On Colossians – the problem of authorship

Last updated on: January 28, 2012 at 11:13 am by Nijay Gupta

On Colossians – the problem of authorship 2012-01-28T11:13:08-08:00 Nijay Gupta

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Any introduction to Colossians will have to reckon with the scholarly question over its authorship – I say “scholarly” because, prior to the 19th century, Colossians was just assumed to have been written by Paul. But scholars like F.C. Baur (and some before him) found reason to doubt the authorial attribution was accurate. For Baur, Colossians did not seem like it was dealing with problems from Paul’s time – the problematic heresy the author was addressing was trademark Gnosticism (so Baur concluded).

Since that time, scholars have questioned all kinds of things in Colossians. Here are the big five:
(1) Historical plausibility – there seem to be situations and ideas that fit better into a different time (see, e.g., Baur, M. MacDonald)
(2) Vocabulary – Colossians has some unique vocabulary (this is not as serious of a concern as it used to be for scholars, because they are more willing nowadays to attribute this to the context; see Lincoln)
(3) Style – Not so much the WORDS, but the WAY the author writes and thinks is different from, e.g., Galatians or 1 Corinthians (see Dunn, Schweizer)
(4) Theology – key theological ideas are either MISSING or UNIQUELY DEVELOPED beyond what would be expected of the real Paul (so most commentators that doubt Pauline authorship)
(5) Acceptability of Pseudepigraphy – in more recent years, it has become more common to see pseudepigraphy as an acceptable (and even assumed) practice in the Greco-Roman world. Thus, the canonical and ethical obstacles seem less critical for some scholars (see Lincoln, MacDonald)
So, what can we say? Given that Colossians does not suffer from the same kind of “consensus doubt” as, for example, Titus, it is clear that this is a tough call. Scholars are evenly divided on this letter – nothing in Colossians is over-the-top anachronistic or theologically suspect.
I just finished editing and finalizing an article on the hermeneutics of authorship-analysis vis-a-vis Colossians for publication and it becomes obvious that much of the discussion ends up being subjective – there is no discipline criteria for weighing the value of certain features or issues. That makes the issue so challenging to get a handle on. Nevertheless, here I will raise some key responses to some of the issues raised above.
(1) Historical plausibility – this issue cuts both ways. I think it was Moule who suggested that it would be kind of dumb of a false-writer to be clumsy enough to include anachronistic events or issues. If it is clear that the pseudepigraphers were trying to look like Paul, why didn’t they try harder? Also, how did they fool so many people for so long? Also, Fee points out that pseudonymous theories must reckon who offering some kind of plausible alternative – something most people don’t venture to do (other than Baur, and how did that work out for him?). Dunn asks – why write to Colossae, a city not founded by Paul?
(2) Vocabulary – again, not an issue for most folks now – Harold Hoehner succeeded in making his point by facetiously making a case against the authentic Pauline authorship of Galatians, based on the criteria that scholars use to question Ephesians.
(3) Style – this is a real problem. Dunn remarks that Colossians has “fingerprint” differences – and I agree. We must be willing to conclude that Paul did not actually write or dictate this letter. But that does not mean it did not come from Paul’s authority or mind. Randolph Richards has helped us to understand the complexity of “authorship” in the GR world. It was often collaborative and sometimes the role of the amanuensis changed even throughout the course of the letter! Lincoln is suspicious of giving the secretary too much credit for Colossians – according to Lincoln, we just don’t know what secretaries did. OK, true. But it is a possibility we must consider. Also, Witherington offers a very plausible suggestion that Colossians was purposely written in a different style (Asiatic) by Paul – I am interested in seeing how new commentators react to Witherington’s proposal because I think it has good merit.
(4) Theology – This is one of the most pressing matters – is this really the mind of Paul? Barth/Blanke argue that Paul’s thought may have developed, but it could obviously still be Paul. Lincoln and others just think this is unlikely. What do we do?
(5) Pseudepigraphy – yes, we can see examples of pseudonymous writing in the ancient world, even in Jewish literature. But letters? Especially ones attributed to authors in the RECENT past? Also, how do we handle the seemingly superfluous details at the end of Colossians that have little theological value and seem like they would be only there to trick readers? Books like 1 Enoch do not suffer from this very personal problem. We need more research on this issue of currency and acceptability before we can turn to this as a default option.
Bottom Line
Clearly I could go on and on and on about this (my article is around 10,000 words!). To some degree, it comes down to the interpreter’s inclinations and intuition. That doesn’t sound very academic, but it seems true to reality. It is extremely difficult to find common method and common ground (even computer analysis of stylistic features has not convinced scholars one way or another!). When it comes to Colossians, I think the stance of Barth/Blanke is exactly right: In dubio pro reo: When in doubt, side with the accused – or, innocent until proven guilty. Given the strong patristic assumption that it is by Paul and no “obvious” piece of evidence to the contrary, this is the safest choice.
In that case, we cannot ever categorize Colossians as “deutero-Pauline.” We cannot prove it is secondary, we can only say it is doubted (by some scholars), so I much prefer the label “disputed” because that is precisely what it is.

Uncategorized

Previous Post

January 27, 2012

Kenneth Bailey Reads Paul through Mediterranean Eyes (Review)

Next Post

January 30, 2012 Heaven and Hell in the New Testament - an analogy

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category (Mis)Understanding Philippians 10 Things I Can't Live Without 2023 New Books 30 OT HB Scholars to Read and Follow 5 Books Series 50-2-Follow Academia Christian Theologians to Read and Follow Cruciform Scripture: Contributor Reflections Crux Sola TV Editors Behind Great Books in NT Studies Education Gendering the Holy Spirit Gupta FB Live Lectures In Faith and Doubt In Their Own Words Living the King Jesus Gospel My Top 6 OT Commentaries New Testament Resource Guide New Word Biblical Themes Nijay's A Very Library Christmas Shopping Guide Notes from an Editor Notes on New Books NTRG OT in the NT Paul Seminary Now The Bible in God's World The Word Felt Among Us SPENCER Translating Philippians Uncategorized Why I Use Accordance Women in Ministry

Select a Month March 2024 February 2024 January 2024 December 2023 November 2023 October 2023 September 2023 August 2023 May 2023 March 2023 February 2023 January 2023 December 2022 November 2022 October 2022 September 2022 August 2022 July 2022 June 2022 May 2022 March 2022 February 2022 January 2022 December 2021 November 2021 October 2021 September 2021 August 2021 July 2021 June 2021 May 2021 April 2021 March 2021 February 2021 January 2021 December 2020 November 2020 October 2020 September 2020 August 2020 July 2020 June 2020 May 2020 April 2020 March 2020 February 2020 January 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012 December 2011 November 2011 October 2011 September 2011 August 2011 July 2011 June 2011 May 2011 April 2011 March 2011 February 2011 January 2011 December 2010 November 2010 October 2010 September 2010 August 2010 July 2010 June 2010 May 2010 April 2010 March 2010 February 2010 January 2010 December 2009 November 2009 October 2009 September 2009 August 2009 July 2009 June 2009 May 2009 April 2009 March 2009 February 2009 January 2009 December 2008 November 2008 October 2008 September 2008 August 2008 July 2008 June 2008 May 2008 April 2008 March 2008 February 2008 January 2008 December 2007 November 2007 October 2007 September 2007 August 2007 July 2007 April 2007 March 2007 February 2007 January 2007

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz