The function of the topos philophronesis in the letter to the Philippians-a comparison with three ancient letters of friendship

The objective o f this article is to determ ine the fu n c tio n o f the tónog (piÁoíffxjvrjcng in the letter to the Philippians. A ccord ing to K oskenniem i ( I9 5 6 .Í5 -4 6 ) TÓíTog (piXcxppoiTjcng m eans that the ancient le tter ser\’e d the purpose o f expressing the friend ly rela tionship betw een two persons. K oskenniem i also identifies typical p h U o p h ro n e tk ph ra ses a n d form ulae. Becau.se it is expccted that the tónog <piXo(ppó\ricng w ill be m ore prom inen t in letters o f fr ien d sh ip (.see Dahl, 1976:539), three pap yri letters, which were cla.ssified by S tow ers (1986:58-76) as letters o f friendsh ip , are ana­ lysed. The letter to the Philippians is com pared to the ancien t episto lary p ra c tice w hen identify ing a n d determ ining the fu n c tio n o f the rÓTtog <piZo(fipóvTjmg. It is concluded that the rónog (piÁLxpfXJVTjmg serves the fu n c tio n o f eOog a n d náOog a n d that the relationship betw een addresser a n d addressee can be determ ined by analysing the <piXo(ppó\tjaig


I. Introduction
The aim of this article is to identify the (possible) presence o f the xónoq (piAxxppóvtiaiq in the letter to the Philippians, to detennine the function o f such a topos and the relation between the topos and the t-újcoí; of the letter. The concepts zonoc, and xmo<; are closely related.T o m ; is a department or head ing containing arguments of the same kind.Koskenniemi (1956:35-46) extra polates three general ciiaracteristics of the Greek letter which he takes to be crucial to understanding the uniqueness, purpose and function of the Greek letter;

*
The first and most important is the tótkx; (pilo<ppóvT|m.q, which expresses the friendly relationship between two persons.

*
The second is the TÓmx; napoixjía, meaning that tlie letter is intended to revive and sustain the existence of a friendsliip wlien the correspondents are physically separated.

*
The third is the tójioí; óm ^ía, known as the epistolary discourse.
A TÚrtoq is a type of letter.Ancient epistolary theorists distinguish between xm oi of letters according to their style.Cicero (Ad FamiUares 2.4.If;4.13.1,6.10.4) distinguishes between simple letters with factual infonnation and letters com municating the mood of the writer, the genus faniiliare et iocosum and the genus sevenim et grave.Pseudo Demetrius (tújtoi 'EmaxoXiKoi) divides letters into twenty-one tú to i. Philostratus (De Kpistulis) mentions certain types of style used in letters, Julius Victor (^r.v Rhelorica 21) distinguishes between Ittlerae negoltales and familiares and Pseudo Libanius ('ErtioxoXi^atoi XapaKxfipD;) divides letters into forty-one xÚTtoi according to their style (Malherbe, 1988:12-13).
hi an attempt to detennine the relationship between -cÚTtoc; and tójtoq, it will be fruitful to notice that, according to Dahl (1976:539), xóJto<; <pi>.o(ppóvri(Ti(;occurs mainly in the opening and closing segments of a letter and is most elaborate in letters of friendship and diplomatic correspondence.It thus seems possible to infer a close relationship between the xúnoq (piXiKoq (friendly type) and the tótco(; (piXoíppóvTicni; (finendly relationship).
Stowers (1986:60) classifies the letter to the Philippians as a letter that employs TÓrtoi and language from the friendly letter tradition.Does Stowers mean that Philippians employs the xÓTtoq (<)iX,o<pp6vriOTq?And if (piX.o<ppóvr|oi(; is present in Philippians, how does it function?What is the relationship between the tótioí; (piXcxppóvTicní; and the twck; of Philippians?Could the presence of the tójioq (pi>xxppóvricn,q mean that Philippians is a fnendly letter?In order to answer these kinds of questions, the following will be done: 1.The TÓ;toq (piX.o<ppóvr|ai(; is described by applying the following procedure: * Ancient epistolary theorists and rhetoricians are consulted.
* Modem theorists are consulted on the ancient epistolary practice.* A practical epistolographical analysis of a sample of ancient letters is attempted.
2. The letter to the Phihppians is compared to ancient epistolary practice when identifying and detemiining the function of the totox; (piXxxppóvticnq. Because it is probable that the xójtoq (piXxxppóvTi<Tu; will be more prominent in let ters of fnendship (see Dahl, 1976:539), three papyri letters, classified by Stowers (1986:58-76) as letters of friendship and written between 95 B.C.E. and 58 C.E. are analysed.
The ancient theories and -practice of epistolography and rhetoric date fi-om 200 B.C.E..Because the letter to the Philippians was possibly written between 52 C.E. and 61 C.E., it seems justified to interpret it in comparison with the three papyri letters from a rhetorical -and epistolographical perspective, since all these letters were written within societies which applied the same rhetorical -and epistolographical rules.These letters as well as the letter to the Philippians are formally analysed according to the theories of Wliite (1972Wliite ( , 1986)).Aristotle (Téxvriq 'PTixopiKiii; 5.10) defines 6 xónoq as "a place to look for a store of something, or the store itself; a heading or department, containing a number of rhetorical arguments of the same kind".Tójioi are of two kinds: Koivoi tÓTtoi or simply TÓ7K31, the topics common to any kind of communication (Aristotle, Téxvriq 'PritopiKiV; ii.26.1) and eiSii or i5ia, specific topics, propositions o f limited appHcability, chiefly derived from ethics and politics (Aristotle, Téxvriq 'PriTopiKriq i.2.21), Cicero ('íopica) defines a tótkx; as a residing place of arguments and distinguish es between inherent tótioi (tó to i derived from the whole, the part, meaning and connection) and extrinsic tó to i (arguments not invented by the art of the orator) (Murphy, 1972:146-147).

