The Story of Onesimus II. Stirrings in Ephesus

One warm bright morning Philemon shook Onesimus awake. Get up, he ordered, “I need you to come to Ephesus with me today.”

Onesimus jumped up, wide awake now. Ephesus? He had heard about this city but had never been there. 

“I have some business to conduct there,” Onesimus’ master was saying, “and I need your company to help me carry some things.” 

Onesimus was young and string so this prospect did not concern him too much. He also knew his master did not as a rule ask him to do more than he knew he was capable of. What Onesimus did not know was that he was facing at least a four-day journey. 

The master’s wife brought out some food for Onesimus to eat. He quickly splashed some water over his face from the basin kept for washing and then ate his breakfast. Meanwhile, Aphia and Philemon were filling some bags with food and skins with water. 

It seemed Onesimus’ masters had already eaten for, as soon as he was done, Philemon motioned for him to come and then helped him fasten the bags of food and water around his neck and shoulders. Philemon also carried some provisions, although not as much as his slave. Philemon also took a solid walking stick from near the door and also gave one to Onesimus. 

“We might need these before our trip is over,” he said.” When Philemon sensed all was in order, he bade his wife farewell and they set out. 

When they reached the large temple at the centre of the city Philemon indicated they needed to stop. “Stay here and keep watch,” he said, “I will go and ask the gods to give us a safe trip.”

Onesimus watched as his master haggled with one of the hawkers of incense and such near the steps up to the temple. When he judged he had made a satisfactory deal, Philemon took some incense and some fruit and went to offer it at the altar in the temple. Soon he was back on the street and the pair continued on.

There was little spoken between the two as they hurried on, as was usual between slave and master. After they had left the city, Philemon did turn back to Onesimus and observe, “There might be robbers along the road so we need to keep a sharp eye out.” Tapping the ground with his walking stick, he added, “That’s where these might come in handy.”

When they came to the next town, Laodicea, they noticed a caravan of camels and donkeys loaded down, with their drivers. As they drew nearer, it was apparent the cavalcade was stopped near the town well to give their animals a break and some water.  Some of the men among the entourage were obviously the owners of the animals, others appeared to be traders. Onesimus noticed that some of the men seemed to have swords in the folds of their robes.

“Wait here a moment,” Philemon said, and moved forward to talk to these men. 

When he returned, Philemon said, “We are in luck. Thanks be to the gods. These men said we could travel with them. It will be safer.” It might have been safer but it did slow them down too, as the caravan had to stop for water and food for its animals more often than Philemon and Onesimus would have needed to stop.

Eventually though, they did reach Ephesus.  The cities of Laodicea and especially Hierapolis, near Colossae, had fascinated Onesimus whenever he had a chance to go there. However, he was not prepared for what he now saw.  In the first place, it took hours just to wend their way through the narrow streets to their destination. At times Onesimus could see massive temples with tall statues of their gods before them.  At one point he saw a huge, high curving wall with arched porticos around its circumference. “That,” pointed out Philemon, “is the amphitheatere where great sporting and political events are held.” Onesimus had never seen anything like all this. 

Philemon stopped some passersby and got instructions to a nearby inn. It was one recommended by the caravaneers, whom they had now parted company with. 

Philemon and Onesimus were both glad to get some water to wash their faces, hands and feet before digging into the repast the innkeeper provided. They were still at table with some other guests when in walked a sturdy, handsome young man Onesimus thought looked vaguely familiar. Philemon obviously knew more.

“Epaphras!” Philemon exclaimed as he jumped to his feet and moved to greet the newcomer. “I haven’t seen you in a long time. Look at what a handsome young man you’ve become. What brings you here, if I may ask?”

“You may,” responded the guest, “I am actually working here, but maybe not for long.”

“Oh,” Philemon queried, his eyebrows raised. “Job not working out?”

“It’s not that,” Epaphras said as he moved in at the table next to Philemon. He reached in and took a piece of bread and scooped up some lentil broth from the centre.

