Phoebe (biblical figure)
Template:Short descriptionTemplate:Distinguish Template:Infobox saint Phoebe (Koine Greek: Template:Lang) was a first-century Christian woman mentioned by the Apostle Paul in his Epistle to the Romans, verses Template:Bibleref2-nb. A notable woman in the church of Cenchreae, she was trusted by Paul to deliver his letter to the Romans.<ref name="Quient">Quient, Allison. "Phoebe: Helper or Leader?" Arise, 14 Mar 2013. Christians for Biblical Equality. [1] Template:Webarchive</ref> Paul refers to her both as a "deacon" (Greek diakonos) and as a helper or patron of many (Greek prostatis). This is the only place in the New Testament where a woman is specifically referred to with these two distinctions. Paul introduces Phoebe as his emissary to the church in Rome and, because they are not acquainted with her, Paul provides them with her credentials.
Background
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Paul's letter to the Romans was written in Corinth sometime between the years 56 and 58 in order to solicit support for an anticipated missionary journey to Spain.<ref name=Campbell>Campbell, Joan Cecelia. Phoebe: Patron and Emissary, Liturgical Press. 2015 Template:ISBN</ref> Although he had not yet visited Rome, Paul would have been familiar with the community and its circumstances through Priscilla and Aquila, who were in Corinth, having previously lived in Rome. Biblical scholars are divided as to whether Chapter 16, Paul's letter of recommendation for Phoebe, was intended for Rome, with whose Christian community he was not acquainted, or with the more familiar community at Ephesus.<ref name=Campbell/>
The name Phoebe means "pure", "radiant", or "bright"; and was the name of a Titan in Greek mythology.<ref>Jewett, Robert. Romans: A Commentary (Minneapolis, MN.: Fortress Press, 2007), p. 943</ref>
Some scholars believe Phoebe was responsible for delivering Paul's epistle to the Roman Christian church.<ref>See, for example, Borg, Marcus and John Dominic Crossan (2009) The First Paul: Reclaiming the radical visionary behind the church's conservative icon. London: SPCK (51)</ref>
Phoebe is the only woman named as deacon (which means "servant" in Greek) in the Bible.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Greek terms for her titles
diakonos
Apostle Paul used the Greek diakonos (διάκονος) to designate Phoebe as a deacon. "Deacon" is a transliteration of the Greek, and in Paul's writings sometimes refers to a Christian designated to serve as a specially-appointed "assistant" to the overseers of a church,<ref>"διακονος meaning #2: "one who gets someth. done, at the behest of a superior, assistant to someone" William Arndt et al., A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2000), 230."</ref> and at others refers to "servants" in a general sense. In the letter to the Romans, apart from the debated case of Phoebe, it always refers to "servants" in the generic sense, as opposed to a church office.<ref>NIV footnote</ref> However, at this inaugural stage in the Church's formation, some argue, it is premature to think of offices as being consistent or clearly defined, and biblical scholar Rosalba Manes argues that Paul's use of the term "deacon" suggests that, like Stephen and Philip, Phoebe's ministry may have extended beyond charitable works to include preaching and evangelization.<ref name=Manes>Manes, Rosalba. "Phoebe a woman of luminous charity", L'Osservatore Romano, January 2, 2018</ref><ref name=MacDonald>MacDonald, Margaret Y., “Was Celsus Right? The Role of Women in the Expansion of Early Christianity”, Early Christian Families in Context: An Interdisciplinary Dialogue, ed. David L. Balch and Carolyn Oziak (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 2003), p. 166</ref>
"Likewise the women"
There is some debate over whether the women referred to in Template:Bibleref2 are to be considered deacons or not. When describing the qualities that the office-holders called "deacons" must possess, Paul wrote gunaikas hosautos, which is translated by some as "likewise the women." The "likewise" could indicate that female deacons are to live according to the same standards as male deacons (see also the Apostle Paul's use of the term "likewise" in Template:Bibleref2, Template:Bibleref2, and Template:Bibleref2).<ref>Elwell, Walter A. "Entry for 'Deacon, Deaconess'". Evangelical Dictionary of Theology, 1997.</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The predominant view holds that this verse refers not to female deacons, but instead to the wives of deacons. See, for example, the KJV rendering: "Even so must their wives be grave, not slanderers, sober, faithful in all things."<ref>KJV footnote.</ref>
prostatis
In classical Greek the word prostates (προστάτης) (feminine, prostatis) was used to mean either a chief or leader, or a guardian or protector, often in a religious context; it was later used also to translate the Roman concept of a patron.<ref> Liddell, Scott & Jones, 1882, Lexicon, s.v.</ref> The Apostle Paul's use indicates that its range of meanings had not changed by New Testament times. This suggests that Phoebe was a woman of means, who, among other things, contributed financial support to Paul's apostolate,<ref name=Manes/> and probably hosted the house church of Cenchreae in her home, as well as providing shelter and hospitality to Paul when in the town.<ref name=MacDonald/>
Veneration
The Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox Church and Episcopal Church in the United States of America place her feast day as September 3 (the latter designating it a Lesser Feast).<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
The Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod remembers her later, on October 25. The Calendar of Saints of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America commemorates Phoebe with Lydia of Thyatira and Dorcas on January 27, the day after the commemoration of the early male missionaries Silas, Timothy and Titus and two days after the feast of the Conversion of St. Paul.
See also
References
Further reading
- Household Names: Michael Peppard, "Junia, Phoebe, & Prisca in Early Christian Rome", 23 April 2018, Commonweal