T h e id
Quintilian defines the xójtoi for arguments as those areas of the mind to which one may go for specific sources of proof (Quintilian, Imtitutio Oratorio 5 .10).
Although the ancient rhetoricians do not deal with the TÓJtoq q>iXo<ppóvn<Ti<; as such, Aristotle refers to something similar when he deals with ëvxexvoi.(1976) andKoskenniemi (1956).

í>iXocppóvT|oi(; as an ancient epistolary practice
Dahl (1976:539) proposes 'friendly disposition' as a translation for (piXxxppovrioii;.He states that philophronetic statements often prepare the way for expressions of disappointment, embarrassment, reproach, irony or warnings resulting from the friendship. Koskenniemi deals with (pi^ixppovrjcni; in detail.According to him Demetrius of Phalerum views a letter as a postulation of friendship, and that is why he consi ders the friendly disposition as tlie most important essence o f the letter and he mentions this function of the letter as being fundamental (Koskenniemi, 1956:35, 37).
Because Koskenniemi (1956;1-214) bases his study on ancient epistolary prac tice, and does a detailed study o f philophronelic statements, his research w'ill be summarized here.Koskenniemi (1956:128-154) considers the following as typi cal philophronetic phrases and fonnulae: * General expressions of concern about the recipient's welfare For example: éxópTi(v) Xxxjimv ooC éreioTo^f|v, (bq úyiaíveu; "I rejoiced at receiving your letter, that you are well".

* Greetings
For example: áppaxro Kai 6 Gccx; SiaipuAxxxToi ae -"Be well and may God be with you".

* Closing clause/paragraph
For example: áaJió^onaí oe.o5£X,(pe, Kai Ei^xopai oe 'úyiaívEiv -"I salute you, brother, and pray that you are well". It is thus clear that totioí; (piAxxppó\T)mq is not an unknown concept in the works of modem epistolary theorists -works which are mere descriptions of the ancient epistolary practice.Further details about the tójioí; <piAxxppóvricyi<; will now be identified by means of an analysis of ancient friendly letters.

A practical analysis o f a sample o f ancient letters
In order to see how (piXxxppó\TiGi<; functions in ancient letters, the following ancient letters will be analysed with the help o f infonnation given by Koskennie mi In die Skriftig 28(1) 1994:57-73  6 ?The function o f the topos philophronesis in the Id ler lo the Philippians

Papyri Merton I 12: A letter to Dionysios the physician (58 C.E.)
This is a letter of Chairas to his friend Dionysios, a physican.The text and trans lation are from Wliite (1986:145-146).

