Epistle to the Philippians

EPISTLE TO THE PHILIPPIANS. - One of the four captivity letters, addressed by St. Paul to the community of Philippi.

I. CHARACTER

The F. presents an unmistakable physiognomy compared with the other Pauline letters, including those of the group in which it is commonly considered, from which it differs in content and tone, if not in the place and circumstances of composition. Apart from the very brief Epistle to Philemon (v.), which, by reason of its destination and subject matter, has an entirely personal character, the F. is the most familiar of the Pauline letters: a letter more than any other. It is marked by the most cordial confidence, free from every anxiety: Paul knows well that he is understood, that there is no danger between him and his correspondents of those misunderstandings that could be created, for example, by the cavilling factiousness of the faithful of Corinth. He therefore opens his heart with the simplicity and assurance of a father, and makes felt, by reflection but with evidentness, the devotion of the readers. A few polemical passages do not touch the addressees, but the declared enemies of Paul's preaching, the Judaizers (3:2-11), who seem extraneous to the community, or those members of the community who have fallen short of their vocation to the point that they can be called "enemies of the Cross of Christ" (3:18 f.; cf. J. H. Michael, pp. 132 ff., 171 f.; W. Michaelis, pp. 52 ff., 61 f.). The letter reflects well the relations that constantly existed between Paul and the Church of Philippi, the most faithful among those founded by him, the only one in which erroneous doctrines and notable divisions of minds had no hold. Not for this does the Apostle cease to warn against every danger of doctrinal deviation and of cooling in religious fervor and against symptoms of small internal discords (cf. 4:2).

The F. is not a fundamentally doctrinal writing, such as could be compared with the powerful treatises of the Epistles to the Romans and to the Galatians, and with I Corinthians. There is no lack, however, of dogmatic touches of notable importance, first among them the celebrated christological passage of 2:6-11. The Christian life and morality, mystical union with Christ and progress in perfection have a notable place in it, but outside any pre-established scheme. This letter of joy, which recalls, more than any other writing, the Gospel of St. Luke, is still more significant, as a Christian vision of life, inasmuch as it comes from a prisoner and is addressed to faithful who have suffered and suffer for the cause of Christ. On the stay of St. Luke at Philippi, v. FILIPEPI.

II. ANALYSIS AND CONTENT

The character of the writing explains why it is possible to divide it according to the usual scheme of a doctrinal part and a practical part. Alongside the news concerning the Apostle's present circumstances, exhortations to a more fervent Christian life are set from the very beginning, corroborated by motives of a dogmatic nature. The thoughts follow one another freely, sometimes linked by a very thin thread, but with great naturalness, apart from a few rather abrupt and unexpected transitions (3:1 ff.).

The opening (1:1-11) is less solemn than those of the Epistle to the Romans and of the First and Second Epistles to the Corinthians; it is closer to those of the First and Second Epistles to the Thessalonians, also because of the absence of the title of "apostle." Here Paul calls himself, with Timothy, "servant of Jesus Christ."

After the usual address to "all the saints," with particular mention of the ἐπίσκοποι and the διάκονοι, and the wish of grace and peace (1 ff.), the Apostle gives thanks and manifests his joy for the divine gifts conferred so abundantly on this community, of which he feels proud. He holds all these dear children in his heart, even as a prisoner, and while he struggles for the propagation and defense of the Gospel (3-8), his prayer implores an increase of charity in the faithful, so that they may know and practice what is best, in order to be pure and blameless in preparation for the day of Christ (9 ff.).

The Apostle's imprisonment too has turned to the advantage of the Gospel: besides the Christian propaganda among the soldiers of the guard, it has aroused in many brethren a greater ardor in preaching. Some act from somewhat praiseworthy antagonism; but that does not matter: provided that Christ is preached, by anyone and for any motive, Paul's soul will always be filled with sincere joy (1:12-18). Everything will turn out for his good and for the honor of Christ, glorified both by the Apostle's life and by his death; for whom "to live is Christ and to die is gain": ready to sacrifice the desire to be released from the bonds of the body and to be with Christ, in order to remain, as in fact he will remain, for the greater profit of these faithful, whom he hopes to see again (1:19-26).

