Erste Korintherbrief, 386: "Wie wir es uns vo rzustellen
haben, daB diese Gemeioden ( !) grii6en lassen, bleibt unklar."
32
cr. Ign. Magn. 2 (tbetv ~<; oui ll.lqui); lgn. TraiL 1.1 (-ro llclV dij9o<; ilp.Wv EV
crirr~ 8EwpEio9aL); lgn. Eph. 1.3.
132 Rei.dar H valvik
churches of God that are present with me" (aj.ln: tn:i<; ollj.lnn:pouoLn:L<; IJ.Ol
EKKATJO(n:l.<; tou lkou) (Ign. Trail. 12. I).
Paul obviously thought similarly. At the time be wrote his letter to the
Romans, be was located in Corinth, ready to go to Jerusalem with the gift
to the church there. In his company were representatives from his churches
(cf. Acts 20:4), and it is not unlikely that they were in his preseocen when
be dictated the Ietter. 34 For that reason be bad real possibilities to convey
greetings from all his churches to the church or churches in Rome.35
Taking into consideration that the churches in Rome did not belong to
the churches founded by Paul, the greeting from "all the churches of
Christ" is remarkable. The purpose of the greeting, however, is probably
closely related to one of the purposes of the letter as a whole - to establish
a link between the Pauline mission and the churches in Rome.36 Seen in
this connection, Romans in itself is part of an ecumenical campaign. This
explains why Paul in this letter clarifies his theological position in detail.
He wishes to establish a common theological basis31 that can be a
foundation for contact and fellowship between Pauline and non-Pauline
Christianity. Here we are about to move beyond the Pauline churches.
This contact was evidently established. Some decades later it comes to
expression in 1 Clement, a letter sent from the church in Rome to the
D Cr. Paul's practice to convey greeting from people who were together with him (see
Phil 4:21: cioTci{ovtal U\Uif; ot oi.Jv EflOt ci6el.cjlo().
34
Cr. LEoN MORRIS, The Epistle to the Romans (Grand Rapids, Mich.: Eerdmans,
1988) 538; JOSEPH A. FlTZMYER, Romans (AB 33; New York: Doubleday, 1993) 748-49.
JS Romans 16 witnesses to the existence of several house churches in Rome; for this
reason I prefer to speak about churches in plural. Cf. PETER LAMPE, Die stadtromischen
Christen in den ersten heiden Jahrhundenen (WUNT 2.18; 2. ed.; Tiibingen: J. C. B.
Mohr, 1989) 30 1-302; ET: From Paul to Valentinus: Christians at Rome in the First Two
Centuries (trans. M. Steinhauser; Minneapolis: Fortress, 2003) 359; cf. also PETER
LAMPE, "'The Roman Christians of Romans 16," in The Romans Debalt! (rev. and exp.
ed.; ed. Karl P. Donfried; Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson, 1991) 216-230, esp. 229-230.
36
With regard to the reasons for Romans. see the balanced discussion in A. J. M.
WEDDERBURN, The Reasons for Romans (Edinburgh: T &T Clark, 1998). See also KARL
P. DoNFRIED, ed., The Romans Debate {rev. and exp. ed; Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson,
1991 ).
37
So DUNN, Romans, 2:899, build ing on ULRICH Wn..cKENS, Der Brief an die Romer
(3 vols.; EKKNT 6; ZUrich: Benziger; Neukirchen-Vluyn: Neukirchener Verlag, 1978-
1982) 3:137-38: "Im Romerbrief jedoch lcommt es Paulus darauf an, dass wirldich alle
Gemeinden Christi in dem Evangelium iibereinstimmen, wie er es im Briefkorpus
dargelegt bat. so da6, wie in der Kollekte alle Heidencbrislen ihre Einheit mit den
Judenchristen in Jerusalem bezeugen, auch im Ja zum Romerbrief alle Christen
iibereinstimmen. Das olrumeniscbe Ziel des Briefes zeigt sich so in Rom 16, 16b
besonders deutlich."
All Those Who in Every Place Call on the Name of Our Lord Jesus Chrisr 133
church in Corinth, probably in the year 96.38 We also know of a letter sent
from Rome to Corinth about 170. In his reply to Rome, Dionysius, the
bishop in Corinth, writes: "To-day we observed the holy day of the Lord,
and read out your letter, which we shall continue to read from time to time
for our admonition, as we do with that which was formerly sent to us
through Clement» (Hist. eccl. 4.23.11).39 The borders between Pauline and
non-Pauline churches were evidentJy overcome.
So far we have seen bow Paul through his letters contributed to the
creation of an "ecumenical consciousness'' in his churches - by references
to other churches, by references to an ecumenical tradition, and by convey-
ing greetings from other churches. In addition to these elements there is a
feature of Paul's letters which clearly served the same purpose. To this
feature we now turn.
2. The 'Ecumenical' Character of Paul's Letters
In the New Testament canon there is a group of letters commonly referred
to as the Catholic Letters (cf. as early as Eusebi11s, Hist. eccl. 2.23.25).
They are so called because they are not directed to a specific church or
individual, but to a broader public (cf. ftrst and foremost Jas 1: l~ I Pet
1: 1). In contrast to these writings, scholars usually stress the occasional
character of the Pauline letters. This is a feature that cannot be denied.
