He would even be in favor
of a vote requesting Philemon to give Onesimus his liberty at once, even
without his consent, sending him back, with this most unwise and unblest
epistle to Philemon, to Paul, who says that he 'would have retained
him,' but would not without Philemon's consent. He did hope that the
brethren would speak their minds, be open-mouthed, and not be like dumb
dogs. For his part he wanted an anti-slavery religion. He acknowledged
that the truths of the Gospel needed the stimulant of freedom to give
them life and power.
"His remarks evidently produced a great sensation, for a variety of
reasons, as we may well suppose.
"A man took the floor in opposition to this Laodicean brother. He was a
Jewish convert, a member of the Colossian Church. His name was
Theodotus. Born a Jew, he had renounced his religion and became a Greek
Sophist, practised law at Scio, and heard Paul at Mars Hill, where, with
Dionysius the Areopagite, with whom he was visiting, he was converted.
He had established himself at Colosse, in the practice of law. He was
unusually tall for a man of his descent, had beautifully regular Jewish
features, and was a captivating speaker.
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