Paul

by Roetzel, Calvin J.

• ISBN13: 9780664225209
• ISBN10: 0664225209
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2003-11-01
• Publisher: Westminster John Knox Pr

Summary

Paul's messianism put him at the margins of Pharisaism, his preaching placed him in tension with the Synagogue, and his Gospel set him on the outer border of Hellenistic religion. This book explores the tensions and creativity that Paul's marginality let loose. In six short chapters, Roetzel explains Paul's complex relationship to first century Judaism and elements of the early church. In so doing, he tackles a great many of the most disputed areas of Pauline theology: How can we speak of Paul as a convert? How far did Paul accept the apocalyptic myth? What are we to make of Paul's theology of weakness? How far did Paul embrace pluralism? And how could Paul preach that Gentiles shared in God's election without excluding Jews?

Author Biography

Calvin J. Roetzel is Arnold Lowe Professor of Religious Studies at Macalester College, St. Paul, Minnesota.

Table of Contents

Preface	ix
Abbreviations	xi
Paul---A Jew on the Margins	1	(8)
Paul as Mother: A Metaphor for Jewish-Christian Conversion?	9	(10)
Paul as Organic Intellectual: Reshaping Jewish Apocalyptic Myth from the Margins	19	(19)
Death and Resurrection: A Theology Forged at the Margins (2 Corinthians)	38	(12)
Ambivalence and Ambiguity on the Margins: Oikoumene and the Limits of Pluralism	50	(16)
The Grammar of Election: A Theology Negotiated at the Margins	66	(23)
Notes	89	(14)
Index of Ancient Sources	103	(6)
Index of Subjects and Authors	109