The identification of philophronetic elem ents in PMert 1 12
In order to detennine the functioii(s) of (piXxxppóvTicTtq, typical philophronetic elements will be identified within the different parts of the letters.The analysis (in each case) is my own, while infonnation provided by Wliite (1986:198-212) was found useful.

* Letter opening
The letter opening (lines 1-3) contains the typical greeting Xaipó^ Avovuoitoi xwi <piA.TaTcoi nXfioxa the typical health wish Kai 6ia Tiávxo(q) úyiaíveiv.According to Koskenniemi (1956:97-100) 9 iX.xaT0(; is used primarily in private letters.However, it does not concern family relationships or any friendship between the writer and reader.The qualification xw (piXxaxcp indicates a business letter and is generally not taken to express feeling but an objective.This phrase is very seldom used in letters of friendship -the recipient of a friend ly letter is seldom addressed as xw (piXxaxo).The greeting in this letter is thus not typical of a philophronctic statement.Regarding the health wish, 5ia návxo(q) íryiaíveiv (line 2-3) is, although a shorter parallel form, a typical health formula, and according to Koskenniemi (1956:128), the health wish and other statements on the welfare of the recipient are common philophronetic fonnulae.

Letter body
A phrase such as Konioánevóq ... (piXooxopYÍg (lines 3-14) is a typical exclama tion of joy at the receipt of a letter (see White, 1986:201).According to White such an exclamation is more characteristic of the opening of a letter.The opening of the letter seems to be the logic part to contain such a phrase if one takes the possible function of such a phrase into consideration.A possible fiinction o f the phrase Konioánevtx;... (piXxHJxopyia (lines 3-14), could be to express the writer's good attitude towards the recipient and to to make sure that the recipient is also positive and ready for the rest of his argument or any innovations.Because lines 3-14 do not, however, only express joy at the receipt of the letter but have an almost philosophical argument about friendship, they may be considered as the opening of the letter body.Although lines 3-14 do not fit into a specific philophronetic fonnula or phrase, they seem to fonn some kind of philophronetic paragraph.Chairas describes his joy at receiving Dionysios' letter (lines 3-4) and explains why he has not written sooner (lines 4-14).
In line 14 another subject is dealt with when the writer turns to what the recipient had written in his letter.This subject serves as the background for the advice Chairas is about to ask.Lines 14-20 thus serve as the middle of the letter body.Koskenniemi (1956:145).Chairas could mean that Dionysios should remember him, and could express both his attitude towards their being friends as well as his current need.

* Synthesis
In this letter to Dionysios, the philophronetic elements are present in all three parts of the letter.Wliereas one would expect a lot of philophronetic elements in the opening and closing of the letter body, if one considers the fact that Stowers considers this letter to be of the friendly type, this letter seems to be poor in the tórto<; (piXcxppóvT|cn.(;.We have arrived in health at Lampsacus, myself and Pythocles and Fiermarchus and Ctesippus, and there we have found Themistas and the rest o f the friends in health.It is good if you also are in health and your grand mother, and obey your grandfather and Matron in all things, as you have done before For be sure, the reason why both I and all the rest love you so much is that you obey these in all things ...

Formal analysis
Because this letter is fragmentary, it is uncertain whetlier the whole belongs to the letter body or whether one can divide it into letter opening and letter body or even letter closing.

The identification o f philophronetic elements
According to Koskenniemi (1956:133-134) one often finds in the body closing a short 'warning' to the recipient to take care of himself or herself Typical cliches in this formula are KaXáx; 7toif|or.u;and e\)xapioTiíoEi<; noi.
Koskenniemi mentions that the degree of intimacy is determined by what is added to the fonnula.It is surprising that this infonnation from Koskenniemi exactly describes lines 1-10 of the letter of Epicurus.We get a variation on the cliché KoXxbq iionioeu; -ev 7ioi£í<; (line 6) with úyiaívei^ (line 7).Wliat is added to this to make it more intimate, is the same health wish for t) nófinri -a person near to the recipient and event, a bit of infontiation on the state of health of not only he himself but also of his friends.
This letter from Epicunis contains philophronetic elements, but because it is fragmentary, it is not possible to detemiine to which extent the philophronetic elements dominate.