“Mmm, not bad for an inn.” Turning to the owner who was busy in the background, Epaphras called out, “My compliments to the cook!”

“I’ll tell her,” the owner replied.

Epaphras sat up somewhat to be nearer Philemon. “I am probably going back to Colossae on a mission.”

“Mission?” asked Philemon. “You work for the government?”

“No, not that kind of mission. You see, while here, I have come to know a Jew from Palestine. He is a very intelligent and educated man but you would never know it from his behaviour. I have never met such a real man. He seems so genuine.”

“How so,” Philemon broke in.

“Well,” continued Epaphras, “he teaches about some real changes that seem to have taken place in the Jewish religion. At least the way he understands and talks about it.”

“Religion?” Philemon smiled, “Do I want to hear more?”

“That’s just the thing,” Epaphras said, and you could hear the earnest tone in his voice. “It’s not like he’s talking about a religion. He talks about a Jewish rabbi who was crucified by the Romans because the Jewish leaders thought he was causing trouble. They said he was breaking some of their sacred laws and deserved to die.”

“Ah, yes,” Philemon muse, “the Jews are very strict about their religious laws and practices, that much I know. But to kill someone?”  

“Well, apparently they did. But, and here’s where it gets really different – he came alive again and continued teaching his followers for forty days, and then disappeared.  His followers say he was God come to earth and that he then returned to heaven.”

“Now, I’ve heard everything,” Philemon said, leaning back on his elbow and taking another bit of bread and broth. “Well, Onesimus here and I are tired. We’ve just traveled from Colossae. But you know how that goes. Maybe we can talk more another time. We’re turning in. Good night Epaphras.”

The Story of Onesimus I. Changes

It was only the beginning of the second watch, but even now the oppressive heat was building. The sun was already moving higher into a cloudless sky. There was just enough of a breeze to feel its coolness on one’s perspiring skin. However, working in the confines of the courtyard scarcely allowed for even that little reprieve. 

Onesimus was preparing a shipment of wool to be transported to the neighbouring city of Laodicea. His master, Philemon, was a shrewd buyer of some of the best wool in the region. In sheep-shearing season wool Philemon had purchased from the area would arrive in piles on the backs of donkeys and be unloaded under the shelter of a roof projecting out from the side of his house. It was Onesimus’ job to take these piles of wool and try and sort them out into bales of similar quality. Once that was done to Philemon’s satisfaction, they would be tied up and transported to Laodicea. There, they were made into clothing by the many slaves who dyed and wove the wool. 

By the time the wool got to Onesimus it had become quite dusty from the roads over which it had traveled. Handling it with its itchiness was bad enough; the dust only added to the discomfort.

Onesimus really did not remember any other life than being in the service of Philemon. As a long-time slave, he and his master had reached a mutually beneficial understanding of their roles, their places in society. Onesimus knew when his services did not reach his master’s expectations that the consequences could be severe, but her had leaned to take that. It was the lot of a slave, and that’s what he was. He knew too though, from his limited contact with other slaves, that there were far worse masters than Philemon. 

Just the same, Onesimus sometimes wondered what it would be like to be a freedman. He knew he was not stupid. He watched how things were done. In fact, it was that trait that had led Onesimus to try and be helpful as a young child, before he was really expected to do slave duty. That was how he had been given the name Onesimus, meaning ‘helpful one.’ 

Some of his cuurent thinking now might have been the over confidence of youth, but sometimes he thought he could make a go of his own business. However, he knew those were futile thoughts. Unless one came to an understanding with one’s master, one would never become a freedman. Even then, the master would expect a considerable payment from the would-be freedman, something he could use to replace him by purchasing another slave. From what Onesimus had seen, that rarely happened, and when it did, the slave had usually outlived his usefulness to the master. It was more like the master no longer wanted to be responsible for the slave than that he gave him freedman status out of goodwill. Besides, with the situation Onesimsus found himself in, he was a long way from having any money to buy his freedom. The other option? Running away? That was pretty much a death sentence.

