Paul: Thessalonica and Early Christianity
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Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
ISBN: 9780567089045
Number of Pages: 388
Published: 21/11/2002
Concentrating on major Pauline themes and on I Thessalonians in its cultural and religious context, this book explores other major issues, especially with reference to chronology and Judaism. The question of Paul's Jewishness is therefore raised with a new urgency. What kind of a Jew was Paul? Why do we find so many coherences between his language and thought with that of the Community of the Renewed Covenant (the Essenes)? One of the essays, "Paul and Qumran", suggests that the Dead Sea Scrolls offer valuable clues to understanding Pauline language and thought. If, in fact, there was contact between Paul and the Essenes, where would it have taken place? If such meetings were held, possibly, in the Essene Quarter of Jerusalem, is there a connection between that area and the location of the earliest Christians in Jerusalem? And what kind of Christians were they and how did they impact on the Apostle's missionary activity? In connection with this discussion of Paul and Judaism, a number of challenges are offered to the so-called "New Perspective on Paul", especially in the work of E.P. Sanders and James D. G.
Dunn, to suggest that a closer study of the Dead Sea Scrolls raises serious questions about the appropriateness of their interpretation of both Judaism and Paul, as well as opening new perspectives.
INTRODUCTION The Scope and Nature of the Essays: An Introduction and Some Responses PAUL, THESSALONICA AND EARLY CHRISTIANITY 1. Shifting Paradigms: Paul, Jesus and Judaism 2. The Cults of Thessalonica and the Thessalonican Correspondence 3. 2 Thessalonians and the Church of Thessalonica 4. 1 Thessalonians, Acts and the Early Paul 5. Chronology: the Apostolic and Pauline Period 6. The Theology of 1 Thessalonians as a Reflection of its Purpose 7. The Assembly of the Thessalonians: Reflections on the Ecclesiology of the Earliest Christian Letter 8. The Epistolary and Rhetorical Context of 1 Thessalonians 2:2-12 9. Paul and Judaism: 1 Thessalonians 2: 13-16 as a Test Case 10. Was Timothy in Athens? Some Exegetical Reflections on 1 Thessalonians 3: 1-3 11. Paul and Qumran 12. The Kingdom of God in Paul 13. Justification and Last Judgement in Paul 14. Justification and Last Judgement in Paul - Twenty-five Years Later 15. The Use of the Codex in Early Christianity Bibliography Index of Modern Authors Index of Ancient Texts
"Karl Donfried has been studying 1 Thessalonians for the past several decades. The result is this marvelous collection of insights into Paul's earliest letter."