Nevertheless, Paul's letters also have a certain general character that
seems to reflect Paul' s ecumenical way of thinking. In the following I will
draw attention to this neglected feature of the Pauline letters by some
comments on I Corinthians.
According to the prescript, 1 Corinthians is written to "the church of
God that is in Corinth, to those who are sanctified iln Christ Jesus, called to
be saints, together with all those who in every place call on the name of
our Lord Jesus Christ, both their Lord and ours" (I :2). The frrst parts of the
verse create no great problems, though it should be noted that Paul's form
of address in this letter is unique: The addressees are identified both as a
singular body (tij EKKATJOL~ -rou lkoii tij ouolJ EV Kop(v9~) and then
named twice as a composite of individuals (TJYI-«OIJ.EVOt<; EV Xpun~
38
Cf. HORACIO E . LoNA, Der erste Clemensbrief {Kommentar zu den Apostolischen
Vii.tern 2; GOningen: Vandenhoeclc & Ruprecht, 1998) 66-78.
39
Translation KJRSOPP LAKE, LCL.
134 Reidar Hvalvilc
'IT}Ooii, KAlFOL<; ay(ot<;). In this way, Paul's concern to unite individuals
into a cohesive community is alluded to already in the prescript.40
There are, however, problems connected with the last part of the verse:
auv 1JclOLV TOLl; E1JLKCIAOlJllEVOLI; TO OVOl!CI TOU KuplOU TJJ.lWV 'IT}OOU
Xpto<ou ev uav-rt -ron~. a(rrwv Kat ~JlWV. The fust question that bas been
raised is the following: who are these "all"? Some commentators have
tried to confine this expression to a more limited group of people, for
example the Christians living in Achaia (cf. 2 Cor l: l), or Chrisrians visir-
ing Corinth, i.e., people who usually worshipped Christ at other places.4 1
Such attempts seem strained. For that reason Johannes Weiss concluded
"daB die Christen aller Orten gemeint sind, d. b. nicht our die in Kor., auch
nicht nur die am Wohnort des Schreibers, sondem schlechthin alle.'>42
The second, and more important, question is this: to what part of the
foregoing sentence is auv 1JclOlV TOLl; ElflKO:AolJllEVOll; KLA connected? From
a grammatical point of view, there are three possibilities: a) The senders,
Paul and Sosthenes (v. 1), b) "the church of God that is in Corinth", or c)
the phrase "those who are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints."
The first solution43 makes no sense and can surely be excluded.44 The third
solution is easy to comprehend, and for that reason it is preferred by a
majority of commentators.'.s Older commentaries, however, often use lot of
40
MARGARET M. MITCHELL. Paul and the Rhetoric of Reconciliation: An Exegetical
Investigation of the Language and Composition of I Corinthians (HUT; Tiibingen:
J. C. B. Mohr, 1992) 193.
41
So Bousset and Holsten, according to JOHANNES WEISS, Der erste Korintherbrief
( KEK; Gouingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 1925) 3.
42
WEISS, Der erste Korintherbrief, 3.
43
So U. WICKERT, "Einheit und Eintracht der Kirche im Priskript des ersten
Korintherbriefes," ZNW 50 ( 1959) 73-82. It is, however, difficult to see how Paul would
think of aU other Christians as joining him in writing the teller, as FEE (The First Epistle
to the Corinthians, 33, n. 25) rightly comments.
44
Cf. C. K. BARRETT, A Commentary on the First Epistle to the Corinthians (BNTC;
2. ed. London: A. & C. Black, 1971 ) 33; WOLFGANG SCHRAGE, Der erslt! Brief an die
Korinther: I Teilband: I Kor 1,1~. 11 (EKKNT 7.1; Ziirich: Benziger Verlag, 1991)
104.
4.5 E.g ., C. F. GEORG HEINRICI, Der erste Brief an die Korinther (KEK 5 ; 8. ed.
Gouingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 1896) 42; PHilLIP BACHMANN, Der ersre Brief des
Paulus an die Korinther (Kommentar zum Neuen Testament 7 ; 2. ed. ; Leipzig: A.
Deichen'sche Verlagsbuchhandlung, 1910) 38; ARCHIBALD ROBERTSON and ALfRED
PLUMMER, A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the First Epistle of St Paul to the
Corinthians (ICC; 2. ed.; Edinburgh: T&T Clark, 1914) 3; SCHRAGE, Der erste Brief an
die Korinther, 104. CHRISTIAN WOLFF, Der erste Brief des Paulus an die Korinther
(THKNT 7; 2. ed. Leipzig: Evangelische Verlagsanstalt, 2000) 17; DAVID E. GARLAND,
I Corinthians (Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament; Grand Rapids,
Mich.: Baker Academic, 2003) 28.
All Those Who in Every Place Coli on the Name of Our Lord Jesus Christ 135
space to discuss the second possibility. This discussion is somewhat
illuminating for the question dealt with in this article.
Let us take the classical commentary of Johannes Weiss as a starting
point. Weiss claims that linguistically the simplest way to understand the
text is to read aiJv ncioLv -roL<; ElTLKCIAOlJllEVOL<; KtA as part of the adscriptio.
