Galatians is a famous Epistle of Paul, probably his first of his series of letters,[1] as written to the church in Galatia located in central Asia Minor (now modern Turkey). Paul deals particularly with the issue of whether the Christians there (and elsewhere) should live as if under Jewish Law (e.g. should be circumcised), as people had been preaching this message amongst them, or should live by faith. He clearly says the latter.
This letter is so powerful and influential that it has been called the "Magna Carta" of Christian liberty.
Date and Destination of the Epistle
Many scholars today estimate that this letter was the first written by Paul, in 48 A.D. This is because Paul was preaching Christianity in South Galatia in 47–48 AD, and the Council of Jerusalem was held in 48-49 A.D. to consider requiring the circumcision of Galatian converts. Paul made no mention of the Council (which agreed with Paul's view), so it appears his letter was written during the controversy but prior to the convening of this Council.
There are two additional theories of where and when the Epistle was composed.[2]
- The North Galatian Theory—This is the older view and assumes that Paul wrote the epistle to the churches in North Galatia, which he founded on his second missionary journey. Based upon this view, the letter was composed between 53 and 57 A.D. in Ephesus or Macedonia.
- The South Galatian Theory—In this view, Paul wrote the epistle to the churches in South Galatia, which he founded on his first missionary journey. Thus, he would have written the letter in Syrian Antioch or Corinth between 51 and 53 A.D.
Origin of the Galatian People
The Galatians were Celts who had migrated to Asia Minor from Europe, and originally belonged to three tribes, the Tectosages, Tolistoboii and Trocmi. Their Celtic language almost certainly was still spoken when Paul wrote to them in Greek, though city-dwellers would know and use Greek.
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