Grace, Peace, and Community

The letter itself is just one act in the drama. We have to sort of piece together what happened beforehand AND we are NOT told how the drama ends…if the master, Philemon, DID receive and forgive the fugitive slave and what happened next… We only have ONE ACT in the play.

And, of course, this book raises huge questions about the institution of slavery and what Christianity says AND doesn’t say about that. You can imagine how this New Testament Letter was used in the days leading up to the Civil War in our own nation… It was used by some to denounce slavery and by others to defend slavery …and we do hope to look at those issues… BUT for now…let’s talk about one question that’s really on all of our minds…the most urgent and pressing question and THAT is, “How did Paul convince people to do what they didn’t want to do AND even more important: HOW can I get other people to do what I want them to do?!”