Select Papyri I 103: Petesouchos to his brothers and friends (95 B.C.E.)
This is a letter of Petesouchos to his brothers and friends, consisting of greeting, farewells and assurances of the writer's welfare.The text and translation (on page 66) are from Wliite (1986:54-55).

The identincation o f philophronetic elements * Letter opening
To the letter opening belong greetings and health wishes (White, 1986:198-202).This means that netooouxtx; (lines 1-12) covers the letter opening.In the letter opening we find a health wish -éppóxjGai (line 8) with the assurance that the writer as well as his friends is well (lines 8-12).Koskenniemi (1956: 132) is of opinion that the writer may consider it important to express his interest in things or persons close to the recipient, as part of the health wish.Petesouchos knows his brothers and friends well enough to know exactly what and who are of great importance to them.This enables him to show that they have mutual inte-rest in these persons.The extensiveness of the heahh wish in the letter from Petesouchos thus reveals something o f the kind of relationship between Petesoiichos and his friends.Concluding the letter body, Petesouchos asks the recipients to take care of themselves (lines 21-24 xa ... ne-cootpu;).According to Wliite (1986:205), this is a typical formula for concluding the letter body.Petesouchos, however, extends this health wish by adding xopv^oioG' éawmv -"you would favour us" (line 22).This extension o f the health wish increases the intimacy between parties (Koskenniemi, 1956:134).

* Letter closing
The letter is closed with the typical greeting fomiula ^ppcooGe (line 24), which is a philophronelic element as such (see 2 .1).

* Synthesis
In this letter from Petesouchos almost the whole letter consists of philophronelic elements.The letter opening as well as the letter closing contains typical philo phronelic elements (as discussed by Koskenniemi, 1956:128-154).The letter body on the other hand is a complete discussion of mutual interests and care.

Conclusion
The letters from Dionysios (PMert 1 12) and Epicurus (Ex Hercui 176) do contain philophronelic elements, but only minimally so.In the letter from Petesouchos to his brothers and friends (SelPap 1 103), almost the whole letter consists o f greet ings and statements concerning welfare and love.This can be ascribed to the fact that the purpose of this letter is only to express fi-iendship.
What do all the philophronelic statements have in common? 1 concur with Kos kenniemi (1956:132) that the health wishes probably concern matters of impor tance to the recipient.The analysis above would seem not only to confirm this point, but also to conclude that all philophronelic elements serve to make the recipient feel good about himself To persuade by means of tw xG oc; means to use statements about those things that are important to the recipient, in order to arouse feelings of pity, sorrow, sym pathy or compassion.In the first letter, Chairas writes about his joy when receiv ing his friend's letter and wishes him health.These statements are used in the letter opening, body opening as well as in the letter closing, to make Dionysios open-minded with regard to the request in the middle of the letter body, namely the request for advice.
In the second letter, Epicurus is most concerned about the child's health and actions.Wliatever Epicurus wants to achieve, these statements are still every thing the child likes to hear.
In the third letter all the greetings, the farewell and assurances o f the writer's welfare serve the function of m 6o<;.
It thus seems as if philophronetic elements serve the function of the ^vtexvoc; iOoq, but primarily JwxBoq.I would, however, not consider it as merely 7tá 0oq.Petersen (1985:53) states the obvious fact that letters are surrogates for the per sonal presence of the addresser with the addressee.According to Petersen, Koskenniemi has demonstrated that the letter's fundamental structure reflects what happens in the face-to-face meeting of friends.And, Petersen continues, a letter thus functions to establish or maintain a relationship when the parties cannot meet in person.According to Koskenniemi (1956:94) one must take into account that the common epistolary style also contains philophronetic elements (not only the friendly letter).But is there a difference in the use of philophronetic statements in a friendly letter and in a letter of recommendation?

The function of
In letter types other than that of friendship, one would expect the philophronetic elements to be only part of the letter opening and closing, whereas in friendly letters it is expected to be also part of the letter body.And the more the purpose of a letter is to express friendship, the more philophronetic elements will appear in the letter body.If the purpose is simply to express friendship, one would expect philophronetic elements also in the middle of the letter body.It is, how ever, important to keep in mind that other types of letters may also contain philophronetic elements in the letter body.This may be an indicator of a mixed type of letter.
Since TOTioq (piÁo<ppóvr|<nq is an essential element of all letters, it is possible to determine on the basis of the position of philophronetic elements whether the letter fits into the friendly type or not.

