As we continue in the opening chapter of Paul's letter to the Colossians, this week's reading begins with what has been recognized as a Christ-hymn of the early church. Paul's use of it here establishes without question the supremacy of Christ. Some scholars have argued for a pre-Christian dating of this hymn with the church then merely taking it over and attributing the deity's qualities to Jesus. But there is so much that is unique to Christian theology in its content that such arguments are hard to sustain. References to "the firstborn from the dead" coupled with the designation of "the firstborn of all creation" underline the genuine Christian lineage of this composition. Neither Gnostic nor Hellenistic-Judaism combined two such contradictory identities in their search for a redeemer e…