Robert M. Royalty, «Dwelling on Visions.On the Nature of the so-called ‘Colossians Heresy’», Vol. 83 (2002) 329-357
This paper argues that Revelation provides a social-historical, theological, and ideological context for the reconstruction of the Colossian opposition. The proposal is that the author of the Apocalypse arrived in Asia after the Jewish-Roman war; his "dwelling on visions" and prophetic activity challenged the emerging hierarchy within the churches, provoking a response in Paul’s name from the church leadership. Correspondences and parallels between the description of the opposition in Colossians and Revelation are developed exegetically, showing that eschatology and Christology were key issues in the dispute. This paper reexamines the heresiological rhetoric of Colossians, raising methodological questions about other scholarly reconstructions of the opposition as non-Christian.
Colossians, following the usage in the LXX and the Shepherd of Hermas, has the specific sense of humbling oneself or even self-mortification79. Its recurrence in Col 3,12 as a positive characteristic marks this as a point of intra-Christian struggle80. More problematic has been qrhskei/a| tw=n a)gge/lwn. Scholars, for most of this century at least, have usually interpreted the genitive as objective and assumed the author’s opponents in fact worshiped angels81. But Francis’s proposal for reading tw=n a)gge/lwn as a subjective genitive has gained significant support82. While grammatically it could go either way, the subjective reading makes significantly more sense in context. The usage has parallels in 4 Macc 5,7 and Josephus Ant. 12.253 and overwhelming evidence in the Jewish and Christian apocalyptic tradition, including Qumran83. Although scholars have uncovered evidence for angel worship in Asia during the first two centuries of the common era, it is extremely difficult to imagine any group that actually worshipped angels to have the sort of access to the Colossian community implied by Col 2,16-1884. Heavenly ascent was a central