Located on the South bank of the Lycus River in the province of Phrygia stood Colossae. Before the Christian era, Colossae was a principle city in the Lycus Valley . Part of a major trade route in Asia minor from Ephesus to Miletus, the city was most known for its production of textiles, especially its purple wool . With other large cities such as Laodicea and Hierapolis, this was a well-populated and high business area in the Lycus Valley. Yet, with changes in the road system, Laodicea became a more important trade city than Colossae. And though once a city of great prominence, by A. D. 61, Colossae had suffered a great deal.
An earthquake shook the city that year, Eusebius writes, and had disappeared from the literature of its day . However, there is much more to the story of this once prominent city. For instance, the city is written to by the Apostle Paul in the late 50s A. D. , concerning what was considered to be dangerous teachings that might be infiltrating the church in that city. What was this false teaching that Paul was concerned enough to write about? Was there truly a danger? What did this teaching consist of?
These questions will attempt to be answered in the following pages. It would be wise to first begin with the church in Colossae. The Church in Colosssae had a problem The church in Colossae was not planted by Paul. Rather, many believe that one of his students, Epaphras, was the man who built this Gentile church . It is believed that Epaphras is the man who first sent word to Paul about the problems facing the church there. And while it is generally agreed that Paul writes to a specific problem affecting the church in Colossae, it is not agreed upon what exactly the problem was.
There are as many possibilities as there are scholars who have written on the subject. For the time being, some of the more likely views will be briefly examined. The heresy Often referred to as the Colossian Heresy, many debated as to who might be the ones responsible for the false teachings and wrong influences that Paul was so concerned about. Arnold writes that though Paul had probably not visited the church in Colossae before he wrote, he believed the teaching to come from a Pagan and Jewish style of thought and law . This would imply that two different groups were responsible for the teachings.
Cliff Baird goes even further to say that it is not necessary to conclude the existence of a cohesive heresy in order to explain the facts. In fact, Baird goes on to question whether there was a heresy to even be considered at all ! While this might seem a reluctant view of the situation in Colossae, J. B Lightfoot offers an interesting proposal to the situation. While he does recognize the Judaizing and early Gnostic influences (which will soon be discussed), he believes there to be a single group or culprit responsible for the religious heresy that is taking place .
Lightfoot goes on to defend his theory with the ideas that the epistle shows no traces of multiple opponents being faced, and that in historical criticism the multiplication of persons is needless and should be downplayed . While this theory would also seem to be solid, it would still seem that there is more than a single movement taking place in Colossae. Inside the heresy In an interesting synopsis, William Barclay gives a descriptive list of what the false teaching was like. He states that some of the traits were :
-A beguiling seduction -To be considered philosophy rather than religion Based on human tradition -Turned religion into human regulations -Having a legalistic spirit -Issued observances of holidays and festivals And while this may not be an all inclusive list, it does lead into the next question: What did this false teaching actually consist of? It seems that most focus that has been brought to the discussion of the actual false teaching revolves around three ideas: mysticism, asceticism, and angel worship. While there may be other ideas that are arguably a part of the heresy issue, the examination of these three will encompass the majority of the smaller issues.
Mysticism In a time in which polytheism was still widely accepted, a person who was a devout monotheist might be considered odd. In a large urban area, such as Colossae, there were many people of many cultures brought together through the trade routes. These differing people may have brought with them more than just goods and money to the city; they may have brought their ideology, their idolatry and their means of worship. Many such means of worship included magic, or incantations. Other forms may have included an idea of enlightenment for the worshipper.
Even the nearby city of Hierapolis was known for its being a famous health resort, and that priests of Cybele made this city the center of their mystic worship . With this so close to Colossae, it would be easy to come to the conclusion that this mystical or magical worship could have easily crept into the culture there. Arnold mentions in his book that, Magic should be understood in a sociological sense, not as a practice with accusational presumptions . So, is this mystic worship just a social event, rather than an actual representation of religious activity?