The integrity o f Philippians
The problem siirroimding the integrity of Philippians handicaps a formal analysis of Philippians.Although we have Philippians as one letter in UBS III, it is im portant for a study on ancient letters to consider it in its original form.Kiimmel (1965) and Garland (1985) discuss the whole matter.According to some, the transmitted letter to the Philippians has secondarily been compiled by joining two or three originally independent epistles or fraginents of letters.Advo cates of this view point out that Paul in Philippians, until 3:1, offers the paragon of a clear and precise letter, but that in 3;1 an epistolary conclusion begins which is interrupted in 3:2 by a warning, while 4:4 connects very well with 3:1.On the basis of these considerations some critics suppose that 3:3-4:3 is an interpolation.
Other critics find that the thanks for the gift of the Philippians (4:10-20) is also out of place at the end of the letter.Moreover, 3:2-4:3 presupposes no im prisonment of Paul.
As a result, we have the view that Philippians is composed of three letters, each chronologically following upon the previous one (Kiimmel, 1965:235).Because of this problem modem theorists also have difficulty in dealing with the letter.In his analysis of the letter.White (1972:73-90) ignores 2:25-4:9.
For Kiimmel (1965:237), however, there is no sufficient reason to doubt the ori ginal unity of the transmitted Philippians.Garland (1985:143) is o f opinion that the arguments against the integrity of the letter are just as plausible as the counter-arginnents and he describes this debate as a 'stalemate' in argumentation.Watson (1988) analyses Philippians rhetorically in order to address the unity question.He (Watson, 1988:88) concludes his article by the following assump tions: * If the partition is maintained, one must assume that the host letter and the interpolated letters were redacted so that the rhetoric o f the whole has been unified in the present fonn.

*
Since the present fonn of Philippians conforms well to the classical rhetori cal conventions, the integrity can be assumed.
Although 1 am of opinion that Watson uses the rhetorical perspective incorrectly to analyse a letter fonnally, this article is a proof of the fact that the debate on the integrity of Philippians has certainly reached stalemate.It is, however, beyond the limits of this article to survey this discussion in detail.For the purpose of this article it can be assumed that Philippians as we have it today, is a single unit and can be interpreted as such.

* Letter opening
The letter opening consists of a salutation in 1:1-2 and a thanksgiving in 1:3-11.

* Letter body
The letter body of the letter to the Philippians is introduced by the typical formula yivoxnceiv 5é PoúXonai ... (1:12).It can be divided into the following parts: Body opening: 1:12-26 Body middle: 1:27-4:9 Body closing: 4:10-20 In the middle of the letter body Paul switches from I to the you (1:27).This can be considered as the transition from the opening of the body to the middle.The middle of the letter body is in 2:19-30, interrupted by the infonnation about Ti mothy.

* Letter body: opening:
1:12-26: Following upon the thanksgiving, this is an autobiographical para graph concluded by 1:26 -iva tó Kaúxri^ia i)nó)v Ttepiooeuti ■ • êv Énoi ... This paragraph can be considered as another example of (piXopóvTiCTiq in this letter, because such a paragraph tells us some thing about the nature of the relation between Paul and the Philip pians.Paul expresses his concern for their well-being, their growth in faith and joy.4:10 Paul is delighted in God for the Philippians: êxápr|v oxi ... ctveGóXexe to VTtép ehou cppovEtv.This is an example of tlie proskynema fonnula.By using this fonnula, Paul refers to the good cha racteristics of the recipients.He actually thanks them for their caretaking.It is evident that the writer and the recipients have a special relation.

* Letter closing:
The letter closing is covered by 4:21-23.This part of the letter offers a switch to the / again (4:10) and contains the typical secondary greetings (4:21) and bless ings (4:23).

* Synthesis
From the analysis of Philippians it is clear that Paul uses <piXxxpp6vr|cn<; in every part of the letter.This, however, does not seem to make of Philippians a xijtkk; (piXiKÓq, because the philophronelic elements in the letter body o f Philippians do not dominate when one realizes the extensiveness of the letter body.
The whole opening of the body of the letter to the Philippians is an example of persuading by ëOoq, when Paul tries to increase his trustworthiness.The proskynema fontiulae in the letter opening and closing of the letter body are examples of persuasion by means of mOoq.Another example of rtdOoq is found in the middle of the letter body, when Paul talks about feelings to be shared.All these exam-pies arouse the readers' emotions aiid make them open-minded with regard to tlie infomiation given in the rest of the letter body.

