Thursday of the Thirtieth Week in Ordinary Time
Since the 16th century, Bible scholars have doubted that this letter was written by Paul. They can see in the writing evidence that it was written after Paul’s death. Still, it’s a letter written by someone who knew Paul and his theology very well. Since the voice of the letter is “Paul,” I’ll refer to him as if he were the author.
With our readings from Ephesians today, we hear Paul beginning to wind up the letter. In fact, this part of the letter is known in classical rhetorical terms as a peroration. The job of the writer of a peroration is to remind the reader of the main arguments of the letter (or speech) and to arouse the reader’s emotions on behalf of what has been argued and urged.
Paul apparently knew a thing or two about rhetoric! As his peroration does just that—and then some! One famous scholar of Paul’s writings (Daniel Boyarin) argues that the best way to understand Paul is as a sophist, or a rhetorician who takes up an argument that is weak and makes it into one that is strong. The weaker argument, for the sophists, was not the false argument. It was whatever argument was not considered conventional wisdom at the time. Or, put another way, any argument that would likely be received by its reader as ignorant, uninformed, not realistic, silly, and so forth.
Here's a contemporary example: Veterans are heroes. That is a statement that is going to get a lot of nods, for sure. It’s the stronger argument because it already has so much sway. It doesn’t even need any evidence or reasoning to get those nods. Some counterargument—that veterans are somehow not heroes—would not be easy to make. Thus, the sophists would call that counterargument the weaker argument.
In this amazing passage, Paul not only makes a case for the weaker argument. He even uses the stronger argument to do it!
In this passage, Paul is talking about standing firm, putting on your breastplate and helmet, taking up your sword. This kind of talk sounds like preparation for battle. And, indeed, it is.
There are evil spirits, prinicipalities and powers, world leaders, and the tactics of the Devil. And Paul is telling the people of Ephesus that they need to prepare for a fight. The principalities and powers don’t like the Miracle that Paul is preaching about. And they mean to stamp it out. So, this is a real fight. And Paul knows it well, as he is sitting in prison.
Given this picture of what Christians are up against, what would likely be the stronger argument? I would wager that the stronger argument then (as now) would be something like this: We have the truth! We are right! The principalities, powers, and rulers are evil and wrong. And they are coming after us for our faith with flaming arrows. We need to get ready for a fight—even to death!
What is Paul’s argument?
Yes, we are up against it. We need to prepare to fight. Here’s how we do it. First, we stand firm. Then we gird our loins with . . . truth? Our breastplate is . . . righteousness? Here’s the best one: “your feet shod in readiness for . . . the Gospel of Peace.” Oh, and your shield against the flaming arrows? Your faith.
Do you think folks in Ephesus were nodding as Paul’s letter was read to them? I can’t imagine that they were. Paul is undoubtedly making the weaker argument. And he has spent this whole letter doing it.
Love one another.
By God’s grace you are forgiven. Forgive others.
Jews and Gentiles are no longer separate. They are one in Christ Jesus.
Love one another and live in peace.
And in the peroration, he’s pressing this weaker argument very hard, and he does it by making the implements for battle into metaphors for the Gospel. And he’s clear. These are the weapons of the Gospel.
Paul was in prison because, as it turned out, he was an incredible sophist/rhetorician. He was succeeding in making that weaker argument (that Gospel argument) into the stronger argument. He was persuading people. And that made the world leaders (and principalities and powers) very nervous. What Paul was preaching was way too radical for them.
Unfortunately, Paul’s argument is also the weaker argument today. Peace, love, forgiveness. Hardly regular fare on cable news or so much of social media. But Paul means it. While seemingly weaker, his argument (Christ Jesus’s argument) is actually the stronger argument. The true argument.
May we endeavor to fight as Paul called us to fight—with the Good News of grace, forgiveness, love, unity, and faith. Amen.
-Sue Trollingers