Basic Information about Letters (Epistles) in the New Testament  How many of the 27 writings in the New Testament are Letters (or: Epistles, from the Greek word "epistolē")? (Three; Seven; Eight; Thirteen; Twenty-one)  Click for the next slide and the answer.

How many of the 27 writings in the New Testament are Letters (or: Epistles, from the Greek word "epistolē")? (Three; Seven; Eight; Thirteen; Twenty-one) Answer: Answer:  Twenty-one  How many of the 21 NT Letters are attributed to the Apostle Paul? (Seven; Eight; Thirteen; Twenty-one)

How many of the 21 NT Letters are attributed to the Apostle Paul? (Seven; Eight; Thirteen; Twenty-one) Answer:  Thirteen  Seven of the Letters are called "catholic" or "general" letters, because Bishop Athanasius (367 C.E.) said they were accepted in the whole church. Who are the four people after whom these 7 letters are named? (Matthew; Mark; Luke; John; James; Peter; Jude)

Seven of the Letters are called "catholic" or "general" letters, because Bishop Athanasius (367 C.E.) said they were accepted in the whole church. Who are the four people after whom these 7 letters are named? (Matthew; Mark; Luke; John; James; Peter; Jude) Answer:  John  James  Peter  Jude  Which two names of authors of catholic epistles were in early lists of Jesus' twelve disciples (apostles)? (John; James; Peter; Jude)

Which two names of authors of catholic epistles were in early lists of Jesus' twelve disciples (apostles)? (John; James; Peter; Jude) Answer:  John  Peter  Which two names of authors of catholic epistles were considered to be brothers of Jesus? (John; James; Peter; Jude)

Which two names of authors of catholic epistles were considered to be brothers of Jesus? (John; James; Peter; Jude) Answer: Answer:  James  Jude  Whose name is in the title of three of the catholic epistles? (John; James; Peter; Jude)

Whose name is in the title of three of the catholic epistles? (John; James; Peter; Jude) Answer:  John (1 John; 2 John; 3 John)  Whose name is in the title of two, but only two, of the catholic epistles? (John; James; Peter; Jude)

Whose name is in the title of two, but only two, of the catholic epistles? (John; James; Peter; Jude) Answer:  Peter (1 Peter; 2 Peter)  When modern scholarship emerged with the Age of the Enlightenment (18th century), scholars of the New Testament began to question (or "dispute") whether certain Letters attributed to the apostle Paul actually were authored by Paul. Seven (7) Letters are accepted ("undisputed" as Paul's letters by scholars). They are:  Click for next slide.

When modern scholarship emerged with the Age of the Enlightenment (18th century), scholars of the New Testament began to question (or "dispute") whether certain Letters attributed to the apostle Paul actually were authored by Paul. Seven (7) Letters are accepted ("undisputed" as Paul's letters by scholars). They are:  1-2 Corinthians  Galatians  Philippians  Romans  1 Thessalonians  Philemon  Which one (1) of the 7 undisputed Letters of Paul is to a person rather than a city or region? (1-2 Corinthians; Galatians; Philippians; Romans; 1 Thessalonians; Philemon)

Which one (1) of the 7 undisputed Letters of Paul is to a person rather than a city or region? (1-2 Corinthians; Galatians; Philippians; Romans; 1 Thessalonians; Philemon) Which one (1) of the 7 undisputed Letters of Paul is to a person rather than a city or region? (1-2 Corinthians; Galatians; Philippians; Romans; 1 Thessalonians; Philemon) Answer:  Philemon (the owner of a runaway slave named Onesimus [Philem 1:10])  Which one (1) of the 7 undisputed Letters of Paul was addressed to churches in a region rather than a city? (1-2 Corinthians; Galatians; Philippians; Romans; 1 Thessalonians; Philemon)

Which one (1) of the 7 undisputed Letters of Paul was addressed to churches in a region rather than a city? (1-2 Corinthians; Galatians; Philippians; Romans; 1 Thessalonians; Philemon) Answer: Answer:  Galatians (Galatia, in eastern Asia Minor)  Right click on the links below to open a hyperlink  Which of the 7 undisputed Letters of Paul were addressed to a church in Greece? (1-2 Corinthians; Galatians; Philippians; Romans; 1 Thessalonians; Philemon)

Which of the 7 undisputed Letters of Paul was addressed to a church in Greece? (1-2 Corinthians; Galatians; Philippians; Romans; 1 Thessalonians; Philemon) Answer:  1-2 Corinthians (to people in Corinth, a city more important than Athens during the 1st century C.E.)  Right click on the links below to open the hyperlink  Which two (2) of the 7 undisputed Letters of Paul were addressed to churches in Macedonia, north of Greece? (1-2 Corinthians; Galatians; Philippians; Romans; 1 Thessalonians; Philemon)

Which two (2) of the 7 undisputed Letters of Paul were addressed to churches in Macedonia, north of Greece? (1-2 Corinthians; Galatians; Philippians; Romans; 1 Thessalonians; Philemon) Answer:  Philippians (to people in Philippi); 1 Thessalonians (to people in Thessalonica)  Right click on the links below to open a hyperlink ca.htm ca.htm ca.htm  Which one (1) of the 7 undisputed Letters of Paul was addressed to a church in Italy? (1-2 Corinthians; Galatians; Philippians; Romans; 1 Thessalonians; Philemon)