This was the way the ancient church read it,46 and, according to Weiss, this
interpretation is "als die einzig ungezwungene exegetisch notwendig.»47
This is how the canonical text should be interpreted - though it is not
original. According to Weiss the words auv nciOLV TOLl; EnLKO:AOlJllEVOl<; TO
ovOJla rou Kup(ou TJJ.lWV 'IT}Ooii Xptorou ev naVLt ton~ is not part of the
original letter, but was added by the editor who collected Paul 's letters.
Such a collection is in itself a sign of "Katholisierung" and the editor has
added the words to stress that the letter (and the whole collection) are for
the whole church.48 According to Weiss it is obvious that Paul "keinesfalls
seinen Brief fur die ganze Christenheit bestimrnt hat." The Ganung of the
encyclical epistle was unfamiliar ("fremd") to Paul, and the letter has only
the Corinthian situation in view.49
Let us have a close look at Weiss' arguments. His claim that I Cor I :2b
is a secondary addition,50 is not convincing. It could have been if the text
clearly was in tension to what Paul said elsewhere in I Corinthians. This,
however, is not the case. As Margaret Mitchell rightly comments, the
reference to other believers should be seen as "another introductory
argument for the unity of the Corinthian Christians (and even those in all
of the world), because all call upon the name of the same Lord (cf. I: I 0;
6: II; 8:6; 12:3)."s 1 In other words, the phrase suits well the context and
46
Cf. Tenullian's discussion of the teller to the Ephesians, a letter Marcion said was
addressed to the Laodiceans. Who the original recipients were, is of little importance,
according to Tenullian: kBut of what consequence are the titles, since in writing to a
cenain church the apostle did in fact write to all?" (cum ad omnes aposrolus scripserit
dum ad quosdam) (Adv. Marc. 5. 17). In Tenullian's view Paul's letters were in fact
enchclicals.
WEISS, Der ersre Korintherbrief, 4 .
48
WEISS, Der erste Korintherbrief, 4 .
49
WEISS, Der ersre Korinrherbrief, 3-4.
so So also ERICH FASCHER, Der erste Brief des Paulus an die Korinther. Erster Teil:
Einfohrung und Auslegung der Kapitel 1-7 (THKNT 711 ; Berlin: Evangelische
Verlagsanstalt, 1975) 81; HANS-MARTIN SCHENK£ and KARL MARTIN FISCHER,
Einleitung in die Schriften des Neuen Testaments 1: Die Briefe des Paulus und Schriften
des Paulinismus (Giitersloh: Giithersloher Verlagshaus Gerd Mobn, 1978) 92-93; FRANZ
SCHNIDER and WERNER STENGER, Studien tum neutestamenrlichen Briefformular (NTTS
11 ; Leiden: Brill, 1987) 23. This possibility is not totally rejected by SCHRAGE, Der erste
Brif. an die Korinther, 105, either.
1
MITCHEI..L, Paul and the Rhetoric of Reconciliation, 194; cf. HELMUT MERKLEJN,
Der erste Brief an die Korinther: Kapitel 1-4 (OTK 7 .I; Giitersloh: Giithersloher
136 ReidLJr Hvalvik
Paul's rhetorical purpose in the opening of the letter. Mitchell further
emphasizes that the key phrase ev
1Tavd 'tOTT~ is a well-attested Pauline
phrase, referring to the worldwide mission and extent of the church (I
Tbess I :8; 2 Cor 2: I4).» Besides, and most important, the "ecumenical"
tenor in l :2 bas close parallels elsewhere in I Corinthians where Paul
refers to the teaching and practice in all the churches (4:I7; 7:17; 11:16;
14:33). This was also recognized by Weiss who thus argued that these
verses too were secondary additions.' 3 Such an argumentation is consistent,
but hardly convincing. 54
In this connection it is interesting to note the statement of Erich Fascber
concerning 1:2b- on which he is in agreement with Weiss: "Mit diesem
Zllsatz spricht ein Mann mit 'katholischem' Den/cen, welcher der Auffas-
sung ist: ein Gemeindebrief des Paulus gilt im Grunde allen Gemeinden.""
My claim is that this man was Paul himself. He saw himself as an apostle
to all the nations, and his apostolic message was basically the same to all.
This does not mean that Paul intended I Corinthians as an encyclical letter
that should be sent to all Christian churches in his own time. There is no
basis for such a claim. On this point there is broad consensus: 1
Corinthians cannot be regarded as a circular letter - "urbi et orbi" , as
Schrage puts it.S6 For that reason there are few recent commentators who
connect "all those who in every place call on the name of our Lord Jesus
Christ" with the "church in Corinth. " 57 Besides, the plausibility of the third
of the above-mentioned solutions seems to make the second unnecessary.~
However, the "case" is not closed by this solution. As Marion Soards
rightly reminds us, in both the second and the third solution, the
Corinthians are associated with all other Christians. For that reason it may
be "unnecessary to decide between these options; indeed, Paul and
Verlagshaus Gerd Moho, 1992} 77. The function of verse 2b within the letter is thus to
remind the Corinthians that they are part of a larger fellowship; cf. also HANs
LIF:rZMANN and WERNER GEORG K OMMEL, An die Korinther I-ll (HNT 9; 5. ed;
Tiibiogeo: J. C. B. Mohr, 1969) 5; LINDEMANN, Der Erste Korintherbrief, 27.
