EPISTLE
509
EPISTLE
mine the conditions, not only of cognitive, but of all
mental processes and to discover their relations and the
laws of their sequence. Thus logic and episteniology
complement the work of psychology in two different
directions, and epLstemology forms a transition from
psychology and logic to metaphysics. The importance
of epLstemology can hardly be overestimated, since it
deals with the ground-work of knowledge itself, and
therefore of all scientific, philosophical, moral, and
religious principles. At the present time especially it
is an indispensable requisite for apologetics, for the
verj' foundations of religion are precisely the doctrines
most frequently looked upon as beyond the reach of
human intelligence. In fact much recent discussion
concerning the value of knowledge has taken place on
the ground of apologetics, and for the distinct purpose
of testing the value of religious beliefs. If, contrary to
the definitions of the Council of the Vatican, the exist-
ence of God and some at least of His attributes cannot
be demonstrated, it is evident that there is no possi-
bility of revelation and supernatural faith. As Pius X
expresses it (Encycl. " Pascendi ", 8 Sept., 1907), to
confine reason within the field of phenomena and give
it no right and no power to go beyond these limits is to
make it "incapable of lifting itself up to God and of
recognizing His existence by means of visible things.
. . . And then all will readily perceive what becomes
of natural theology, of the motives of credibility and of
external revelation". (See Scepticism; Certitude;
Doubt.)
BowNE, Theory of Thought and Knowledge (New York, 1S99); ElSLER, Einjuhrung in die Erkenntnistheorie (Leipzig, 1907); Cardair, La connaissance (Paris, 1895); Hobhouse, The Theory of Knowledge (London, 1896); Ladd, Philosophy of Knowledge (New York, 1897); Mercier, Criteriologie generale (Louvain, 1906); MlVART, The Groundwork of Science: A Study of Episte- mology (New York, 1898); Rickaby. First Principles of Knowl- edge (3d ed.. London, — ); Veitch, Knowing and Being (Edin- burgh, 1889); VoLKMANN, Ueber die Frage nach dem Verhaltnis vom Denken und Sein (Vienna, 1S98); Walter, The Principles of Knowledge (West Newton, 1904).
C. A. Ddbray.
Epistle (IN THE Mass). See Lessons.
Epistle (in Scripture), Lat. e;«,sto?<7,- Gr. ^iTKrToX^; in Hebrew, at first only the general term meaning "book" was used, then certain transitional expres- sions signifying "writing", and finally mJX, 'Iggcrith (of Assyrian or Persian origin), and jinC'J, nlslitewan (of Persian derivation), which the Septuagint always renders iirtaToX-q. In the study of Biblical epistles, it will be found convenient to distinguish between the Old Testament and the New.
The Old Testament exhibits two periods in its idea of an epistle: first, it presents the epistle under the general concept of a book or a writing; secondly, it regards the epistle as a distinct literary form. It may be difficult to point out the dividing line between these two periods with accuracy; in general it may be maintained that the Hebrews developed their notion of epistle as a specific form of writing during the time of the Captivity. The first instance of a written Bibli- cal message is found in II K., xi, 14-15, where we are told about David's letter to Joab concerning Urias; there was need for secrecy in this case as well as in that of Jezabel's order to the ancients and chief men of the city in the matter of Naboth (III K., xxi, 8-9), and of Jehu's commands sent to Samaria (IV K., x, 1, 6). It may have been in order to avoid the danger of a personal Interview that the Prophet Elias (Eliseus?) wrote to King Joram concerning his impending pun- ishment (II Par., xxi, 12-15). The desire to be em- phatic and peremptorj' prompted the letter of the King of SjTia to the King of Israel, asking for the cure of Nuaman's leprosy (IV K., v, 5-7), and Sennache- rib's open letter to Ezechias (IV K., xix, 14 ; Is., xxxvii, 14; II Par., xxxii, 17); the wish to be courteous seems to have inspired the letter of Merodach Bala<lan to Ezechias after the latter's recovery from sickness (IV K., XX, 12; Is., xxxix, 1). Similar to the foregoing
authoritative letters is the message addressed by Jere-
mias to the exiles in Babylon (Jer., xxbf, 1 sq.); the
Prophet alludes also to letters sent by a pseudo-
prophet from Babylon to Jerusalem with the purpose
of undermining Jeremias's authority (ibid., 25, 29).
