The Pauline Book and the Dilemma of Ephesians

Description

Benjamin J. Petroelje argues that how one reads Ephesians is a function of deeper questions about how to read the Pauline book. Petroelje suggests the contemporary consensus–that Ephesians depicts development of/away from the ‘real Paul’–is largely a construct of modern criticism, rooted in shifting strategies about how to read a letter collection that developed in the nineteenth century. Using Ephesians 3.1–13 as a point of analysis, Petroelje theorizes that the text’s ‘image of Paul’ not only anticipates recent revisionist interpretations of Paul’s Jewish identity and gentile gospel, but also holds together tensions in the collection itself surrounding these questions. By analysing ancient letter collections beside their own hermeneutical priorities, and applying this method to the late-antique and modern reception of the corpus Paulinum, Petroelje is able to historicize the origins of the split of Paul’s corpus, revealing the constructed nature of the critical consensus on Ephesians and the effect that such modern reading strategies have on interpreting the letter. Urging a return to reading Ephesians alongside Pauline co-texts, Petroelje advocates for Ephesians as a crucial source for the study of Paul, whether Paul wrote it or not. Cover Title Copyright Contents Tables Acknowledgments Abbreviations Introduction The Pauline Book The Dilemma of Ephesians Outline and Proposal Methodology and Approach Ephesians, Authorship, and Paul Part 1 Reading Paul and Ephesians in Modern Criticism Chapter 1 Dismembering Paul Restoring the ‘Natural Order’ F. C. Baur and the Revolution in the Study of Paul The Genres of the Revolution Putting the Revolution to Use: Paul and ‘Paul’ Conclusion Chapter 2 Displacing Ephesians The Enigma of the Consensus The Quest for the Historical Ephesians The Parting of the Ways The Quest’s Fragility and Failure An Alternative Not Followed Conclusion Part 2 Reading Paul and Ephesians in Late Antiquity Chapter 3 Assembling Paul Reading Ancient Corpora Reading Paul in Late-Antique Editions When Paul Was a Book Conclusion Chapter 4 Placing Ephesians Textual Origins and Ephesians Ephesians in Late-Antique Editions of Paul Ephesians in Late-Antique Commentaries on Paul Conclusion Part 3 Reading Ephesians Among the Paulines Chapter 5 Imaging Paul in Ephesians Paul, the Apostle of the Church? The Image of Paul in Ephesians: Reading Ephesians 3.1–13 among the Paulines Conclusion Conclusion Bibliography Index of References Index of Authors