St. Paul (0005–0067)

Often unpleasant when it's not boring. Paul (or, more likely, someone writing in his name after his death) warns Timothy of local ascetics - nothing made by God is bad if accepted with thanksgiving, so have some wine (it's good for your stomach). Also, this is where we get "the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil." That's fine. But then there's the stuff about women. They shouldn't teach or hold positions of power, or ideally speak at all. They can't expect much - they're all desendents of Eve, after all, and she started all this trouble. Oh, and watch out for widows: if they're over 60 and haven't caused any trouble, then okay, the church can support them; but if they're younger then best stay out of it: they'll only want to get married again, and they're all gossips anyway, it gives the church a bad name. Then there's a brief note about how slaves ought to be grateful to their masters, and with no accompanying exhortation to owners to be fair (as appears in Ephesians and Colossians). Even on the grounds of internal logic, how is one meant to square this with "the labourer deserves to be paid", quoted in 1 Timothy from the Gospel of Luke? Well, again, it's about not bringing the church into disrepute - please enjoy your bondage, we don't want to get a reputation as troublemakers. My first encounter with this "Paul", and he seems like a bellend.… (más)