Still, it irked him sometimes in particular when he compared himself to Archippus, Onesimus’ only son. They were very much the same age, had grown up together, but the obvious privileges of the one set him in quite a different world than the one in which Onesimus was destined to live. 

But what was really bothering Onesimus now were the changes he was observing in both Philemon and Apphia. He thought he knew them well, could practically read their minds. That way, he could avoid some of the mistakes and punishing consequences that would ensue. But now, he was increasingly finding that he no longer knew what to expect of his masters. Even Apphia, his mistress, was not as harsh as she had once been. 

Of course, it would never have crossed Onesimus’ mind to try and find out what was going on. There was a certain familiarity in his relationship with his long-time masters, but that only went so far. You could never let your guard down and be lulled into thinking you had everything figured out. He could only observe and listen to try and make sense of what seemed to be a developing new order. Where did it come from and what did it mean? Onesimus was not really concerned for his position; he was sure that was a given. However, if one did not know how to relate to one’s master, well, there was increased risk in that. Onesimus had suffered enough beating in his life not to really want more.

The strangest thing was that, from what he heard, and from some of the new practices Philemon and his family seemed to be carrying out, was that these changes seemed to have something to do with religion. Now, in some ways, religion was everywhere in the life in which Onesimus had grown up. There were shrines and statues of the gods everywhere. There were rituals that had to be performed to appease the gods, to keep them on your good side as much as possible. Sometimes, there might even be an occasion to give an offering of thanksgiving to a god if, for example, you really got a good batch of wool that fetched a high price in the markets in Laodicea and Hierapolis. These practices never really demanded that much from one though. There was really no sacrifice involved. One did or gave just enough. There was certainly no impact of these traditions on one’s daily life. By and large, Onesimus knew, it all just made more intelligent people somewhat cynical about the whole affair, and he was quite satisfied with that.

Onesimus had picked up though that there was a new twist to this worship. The Emperor in that faraway city of Rome was now demanding worship. It was not enough that everyone was taxed to the limit. Now people were expected to worship the Emperor as a god. As a rule, none of this had any effect on Onesimus. The master’s trips to the temples were not usually excursions that included his slaves. However, he had heard Philemon complain about this added layer of expectation. It just took more time out of his day and money out of his pocket. Of course, Philemon had to be careful where he expressed these sentiments, lest he be suspected of treason. However, Onesimus had heard of others who felt the same way.

Begrudgingly, it seemed the master’s family had come to terms with this new reality. Sometimes Onesimus had accompanied his master to the temples of they were together delivering wool or on some other business errand that took them past these centres. For him, it just meant a few more stops on the route. That was not so bad though, as it gave him more time away from the labour back home. His lot was just to wait on the street with the cargo and animals, not to join in on what went on in the temple. It gave him more time to rest and sometimes to chat with other slaves whose masters were in the temple. 

All of this had not really made that much difference in the life Onesimus knew otherwise. It really had not taken much effort on his part to accommodate this, and, as he saw it, there had been certain advantages for him socially at times. However, he had not been long getting used to these changes when something altogether different and more demanding seemed to be occurring.

The Apostle Paul and Women - What Romans 15 Might Be Telling Us

As I may have mentioned in other blog entries, our congregation is reading through the Bible this year; well, at least some of us have accepted the challenge made some 11 months ago. This week I finished reading the Letter to the Romans. I was struck anew by all the references to women in the last chapter.

As many readers might well know, the apostle Paul has often gotten, as some would say nowadays, “a bad rap” when it comes to some of the things she has said about women. However, as is often the case, it is often more prudent to look at what a person does then what person says. If we take note of the references to women in the acts, which recounts Paul's so-called "missionary journeys,” we will see favourable references to women. You will actually see similar statements and some of his other letters, besides the Letter to the Romans.

But since we are now reading Romans in our congregation, let us take a look at the last chapter. Has seems to have been more of a custom in those days and then now, bearing in mind of course that Paul was writing to her group and not always an individual, at the ends of the letters, there are often a lot of things which should include references to how this person has figured in  the writer's, in this case Paul’s, life.