Thus far, letters are of relatively rare occurrence in the Bible, and they are not regarded as constituting a distinct class of literature. Hereafter they become more frequent, and both their name and their form mark them as a peculiar literary species. Their sub- sequent frequency may be inferred from their repeated occurrence in the Books of Esther, Esdras, and Nehe- mias: Esth., i, 22;iii, 12; viii, 5sq.; ix, 20, 29; xiii, 1-7; x\a, 1-24 ; I Esdr., iv, 7, 1 1 sq. ; v, 6 ; vii, 1 1 ; Neh., ii, 7 ; vi, 5, 17, 19. Their general name "book" gives way, first, to that of " writing" (II Par., ii, 11 ; xxi, 12 ; Esth., iii, 13-14; viii, 10, 13), and then to that of "letter" (II Par., XXX, 1,6; I Esdr., iv, 7sqq.; v, 5sqq.; Neh., ii, 7-9 ; vi, 5, 17, 19 ; Esth., ix, 26, 29). Their form begins to be marked by a formal address and a distinctively epistolary ending. Instances of such explicit ad- dresses may be seen in Esdr., v, 7: "To Darius the king all peace"; Esth., xiii, 1: " Artaxerxes the great king who reigneth from India to Ethiopia, to the princes and governors of the hundred and twenty- seven provinces, that are subject to his empire, greet- ing"; I JIach., xi, 30: " King Demetrius to his brother Jonathan, and to the nation of the Jews, greeting". An instance of an epistolary conclusion occurs in II Mach., xi, 33: "Fare ye well. In the year one hun- dred and forty-eight, the fifteenth day of the month of Xanthicus"; a similar example may be seen, ibid., 38. But the Old Testament does not furnish us with any model of private correspondence between Hebrews.
The New Testament presents us with a very highly developed form of epistle. Recent writers on the subject have found it convenient to follow Professor Deissmann in his distinction between the letter and the epistle. The letter is a private and confidential conversation with the addressee, his anticipated an- swers shaping the course of the writing; the epistle is general in its aim, addresses all whom it may concern, and tends to publication. The letter is a spontaneous product of the writer, the epistle follows the rules of art. If publication be regarded as an essential condi- tion of literature, the letter may be described as a " pre-literary form of self-expression". In order to apply this distinction more effectively to the written messages contained in, or referred to by, the New- Testament Books, we shall group the relevant data aa pre-Pauline, Pauline, and post-Pauline.
Pre-PauUne.—'X\\e Book of Acts (ix, 2; xxii, 5; xxviii, 21) shows that the Jews of Jerusalem sent occa- sional letters to the synagogues of the Dispersion; Acts, XV, 22-23, gives a parallel instance of a letter written by the .\postles from Jerusalem to the churches in Antioch, SjTia, and Cilicia. We may also infer from the testimony of the New Testament (I Cor., xvi, 3; II Cor., iii, 1; Rom., xvi, 1-2; Acts, xviii, 27) that letters of commendation were of common occurrence. I C^or., vii, 1, informs us that the Corinthian Christians had applied to St. Paul in their difficulties by way of letter.
Pauline. — The Pauline Epistles form a collection which was formerly called b dirAcrToXos. They are called "epistles", though that addressed to the Hebrews hardly deserves the name, being really a theological homily. The Epistles mentioned in I Cor., v, 9, and Col., iv, 16, have not been preserved to us; their accidental loss makes us suspect that other Epis- tles may have perished. The peculiar form and style of the Pauline Epistles are .studied in their respective introductions and commentaries; but we may add here that I Tim., II Tim., and Tit. are called Pastoral Epistles; owing to its peculiar style and form, it is suppo.sed by some writers that the Epistle to the Hebrews was not even dictated by the Apostle, but
