Join a Galatians Group

Listed to right under Helpful Links you will see a Galatians group. This is for further information that is coming from sermon preparations. You will also be allowed to sign up for this group which means that any time I make a change to that group, you will receive an email.

A clear chronology of Paul's life is difficult to lay out. It takes an effort to bring together the Paul's autobiographical comments in his authentic letters and Luke's biographical information on Paul's life. The following outline is taken from The Cambridge Companion to St. Paul, edited by James D. G. Dunn.

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Birth in Tarsus	Around the turn of the first century
Education primarily in Jerusalem (Acts 22:3)
Crucifixion of Jesus	30
Conversion of Saul (Acts 9 etc.)	32/33
First Jerusalem visit (Gal 1:18)	35/36
Antioch – teacher and missionary (Jerusalem visit? Acts 11:30) -- ‘the first missionary journey’ (Acts 13-14)	Early and mid 40s
Jerusalem Council (Gal 2:1-10/Acts 15)	48/49
Aegean mission – Corinth (acts 18:11) 1 & 2 Thessalonians Galatians	50/52
Jerusalem visit (Acts 18:22)	52
Aegean mission – Ephesus (Acts 19:10) 1 & 2 Corinthians (Philippians, Colossians & Philemon?)	53-5
Aegean mission – final phase (Acts 20:3) Romans	56
Arrest in Jerusalem (Acts 21:33)	57
Imprisonment in Caesarea (Acts 24:27)	57-59
Journey to Rome (Acts 27:1-28:16)	59-60
Imprisonment in Rome (Acts 28:30) Philippians, Colossians, & Philemon)	60-62
Probable date of execution	62/63
(Possible release and further mission, Ephesians, Pastoral Epistles)	62-4?

Next Sermon Text: Galatians 2:1-10 (July 15, 2007)

2Then after fourteen years I went up again to Jerusalem with Barnabas, taking Titus along with me. ² I went up in response to a revelation. Then I laid before them (though only in a private meeting with the acknowledged leaders) the gospel that I proclaim among the Gentiles, in order to make sure that I was not running, or had not run, in vain. ³But even Titus, who was with me, was not compelled to be circumcised, though he was a Greek. ⁴ But because of false believers^a secretly brought in, who slipped in to spy on the freedom we have in Christ Jesus, so that they might enslave us— ⁵ we did not submit to them even for a moment, so that the truth of the gospel might always remain with you. ⁶ And from those who were supposed to be acknowledged leaders (what they actually were makes no difference to me; God shows no partiality)—those leaders contributed nothing to me. ⁷ On the contrary, when they saw that I had been entrusted with the gospel for the uncircumcised, just as Peter had been entrusted with the gospel for the circumcised ⁸ (for he who worked through Peter making him an apostle to the circumcised also worked through me in sending me to the Gentiles), ⁹ and when James and Cephas and John, who were acknowledged pillars, recognized the grace that had been given to me, they gave to Barnabas and me the right hand of fellowship, agreeing that we should go to the Gentiles and they to the circumcised. ¹⁰ They asked only one thing, that we remember the poor, which was actually what I was^b eager to do.

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a Gk false brothers

b Or had been

Musings on Writing an Autobiography

How would I write an autobiography of myself? Would I be be willing to show my warts to all who would be interested as a form of exhibitionism for voyeurs? Could I get myself out of the way to be honest so that picture I drew would be an image others might recognize? Or, would I reveal here to now mysteries of my inner life to others to make myself more actual to the reader?

These questions show how hard it was was fr Paul to tell about his life to those who would be critical of his words and thoughts. There is an audacity in his self-presentation, with a dash of arrogance -- only a dash -- for being clear about who Christ is for his life. We are never able to get away from Paul's person (not personality).

This blog is to support a series of sermons written on Paul's epistle to the churches in Galatia.

Galatians: A Testament to Freedom
An Introduction

To better enable you to follow this series of sermons on Paul’s letter to the province of Galatia, here is some background information that might help your understanding.

About the book as a whole . . . .

• Galatia was a Roman province in Asia Minor (modern Turkey), thus, Galatians was written to serval congregations.
• This letter was written by the apostle Paul about A.D. 52 which is approximately 20 years after his conversion experience on the road to Damascus (Acts 9). This is one of Paul’s earliest letters.
• There were other early Christians that were preaching “another gospel” that was different from the gospel that Paul had proclaimed. Paul is arguing with them in this letter.
  
• Galatians is a letter; Paul was not sitting down and writing a book that one day might go into something we call “scripture” or the Holy Bible. This was a decision made well after the death of Paul.
  

General comments about Paul . . . .

• Paul persecuted early followers of Jesus.
• Paul’s encounter with Jesus Christ was through revelation.
• Paul did not know Jesus in his earthly life; Paul is like us, he had to depend on others to know about Jesus’ life.
• Paul lived out his faith in a very complex culture where there were more than one religion. He came from the Greek and Hebrew world.
• His writing are very personal and his imperfections and disagreements are not hidden.
• Paul was a deliberative man, well educated and well traveled. He did most of his work away from his home.