It would seem reasonable that if these mystical practices originated from worship and sacrifice to gods of other cultures, it would be more than just a mere social event. And a good argument could be made that if the actual false teachers were of religious affiliation, that there influence would be a religious one rather than a sociological. Even further into the understanding of this mysticism is the enlightened philosophy that seems to be addressed in Colossians 2. Paul writes in Colossians 2:8 about, hollow and deceptive philosophy.
Many agree that this, along with other passages in the same chapter, address what is at the heart of the heresy issue. That is, the idea of spiritual enlightenment. There are those who discuss what the cosmic elements are that Paul refers to, believing that there were those who saw the only way to true salvation was through an understanding of truth. Whatever this was, most scholars see this as a definite trait of early gnostic thought. Some even go as far to say that this may have been the early Gnostics who were the problem.
This is highly unlikely, though it is likely that many similar ideas were shared between the false teachings in Colossae and the later established Gnostic movement. Asceticism Barclay writes that asceticism is the belief that the body is evil, and so all of its wishes and desires must be denied . With this definition, it is easy to see the conflict it has to the Christian movement. Paul writes in the second chapter also about many human imposed regulations that ought not to be regarded (Colossians 2:20-23). This is where the well known phrase Do not handle! Do not taste!
Do not touch is found. What is this in respect to? Many in the Hellenistic culture believed the body to be evil, that it was a prison for the soul. Followers of this belief claimed that the body was meaningless and would be destroyed in the end . With this ideology of the body, people of this faith believed that only through strict and rigorous regulations of the body could true salvation be brought. Such things as severe fasting, strict observance of festivals, a lack of bathing or grooming, sexual abstinence or even physical torment were known practices .
It would seem that they believed that as Christ had given up a life of pleasure, so should they . It is clear that this understanding is wrong. Paul himself writes in other letters that man is to respect the body. While Hellenistic culture is giving credit for some of the ascetic thought, it could be possible that a small sect of the Jews, known as the Essenes, might also hold liability in this false doctrine. What is believed is that mysticism enlightenment and asceticism hold common ground, though they may not be from the same teachers.
Angel Worship Arnold spends much time in his book referring to this next aspect of the heresy. While it would seem that there are differing views on what Paul means in Colossians 2:18 and the worship of angels, Arnold seems to have the most fair and balanced theory of what it may refer to. Arnold argues that the phrase, worship of angels means a magical invocation for reasons of need or assistance . He continues by explaining that the one who invoked the angel through magic had a high respect for the angel and other supernatural spirits .
Most times, the angels were sought after for protection, for insight into the future, for ensuring health and prosperity, as aphrodisiacs, and to bring curses upon people . Obviously, the problem with invoking angels is that it takes the place of the Christian seeking God himself through Christ. Seeking the angels to intervene was in effect denying Christ his perfect mediation for man. Now, as to who is accounted the idea of angel worship, there is much question. Some believe it may have been some of the Jewish sects, however, C. S. Lewis argues that, outside of phrases in magic or exorcism, there is no evidence that the Jew ever worshipped the angel . While this is not conclusive evidence, it would make sense to believe that angel worship did not originate from a Jewish sect. If it had, it would make more sense that it would have been addressed more commonly than a single reference in one epistle. Possible contributors to the heresy With a now clearer understanding of what the heresy consisted of, a better analysis of who were the major contributors can be made.
Upon fair study, it seems that two major groups stand out as those responsible for the false teaching: the legalistic Jews (and more precisely, the Essenes), and those who would birth future gnosticism through mystical practices and asceticism. It is well known that Paul fought long and hard with those Jews who wanted to keep strict ceremonialism from the old covenant, and bring it into Christianity . Many of these Jews were also extremely aware of the fact that they had been the chosen people of God.
To them, to become a Jewish Christian was the highest level a human could reach. In some cases, they believed on through circumcision could others reach this level . This legalism became quite the inescapable lifestyle of many of the Jewish community. With their legalism and strict observances of days, it was only a matter of time before their religion had de-emphasized the role of Christ . But there was something more than just the strict legalism of the Jews. The Pharisees had strict legalism, yet they were not radical enough to support some of the views that were taught.