Sl MITCHElL, Paul and the Rhetoric of Reconciliation, 194, n. 42.
SJ In this WEISS has been followed by only a few scholars., e.g., S. M. GU..MOUR in
/DB ( 1962} 1:688; SCHENKE and FISCHER, Einleitung in die Schriften des Neuen Testa-
ments, 106, n. 2.
54
Cf. HANS CONZELMANN, I Corinthians (trans. J. W. Leitch; Hermeneia; Philadel-
phia: Fortress, 1975} 23; LIETZMANN and KOMMEL, An die Korinther 1-11, 5.
55
FASCHER. Der erste Brief des Paulus an die Korinther, 81 (italics in the original}.
S6 SCHRAGE, Der erste Brief an die Korinther, 104; cf. BACHMANN, Der erste Brief
des Paulus an die Korinther, 39.
57
See, however, FEE, The First Epistle to the Corinthians, 33 and AUGUST STROBEL,
Der erste Brief an die Korinther (ZB 6. 1; ZUrich: Theologischer Verlag, 1989) 25-26.
~ Cf. WoLFF, Der erste Brief des Paulus an die Korinther, 11.
All Those Who in Every Place Call on the Name of Our Lord Jesus Christ 137
Sosthenes may have shades of both thoughts in mind, so that the ambiguity
is deliberate."59
In both readings there is a close connection between the Christians in
Corinth and all other Christians. This connection is evident by the way
Paul refers to the Corinthians. He does not refer to them as a specific
Corinthian group, named after its patron or connected with the social status
of its members. The Corinthians are spoken of as "the church of God that
is in Corinth." Their identity is based on their relation to God and Christ
and this identity they have in common with a Jot of other people - "all
those who in every place call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ." Even
if 1 Corinthians is primarily addressed to a specific group of Christians -
those in Corinth - it also has relevance for all others who belong to the
same "people", the church of God (cf. l Cor 10:32).
To this one may object that the idea that the letter in some way is
addressed to all Christians, "little suits the individual character of this
Epistle which (much more than Romans, for example) deals with the
special circumstances of one particular Church."~ It is not difficult to
understand this objection. With good reason I Corinthians could be called
the most occasional of Paul's writings as be is obviously dealing with
questions put to him in a Jetter from the church in Corinth (cf. 5:9; 7: I etc).
Nevertheless, I Corinthians also has a definitive "ecumenical" character.
As already noted. Paul repeatedly underlines that what be teaches in this
letter, be teaches everywhere, in all the churches (4:17; 7: 17; 16:1; cf.
11 : 16; 14:33). From Paul's point of view there is nothing special about his
instructions in this letter; it is based on general apostolic teaching (cf.
15:11). For that reason it is not unthinkable that Paul would have thought
that his letters to the Corinthians also bad relevance for other Christians.61
In an article entitled "On Reading Others' Letters" from 1986, Lars
Hartman goes even further: "Paul intended his letters to be read and reread
59
MARION L. SOARDS, I Corinthians (New International Biblical Commentary 7;
Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson, 1999} 22.
60
ROBERTSON and PLuMMER, A Critical and Exegetical Commentary, 2-3; cf.
BACHMANN, Der erste Brief ths Paulus an die Korinther, 39.
61
Cf. J. B. LIGHTFOOT' s comment on this verse: "We must suppose then that St Paul
associates the whole Christian Church with the Corinthians in this superscription. This
association would refer more especially to the benediction which immediately follows,
but in some·degree also to the main content of the letter, which, though more special and
personal than perhaps any other letter of SL Paul's Epistles, yet founds in exhortations on
great general principles applying to all alike" (Notes on Epistles of St. Paul: 1-11
Thessalonians, I Corinthians 1- 7, Romans 1-7, Ephesians 1.1-14 [Edited by J. R.
Harmer. London: MacMillan&: Co., 1895] 146-147).
138 Reidar Hvalvilc
in the communities to which they were addressed, and in others as well.'t62
This is related to the fact that Paul's letters not are private letters. They are
written by a man who was very conscious that he was the apostle of Jesus
Christ (cf. l Cor 9: l; Gal 1: 1). A man with such a self-understanding
would also consider his letters to be important, according to Hartman. This
did not occur only after the apostles' death. "It was not a post-Pauline
generation that got the bright idea that a teacher's letters deserved to be
reread and even to be more widely known."63
Hartman, too, draws attention to the ecumenical perspective in 1 Cor
1:2: " ... although the matters he dealt with in 1 Corinthians were 'occa-
sional' and particular, Paul discussed them in such a way that the letter
could serve as an apostolic message to other churches as well. •t64 An
example may illustrate the poinL One of the main problems in Corinth was
the division in the church. From the very beginning of 1 Corinthians Paul
is talking about the different parties among them. Some claimed that they
belonged to Paul, others to Apollos, others to Cephas, and others again to
Christ (1: 12).
Responding to this way of thinking, Paul says: "Has Christ been
divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized in the name of
Paul?" (I: 13). The concrete division and the various parties Paul is
referring to reflect a specific Corinthian situation. But the main argument
in verse 13 is valid for all kinds of division in his churches - and we know
that similar problems occurred elsewhere. Paul's main point is this: Christ
is not divided; he is one. For that reason there should not be any conflict
and parties in the church. All believers belong to Christ, he who was
crucified for them and into whom they were baptized.
