Thomas Aquinas: Philemon: English
COMMENTARY ON THE EPISTLE OF PAUL
TO PHILEMON
by
Thomas Aquinas
translated by Ralph McInterny
Thomas Aquinas, Selected Writings (Penguin, 1998)
revised and html-edited by Joseph Kenny, O.P.
Text
Paul, a prisoner of Christ Jesus, and our brother Timothy, to Philemon, our beloved and fellow worker, and to Appia, the sister, and to Archippus, our fellow soldier, and to the church that is in your house: grace be to you and peace from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ.
I give thanks to my God, always making remembrance of you in my prayers, as I hear of your charity and of the faith that you have in our Lord Jesus and towards all the saints. May the sharing of your faith be made evident in full knowledge of all the good that is in you, in Christ Jesus. For I had great joy and consolation in your charity, because through you, brother, the hearts of the saints have found rest.
For this reason, though I am very confident that I might charge you in Christ Jesus to do, what is fitting, yet for the sake of charity I prefer to plead, since you are such as you are; as Paul, an old man — and now also a prisoner of Jesus Christ — I plead with you for my own son, whom I have begotten in prison, for Onesimus. He once was useless to you, but now is useful both to me and to you. I am sending him back to you, and do you welcome him as though he were my very heart. I had wanted to keep him here with me that in your stead he might wait on me in my imprisonment for the Gospel; but I did not want to do anything without your counsel, in order that your kindness might not be as it were of necessity, but voluntary.
Perhaps, indeed, he departed from you for a short while so that you might receive him for ever, no longer as a slave, but instead of a slave as a brother most dear, especially to me, and how much more to you, both in the flesh and in the Lord! If therefore you does count me as a partner, welcome him as you would me. And if he did you any injury or owes anything, charge it to me. I, Paul, write it with my own hand: I will repay it — not to say to you that you owe me your very self. Yes, indeed, brother! May I too make use of you in the Lord! Console my heart in the Lord!
Trusting in your compliance, I am writing to you, knowing that you wilt do even beyond what I say. At the same time make ready a lodging for me too, for I hope that through your prayers I shall be restored to you. Epaphras, my fellow prisoner in Christ Jesus, Mark, Aristarchus, Demas and Luke, my fellow workers send you greetings. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. Amen.
Preface
‘If you have a faithful servant, let him be to you as your own soul’ (Sirach 33:31). The wise man shows three things concerning master and slave, namely, what is required on the side of the servant; what ought to be the feeling of the master towards the servant; and what is the use of the servant. From the servant fidelity is asked, for in this he is a good servant, because what he is and all that he has he ought to give to the master. Matthew 24:45: ‘Who, do you think, is the faithful and prudent servant...’ And he says, ‘if he is faithful’, because fidelity is found in few. Proverbs 20:6: ‘But who shall find a faithful man?’ The master ought to feel towards his servant as a friend, hence it is said, ‘as his own soul’. For this is proper to friends, that they are of one mind in what they will and what they do not will. Acts 4.32: ‘Now the multitude of the believers were of one heart and one soul.’ By which we are given to understand that there is a consensus of master and servant, when the faithful servant becomes a friend. As for his use, he should be treated like a brother, for he is a brother, both with respect to generation of nature, because they have the same author —Job 31.13: ‘If I have despised to abide judgement with my man-servant’; Malachi 2:10: ‘Have we not all one father? Did not one God created us?’ —and with respect to the generation of grace, which is the same for both. Galatians 3:27: ‘For all you who have been baptized into Christ, have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek; there is neither slave nor freeman; there is neither male nor female. For you are all one in Christ Jesus.’ Matthew 23:8: ‘And all you are brothers.’ These words are relevant to the matter of this epistle. For as it was shown above how spiritual prelates should relate to their subjects, so here he shows how temporal masters should relate to their temporal servants, and how the faithful servant to his master.
The occasion of the epistle is this. At Colossae an important Christian had a servant who secretly fled to Rome where he was baptized by the Apostle who now writes on his behalf. First he gives a greeting, followed by the narrative of the epistle. In the greeting he mentions persons who send their greeting and then the recipients and finally the good hoped for.
