Philemon (right), Apphia (centre) and Archippus (left) depicted in a traditional icon … Saint Paul’s Letter to Philemon is addressed to all three
Patrick Comerford
The celebrations of Epiphany-tide continue today (16 January 2023), and this week began with the Second Sunday of Epiphany (14 January 2024). Christmas is a season that lasts for 40 days that continues from Christmas Day (25 December) to Candlemas or the Feast of the Presentation (2 February).
Before today begins, I am taking some time for reflection, reading and prayer. My reflections each morning during the seven days of this week include:
My reflections each morning during the seven days of this week include:
1, A reflection on one of the seven people who give their names to epistles in the New Testament;
2, the Gospel reading of the day;
3, a prayer from the USPG prayer diary.
A traditional icon of Philemon … the Letter to Philemon is the shortest of the Pauline letters
3, Philemon:
Although Saint Paul does not give his own name to any of his letters, seven people give their names to a total of eleven of the letters or epistles in the New Testament: Timothy (I and II Timohty), Titus, Philemon, James, Peter (I and II Peter), John (I, II and III John), and Jude.
Three of the Pauline letters are known as the Pastoral Letters: I Timothy, II Timothy and Titus. They are generally discussed as a group – sometimes along with the Letter to Philemon – and have been known as the pastoral letters since the 18th or 19th century because they address two individuals, Timothy and Titus, who have pastoral oversight of local churches and discuss in pastoral ways issues of Christian living, doctrine and leadership.
These letters are arranged in the New Testament in order of size, although this does not represent their chronological order.
The Letter to Philemon was written from prison by the Apostle Paul and Saint Timothy to Philemon, a leader in the Colossian church, and deals with the themes of forgiveness and reconciliation.
Saint Paul identifies himself not as an apostle with authority but as ‘a prisoner of Christ Jesus,’ and calls Timothy ‘our brother,’ and they address Philemon as a ‘dear friend’ and ‘co-worker.’ The letter is also addressed to two other recipients, Apphia ‘our sister’ and Archippus ‘our fellow-soldier,’ as well as ‘the church in your house.’
Onesimus, a slave who had left his master Philemon, is returning with this letter in which Paul asks Philemon to receive him as a ‘beloved brother.’ Philemon was a wealthy Christian, possibly a bishop of the church that met in his home in Colossae.
This letter is the shortest of the Pauline letters, with only 335 words in the Greek text. It was written ca 57-62 CE by Paul while in prison at Caesarea Maritima or in Rome, perhaps at the same time as he wrote the Letter to the Colossians.
The letter is addressed to Philemon, Apphia and Archippus, and the church in Philemon’s house. Philemon (Φιλήμων) is generally assumed to have lived in Colossae. He may have converted to Christianity through Paul’s ministry, possibly in Ephesus. Apphia in the salutation is probably Philemon’s wife. Some commentators suggest that Archippus is their son.
Saint Paul writes this letter on behalf of Onesimus, a runaway slave who had wronged his owner Philemon. It is often assumed that Onesimus had fled after stealing money, and Paul says that if Onesimus owes anything, Philemon should charge this to Paul.
After leaving Philemon, Onesimus met Paul and became a Christian. Paul sends Onesimus back to Philemon with the letter, hoping the two are reconciled. The survival of the letter suggests Paul’s request was granted.
Onesimus’ status as a runaway slave has been challenged by Allen Dwight Callahan, who argues that, beyond verse 16, ‘nothing in the text conclusively indicates that Onesimus was ever the chattel of the letter’s chief addressee.’
Callahan argues that Origen and other early commentators are silent on the possible status of Onesimus as a slave and traces the origins of this interpretation to John Chrysostom ca 386-398. Callahan suggests that Onesimus and Philemon are brothers both by blood and religion, but who have become estranged. But other early writers who assume that Onesimus was a runaway slave include Athanasius and Basil of Caesarea.
In this letter, Paul does not label slavery as negative or positive. Rather than deal with the morality of slavery directly, he undermines the foundation of slavery which is dehumanisation of other human beings. Paul feels that Onesimus should return to Philemon but not as a slave; rather, under a bond of familial love.
Tradition speaks of Philemon as a saint who is commemorated on 22 November and who was martyred with Apphia, Archippus and Onesimus at Colossae during the first persecution in the reign of Nero. In the list of the Seventy Apostles (see Luke 10) attributed to Dorotheus of Tyre, Philemon is described as bishop of Gaza.