Which one (1) of the 7 undisputed Letters of Paul was addressed to a church in Italy? (1-2 Corinthians; Galatians; Philippians; Romans; 1 Thessalonians; Philemon) Answer:  Romans (to people in Rome)  Right click on links below to open a hyperlink  The authorship of six (6) Letters of Paul is "disputed." Which three (3) of the 6 disputed Letters were addressed to churches in cities? (2 Thessalonians; Colossians; Ephesians; 1-2 Timothy; Titus)

The authorship of six (6) Letters of Paul is "disputed." Scholars call them “deutero-Pauline,” meaning “secondary- Pauline” rather than “primary-Pauline.” Which three (3) of the 6 deutero-Pauline letters were addressed to churches in cities? (2 Thessalonians; Colossians; Ephesians; 1-2 Timothy; Titus) Answer:  2 Thessalonians (Thessalonica); Colossians (Colossae); Ephesians (Ephesus)  Right click on the links below to open a hyperlink  Which three (3) of the 6 deutero-Pauline letters are called Pastoral Letters? (2 Thessalonians; Colossians; Ephesians; 1-2 Timothy; Titus)

Which three (3) of the 6 deutero-Pauline letters are called Pastoral Letters? (2 Thessalonians; Colossians; Ephesians; 1-2 Timothy; Titus) Answer:  1-2 Timothy; Titus (fellow-workers with Paul)  Which NT Letter was traditionally attributed to Paul, but was recognized by Origen, Clement, and Tertullian (early Christian writers) as different from Paul's writings? (to the Hebrews; to Smyrna; to Pergamum; to Thyatira; to Sardis; to Philadelphia; to Laodicea)

Which NT Letter was traditionally attributed to Paul, but was recognized by Origen, Clement, and Tertullian (early Christian writers) as different from Paul's writings? (to the Hebrews; to Smyrna; to Pergamum; to Thyatira; to Sardis; to Philadelphia; to Laodicea) Which NT Letter was traditionally attributed to Paul, but was recognized by Origen, Clement, and Tertullian (early Christian writers) as different from Paul's writings? (to the Hebrews; to Smyrna; to Pergamum; to Thyatira; to Sardis; to Philadelphia; to Laodicea) Answer:  The Epistle to the Hebrews  There are seven (7) Letters in Revelation 2-3 addressed to the angels of the churches of Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, and Laodicea. What is the region in which these cities are located? (Italy; Greece; Macedonia; Asia Minor)

There are seven (7) Letters in Revelation 2-3 addressed to the angels of the churches of Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, and Laodicea. What is the region in which these cities are located? (Italy; Greece; Macedonia; Asia Minor) There are seven (7) Letters in Revelation 2-3 addressed to the angels of the churches of Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, and Laodicea. What is the region in which these cities are located? (Italy; Greece; Macedonia; Asia Minor)  Western Asia Minor  Click on the links below to open a hyperlink urches/revelation.htm urches/revelation.htm urches/revelation.htm

Summary In this lesson we have learned: (1) Twenty-one (21) writings in the NT are letters. (2) Seven (7) of the NT letters called "catholic epistles" are named after James and Jude, who were brothers of Jesus; and Peter (1-2 Peter) and John (1, 2, 3 John), who were listed among the twelve disciples of Jesus. (2) Seven (7) of the NT letters called "catholic epistles" are named after James and Jude, who were brothers of Jesus; and Peter (1-2 Peter) and John (1, 2, 3 John), who were listed among the twelve disciples of Jesus. (3) Thirteen (13) letters in the NT are attributed to Paul as author. (3) Thirteen (13) letters in the NT are attributed to Paul as author. Click for the next slide. Click for the next slide.

Summary (2) (4) Seven (7) of the Pauline letters are accepted ("undisputed") by scholars as written by Paul (1-2 Corinthians; Galatians; Philippians; Romans; 1 Thessalonians; Philemon). (4) Seven (7) of the Pauline letters are accepted ("undisputed") by scholars as written by Paul (1-2 Corinthians; Galatians; Philippians; Romans; 1 Thessalonians; Philemon). (5) One (1) of the undisputed Pauline letters was written to a person, rather than people in a city or region (Philemon). (5) One (1) of the undisputed Pauline letters was written to a person, rather than people in a city or region (Philemon). (6) Many NT scholars consider six (6) of the Pauline letters to be written by followers of Paul, calling them “deutero-Pauline” (Paul's authorship of them is "disputed“): 2 Thessalonians; Colossians; Ephesians; 1-2 Timothy; Titus. (6) Many NT scholars consider six (6) of the Pauline letters to be written by followers of Paul, calling them “deutero-Pauline” (Paul's authorship of them is "disputed“): 2 Thessalonians; Colossians; Ephesians; 1-2 Timothy; Titus. Click for the next slide. Click for the next slide.

Summary (3) (7) Three (3) of the deutero-Pauline letters are addressed to fellow-workers of Paul and are called Pastoral Letters (1-2 Timothy; Titus). (8) The Epistle to the Hebrews was traditionally attributed to Paul but was recognized by Origen, Clement, and Tertullian as different from Paul's letters. (9) There are seven (7) letters in Revelation 2-3 addressed to the angels of churches in seven cities in western Asia Minor (Ephesus; Smyrna; Pergamum; Thyatira; Sardis; Philadelphia; and Laodicea). Click for the next slide

Congratulations! Good Work! You have completed the Basic Lesson on Letters (Epistles) in the New Testament. Good luck with your additional work.