Let the readers conduct themselves in a manner worthy of the Gospel of Christ, in perfect unity of spirit, without trembling before adversaries; for this is their boast: not only to believe in Christ, but to suffer for him, as Paul gives the example (1:27-30). By whatever is dearest in Christ and in the communion of souls, let them fill up his joy with perfect concord, guarding against acting out of vainglory, indeed esteeming others superior to themselves. To this we are committed by the great lesson that Christ has given us: though he could rejoice in all that belonged to him by his perfect likeness to the Father, he chose to empty himself by assuming the condition of a slave, a man in all things like us, humble and obedient unto death on the cross. For this God has exalted him, giving him a name above every other, so that all creatures in heaven, on earth and under the earth may acknowledge and confess that Jesus is "Lord," to the glory of God the Father (2:1-11). Let the faithful, therefore, work out their own salvation in fear and trembling, with that spirit of docility of which they have given proof. God is the one who gives them both the will and the action. Let them shine as lights in the midst of a perverse and crooked generation, proving that he has not labored among them in vain. And if his blood is poured out as a libation upon the sacrificial offering of their faith, he will rejoice, and they too must rejoice (2:12-18).

Paul intends to send Timothy to Philippi, who has already given magnificent proofs of devotion to the cause of the faithful; while "all" seek their own interests rather than those of Christ. He hopes soon to be among his children himself. Meanwhile he has decided to send them Epaphroditus, recovered from a long illness; let them welcome him with joy, and esteem highly men of this temper: for the cause of Christ, in fact, "in the service of the Apostle, Epaphroditus has risked his own life" (2:19-30).

Exhorting the faithful once more to joy, Paul warns them against the asserters of a circumcision that no longer has any value (it is a mere incision or mutilation: κατατομή; cf. J. H. Michael, p. 135). What matters is spiritual circumcision. The titles of which these men boast would not be lacking in Paul either; but he regards them as refuse, in order to gain Christ, and, through him, true righteousness, sharing in his Passion, death and Resurrection. It is a straining of all Paul's powers to reach the goal, just as Christ one day laid hold of him: a forgetting of the road already traveled, in order to run still toward the prize, to which God calls us on high, in Christ Jesus (3:1-14). In this way of feeling and acting the faithful must imitate him, keeping far from the practice of those "many" who have become "enemies of the Cross of Christ" and whose god is their belly. On the contrary, the homeland of believers is heaven, whence they await as savior Jesus, who must transform them into his own glory. The Philippians, "joy and crown" of the Apostle, must stand firm thus in the Lord (3:15-4:1).

Let Euodia and Syntyche be more concordant, with the help of the "genuine yokefellow," who have labored for the Gospel with Clement and the others, "whose names are in the book of life." Let all rejoice in the Lord, showing a gentle kindness (τὸ ἐπιεικές) toward all. "The Lord is near." Let them be free from earthly cares; let their prayer rise to God; let his peace fill their hearts; while they strive to pursue all that is good and honorable that they have been able to see in their Apostle (4:2-9). He thanks them for what they have sent; not that he is unaccustomed to every kind of privation, but because these gifts prove their affection. They are the only ones from whom he has accepted personal offerings. Now, however, he abounds because of this kind of sacrifice which, in him, they have offered to God; and he will reward them magnificently. To him, our Father, be glory for ever and ever (4:10-20).

The epilogue (4:21 ff.) contains generic greetings, also from the saints "who are of Caesar's household," and the wish of the Grace of Christ.

III. OCCASION

The F. was written when Epaphroditus, having recovered from a serious illness, was preparing to return to Philippi. Paul had to thank those good faithful who had shown themselves so devoted, both by sending material aid and by arranging that Epaphroditus remain at the prisoner's side to assist him on behalf of the community. It is not improbable that Paul had already written to the F. (3, 1-18); but that an exchange of letters took place between the arrival of Epaphroditus and the sending of the F. (cf. J. H. Michael, p. XXI f.) encounters difficulty in the fact that Paul here thanks them for the offerings sent by the faithful; nor is it very likely that he returned several times to the subject, given the evident intention of showing, with delicacy, his own independence in the face of these gifts. That they were informed at Philippi of Epaphroditus' illness can also be explained without a letter from Paul.

Certain internal characteristics of the letter seem to separate it, as regards place and date of composition, from the other three of the imprisonment. Some aspects of its content and style would seem to bring it closer, more than to these, to the great Pauline letters. The presence of the Jewish danger (3, 2-11; cf. however Col. 2, 8-23) suggests a period not far from the Galatian crisis (v. GALATI, EPISTOLA 31). But these are criteria easily exposed to subjective interpretations. While in recent decades the critics who connected the F. with the imprisonment at Caesarea have notably diminished (cf. T. W. Mancon, p. 182), the defenders of an Ephesian origin have increased, particularly in non-Catholic circles (cf. W. Michaelis, pp. 2, 8; P. Feine-J. Behm, Einleitung in das Neue Test., 8th ed., Leipzig 1936, p. 177). They, however, have not yet been able to adduce arguments such as to counterbalance those that argue in favor of Rome.