As for Onesimus, the only other Biblical reference to him is in Colossians, where Onesimus is called a ‘faithful and beloved brother’ (Colossians 4: 9). He is known in Eastern Orthodox tradition as Onesimus of Byzantium and the Holy Apostle Onesimus. Onesimus is named by Ignatius of Antioch as bishop in Ephesus, which would put his death close to 95 CE. He is commemorated on 15 February.
Onesimus is known in Orthodox tradition as Onesimus of Byzantium and the Holy Apostle Onesimus
Philemon, Ovid, Faust and Jung:
Philemon is also the name of a figure in Ovid’s Metamorphoses and in Goethe’s Faust. In the Metamorphoses, Ovid tells how Jupiter and Mercury went wandering disguised as mortals in of Phrygia. Philemon and Baucis, an old poor couple, welcomed the strangers into their humble cottage. To repay them for their hospitality and kindness, Jupiter and Mercury granted the old couple any wish. Philemon and Baucis wished to become priests in a new shrine and to die at the same time as a testimony to their enduring love. When they died, they were transformed into trees that continued to live side by side.
In Faust 2, Act V, Goethe has Faust build a city on land reclaimed from the sea. In order to accomplish this task, Faust tells Mephistopheles that he wants Philemon and Baucis moved. Instead, to Faust’s horror, Mephistopheles burns down their cottage with Philemon and Baucis inside.
Philemon in Goethe’s Faust made a tremendous impression on CJ Jung and held a life-long significance for him. Jung felt it was his responsibility to atone for this crime and to prevent its repetition. Healing this Faustian split was a central theme in Jung’s life work, and Philemon played an important role in Jung’s fantasies1 To Jung, Philemon represented superior insight. Jung commemorated Philemon at his tower in Bollingen. Over the gate, he carved the inscription, Philemonis Sacrum – Fausti Poenitentia (‘Philemon’s Shrine – Faust’s Repentance’), and in a room he painted a huge mural of the winged Philemon.
Jung painted a huge mural of the winged Philemon in a room in his tower in Bollingen
Mark 2: 23-28 (NRSVA):
23 One sabbath he was going through the cornfields; and as they made their way his disciples began to pluck heads of grain. 24 The Pharisees said to him, ‘Look, why are they doing what is not lawful on the sabbath?’ 25 And he said to them, ‘Have you never read what David did when he and his companions were hungry and in need of food? 26 He entered the house of God, when Abiathar was high priest, and ate the bread of the Presence, which it is not lawful for any but the priests to eat, and he gave some to his companions.’ 27 Then he said to them, ‘The sabbath was made for humankind, and not humankind for the sabbath; 28 so the Son of Man is lord even of the sabbath.’
‘The sabbath was made for humankind, and not humankind for the sabbath’ (Mark 2: 27) … bread in a shop window in Lichfield (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2023)
Today’s Prayers (Tuesday 16 January 2024):
The theme this week in ‘Pray With the World Church,’ the Prayer Diary of the Anglican mission agency USPG (United Society Partners in the Gospel), is: ‘Climate Justice from Bangladesh perspective.’ This theme was introduced on Sunday by the Right Revd Shourabh Pholia, Bishop of Barishal Diocese, Church of Bangladesh.
The USPG Prayer Diary today (16 January 2024) invites us to pray in these words:
We pray for the vulnerable communities around the world who are affected by climate change, especially for those who are in need of protection, provision and support.
The Collect:
Almighty God,
in Christ you make all things new:
transform the poverty of our nature by the riches of your grace,
and in the renewal of our lives
make known your heavenly glory;
through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.
The Post-Communion Prayer:
God of glory,
you nourish us with your Word
who is the bread of life:
fill us with your Holy Spirit
that through us the light of your glory
may shine in all the world.
We ask this in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord.
Additional Collect:
Eternal Lord,
our beginning and our end:
bring us with the whole creation
to your glory, hidden through past ages
and made known
in Jesus Christ our Lord.
Yesterday’s reflection (Titus)
Continued tomorrow (James)
Remains of the basilica in Ephesus … Onesimus is said to have been Bishop of Ephesus before he was martyred (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)
Scripture quotations are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicised Edition copyright © 1989, 1995, National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. http://nrsvbibles.org
16 January 2024
Daily prayers during
Christmas and Epiphany:
23, 16 January 2024
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Stafford Hospital,
a Jacobean charity,
continues its work
in Shenley Church End
The Stafford Hospital or almshouse in Shenley Church End dates from the early 17th century (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2024)
Patrick Comerford
I was back in Shenley Church End last week for a lunchtime meeting, and took some time later in the afternoon to explore the architectural legacy and history of the village, about 3 km south-west of Central Milton Keynes, and about 3 km north-west of Bletchley.