It is obvious from the way the book is written, even before the later insertion of chapter divisions, that they content of the letter was finished at the end of chapter 15. Then, the first thing we read in chapter 16, which is the section on readings etc., is a reference to "our sister Phoebe,” a woman. She must have been a prominent enough woman for Paul to begin this whole greeting section with her. Indeed, the above phrase goes on to identify her as “a deaconess of the church at Cenchreae.”  Cenchreae was actually a Greek city, a seaport, near Corinth. “Here according to Acts 18:18, Paul had his hair shorn before sailing for Syria, since he had a vow. A local church must have been established there by Paul since Phoebe, the deaconess of Cenchreae, was entrusted with the Epistle to the Romans, and was commended to them in the highest terms by the apostle, who charged them to ‘assist her in whatsoever matter she may have need.’ " [http://biblehub.com/topical/c/cenchreae.htm]. 

We obviously have to balance this with other references where Paul speaks of women not being permitted to speak in the church (First Corinthians 14:33B-35). I don't think we can imagine that  Phoebe was not allowed to speak if she was a deaconess. At the same time though, the role of a deaconess, or elder as we might be more familiar with, was probably to serve in the community, which did not necessarily call for her to be given the right to speak in the  assembled congregation. As mentioned above as well though, Paul must have thought a lot of her to entrust her with the letter to the Romans, which he was probably sending from Corinth. One can deduce that from the letters to the Corinthians (second Corinthians 8:1-9:5) because there he speaks of going to Jerusalem with an offering from the church in Greece, in particular Macedonia, for the church in Jerusalem was suffering from a famine, which he also speaks about in Romans 14:25-29.  Here he speaks of wanting to go to Jerusalem with this gift, after which he hopes to finally be able to come to Rome.  Indeed, interestingly, this is the only letter we have in the New Testament written by Paul to a church which he had not previously visited, if not in fact started.

The next reference is To the couple, Prisca/Priscilla and Aquila, who we will recall had given Paul, a fellow tent-maker, hospitality when he arrived in Corinth and were instrumental in founding the church there (Acts 18:23C).  I don't want to put too much weight on the fact that Priscilla's name is first, but we know that even nowadays, unless one purposely names the woman first when listing, for example, a couple, I think the tradition in our still too-patriarchal society is to name the man first. So, again, this might tell us that Paul's memory and appreciation for this couple was more for what Priscilla did then what her husband Aquila did. 

Indeed, as we go through the names from verses 1-15, of which there are 30, a full one-third of them, it would seem to me, are clearly women.  There are probably just as many whose gender I could not be certain of, so there might even be more women named.

Interestingly, the fourth naming is Mary, whom Paul refers to as having worked hard among you, meaning the Romans. As we know, church lore has it that the Apostle Peter founded the church in Rome. There are also other stories to the effect that Jesus’ mother Mary worked with Peter and perhaps even Luke, who was with Paul when he eventually went to Rome, as we can see from the way he writes Acts in the first person when it talks about their journey to and stay in Rome. This is augmented by the fact that Paul referred to Luke as being a fellow worker with him in Rome, for example when he wrote the letter to Philemon (verse 23) and particularly second Timothy 4:11, where he describes being deserted by a number of people, Luke alone being left with references such as that in Philemon above, also ended up in Rome with Paul.

Other references that indicate Paul’s close affection for women are such as those in verse 13 where he says,”Greet Rufus, eminent in the Lord, also his mother and mine.” In verse 15 he greets Nereus and his sister. One might even speculate that Paul, living what appears to have been a celibate life as a missionary, in contradistinction to his evidently having been married once in the past, as this was a condition of being a Pharisee, which he was, appreciated especially the roles of women that ministered to him in his travels

Whatever one might want to make of all of this, one needs to recognize that, over against the place of women in Jewish society, let alone Gentile, they were already being given significantly more recognition and acceptance in the early church and in all of the New Testament writings then would have been warranted if the writers followed the mores of society at large in those days.