This is an amusing paper I wrote while in college at George Fox University in Newberg, Oregon in April, 1994. The pretense is that I was traveling to Ephesus to see Timothy, student of Paul the Apostle, and writing back to my teacher the experience of my travels. I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it!

Epistle of Pamela
to
Howard Maceous

From: Pamela, a minister of Jesus Christ, traveling the cities of Asia Minor with my husband and family.

To: Howard Maceous, Educator at Newbergus.

Howard, you are my mentor in the things of the Lord. "May God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord show you His kindness and mercy and give you great peace of heart and mind."¹

As I promised when I left your presence in Newbergus to undertake this long journey, I am sending this letter as an account of our travels. The last week has been spent in Ephesus at the church here, in the company of our friend, and brother in the Lord, Timothy.

We arrived at Ephesus in the spring of the year, but the ship was unable to enter the harbor which was clogged with silt from the rains. We were detoured to Miletus, 30 miles south. From there we came to the city of Ephesus, entering through the Magnesian Gate.²

As we came into the city, blooming with olives, figs and fragrant with date palms, our party passed by the East Gymnasium.³ Although we did not go inside, we could peer in to see the men of the city reclining by pools and exercising vigorously. Ephesus has many athletes and numerous gymnasiums and baths. Of course the baths are used by many who could never aspire to lofty physical fetes!

As we traveled down Curetes street, passing the Council Hall and various baths, it was possible to see the entrance to the Agora in the distance. We passed by many private homes. Some, to the north on the slopes of Mt. Pion, were glorious. Others, to the south, were more common, scattered over the slopes of Mt. Coressus. The city wall looms behind these dwellings giving one a sense of security.

We decided to climb to the top of Mt. Pion to view the city from above. What a beautiful site! To the northeast, in all its splendor, stands the Temple of Artemis. And what a wonder it is! I hope to go there to see the columns donated by King Croesus.⁴

Although visiting the Temple of Artemis is an exciting prospect from an architectural point of view, I am concerned about the influences of the followers of goddesses Artemis and Diana on our fellow Christians. Timothy is meeting us at the entrance to the theater and I plan on talking about this problem with him since it is appearing in the churches in Newbergus and Portlandia, too, where it is called "paganism".

As we looked west from the top of Mt. Pion we could see the white, gleaming expanse of the marble Arcadian Way. Six chariots could run abreast down that street, it is so wide! When we look down into the huge amphitheater it is difficult to imagine 25,000 people seated there at one time.⁵ It must have been frightening to the Apostle Paul when he was the subject of a riot there years ago. No wonder he was prevented from entering there to speak. I understand the crowd was hostile, vehemently defending the goddess Artemis and chanting to her for two hours!⁶

Since the time to meet Timothy was approaching, we descended to the street of the Commercial Agora. There we saw many shops and vendors, people of all kinds, some very wealthy, others the rejects of this prosperous society. The children thronged around us begging for coins and gifts. They were pathetic, yet beautiful, lost little lambs. The temple of Serapis is on the harbor side of the Agora. We did not go by there, but I was told of the Egyptian idols worshipped there and how it was dedicated to conducting various water rituals.⁷

Finally we arrived at the theater entrance and there was Timothy. Amidst tears and hugs we greeted each other and then went on to his home. As it was getting late, we decided to wait until the next day to discuss the church. We retired to couches and slept.

The next morning, after a breakfast of pita beard, olives and goat cheese, we went to the building where the Christians of Ephesus met. It was a simple stone room with a few side chambers. The ceiling was held up by simple columns of stone. There were about seven of us present. A lively discussion ensued with regard to the problems in the body of Christ at Ephesus.⁸

Timothy first told us of Paul's recent letters to him. This great man of the Church had not been able to return to Ephesus and was writing from Nero's prison.

One of Paul's concerns had to do with the influence of false teachers on the Christians here. One group in particular, the Gnostics⁹, are twisting the scriptures, adding and taking away, reinterpreting from ancient Jewish texts and teaching that "the Logos of God became man, that from man you might learn how man may become God."¹⁰ This sounds very much like the "new age" religions of Portlandia.

There is much influence from the Greek philosophers (some people are reported to have giant friezes on the walls of their homes depicting Socrates teaching)¹¹. Others are teaching that we earn our Salvation by finding favor with angels. Some people, who follow this teaching, are even keeping lists and genealogies of angels!¹² It is amazing that the Gospel of our Lord has so soon been corrupted!

