Real widows, young widows, and the limits of benefaction in 1 Timothy 5:3–16

John Barclay, in his 2020 article, “Household Networks and Early Christian
Economics,” outlines the puzzles that “abound” in 1 Timothy 5:3–16. Among his
list of puzzles, he asks, “Is it inconsistent to say that a χήρα can be registered
only if she has brought up children (5.10), but to deny her support in 5:4–8 if she has children to look after? Who are the younger χῆραι that the Pastor is evidently so anxious about (5:11–15) …?” Barclay’s article has gone a long way to
resolving these puzzles. The “younger χῆραι” he identifies as “virgins.” This was
an anomaly in the social world of the early Christians, which forced them to adapt terms for the woman beyond puberty but was without a man. This was a χήρα. While in agreement with Barclay, this article probes a little more deeply into the problem of the younger χήρα and her dowry. It makes the proposal that if the younger χήρα is a virgin, then the issue in 1 Timothy 5 is not her ongoing support, which seems manageable for the “real widow,” but the support for the virgin who wishes to marry after she has been assigned as a qualifying χήρα.