Philemon Part One Deep Dive

PHILEMON, PART 1 | DR ADAM WHITE

One of the unrecognised facets of any New Testament letter is the fact that they were read publicly to the addressed audience. The letter was written with an oral performance in mind; therefore, the structure and argument of it was a speech. More importantly, they were speeches designed to persuade. Their purpose was to move the audience to a particular position or belief with the attendant change of behaviour. All of Paul’s letters were aimed at this end, including Philemon. This simple fact should give us a moment of pause to reflect on what that implies for our reading and understanding of the text. Not just, what does it mean? But, how was it heard? What was the situation of its first hearing? What happened in the room and what can we assume of its outcome? This will be our approach reading Philemon.

First, some brief background. The letter is a personal correspondence from Paul to his friend, Philemon, written on behalf of the latter’s runaway slave, Onesimus. Philemon is a resident of Colossae and probably well-to-do. It’s likely he was a businessman who had travelled to Ephesus where he first met Paul and was converted either by Paul or through that connection. We assume he was wealthy because he has a house large enough to host a church as well as having a guest room. We can further assume that Philemon led the church that met in his house.

Onesimus is, as mentioned, Philemon’s slave. How Onesimus ended up with Paul is not clear. The most recent and convincing argument is that he was in some sort of domestic trouble with his master — perhaps he had broken something or caused some sort of material or financial loss. Whatever the case, he has sought Paul to intercede for him as an amicus domini (‘friend of the master’), so that the two could be reconciled. In this situation, the slave was not considered a fugitive; moreover, Paul could legally accommodate him at his own expense. His master, Philemon, probably held Paul in great affection, and his household, including Onesimus, would have known this, and so Onesimus travelled to Paul to make his request.

It seems, however, that during this time, Onesimus has converted to Christianity and has become quite useful to Paul while in prison. So much so, that Paul admits he was tempted to keep Onesimus for himself. Nevertheless, Onesimus could not stay. He must return to Philemon to reconcile the situation or face being prosecuted as a fugitive. Paul therefore sends Onesimus back to his master with an accompanying letter through which he intercedes for the slave. The letter, though addressed to Philemon personally, would have been read aloud to the church gathered in his house. It functions as a defence of the slave and an appeal to Philemon, who, in the context of its reading, becomes the judge before whom the appeal is being made. If the letter was to succeed and thereby reconciliation achieved, the letter would need to persuade Philemon not only in its content, but also in its performance.

As with all of Paul’s letters, the audience is identified in the opening greetings. The primary recipient is, of course, Philemon (verse 1). He is made centre stage, both as the first named recipient and, presumably, the owner of the house in which the letter was read. During the performance, he would be in a place of prominence within the room, probably at the head of the table, and all eyes would be focussed on him to determine his response to the letter. The opening greeting also names Apphia (verse 2a), who is traditionally seen as Philemon’s wife. It stands to reason that she is also addressed as it is ultimately the slave of the family who is in focus; therefore, his fate rests on her decision as well. The letter also addresses Archippus, who is either the son of Philemon or a fellow house church leader. In addition to these three, Paul also addresses the congregation gathered in Philemon’s house (verse 2b). By doing this, Paul significantly shifts the dynamics of the reading. Philemon is now subject to the peer pressure of his own church. “So, Pastor Philemon, what are you going to do about this?”

While we cannot recreate an original performance, creative imagination is possible. We could picture the speaker standing in a special position in the room, facing the audience, and thus taking centre stage, symbolising the apostolic position which Paul claimed for himself in the church. From this place in front of the audience, the lector could direct his attention towards whichever member was being addressed. He could look straight at them, using facial expressions to emphasise praise or criticism, or gestures to identify and focus attention on the addressees. In this setting, Philemon takes the metaphorical place of the judge and it was the lector’s task to persuade him to act favourably on Onesimus’ behalf. The overall intent of the performance was to move Philemon’s view on the matter through whatever means necessary. But there is also a very important, and very silent, elephant in the room. Namely, Onesimus. Through all of the reading there would be a shifting of attention between the judge and the accused. The stage is set, all that is left is the defence.

Dr Adam White began his working career as a spray painter and from there moved into ministry as a youth pastor then an associate pastor at Riverlands Christian Church in Penrith. Then at the age of 25, he felt called to study theology at Southern Cross College (now AC); this continued through an honours degree up to a Doctorate of Ancient History at Macquarie University. He is married to Rachel and has a daughter named Sophia and two sons, Alexander, and Sebastian.

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