This Paul wrote to Corinth, though he could have written the same to
Philippi or Ephesus. For that reason, it is not unreasonable to imagine that
Paul himself could have thought that his letters would be relevant and
useful for a broader public. In such a perspective the note in Col4: 16 is far
from surprising: "And when this letter has been read among you, have it
read also in the church of the Laodiceans; and see that you read also the
letter from Laodicea." I see no decisive objection against the possibility
that Paul (or a co-worker on his behalf) could have written this.6S And if he
should not have written it, the statement at least shows that one in a
62
LARS HARTMAN, "'n Reading Olbers' Letters," HTR 19 (1986) 137-146, 139
(italics added).
63
HARTMAN, "'n Reading," 139.
64
HARTMAN, "'n Reading," 144.
6S This is said mainly wilb regard to lbe specific statement in Col 4:16, but it is also
true wilb regard to Colossians as a whole. Wilb regard to authorship, see lbe cautious
comment by Ulrich Luz in JCrRGEN BECKER and ULRICH Luz, Die Briefe an die Galater,
Epheser und Kolosser (NTD 8.1; Gouingen: Vandenboeck & Ruprecht, 1998) 189-190.
All Those Who in Every Place Call on the Name of Our Lord Jesus Christ 139
Pauline church thought it was common to exchange apostolic letters.
Besides. if the letter is deutero-Pauline, there is no reason to believe that
the practice was an innovation. It probably reflects a practice that was
established with regard to Paul's letters.66 There seems to be something
with the letters themselves - what I have called their general character -
that encouraged further diffusion. This, in turn, has of course contributed
to direct contact between the churches.
Based on simple sociological reflection, such a practice makes very
good sense. In Paul's time, the Christians comprised a small minority.
Thus there is reason to think that they had a strong interest in knowing as
much as possible about other believers and about the common tradition of
faith. Such an interest we find in later generations and it is not very likely
that it should fmt awaken in the second century. An interesting witness to
this we find in Polycarp, bishop in Smyrna. He writes a letter (probably
twot7 to the church in Philippi, around A.D. 110-120. In itself, this is an
important witness about the contact between a Pauline and a non-Pauline
church. Polycarp writes:
Bolb you and Ignatius have written to me that if anyone is going to Syria be should
take along your leuer. I will do so if I have lbe opportunity - eilber 1 or someone I
send as a representative on your behalf and mine. We have forwarded to you lbe
leuers of Ignatius lbat be sent to us, along wilb all lbe olbers we have wilb us, just as
you directed us to do. These accompany this letter; you will be able to profit greatly
from them, for lbey deal wilb failb and endurance and all edification that is suitable in
our Lord. And let us know what you have learned more definitely about Ignatius
himself and lbose who are wilb him ( 13. 1-2).68
Here letters are conveyed and one asks for information. There is no reason
to believe that this was something new among the Christian churches. It
was a practice that continued. We have already seen how the church in
Smyrna some decades later- about 160- sends the report about bishop
Polycarp' s martyrdom to the church in Philomelion and "all congregations
of temporary residents everywhere, who belong to the holy and universal
church." The reason why the letter was sent to Philomelion, was that they
had asked for it. At the end of the letter we read: "You have asked for a
lengthier explanation of what took place, but for the present we have
mentioned only the principal points through our brother Marcion."' The
66
Cf. LUz' commentary on Col 4: 16 (Die Briefe an die Galater, Epheser und
Kolosser, 243): " ... aucb zu Lebzeiten des Paulus ist ein Austausc,h von Briefen gut
denkba.r; zu · vergleicben sind etwa die okumeniscbe Adressierung des 1. Korintherbriefs
(l.Kor 1,2) und diejenige des 2. Korinlberbriefs an 'ganz Achaia' in 2.Kor 1,1."
67
See further e.g., J OHANNES BAPT. BAUER, Die Polykarpbriefe (Kommentar zu den
Apostoliscben Vatern 5; Gottingen: Vandenhock & Ruprecht, 1995).
68
Translation EHRMAN, LCL.
140 Reidar Hvalvik
continuation shows how they thought about the other churches in the holy,
universal church: "Wben you have learned these things, send our letter to
the brothers that are further afield ... "('roi~ ElTEKELVtt a0El4K>i~ dJv
EuLOLoA.~v OLCX1TftLljtcxu9€) (20.1). The wider circle of addressees seems to be
quite open and undefined. The idea seems to be that the letter should be
sent onwards to the congregations with which they had contact.
We do not find a similar request in any of the undisputed Pauline letters,
but it is not hard to imagine that Paul's letters actually were copied and
distributed to others than the primary addressees. If this were the case,
Paul's letters may actually have contributed to direct contact between the
Pauline churches.
Was there such direct contact between the churches? Richard Ascough
has raised this question, and his answer is negative: "Paul never assumes
that his own communities were in contact with one another, even in II Cor
8, where the reference to the Macedonians is very general.',@ As far as I
can see, this statement is in clear tension to the evidence of the New
Testament. This leads us to my last point.
3. Direct Contact between the Churches
There can be no doubt that Paul actually contributed to the establishment
of direct contact between the various churches. In the following I shall
briefly mention bow Paul in two different ways achieved this.