The function o f the TOJto(; cpiXo9póvr|oi(; in Philippians
It seems as if one may be able to detennine fi-om the philophronelic elements the nature of the relationship between writer and recipient.With the help of the fol lowing fundamental theses illustrated by Petersen (1985:63-64), this relationship will be made clear: From this it should be clear that by reading and interpreting the philophronelic elements, one will perhaps be in a better position when attempting to read also between the lines.By studying (piXo<ppóvTicn<; in Philippians, for example, one can catch a glimpse of what the relationship between Paul and the Philippians might have been.When Paul uses the word yivoxTKexe in 2:22, it implies that the relationship between him and the readers is an already existing relationship which he maintains by (piXo<pp6vticn(;.The frequency of philophronelic elements in all the parts of the letter is an indicator of a high degree of intimacy between Paul and the Philippians.

Conclusions
The following can be concluded: Thus (piAxxppóvricnq is a xójtoq (present in all letters) that is useful in many ways for the writer of a letter.Studying (piXo(ppóvr|CTiq in letters also enables one to see something about the writer's means of persuasion, the type of letter and the relationship between addresser and addressee.

B ibliograp hy
e n tifíc a tio n o f xÓTtcx; (piX,o<ppóvTiai(; in a n c ie n (1956:128-154)  on philophronelic statements and fonnulae: PMert (A De scriptive Catalogue of the Greek Papyri in the Collection of Wilfred Merton) I 12, Ex Hercul (Excavations of Herculaneum) 176, and SelPap (Select Papyri) I.
The fim ction o f the topos philophronesis in the letter to the Philippidiix_____________________ This is a letter from Epicums (the well-known philosopher) to a child (possibly an orphan of a certain Metrodonis, of whom Epicums took charge).The text and translation are fromMilligan (1927:5 The function o f the topos pliilophronesis in the letter lo the PhiHpptans 1986:208) id en tifies lin es 12-16 (nf| ... é 7 tin E )iéX .T ix a i) as the o p en in g in g to W hite(1986:211), the phrase Jiepl w ith the gen itiv e mv (lin e 16) is so m etim es u sed in the m iddle o f the letter b od y but m ore often at a later point in the b o d y than at the very beginning.In this c a se it, h o w ev e r, se e m s that the pre p osition al phrase jcepi w ith the g en itive (bv, introduces the m iddle o f the letter b od y ( j K p i ... fÍK a x E (lin es 16-21).From this part o f the letter b o d y it b e c o m e s clear that P ete so u ch o s is w orried about the apparent bad circu m stan ces o f the Petosouchos, son o f Panebchounios, to Peteharsemtheos and Paganis, sons o f Panebchounios, and Pathemis, son o f Paras, and Peteharsemtheos, son o f Harsenouphis, and Peteharsemtheos, son o f Psennesis, and Horos, son o f Pates, greeting and good health.I my self am also well, along with Esthautis and Patous