No wonder Paul had to again restate the reason for Christ's birth, death and resurrection. The evil from the pagans in this city continues to creep into the teachings here. Some, who served eagerly at first, have begun to neglect the call of our Lord to care for the widows and orphans. Remember I told you about the children begging in the streets? Timothy has told me that some of those children are the offspring of widows of this church!

What is more upsetting is that there are many here who claim to be followers of Christ and have riches beyond belief. Our Father has blessed them with abundance but they refuse to share with those less fortunate. They are arrogant, respecting their rich friends over their peers in the church. Dear Paul, always with wisdom from our Father, exhorted them in his letters to Timothy to share what they have.¹³

There is one other subject I must tell you about. The women in this city, some of them in the church, are acting foolish and arrogant. They boss the men around, acting like queens and judges over them. Many pagan women hold office in the temples and teach the religious rites of pagan beliefs.¹⁴ The attitude is one of superiority and, according to Timothy, it has affected the flow of the Spirit in the church here. Paul said in his first letter to Timothy that "women should be quiet and sensible in manner and clothing. Christian women should be noticed for being kind and good, not for the way they fix their hair or because of their jewels or fancy clothes. Women should listen and learn quietly and humbly."¹⁵  Paul, according to Timothy, is teaching the church not to "allow" women to teach or lord it over the men like the priestesses in the pagan temples. We know Paul supports the godly women, like Priscilla, in their teaching ministries. And we know, there are others: Phoebe, Mary, Tryphaena and Tryphosa who all worked for the Lord.¹⁶

It should be understood, Timothy stresses, that Paul is concerned about the conduct of the women here, in Ephesus. Because of the radical teachings of the pagans, the women, who are new converts, are led astray by false teachings. They in turn teach their husbands. These women are uneducated, without the necessary experience or knowledge to teach the men, who are educated Jews or gentiles having more experience in the church.¹⁷

Our discussions of these and other problems continued throughout the week. We spent many hours in prayer and fellowship, sharing insights and many good meals! We are leaving here tomorrow. I hear the dredgers have reopened the harbor so we will sail from here, north, to Athens.

I am looking forward to seeing you soon and will continue to write of our adventures through Asia Minor. Peace be with you and may the Spirit of our Father always be in your heart.

Sincerely, In Christ Jesus,

Pamela

References

1. 1 Timothy 1:2. The Life Application Bible: The Living Bible. Wheaton, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., 1988. pg 1862.

2. The NIV Study Bible. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1985. Map pg 1789.

3. Oster, Richard E., Jr. "Ephesus". The Anchor Bible Dictionary. Ed. David Noel Freedman.Vol.2. New York, NY: Doubleday, 1992. pg 547.

4. Oster, Richard E., Jr. "Ephesus". The Anchor Bible Dictionary. Ed. David Noel Freedman.Vol.2. New York, NY: Doubleday, 1992. pg 545.

5. Blevins, James L. "Ephesus". The Mercer Dictionary of the Bible. Ed. Watson E. Mills. Macon, GA: Mercer University Press, 1990. pg 256.

6. Acts 19:38 ff. The NIV Study Bible. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1985. Study Notes pg 1684.

7. The Anchor Bible Dictionary, V.2 pg 545.

8. The author has taken some liberty in describing the church building at Ephesus.

9. The author has taken some liberty here. Although the word "knowledge" in 1 Timothy 6:20 is not translated Gnostics, its use here offers some clarity.

10. Pagels, Elaine. The Gnostic Paul. Paperback Edition. Philadelphia, PA: Trinity Press International, 1992. pg 115

11. Oster, Richard E., Jr. "Ephesus". The Anchor Bible Dictionary. Ed. David Noel Freedman.Vol.2. New York, NY: Doubleday, 1992. pg 545.

12. 1 Timothy 1:3,4. The Life Application Bible: The Living Bible. Wheaton, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., 1988. pg 1862. Study Notes pg 1862.

13. 1 Timothy 6:17-19. The Life Application Bible: The Living Bible. Wheaton, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., 1988. pg 1870-1871.

14. Oster, Richard E., Jr. "Ephesus". The Anchor Bible Dictionary. Ed. David Noel Freedman.Vol.2. New York, NY: Doubleday, 1992. pg 544.

15. 1 Timothy 2:9 ff. The Life Application Bible: The Living Bible. Wheaton, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., 1988. pg 1864 and 1866.

16. 1 Timothy 2:12. The Life Application Bible: The Living Bible. Wheaton, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., 1988. Study notes, pg 1864.

17. 1 Timothy 2:12. The Life Application Bible: The Living Bible. Wheaton, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., 1988. Study notes, pg 1864.