Thinking About Today

Chris and I had the immense fortune to spend two weeks in Egypt last summer. I was impressed by many things during our visit there, but I was really intrigued by the Coptic Christian quarter of Cairo, in particular the Coptic museum. The museum had a few displays discussing Gnosticism, specifically the political battle between the Gnostics and other Christian groups that was waging during the time that both Timothy and Titus were written. The Gnostic scrolls which have given us so much scholarly insight into that period were discovered in caves outside of Cairo, hidden there by people who fled from Ephesus. When people who read ancient Greek have examined these scrolls, they have discovered numerous and sometimes shocking examples of the heretical teachings and writings that inspired Paul to write the very passages in question. First Timothy was explicitly written in opposition to heretics, most notably the Gnostics. A fuller understanding of culture helps us to reconcile seemingly contradictory writings by Paul in these books.

How wonderful it is that our God is complex and mighty, that he challenges us intellectually and culturally to think about his teachings in such a deep and difficult way.