On the text
Therefore he says Paul , — a name to be revered by all the faithful who have been taught by him — a prisoner . 2 Timothy 2:9: ‘in which I suffer even to bonds, as a criminal’. For now he is a prisoner in Rome, but of Christ Jesus, to give the reason for his chains. For it is highly praiseworthy to be imprisoned for the sake of Christ; for in this he is blessed. Matthew 5:10: ‘Blessed are they who suffer persecution for justice’ sake...’ 2 Peter 4:15: ‘Let none of you suffer as a murderer, or a thief, or a slanderer, or as one coveting what belongs to others. But if he suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God under this name.’ Acts 5.41: ‘So they departed from the Sanhedrin, rejoicing that they had been counted worthy to suffer disgrace for the name of Jesus.’
And our brother Timothy ... They are brothers with regard to perfect faith. Philippians 2:20: ‘For I have no one so like-minded who is so genuinely solicitous for you.’ He joins Timothy to himself, that he might more easily succeed, because it is impossible that the prayers of many will not be heard.
Then he mentions the persons greeted. And first the principal person greeted, then others, particularly the husband and wife whose house it is, to whom the servant is obliged. To Philemon, our beloved and fellow worker, and to Appia, beloved sister ... Beloved, he says on account of her good works. John 13:34: ‘This is my command, that you love one another.’ Fellow worker, because he ministers to the saints. Proverbs 18.19: ‘A brother that is helped by his brother is like a strong city.’ Then he mentions Archippus our fellow soldier , who was so powerful at Colossae that all Christians were under his protection.
That is why he brings in the whole Church there, of which he was the bishop, writing in Colossians 4:17, ‘And say to Archippus: “Look to the ministry which you have received in the Lord, that you fulfil it.”’ And he calls Archippus ‘fellow soldier’ because all prelates are, as it were, spiritual soldiers of the Church. 2 Corinthians 10:4: ‘For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal...’ And to the church ... He adds this in order to move him to hear plainly the expected good that is set forth, as was customary. Then when he says, I give thanks to my God , the burden of the letter begins. First, he gives thanks; then he makes his plea, For this reason ...; finally, he concludes, For I had great joy ...
Again, first he expresses thanks; second he gives the reason for his gratitude: as I hear of your charity ...; third, the reason why he thanks God: For I had great joy and consolation... I give thanks to my God . Colossians 3:15: ‘Show yourself thankful.’ Philippians 4.6: ‘With thanksgiving let your petitions be made to God.’ As if he said: I give thanks for past things in order that I might pray for future things. Therefore he says: always making remembrance of you in my prayers ... Philippians 1:7: ‘Because I have you in my heart, all of you, alike in my chains.’ Isaiah 49:15: ‘Can a woman forget her infant, so as not to have pity on the son of her womb? And if she should forget, yet will not I forget you.’
Stating the matter of his giving thanks and of his prayer, he shows what he asks when he prays for them. The matter of this was the needs and goods of Philemon, namely, both charity and faith. For without charity nothing avails and through it all things are had. 1 Corinthians 13:1: ‘If I should speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but do not have charity, I have become as sounding brass or a tinkling cymbal.’ Again, without faith no one can love God, because he does not truly know God. He makes no mention of hope, because it is midway between and is understood in the others. But in whom should they have faith and charity? in our Lord Jesus . 1 Corinthians 16:22: ‘If any man does not love the Lord Jesus Christ, let him be anathema.’ This is necessary, because from Christ more sweetly comes love for the members; because he who does not love the members, does not love the head. 1 John 4.20: ‘For how can he who does not love his brother, whom he sees, love God, whom he does not see?’
And towards all the saints ... Faith is based on doctrine insofar as it is manifested through Christ, ‘because no one has seen God’, John 1:18; and, ‘You believe in God, believe also in me,’ John 14.1. We have Christ, therefore, through faith. Towards all the saints can be understood in two ways. In one way, because from the faith they have in Christ proceed the prayers made for the saints. Or, faith consists principally in the divinity as it is announced by Christ, and not only by Christ, but also by the saints. Matthew 28:19: ‘Go therefore and make disciples of all nations...’ Therefore we ought to believe not only what was said by Christ but also what was said by the saints. Hebrews 2:3: ‘For it was first announced by the Lord and was confirmed unto us by those who heard him.’