1) Paul's communication with his churches stimulated contact between the
various churches.
Wben we try to imagine how Paul maintained contact with his churches,
it is necessary to be specific. Paul was not sitting in his "headquarters"
writing letters to the various churches. Rather, when Paul is writing a letter
to a church, be is staying at another church. When he wrote his letters to
Thessalonica, he was located in Corinth; when be wrote 1 Corinthians be
was in Ephesus; when he wrote 2 Corinthians be was probably in Mace-
donia; when be wrote Romans, he was in Corinth. Even when be was in
prison, be obviously had contact with the church in the city. The greeting
from "all the saints" in Phil 4:22 seems to indicate this. Wben Paul sent his
letters, he normally used one of his closest co-workers as a courier, but not
always. The letter to the Romans was probably delivered by Phoebe from
the church in Cenchreae (Rom 16: 1-2). In that way there was established a
direct link between the Christians in Achaia and those in Rome.
69
RlcHARD S. AsCOUGH, "Translocal Relationship among Voluntary Associations
and Early Christianity," JECS 5 ( 1997) 223- 241, quotation from 239, n. 77
All Those Who in Every Place Call on the Name of Our Lord Jesus Christ 141
Paul and the church in Corinth were frequently in touch, especially
during his stay in Ephesus. We know that delegates came from Corinth,
specifically Stephanas, Fortunatus and Acbaicus (I Cor 16:17). When they
arrived in Ephesus, Paul hardly had an opportunity to welcome them in his
own lodging place. In all probability he had to rely on the hospitality of
other people in the church in Ephesus. Thus the delegates from Corinth
were put in contact with fellow believers in Ephesus.
This illustrates how direct contact was established - to begin with
through Paul In the next phase, however, such connections were probably
less dependent on him. There is, for example, reason to believe that
Christians on a journey often looked up the church when they arrived at a
new place. This corresponds to the many admonitions concerning hospital-
ity found in early Christian literature (cf. Rom 12:13; l Tim 3:2; Tit 1:8;
Heb 13:2; 1 Pet 4:9; Hermas, Man. 8.10; Sim. 9.27.2; cf. also the particular
emphasis on hospitality in 1 Clem. 10.7-12.8).70 In this connection it is
important to stress that the hospitality not only benefited the guests. This is
aptly formulated by Osiek and Balch: "Through these activities, Christian
families received news of other churches, their horizons were broadened,
they built up intercity networks of communication and concern, became a
basis for mission, and formed a sense of community larger than their urban
area.'m By welcoming such guests the host could receive fresh information
about other churches and about people from their own church that had
moved to other places.
2) The collection to Jerusalem12 contributed strongly to a direct contact
between the churches. Several churches had appointed representatives to
travel together with Paul on his journey to Jerusalem (cf. 2 Cor 8:19, 23; l
Cor 16:3~). The most complete picture of this delegation we get from
Acts 20:4, a text that seems to relate a pre-Lukan tradition concerning the
70
On this, see ABRAHAM J . MAI..HERBE, "Hospitality and Inhospitality in lhe Church,"
in idem, Social Aspects of Early Christianity (2. ed.; Philadelphia; Fortress, 1983) 92-
112, esp. 95-103; S. C. BARTON, "Hospitality," in Dictionary of the Loter Nt!W
Testament & Its Developments (ed. Ralph P. Martin and Peter H. Davids; Leicester:
loterVarsity Press, 1997) 501-507.
71
OsiEX and BALCH, Families in the Nt!w Testament World, 206-207.
12
On the collection in general, see DIETER G EORGI, Remembering the Poor: The
History of Paul' s Collection for Jerusalem (Nashville, Tenn.: Abingdon, 1992- a revised
version of t6e German original: Die Geschichte der Kollekte des Paulus for Jerusalem
[Hamburg: Herbert Reich, 1965]; 2nd rev. ed.: Der Annen zu gl!denken: Die Geschichte
der Kollekle des Paulus fiir Jerusalem [Neukircben-Vluyn: Neuk:irchener Verlag, 1994)),
and KEITH F. NICKLE, The Collection: A Study in Paul's Strategy (SBT 48; London:
SCM, 1966).
142 Rei.dar Hvalvik
collection delegation. 73 There, seven persons who accompanied Paul are
listed. The constitutive element in the list is the geographical names:
Sopater from Beroea, Aristarcbus and Secundus from the Thessalonians,
and Gaius from Derbe (in Galatia). Then Timothy is listed (evidently
because be too came from Galatia), and fmally Tychicus and Tropbimus
from Asia. Ollrog thinks that the delegation also included representatives
from Philippi and Corinth, in addition to Titus.74
The ecumenical character of this delegation was, of course, most
apparent when they came to Judea. Then the connection between the
Pauline churches and the mother church in Jerusalem became visible. But
even on its way to Judea the delegation probably contributed to an
experience of unity. If Acts gives a reasonably correct picture of Paul's
last journey to Jerusalem, we have a most interesting itinerary. The
delegation mentioned in Acts 20:4 was located in Corinth. Prior to this, we
read in Acts 19:21 that Paul planned to travel to Jerusalem after visiting
Macedonia and Acbaia, apparently in order to bring the collection with
him. He sent Timothy and Erastus ahead of him - before be moved to
Macedonia and on to Acbaia and Corinth. On this journey be was accom-
panied by Gaius (from Derbe in Galatia), Tychicus and Trophimus from
Asia, in addition to Aristarcbus from Macedonia (who, according to Acts
19:29 was located in Ephesus). Together with Paul, these delegates became
guests in the churches they visited during the voyage, e.g., in Philippi and
Tbessalonica. In Thessalonica, Secundus joined the company, and they
were all guests in Beroea, where Sopater also joined them. All these people
were guests in the Corinthian church during the three months Paul stayed
there. It seems evident that bonds of friendship were forged during that
period, bonds that contributed to an experience of both a human and a
spiritual fellowship.
