The Oxford Handbook of Pauline Studies

Description

The Oxford Handbook of Pauline Studies brings together a diverse international group of experts on the apostle Paul. It examines the authentic texts from his own hand, other ancient texts falsely attributed to him, the numerous early Christian legends about him, and the many meanings that have been and still are made of these texts to give a twenty-first century snapshot of Pauline Studies. Divided into five key sections, the Handbook begins by examining Paul the person - a largely biographical sketching of the life of Paul himself to the limited extent that it is possible to do so. It moves on to explore Paul in context and Pauline Literature, looking in detail at the letters, manuscripts, and canons that constitute most of our extant evidence for the apostle. Part Four uses a number of classic motifs to describe what modern experts describe as 'Pauline Theology', and Part Five considers the many productive reading strategies with which recent interpreters have made meaning of the letters of Paul. It is demonstrated that 'reading Paul' is not, and never has been, just one thing. It has always been a matter of the particular questions and interests that the reader brings to these very generative texts. The Oxford Handbook of Pauline Studies thoroughly surveys the state of Pauline studies today, paying particular attention to theory and method in interpretation. It considers traditional approaches alongside recent approaches to Paul, including gender, race and ethnicity, and material culture. Brought together, the chapters are an ideal resource for teachers and students of Paul and his letters. Cover The Oxford Handbook of Pauline Studies Copyright Dedication Contents Contributors Abbreviations Preface Introduction Part I. Paul the Person 1. The Man and the Myth 2. Paul the ‘Convert’? 3. Paul the Missionary 4. Paul the Theologian 5. Paul the Apostle 6. Paul as a Character in Early Christian Narratives Part II. Paul in Context 7. Archaeology and the Pauline Letters 8. Paul among Jews, Greeks, and Romans 9. Paul and the Construction of Early Christian Identity 10. Paul and Economic Resources 11. Paul the Philosopher 12. Paul and Religion Part III. Pauline Literature 13. The Pauline Letters in Contemporary Research 14. The Deutero-​Pauline Letters in Contemporary Research 15. Paul the Letter Writer 16. Rhetoric and Argumentation in the Letters of Paul 17. The Text of the Pauline Corpus 18. The Formation of the Pauline Corpus Part IV. Pauline Theology 19. Paul and Scripture 20. Paul and Israel 21. Paul and Jesus 22. Christology 23. Justification by Faith 24. Participation in Christ 25. Grace/​Gift in Paul 26. Paul and Pistis Christou 27. Ethos and Community 28. Cosmology and Eschatology Part V. Approaches to Paul 29. Social-​Scientific Approaches to Paul 30. Paul and Ethnicity 31. Paul and Sacred Space 32. Paul and Politics 33. Paul and Postcolonial Studies 34. Paul and Feminism 35. Paul and Sexuality 36. Paul and Theological Interpretation 37. Paul and Contemporary Philosophy 38. Paul and Reception History Index of Subjects Index of Ancient Sources Index of Modern Authors