In the past, I have written about Saint Mary’s Church in Shenley Church End, including the striking monument in the north aisle to Sir Thomas Stafford (1607) of Tattenhoe. This monument includes a recumbent effigy on a base with a central figure of his wife flanked by their four sons and three daughters, all carved in relief, and it dramatically recalls that only one son and two daughters were still alive when he died.
But last week, I wanted to see the former Stafford hospital or almshouse, founded by the Stafford family in Shenley Church End in the early 17th century.
The weather-beaten inscription and datestone in the gable over the central pair of doors in the former Stafford almshouses in Shenley Church End (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2024)
A minor branch of the Stafford family of Stafford and Buckingham acquired Tattenhoe and became involved in Shenley Church End in the mid-16th century, and following some legal challenges the estates eventually passed to a ‘bastard’ son in the family and his heirs. But Shenley dates back centuries before that to pre-conquest days.
Shenley Church End, along with the neighbouring districts of Shenley Brook End, Shenley Wood and Shenley Lodge, are collectively known as ‘The Shenleys.’ The name Shenley is an Old English word meaning ‘bright clearing.’ In the Domesday Book (1086), the area was collectively known as Senelai and controlled by Hugh d’Avranches, 1st Earl of Chester.
The distinction between Shenley Brook End and Shenley Church End dates from the 12th century, when a new manor house was built in Shenley Brook End by the Mansell family. However, the two manors were owned by the same person by 1426 and by then the distinction between the two places was in name only.
Today, the core of the historic village is at the heart of the new district with its name. One of the earliest places of interest in Shenley Church End is the Shenley Toot, a motte and bailey, although only the motte remains. Last week, though, I wanted to see the former Stafford Hospital or Almshouses in Shenley Church End, which date from 1615.
Sir Thomas Stafford, who died in 1607, depicted on his monument in Saint Mary’s Church, Shenley Church End (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2024)
When Sir Thomas Stafford died in 1607, he left instructions in his will to build almshouses house four unmarried, impoverished men and two women. They had to regularly attend Shenley church, and were required to refrain from any ‘riotous living.’
A daily payment of 3 pence was to be made to each of the men, and 2 pence to each of the women. Under the provisions of Stafford’s will, the trustees were to buy 70 acres of land at Great Linford. This land was rented to William Hopkins for £30 a year, and the rental income was to be spent on ‘the Poor People of Stafford’s Hospital in Shenley.’
The income was expected to provide the finances needed to maintain the building and to pay the pensions. However, over time the rental income lost its value. The Charity Commissioners agreed in 1882 that three of the tenements could be let, with the income applied to the benefit of the three remaining residents. Since then, the almshouses have been converted into four private houses.
The grade II terraced, nine-bay former almshouses are built of coursed limestone, and are of one-storey with attics. Although they have been altered, the architectural details include an old tile roof with four brick chimneys, six gabled dormers with two-light casements, and three pairs of doors.
The gable over the central pair of doors has a weather-beaten inscription and datestone. The plaque is greatly weathered and was difficult – almost impossible – to make out last week, but it reads: ‘This almshouse was caused to be erected by Thomas Stafford Esq, Deceased, and was built by Thomas Stafford his son, Anno Domini 1614.’
Two of Sir Thomas Stafford’s sons depicted on his monument in Saint Mary’s Church, Shenley Church End (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2024)
The charity in its present form was set up after the sale of the almshouses. The proceeds from the sale were invested in 1984 and the interest from this investment provides the trust with its income, distributed within the criteria set out in the trust document and within charity commission guidelines.
The trustees are the Vicar and Churchwardens of Saint Mary’s Church, four trustees nominated by Shenley Brook End and Shenley Church End Parish Councils, and two trustees co-opted by the trustees.
In recent years, the trust has helped with children’s school trips, bought an oven for a family, and provided Christmas gifts for senior residents of Shenley. The area it covers now includes Crownhill, Grange Farm, Hazeley, Shenley Church End, Medbourne, Shenley Brooke End, Westcroft, Kingsmead, Furzton, Emerson Valley, Tattenhoe and Tattenhoe Park.
Sir Thomas Stafford’s monument remains an impressive monument in Saint Mary’s Church. It was originally on the east wall of the family mausoleum, now the Lady Chapel, but was moved to its present position in front of the old North Door during restorations of the church in 1909.
The former Stafford Hospital or almshouses, now private houses in Shenley Church End … but the charity continues its work (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2024)
Patrick Comerford
I was back in Shenley Church End last week for a lunchtime meeting, and took some time later in the afternoon to explore the architectural legacy and history of the village, about 3 km south-west of Central Milton Keynes, and about 3 km north-west of Bletchley.