This ecumenical fellowship, which probably also came to include repre-
sentatives from Corinth, bad the opportunity to refresh old relationships
and establish new ones on its journey back through Macedonia and Asia.
Among others, the church in Troas was visited by the delegation on its way
to Jerusalem (cf. Acts 20:5-12).
This may serve to illustrate bow the collection to the Jerusalem church
not only was an expression of the unity between the Jerusalem church and
the Pauline churches, or among Jewish and Gentile believers in Jesus.'s but
73
Cf. WOU'-HENNING OUROG, Paulus und seine Mirarbeiter: Untersuchungen zu
Th~orie und Praxis der paulinisch~n Mission (WMANT 50; Neukirchen-Vluyn:
Neukirchener Verlag, 1979) 57.
7-4lbid.
JS On this aspect of the collection, see NICKLE, The Collection, 111-129.
All Thos~ Who in Evuy Place Call on rh~ Name of Our Lord }~sus Christ 143
also served to strengthen the consciousness of unity among the Pauline
churches.
4. Conclusion
In this paper I have tried to show bow Paul in words and actions
contributed to an ecumenical way of thinking in his churches. He created a
consciousness of unity and contributed to the establishment of direct links
between the different churches. In fact, be established a network and laid
the basis for an "intranet"76 where the different participants could establish
contact in all directions.
In this way, the contour of an ecumenical fellowship became visible.
Paul does not proclaim this unity between the churches; it is rather taken
for granted. It is not derived from a theoretical concept of the universal
church. According to a majority of New Testament scholars, Paul "does
not seem to have thought about •the church' as something worldwide or
universal - the 'Church. ...n In the main, this is an adequate statement.
Nevertheless, Paul spoke about his actual congregations in a way that
pointed to something beyond the individual church. He pointed to a
number of churches that had something in common - they all "call on the
name of the Lord Jesus Christ." As Helmut Merklein bas emphasized, "the
church of God" is a "group designation" ("Gruppenbezeichnung"); the
term indicates that one belongs to a group of people, the people of God.78
This people were found in different places, but belonged nevertheless
together. In all probability it was this consciousness that incited Paul to
speak about his churches as if they were members of a broader unity. Even
if we do not find a teaching of a universal church by Paul, we can sense the
idea of an ecumenical fellowship of believers. For Paul this is not an
abstract idea, but a reality experienced both by himself and his churches.79
76
Cf. MICHAEL B. THOMPSON, "The Holy Internet: Communication Between
Churches in the First Christian Generation," in The Gospels for All Christi011s:
Rethinking the Gospel Audi~nus (ed. Richard Bauckham; Edinburgh: T&T Clark, 1998)
49-70. Due to the internal character of the communication among the churches I chose,
however, to speak about 'intranet' rather than 'internet.'
So JAMES D. G. DUNN, The Theology of Paul the Aposrl~ (Grand Rapids, Mich.:
71
Eerdmans, 1998) 540. For another position, see HERMAN RIDDERBOS, Paul: An Outline
of His Theology (trans. J. R. de Witt; Grand Rapids, Mich.: Eerdmans, 1975) 329.
78
HELMUT MERKLEIN, "Die Ekklesia Goues: Der Kirchenbegriff bei Paulus und in
Jerusalem," BZ (NF) 23 (1979) 48-70, esp. 65-67; cf. MERKLEIN, Der usu Brief an die
Korinther, 12.
19
This article is a condensed version of some central points in a forthcoming book
about the unity of the Pauline churches.
 The Formation
of the Early Church

Edited by
0

Jostein Adna

Mohr Siebeck
JOSTEJN Ao. A. born 1955; tudy ofTheology in 0 lo. Tiibingen and JerusaJem: I99-l Dr. theol.:
Professor of ewTestament at the School of Mission and Theology in Stavanger.

Preface

During June 14-18,2003. almost 70 New Testament scholars from Denmark.

Fmlan<L Iceland. Norway and Sweden gathered for the Seventh Nordic New
Testament Conference at Solborg Folkeh~gskole in Stavanger, Norway. The
topic of the conference was 'the Formation of the Early Church' ', and the
essays presented in this volume are adapted papers, either read in plenary
sessions or presented in one of the five seminar groups during this conference.
