"Pastoral Epistles" - The two letters addressed to Timothy and
the one to Titus are collectively called the "Pastoral" letters, not only
since they are addressed to some early Christian "pastors"
or leaders, but also because they give instructions about the qualifications and
responsibilities of people who are to serve as "shepherds"
or bishops of local congregations.
"Pastor" originally means "shepherd," someone
who "pastures" a flock of sheep or other grazing animals, guiding them
to green pastures and protecting them from harm.
Several prominent figures of the Old Testament were literally
shepherds, who took care of sheep, including Abel (Gen 4:2), Abraham (Gen 12:16),
the sons of Jacob (Gen 37:2; 46:32), and especially the young David, who later
became the King of Israel (1 Sam 16:11; 2 Sam 5:2).
Thus, the kings and other leaders of Israel are often referred
to metaphorically as good or bad "shepherds" (Jer 23:1-4; Ezek 34:1-31;
etc.).
God is sometimes referred to as the "Shepherd of Israel"
(Gen 48:15; Ps 23:1; Isa 40:11; etc.).
The expected Messiah is also referred to as a shepherd (Micah
5:2-5; Matt 2:6).
Jesus sometimes talks about shepherds and sheep in his parables
(Matt 18:2-4; 25:31-33), and even calls himself the "Good Shepherd"
(John 10:1-18).
Later NT sometimes refers to Jesus as a shepherd and to Christians
as his sheep (Heb 13:20; 1 Pet 5:4; Rev 7:17).
Similarly, from the very beginnings of the Church, Christian
leaders have been metaphorically called shepherds who care for the sheep (John
21:15-17; Acts 20:28; Eph 4:11).
"Pseudepigraphic Letters" - The three Pastoral Letters, along
with three other Deutero-Pauline epistles (Col, Eph, 2 Thess), are attributed to the apostle
Paul, but were almost certainly not written by Paul himself. Rather, they
are probably pseudepigraphic (i.e., written in Paul's name by one or more
of his followers after his death).
One should not assume too quickly, however, that
all three of the Pastoral Letters were written by the same author at about the same time.
The Pastoral Epistles are also not of the same genre: 1 Timothy and Titus
are "Church Orders," while 2 Timothy is a "Testament."
Since 1 Timothy and Titus are very similar in several ways,
they were probably written by the same person at about the same time;
but 2 Timothy might have been written earlier by a different
author, although still by someone associated with Paul.
In the canonical NT, 2 Tim was placed after 1 Tim simply because
it is shorter, not necessarily because it was written later.
Leadership Roles in the Early Church according to the Pastoral Epistles:
After the New Testament period, Christianity eventually adopted a three-fold
leadership structure for the Church, consisting of the familiar trio: "bishops,
priests, and deacons." This three-fold structure, however, is not directly found
in the Bible, but developed only gradually in the second and third centuries.
Bishops
and deacons are mentioned in various NT books, but the term "priest" is
never used in the NT for Christian leaders (see below).
The earliest list of local
Christian leaders is given by Paul: "God has appointed in the church first
apostles, second prophets, third teachers; then deeds of
power, then gifts of healing, forms of assistance, forms of leadership, various
kinds of tongues" (1 Cor 12:28).
The Pastoral Epistles, in contrast, seem to describe a four-fold leadership
structure, with two pairs of two groups of leaders:
Bishops (Episkopoi) = "Overseers, Supervisors"; appointed through
"laying on of hands" by apostles or previous leaders (1 Tim 3:1-7; cf. Titus 1:7-9); and
Deacons (Diakonoi) = "Minister, Servants"; assistants to the bishops;
responsible for practical matters like care of the poor (1 Tim 3:8-13)
&
Widows (Chërai) = "Older Women who do not remarry"; cared
for by the church and serve the community, esp. teaching the
younger women (1 Tim 5:3-16; cf. Titus 2:3-5)
Elders (Presbyteroi) = "Older Men who are respected"; teaching, preaching, probably forming a type of "community council" (1 Tim 5:1, 17-22; cf. Titus 1:5)
Note in Contrast:Priests (Hieroi) = "Cultic Officials, those who offer sacrifices and/or serve in temples"
In the NT, the word "priests" refers only to the Jewish priests
(those who offer the sacrifices in the Jerusalem Temple).
No Christians are called "priests" in the entire NT (this term
was applied to Christian leaders only later, in the 2nd century).
Only in the Epistle to the Hebrews is Jesus himself called a "great high
priest" - even though he did not belong to the tribe of Levi.
Relationships among Christians in the Early Church:
See the separate page on the "Household Codes" of the New Testament.
Similarities and Differences between the Pastoral Epistles and Paul's Undisputed Letters:
[more coming some day]
The Development of Christian Doctrines in the Pastoral Epistles:
Brown, Raymond E. An Introduction to the New Testament. New York: Doubleday, 1997. - "Pastoral Letter: To Titus" (pp. 638-652), "Pastoral Letter: The First to Timothy" (653-671), "Pastoral Letter: The Second
to Timothy" (672-680).