IV. PAULINE AUTHENTICITY AND UNITY

The Pauline authorship of the F., denied only by the radicals of the Tübingen school (not by all the followers of this school) and of the Dutch school (cf. M. Goguel, Introduction au Nouv. Test., IV, 1, Paris 1925, pp. 28, 410; J. Huby, p. 264), is today ever more widely admitted. In fact, even setting aside the external testimonies, the Pauline characteristics of the letter are so pronounced as to exclude any probability of a forgery.

Besides the allusions of I Clem. 3, 4; 21, 1 (Phil. 1, 27); 47, 2 (Phil. 4, 15); of St. Ignatius, Ad Smyrn., 4, 2 (Phil. 13); 11, 3 (Phil. 3, 15); ad Philad., 1, 5; 8, 2 (Phil. 2, 3), there is the explicit testimony of Polycarp, Ad Phil., 3, 2, who reminds the F. of the letters written to them by Paul; allusions in 1, 1 (Phil. 2, 17; 4, 10); 2, 1 (Phil. 2, 10; 3, 21); 9, 2 (Phil. 2, 16); 12, 3 (Phil. 3, 18). The F. is also cited in a writing of the churches of Thyatira and Vienna (Eusebius, Hist. eccl., 5, 2: PG 20, 433). Phil. 4, 18 is cited as Paul's by St. Irenaeus (Adv. Haer., 4, 18, 4: PG 7, 1026; cf. 2, 8, 3 [Phil. 4, 17]; 5, 13, 4 [Phil. 3, 10]: PG 7, 995, 1159). The authenticity of the F. is commonly affirmed by Clement of Alexandria (Strom., 4, 13: PG 8, 1300; Paed., 1, 6: PG 8, 312), by Tertullian (De resurrectione carnis, 23: PL 2, 826 [873]; Adv. Marcionem, 5, 20: PL 2, 522 f. [554 f.]) and by the Muratorian Fragment (Enchiridion Biblicum, Rome 1927, n. 4).

Against the unity of the F. it has been thought to find a positive argument in the cited text of Polycarp, which effectively speaks of "letters" sent by Paul to the F. But, besides the fact that the plural ἐπιστολαί is often used for a single letter (litterae), Polycarp could have been referring either to the whole body of letters sent to the faithful of Macedonia, or, more probably, he was better informed about the correspondence between Paul and the F., which need not have been limited to the canonical writing.

That there is an abrupt and unexpected transition in Phil. 3, 1 f. is undeniable: 3, 1 would appear to be the beginning of a letter's closing; but then the text decisively resumes in order to renew recommendations already made (3, 16); and there follow the very harsh expressions of 3, 2, 18; indeed, the whole of ch. 3 recalls the vigorous polemics of the great letters, almost a reflection of those same struggles. One may suppose an interval in the composition of the F., during which the Apostle would have received news of the intrigues of Judaizers to the detriment of the beloved community, as well as of the persistent bad conduct of some, which could have very harmful repercussions on others (cf. J. Huby, p. 265 ff.).

The most radical attacks against the unity of the Epistle to the Philippians are by A. Loisy, La naissance du christianisme, Paris 1933, p. 28, and by H. Delafosse (Turmel), L'Epître aux Philippiens, ibid. 1928; according to the former, the Epistle to the Philippians would be a combination of two notes of Paul, joined at the beginning of the 2nd century and integrated with elements of Christian gnosis (2:6-11) and of anti-Judaic polemic; according to the latter, the doctrinal passages would be by a Marcionite who, around 140, attempted to disseminate under the name of Paul the doctrines of his own master.

Against these attempts at vivisection the majority of critics have spoken out, among whom one notes A. Jülicher-E. Fascher, Einleitung in das Neue Test., 7th ed., Tübingen 1931, p. 122; M. Goguel, loc. cit., pp. 400-409. The latter concludes (p. 409) that the objections raised against the unity of the Epistle to the Philippians can be resolved by taking into account the freedom that characterizes the composition of a letter.

Teodorico da Castel San Pietro