The first in the series of these Nordic New Testament conferences took
place at the University of Aarhus in Denmark in 1978, and ever since there
have been organised conferences every fourth or fifth year, circulating
between the five countries2 • In 2003 the School of Mission and 1beology
acted as host. but the two other theological faculties in Norway, i.e., the
Norwegian Lutheran School of Theology in Oslo and the Faculty of Theology
at the University of Oslo, as well as the Research Council of Norway,
supported the conference financially. The generous invitations from the city
of Stavanger to a dinner, and from the county council of Rogaland to an
excursion, and from the bishop of Stavanger to a lunch reception, contributed
to the well-being of the participants and helped bring about the kind of
favourable atmosphere which good and profitable scholarly exchange depends
on. As chairman of the hosting committee I am grateful for all these
contributions that enabled us to organise the conference with its varied
scholarly and social programme.
After the conference I have had the privilege of planning and preparing the
publication of a selection of the conference papers. All fourteen contributors
to the present volume have worked diligently in translatin~. enlarging and
adapting their papers in order to comply with the demands and needs of this
JSB 3-16-148561-0 publication_ For me as editor it is a pleasure and honour to be able to present
0512-1604 (Wissenschaftliche Untersuchungen zum euen Testament) to the scholarly world these fresh contributions from New Testamem and
Die Deutsche Bibliothek lists this publication in the Deutsche 1 ationalbibliographie:
detailed bibliographic data is available in the Internet at http://dnb.ddb.de. 1
In Norwegian: ' K.irlcen tar form'.
2
The original initiator and host of the ftrst conference, Sigfred Pedersen, has wriuen
{) 2005 by Moh r Siebeck. Tiibinge n. Germany. the history of the five first conferences, published in the volume of the fifth conference,
Thi book may not be reproduced. in whole or in part, in any form (beyond that permitted cf. Sigfred Pedersen, "Scandinavian New Testame nt Conferences, 1978-1994", in The
by copyright Jaw) without the publishe r's written permission. This applies particularly to New T~stam~nt in its Hell~nistic Context (Studia theologica islandica. 10; ed. Gunnlaugur
reproductions. Iran lations. microfilms a nd sto rage and processing in e lec1ronic systems. A. J6nsson ~tal.; Reykjavik: GuOf'nWistofnun, 1996) 15-36. For the sixth conference cf.
Th~ New T~stam~nt as Reception (JSNTSup 230; Copenhagen International Seminar I I;
The book wa printed by G ulde- Druck in Tiibingen on non-aging paper and bound by eds. Mogens Miiller and Henrik Tronier; Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 2002).
Gro6buchbinderei Spinner in Ottersweier. 3
At the conference in Stavanger most of the papers were presented in the Scandina-
Printed in Germany. vian languages Swedish, Norwegian and Da.nish.
VI Preface
Patristic scholars in the Nordic countries. However, my role as editor is
limited to accepting and promoting the essays; each individual author carries
full responsibility for her or his essay.
The School of Mission and Theology bas generously supported this last
phase of the conference work: as well, and thanks to these financial resources
it bas been possible to employ some additional people to assist in different
operations involved in preparing the book. Mrs. Ellen Crocker and Mr. Piers
Crocker have done a marvellous job in correcting and polishing the language
of the manuscripts, and stud tbeol. Ivan Fjeld has done excellent editorial
work: in proof-reading and in preparing the indices.
Finally, I will express my deep gratitude to the publisher, Mr. Georg
Siebeck, and to the series editor, Prof. Dr. Jorg Frey, for accepting this
volume for publication in the series "Wissenschaftliche Untersuchungen zum
Neuen Testament, l. Reibe"'. Among those in the publishing house Mohr
Siebeck who have been involved in preparing this book and who have assisted
me in my work: as editor, I want to thank in particular Dr. Henning Ziebritz.ki,
Editorial director Theology and Jewish Studies, and Production manager Ms.
llse Konig.
I hope that this book will stimulate debate and further work: among biblical
and patristic scholars on different aspects of the topic 'the Formation of the
Early Church' , and that in this work: also insights will be gained which can be
helpfuJ and inspiring in responding to contemporary formative challenges
which churches all over the world are facing at the beginning of the 21st
century.
Jostein Adna Stavanger, May 2005
Table of Contents
Preface. . ... . .... . . ... . ........ . .... .... ....... . ........ V
Abbreviations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . IX
List of Contributors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . XI
JOSTEIN AnNA
The Fo rmation of the Early Church - an Introduction ... ... ...... .
I. The Relationship between Christians and Jews,
"Parting of the Ways" and Development of New Identities
MIKAEL TELLBE
The Temple Tax as a Pre-70 CE Identity Marker . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
ANDERS KLoSTERGAARD PETERSEN
At the End of the Road - Reflections on
a Popular Scholarly Metaphor . . . .. . ........... . . . ......... ... 45
HANNA S TENSTROM
New Voices in Biblical Exegesis - New Views on
the Formation of the Church . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73
II. Developments of and Contacts between Early Communities
and Authority and Power Structures within them as Reflected in
the New Testament
JON MA. ASGEIRSSON
Complex and Community: From the Prophets of Q
to the Scribe(s) of St. Matthew or Vice Versa .. .. . ....... .. . . .... 93
REIDAR HVALVIK
All Those Who in Every Place CalJ on the Name of
Our Lord Jesus Chris_t: The Unity of the Pauline Churches . ........ 123
IIANS KVALBEIN
The Authorization of Peter in Matthew 16: 17- 19:
A Reconsideration of the Power to Bind and Loose . .............. 145