*
The part of the letter where 9 iX,o(pp6vr|aiq appears, as well as the quantity of philophronelic elements, depends on the type of letter.Thus the xwoq of a letter and the tórox; are closely related.All tújioi (piX.iKoícontain xónoq (piAxxppóvriou;, but not all letters with tótioí; (piAxxppóvriCTi<; are xÚTtoi 9 i^ikoí.* What is added to the typical philophronelic elements increases the degree of intimacy between the addresser and addressee.* Philophronelic elements serve the function of roxBoq and ê0oq.* An analysis o f philophronelic elements can shed light on aspects of the nature of the relationship between addresser and addressee.* The letter to the Philippians also employs philophronelic elements.* The function of tlie philophronelic elements in Piiilippians fiinction as TwiBoq and eOo<; and it is i\o indication of a friendly letter type. ARISTOTLE MCMXLVII T é x v n q 'PnTOpiKtii; (Loeb Classical Library) London : Wil liam Heinemann DAHL, N. 1976 Letter (//; The Interpreter's Dictionary o f the Bible, Supplementary vol ume.Nashville ; Abingdon p 538-540 ) DOTY, W G 1983.Letters in Primitive Christianity Philadelphia Fortress Press GARLAND, D 1985.The Composition and Unity o f Philippians Novum Teslameiiliim, 21 141-173 KOSKENNIEM I, II 1956 Studien zur Idee und Phraseologie des Griechischen Briefes bis 400 n Chri Helsinki : Suomalaisen Kirjallisuuden Kirjapaino KuMMEL, W G 1965 Introduction to the New Testament London : SCM Press MALHERBE, A J 1988 Ancient Epistolary Theorista Georgia : Scholars Press MILLIGAN, G 1927 Selections from the Greek Papyri Cambridge : University Press MURPHY, J.J 1972 A Synoptic History o f Classical Rhetoric New York : Random House PETERSEN, N R 1985.Rediscovering Paul Philadelphia : Fortress Press QUINTILIAN 1947.Im litiilio O raiona (Loeb Classical Library) London : William Heinemann STOW ERS, S K 1986 Letter Writing in Greco-Roman Antiquity Philadelphia : The W'estminster Press WATSON, D F 1988 A Rhetorical Analysis o f Philippians and Its Implications for the Unity Question Novum Teslamenlum.30:57-88 WHITE, J.L 1972 The Form and Function o f the Body o f the Greek Letter in Non-Literary Papyri and in Paul the Apostle Michigan Edwards Brothers, Inc W HITE, J L 1986 Light from Ancient Letters (Foundations and Facets; New Testament) Philadelphia Fortress Evrexvoi are rhetorical strategies which have to be invented by the orator himself.The ivrexvoi that are to one's disposal, are ë0o<;, róBoq and XóycK; (Aristotle, Téxvriq 'PtixopiKfiq i.2.3-6).The orator persuades by ë0o<; (moral character), when the speech is delivered in such a manner as to make the speaker worthy of confidence.Wlien one persuades by m0o<;, one persuades by means of the hearers, by addressing their emotions.Lastly, persuasion is pro duced by the speech itself, called the Ax>yo<;.
When inventing a speech (or any other vehicle of communication), one uses either axExvoi orêvxExvoi as a means of persuasion (Aristotle, Téxvriq 'Pr|xopiKf|q i.2.2, 15.1).'Axexvoi are rhetorical strategies which are independent of art, being already in existence and ready for use -rhetorical strategies such as witnesses and contracts.'

23 y(á)p (K)ax' áváyKr|v ÉTrEÍyonav 24 jcepi 5ê xfjq OKA.r|p5í gypayai; 5íx) 25 yévri Eivai. xó xtïí; 5ia-^.uxiKfjq 26 noi ypacpTov jcÉ|j.Vj/ov É'axiv yócp 27 Ktti f) XEXpacpápnaKoq OKX,r|pá, ii 5Ê 28 éTciaxoXfi aijxn xaúxTi ao i 29 éo(ppáyi(axai). Eppcoao Kai 30 |i£nvr|ao xSv EÍpri|i(Évcúv) 31 e(£xo\ x;) Népwvoí; xou Ktipíov), 32 ^ir|vó<; repnaviKoC a Aiovuaícoi 33 íaxpGi
Eppcjoo ... elpTm(évcov) (line 29-30) covers the letter closing.According to Koskennieini ëppcxro (line 29) is a typical philophronetic fonnula(1956:151).I would like to add to this nénvtioo (line 30) as another philophronetic statement.Although we do not know what Chairas means by eiprm(évcov) (line 30) -his request for advice (lines 17-23), or perhaps his explanation why friends do not thank by words -this statement could correspond to the 'remembrance' formula as expounded by The closing of the letter body is introduced by a typical request such as epcoxw (line 20) (seeWhite, 1986:208).* L etter closing '' and Almentis and Phibis and Psenosiris and Phaphis and all our people Do not be grieved at the de parted ones.They were expected to be killed.He did nothing bad to us but, quite to the contrary, he has taken care o f us.Concerning this matter, if you want, write to me We heard that the mice have eaten up the crop Please come here to us or, if you prefer, to Diospolis to buy grain For the rest, you would favour us by taking care o f yourselves that you stay healthy, Horos and Petosiris are well.(lines 16-19) and that he would like to share in seeking a solution (lines 19-21). recipients