Romans 16:13–16

Greetings

Greet Rufus, chosen in the Lord, and his mother, who has been a mother to me, too. 14  Greet Asyncritus, Phlegon, Hermes, Patrobas, Hermas and the

brothers with them. 15  Greet Philologus, Julia, Nereus and his sister, and Olympas and all the saints with them.

16  Greet one another with a holy kiss. All the churches of Christ send greetings.

other interesting feature is Paul’s mention of “relatives.” Three of them—Lucius, Jason, and Sosipater (16:21)—are with Paul in Corinth and are sending greetings. They would no doubt have a special interest in the three relatives in Rome: Herodion (verse 11) and Andronicus and Junias (verse 7). The latter two are commended as having “been in prison with [Paul]” and are further described as people who “were in Christ before [Paul] was.” This second piece of information suggests a highly interesting situation where Paul’s family members became Christians while Paul was still a vicious persecutor of Christians.*

* For additional support to the Christian cause by Paul’s relatives, see Acts 23:12-22, particularly verse 16, where Paul’s nephew (“the son of Paul’s sister”) tips off the authorities to a Jewish plot against Paul.

A final observation drawn from incidental pieces of information incorporated into Paul’s list is that there does not appear to have been one formally organized congregation in Rome at this time. Rather, the Roman Christian community seems to have consisted of a series of house churches convening in private homes. We are clearly told of that arrangement in the case of Aquila and Priscilla, where Paul speaks of “the church that meets at their house.” “The household of Aristobulus” sounds like a similar grouping. Also, the apostle sends greetings to Christian leaders and “the brothers with them” and “all the saints with them.” The impression left is that these are loosely organized house churches.

When Paul says, “Greet one another with a holy kiss,” he is urging a common practice that was in use in the early church** and is still practiced in some churches. Then, as now, it was a sign of Christian fellowship and did not bear any romantic implications.

** 1 Corinthians 16:20; 2 Corinthians 13:12; 1 Thessalonians 5:26; 1 Peter 5:14