timothy

Timothy, epistles in the New Testament

Timothy, two letters of the New Testament. With Titus they comprise the Pastoral Epistles, in which St. Paul addresses his coworkers as the guardians and transmitters of his teaching. Modern scholars have regarded the letters as pseudepigraphical, written by a late 1st or early 2d cent. A.D. church leader in Paul's name and incorporating insights from Paul's letters. The vocabulary, mode of argument, and theology differ from the genuine Paulines. First Timothy regulates congregational life, while relaying qualifications for the clergy. Then come details on the admonitions of personal life and the behavior of widows and the clergy. The letter closes with personal exhortations. Second Timothy is a testament, i.e., the last words of Paul to Timothy. It emphasizes personal courage and fidelity to the Pauline legacy of teaching. In it are warnings of future suffering and allusions to Paul's own trials.

Bibliography

See studies by M. Dibelius and H. Conzelmann (1972), A. T. Hanson (1982), and G. W. Knight, III (1992).

---

timothy, in botany

timothy or herd's-grass, perennial plant (Phleum pratense) of the family Gramineae (grass family), native to Europe and W Asia and one of the most widely cultivated hay grass of North America. Adaptable to cool, moist climates, where it is sometimes grown in mixtures (especially with red clover), it is a late grass—usually sown in the fall—and can be stored after cutting. It is not used for permanent pastures because it cannot survive continuous grazing. Timothy is classified in the division Magnoliophyta, class Liliopsida, order Cyperales, family Gramineae.

---

timothy

Perennial grass (Phleum pratense) of the family Poaceae (or Gramineae), native to Europe and widely cultivated as a hay and pasture grass in North America. The stems grow in large clumps, are 1.5–3 ft (0.5–1 m) tall, and have swollen, bulblike bases. The flower clusters are long, dense, and cylindrical. Alpine, or mountain, timothy (P. alpinum) is about half as tall and occurs in wet areas from Greenland to Alaska, and at high altitudes in many other parts of North America and Europe.