In the past, I have written about Saint Mary’s Church in Shenley Church End, including the striking monument in the north aisle to Sir Thomas Stafford (1607) of Tattenhoe. This monument includes a recumbent effigy on a base with a central figure of his wife flanked by their four sons and three daughters, all carved in relief, and it dramatically recalls that only one son and two daughters were still alive when he died.
But last week, I wanted to see the former Stafford hospital or almshouse, founded by the Stafford family in Shenley Church End in the early 17th century.
The weather-beaten inscription and datestone in the gable over the central pair of doors in the former Stafford almshouses in Shenley Church End (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2024)
A minor branch of the Stafford family of Stafford and Buckingham acquired Tattenhoe and became involved in Shenley Church End in the mid-16th century, and following some legal challenges the estates eventually passed to a ‘bastard’ son in the family and his heirs. But Shenley dates back centuries before that to pre-conquest days.
Shenley Church End, along with the neighbouring districts of Shenley Brook End, Shenley Wood and Shenley Lodge, are collectively known as ‘The Shenleys.’ The name Shenley is an Old English word meaning ‘bright clearing.’ In the Domesday Book (1086), the area was collectively known as Senelai and controlled by Hugh d’Avranches, 1st Earl of Chester.
The distinction between Shenley Brook End and Shenley Church End dates from the 12th century, when a new manor house was built in Shenley Brook End by the Mansell family. However, the two manors were owned by the same person by 1426 and by then the distinction between the two places was in name only.
Today, the core of the historic village is at the heart of the new district with its name. One of the earliest places of interest in Shenley Church End is the Shenley Toot, a motte and bailey, although only the motte remains. Last week, though, I wanted to see the former Stafford Hospital or Almshouses in Shenley Church End, which date from 1615.
Sir Thomas Stafford, who died in 1607, depicted on his monument in Saint Mary’s Church, Shenley Church End (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2024)
When Sir Thomas Stafford died in 1607, he left instructions in his will to build almshouses house four unmarried, impoverished men and two women. They had to regularly attend Shenley church, and were required to refrain from any ‘riotous living.’
A daily payment of 3 pence was to be made to each of the men, and 2 pence to each of the women. Under the provisions of Stafford’s will, the trustees were to buy 70 acres of land at Great Linford. This land was rented to William Hopkins for £30 a year, and the rental income was to be spent on ‘the Poor People of Stafford’s Hospital in Shenley.’
The income was expected to provide the finances needed to maintain the building and to pay the pensions. However, over time the rental income lost its value. The Charity Commissioners agreed in 1882 that three of the tenements could be let, with the income applied to the benefit of the three remaining residents. Since then, the almshouses have been converted into four private houses.
The grade II terraced, nine-bay former almshouses are built of coursed limestone, and are of one-storey with attics. Although they have been altered, the architectural details include an old tile roof with four brick chimneys, six gabled dormers with two-light casements, and three pairs of doors.
The gable over the central pair of doors has a weather-beaten inscription and datestone. The plaque is greatly weathered and was difficult – almost impossible – to make out last week, but it reads: ‘This almshouse was caused to be erected by Thomas Stafford Esq, Deceased, and was built by Thomas Stafford his son, Anno Domini 1614.’
Two of Sir Thomas Stafford’s sons depicted on his monument in Saint Mary’s Church, Shenley Church End (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2024)
The charity in its present form was set up after the sale of the almshouses. The proceeds from the sale were invested in 1984 and the interest from this investment provides the trust with its income, distributed within the criteria set out in the trust document and within charity commission guidelines.
The trustees are the Vicar and Churchwardens of Saint Mary’s Church, four trustees nominated by Shenley Brook End and Shenley Church End Parish Councils, and two trustees co-opted by the trustees.
In recent years, the trust has helped with children’s school trips, bought an oven for a family, and provided Christmas gifts for senior residents of Shenley. The area it covers now includes Crownhill, Grange Farm, Hazeley, Shenley Church End, Medbourne, Shenley Brooke End, Westcroft, Kingsmead, Furzton, Emerson Valley, Tattenhoe and Tattenhoe Park.
Sir Thomas Stafford’s monument remains an impressive monument in Saint Mary’s Church. It was originally on the east wall of the family mausoleum, now the Lady Chapel, but was moved to its present position in front of the old North Door during restorations of the church in 1909.
The former Stafford Hospital or almshouses, now private houses in Shenley Church End … but the charity continues its work (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2024)
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