Pauline Theology

INDICE
COLPO D’OCCHIO INIZIALE
I. ORIZZONTE STORICO E TEOLOGICO DELLA CHIESA DELLE ORIGINI
1. PROSPETTIVA DELL’INDAGINE: IL COMPIMENTO CRISTOLOGICO
DELLA RIVELAZIONE
2. FLASH SULLA STORIA
3. COMPIMENTO DELL’ANTICO TESTAMENTO IN CRISTO
4. ESEGESI E VITA: LEGGERE LA BIBBIA COME PAROLA DI DIO

II. MISSIONE AI PAGANI DELLA CHIESA APOSTOLICA
1. PROSPETTIVA DELL’INDAGINE: AUTOCOSCIENZA MISSIONARIA
DELLA CHIESA
2. CONCEZIONE ANTICOTESTAMENTARIA DELLA SALVEZZA
3. PROGRESSIVA PRESA DI COSCIENZA UNIVERSALISTICA DI GESÙ
4. PROGRESSIVA PRESA DI COSCIENZA UNIVERSALISTICA DEI DISCEPOLI
5. VALORE SALVIFICO UNIVERSALE DELLA MORTE E DELLA RISURREZIONE DI GESÙ
6. UNIVERSALISMO «CENTRIFUGO» DELLA CHIESA APOSTOLICA
7. ESEGESI E VITA: FONDARE LA MISSIONE SU CRISTO E SUL SUO SPIRITO

III. PERSONALITÀ DELL’APOSTOLO PLASMATA DALLO SPIRITO
1. PROSPETTIVA DELL’INDAGINE: UNA PERSONALITÀ A SERVIZIO
DEL CORPO ECCLESIALE DI CRISTO
2. CARATTERE ATTIVO E INARRESTABILE
3. CARATTERE EMOTIVO E AFFETTIVO
4. CARATTERE «PRIMARIO» E IMPULSIVO
5. GRAZIA DI DIO E UMANITÀ DELL’APOSTOLO
6. ESEGESI E VITA: LASCIARSI PLASMARE DALLO SPIRITO

IV. VOCAZIONE E MISSIONE DI PAOLO
1. PROSPETTIVA DELL’INDAGINE: MANIFESTAZIONE DI DIO
E IMITAZIONE DEI CRISTIANI
2. EVENTO FONDATORE DELLA VOCAZIONE DI PAOLO
3. MODELLI INTERPRETATIVI DELL’EVENTO
4. ESEGESI E VITA: INVOCARE L’IRRUZIONE SALVIFICA DI DIO

V. RITORNO IMMINENTE DEL RISORTO
E ATTESA OPEROSA DELLA CHIESA
NELLA PRIMA LETTERA AI TESSALONICESI
1. PROSPETTIVA DELL’INDAGINE: PRIMO ANNUNCIO PAOLINO
DELLA «VENUTA» DI CRISTO
2. SITUAZIONE DELLA CHIESA DI TESSALONICA
3. COSA AVVERRÀ AL RITORNO GLORIOSO DEL SIGNORE?
4. QUALI SARANNO «I TEMPI E I MOMENTI» DEL RITORNO GLORIOSO
DEL SIGNORE?
5. ATTESA OPEROSA DELLA CHIESA
6. ESEGESI E VITA: RAVVIVARE LA BENEFICA TENSIONE
VERSO LA/IL FINE

VI. IMITAZIONE DI CRISTO E «CHIESA-MODELLO»
NELLA PRIMA LETTERA AI TESSALONICESI
1. PROSPETTIVA DELL’INDAGINE: AUTOCOSCIENZA MISSIONARIA
DI PAOLO
2. AUTORITÀ E COLLEGIALITÀ NELL’ECCLESIOLOGIA PAOLINA
3. ESEMPLARITÀ E IMITAZIONE DELL’APOSTOLO E DELLA CHIESA
4. ESEGESI E VITA: LASCIARSI CONFORMARE A CRISTO DAL SUO SPIRITO

VII. PRIMATO DI CRISTO E RELAZIONI PASTORALI
NELLE LETTERE AI FILIPPESI E AI GALATI
1. PROSPETTIVA D’INDAGINE: CRISTOCENTRISMO AFFETTIVO DI PAOLO
2. CARITÀ PASTORALE PER I FILIPPESI
3. MORMORAZIONI E CONTESTAZIONI DEI FILIPPESI
4. DEVIAZIONI SIMILI DEI GALATI
5. GIUSTIFICAZIONE DIVINA E AUTOGIUSTIFICAZIONE UMANA
6. CONOSCENZA AMOREVOLE DI CRISTO
7. ESEGESI E VITA: CORRERE VERSO LA META


