EPISTLES (.-ptsTz).
Origin and DiVision. Epistles, which lay down the doctrines of the Christian religion, origi nate, not front one apostle alone, but from all the four principal apostles; so that one and the same Divine truth is presented to our eyes in various forms as it were in various mirrors, by which its richess and manifold character are the better displayed. The Epistles of the New Testament divide themselves into two parts—the Pauline and the so-called Catholic.
(1) The Pauline Epistles. The Pauline Epis tles are thirteen in number ; or fourteen, if we add to them the Epistle to the Hebrews. The very peculiar character of the Pauline Epistles is so striking to any one who is not ignorant of the want of ease and originality conspicuous in the counterfeit writings of early times, as to leave not the least doubt of their genuineness. Depth of thought, fire of speech, firmness of character— these manly features, joined withal to the indul gence of feelings of the most devoted love and af fection, characterize these epistles. The amiable personal character of the apostle may be most beautifully traced in his Epistles to the Philippians and to Philemon.
All the Epistles, except the one to the Romans, were called forth by circumstances and particular occasions in the affairs of the communities to which they were addressed. Not all, however, were preserved. It is at least evident from 1 Cor. v :9 that a letter to the Corinthians has been lost; from Col. iv :t6, it has also been concluded— though probably erroneously, since there perhaps the letter to the Ephesians is referred to—that an other letter to the community of Laodicea has likewise been lost. Press of business usually com pelled Paul—what was, besides, not uncommon in those times—to use ltiscompanions as amanuenses. He mentions (Gal. vi :it), as something peculiar, that he had written this letter with his own hand. Paul alludes to this (2 TheSS. ii :2), and therefore writes the greeting (2 Thess. iii:17) with his own hand. Paul himself exhorted the communities mutually to impart to each other his letters to them, and read them aloud in their assemblies (Col. iv :t6). It is therefore probable that copies of these letters had been early made by the sev eral communities, and deposited in the form of col lections. So long therefore as the various com
munities transmitted the manuscripts to each other, no other letters, it is obvious, could come into the collections than those to whose genuineness the communities to whom they were originally addressed, bore witness. Even Peter (2 Pet. iii: 16) seems to have had before him a number of Paul's letters, as, about forty years later, a num ber of letters of Ignatius were transmitted by Polyearp to Smyrna, while the church of Philippi forwarded to him those directed to them Folic. sub fin.: Euseb. !list. !Eccles. Iii:30). This Pauline collection, in contradistinction to the gos pels, passed by the name of b cirri:Coro:km The letters of Paul may be chronologically ar• ranged into those written before his Roman im prisonment, and those written during and after it; thus beginning with his first letter to the Thessa. 1(tnians, and concluding with his second to Tim. othy, embracing an interval of about ten year. (A. D. 54-64). In our Bibles, however, the letter. are arranged according to the pre-eminent parts and stations of the commitnities to whom they were addressed, and conclude with the epistles to the two bishops and a private letter to Philemon.
(2) The Catholic Epistles. There is, in the first instance, a diversity of opinion respecting their name : some refer it to their writers (letters from all the other apostles who had entered the stage of authorship along with Paul); some, again, to their contents (letters of no special but general Christian tenor) ; others, again, to the receivers (letters addressed to no community in particular). None of these views, however, is free from difficulties. The last opinion is most decidedly justified by passages from the ancient writers (Euseb. Hist. Eccles. v. 18; Clem. Alex. Strom. iv:15, ed. Potter, p. 6o6: Orig. c. Cols. i. 63). The Pauline Epistles had all their particular directions, while the letters of Peter, James, I John, and Jude were circular epistles. The Epis tles 2 and 3 John were subsequently added, and included on account of their shortness, and to this collection was given the name Catholic Letters, in contradistinction to the Pauline, which were called o dro'crioXos. A. T.