Information Related to "The Ascetic Philosophy Affecting the Colossians"
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Paul warned the Christian gentiles in Colosse, "See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception, according to the tradition of men, according to the elementary principles of the world, rather than according to Christ" (Colossians 2:8, NASB). Some believe Paul here was telling them to avoid those teaching that God's laws regarding the Sabbath, festivals, dietary restrictions, etc., were still in effect. This notion is false, as Paul himself elsewhere taught that Christians-Jew and gentile alike-should keep these laws.
The most thorough description of the philosophy Paul was actually warning against in Colossians is found in Colossians 2:20-23. Its ascetic claims to superiority were based on their deceptive "appearance of wisdom in promoting self-imposed piety, humility, and severe treatment of the body" (verse 23, NRSV).
Paul indicates that touting their ascetic views as equivalent to and in harmony with the basics or elemental things of the kosmos, meaning in Greek the basic principles of the surrounding world, is what gave the philosophy its appeal.
The analysis of Dr. Troy Martin, professor of Religious Studies at Chicago's Saint Xavier University, of the grammar and syntax of verses 20-23 sheds light on the main components of the philosophy's self-touted "wisdom" Paul rejects.
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