October 1, 2023, 12:00 PM

God is the author of the Epistles. He inspired men to write them for all people. In the ancient times an author would identify himself in the opening line and then greet his recipients in a common way such as, “Grace and peace to you.” The author would then end his letter with a personal salutation. Although they are true Letters from Paul, John, Peter, James, and others, we should not imagine that these authors wrote them personally, with their own hand. Because writing in the ancient world was a very rare skill, authors would often work with a scribe who was trained in writing. These scribes also served as recorders and editors. Scripture tells us St. Paul used scribes. For example, Tertius is mentioned by name in Rom 16:22. In other places Scripture implies the use of scribes. In Gal 6:11 St Paul writes, “See with what large letters I am writing to you in my own hand.” He explains why a shift in handwriting has occurred. In 1 Cor 16:21 St. Paul says, “I, Paul, write this greeting in my own hand.” There are similar notations in Colossians 4:18, Philemon 1:19, and 2 Thessalonians 3:17. St. Paul surely wrote his Letters, but often used scribes. We do not have any Scriptural references to be sure about St. John, St. Peter, and St. James. It seems unlikely that ordinary men from Galilee would be skilled writers. It is much more likely that they also used scribes to write their God-inspired Letters. Now you know!