It seems only the radical fringe group of the Essnes could take the responsibility for some of the false doctrine. Lightfoot remarks that the Jewish influences of the heresy more likely come from Pharisee or Essene Jews than from the Sadducee as the Pharisees and Essenes were more strict followers of the law. Lightfoot continues to say that it is the more likely the Essene that the Pharisee . From their very beginning, the Essenes were an outside, or fringe group who voluntarily separated themselves.
They did this because they saw the rest of humanity as impure people (this will play well into the ascetic views spoken about earlier). The Essene lived a lifestyle of deprivation. Lightfoot writes about the Essene, To the legalism of the Pharisee, the Essene added an asceticism that was peculiarly his own . The Essene found no use in marriage, drank no wine, ate no food that was animal , and did other such extreme things as to punish their evil bodies. Even Josephus notes on something odd about the Essenes.
He writes that the Essenes offered up some prayers to the sun each day as they believed they were requesting the sun to rise . Surely these characteristics would fall into place with some of the things that the apostle writes against in the Colossian letter. There is a problem though, in that if the Essenes thought that the outsiders were impure, and evil, and wanted nothing to do with them, how would they go and teach these Essene doctrines to a gentile church in an urban setting?
This would lead one to think that perhaps there were another group who taught the same ideas of asceticism and mysticism in order to reach salvation. For sake of a better term, early gnostic would most likely be the best fit. While all agree that the true Gnostic movement did not occur until much later, the one who studies this heresy must give name to this other unknown group of false teachers. This is not an attempt to create a new sect or faction in which to lay blame, but rather an easier way to catalogue similar thoughts in teaching and lifestyle.
With traditional gnosticism, the emphasis is on obtaining more knowledge, to reach a higher plane of understanding. The early gnostic sought to reach this in relation to knowing God . Paul consistently argues in Colossians (1:9-10, 1:26-28, 2:2-3, 3:10) that man has sufficient knowledge of God. The apostle also battles with the idea of divine fullness that is prominent in gnostic teaching (1:9,19, 2:8,10). The other times Paul seems to battle with gnostic thought is in his argumentation against the ascetic lifestyle (2:20-23), which seem to be rooted in early gnostic belief . Paul fights the heresy
In only a few chapters, the apostle Paul embarks on a crusade against false teachers that he may have not had prior association. Pauls letter to the Colossian church is filled with the message of Christs supremacy(1:15-20), and freedom from human regulations. He seeks to remind the Christians, who were already rooted up in the faith to remain strong and not be captured through hollow philosophy (2:6-8). He entreats them to not be held down be human traditions or regulations (2:20-23), but to rather keep their focus on heavenly matters where their lives are secured with Christ(3:1-4). Conclusion
When reading Colossians, there is a sense that since the church has already been grounded in the faith, these false teachings must not be coming in through obvious means. There is the possibility that the doctrines were slipping in through their own church without them even realizing it. If this is so, than there is the possibility that the heresy came from within the church itself. Though some legalistic and perhaps even ritualistic views of some Judiazing Christians may have been part of the false teaching, there probably not an organized movement by any Jewish sect to influence the church.
This includes the Pharisees and the Essenes, who were so radical, it would seem unlikely they would have much to do with a gentile church. It is not likely that the heresy came from the Gnostic movement, as many agree that it was not considered a religion or sect in the late 50s A. D. There are ideas, such as some mysticism and asceticism, that seem to be implied in Colossians that may have come from the early thoughts of gnosticism, but it is most unlikely true Gnosticism was a part of this heresy.
It is more likely that these false teaching came from others outsides the church. This is not to imply that it was one large organized faction, nor is it to imply that it was many small orderly religious groups. The most balanced theory to take when looking at the Colossian heresy is that of many cultural influences, religious traditions, and legalistic views all creeping into the mainstream, and infecting many small areas of the church. Paul sought to stop the problem before it grew into epidemic proportions, and so he wrote the epistle to the Colossians.