VIII. «AUTOSVUOTAMENTO» DI CRISTO E «COM-PASSIONE» DI DIO
NELLA LETTERA AI FILIPPESI
1. PROSPETTIVA DELL’INDAGINE: KENOSI DEL FIGLIO
E «VISCERE DI MISERICORDIA» DEL PADRE
2. ABBASSAMENTO DEL FIGLIO
3. ESALTAZIONE DEL SIGNORE
4. IL DIO NASCOSTO «RI-VELATO» DALL’ANTICO TESTAMENTO
5. IL DIO NASCOSTO «RI-VELATO» DAL FIGLIO
6. DALLA «COM-PASSIONE» SALVIFICA DEL FIGLIO A QUELLA DEL PADRE
7. ESEGESI E VITA: SPERARE NELLA «COM-PASSIONE» SALVIFICA
DEL DEUS PATIENS


IX. GRAZIA DI SOFFRIRE PER CRISTO
NELLA LETTERA AI FILIPPESI
1. PROSPETTIVA DELL’INDAGINE: DALLA SOFFERENZA ALLA GIOIA
2. «PER ME, MORIRE È UN GUADAGNO»
3. «COMUNIONE CON LE SOFFERENZE» DI CRISTO
4. RESA A DIO E RESISTENZA AL MALE
5. ESEGESI E VITA: ESSERE «SEMPRE LIETI NEL SIGNORE»


X. EVANGELIZZAZIONE DI CORINTO
NELLA PRIMA LETTERA AI CORINZI
1. PROSPETTIVA DELL’INDAGINE: EVANGELIZZAZIONE
DI UNA COMUNITÀ PROBLEMATICA
2. ANNUNCIO DEL CROCIFISSO RISORTO
3. EDIFICAZIONE DELLA CHIESA DI CORINTO
4. ITINERARI DI CHIESA
5. ESEGESI E VITA: VIVERE LA DIVERSITÀ NELLA CARITÀ


XI. VOCI DEI CARISMI E POLIFONIA DELLA CARITÀ
NELLA PRIMA LETTERA AI CORINZI
1. PROSPETTIVA DELL’INDAGINE: INNO ECCLESIALE ALLA CARITÀ
2. CARITÀ DI CRISTO E DEI CRISTIANI
3. PROBLEMA PASTORALE DEGLI «SPIRITUALI»
4. INTERVENTO PASTORALE MIRATO
5. INDICAZIONI PASTORALI
6. ESEGESI E VITA: REALIZZARE ORA CIÒ CHE RIMANE ALLA FINE


XII. QUESTIONI SCOTTANTI SU MATRIMONIO E VERGINITÀ
1. PROSPETTIVA DELL’INDAGINE: RISPOSTE PARZIALI RILEVANTI
PER L’«OGGI»
2. PERVERSIONI SESSUALI
3. ENCRATISMO
4. ERRORI GNOSTICHEGGIANTI SULLA RISURREZIONE
5. COMANDO DEL SIGNORE E CONSIGLI DI PAOLO
4. RILIEVI ERMENEUTICI
5. ESEGESI E VITA: SUGGERIMENTI PER GLI SPOSI

XIII. PROFESSIONE DI FEDE NEL CROCIFISSO RISORTO
NELLA PRIMA LETTERA AI CORINZI
1. PROSPETTIVA DELL’INDAGINE: MENDICANTI DI SPERANZA
DI IERI E DI OGGI
2. PROFESSIONE DI FEDE NELLA MORTE DI CRISTO
3. PROFESSIONE DI FEDE NELLA RISURREZIONE DI CRISTO
4. APPROFONDIMENTO SULLA RISURREZIONE DI CRISTO
5. PROFESSIONE DI FEDE NEGLI INCONTRI DEL RISORTO
6. ESEGESI E VITA: INCENTRARE LA NUOVA EVANGELIZZAZIONE
SULLA RISURREZIONE


XIV. RISURREZIONE UNIVERSALE
NELLA PRIMA LETTERA AI CORINZI
1. PROSPETTIVA DELL’INDAGINE: CONTENUTO DELLA SPERANZA
NELLA RISURREZIONE
2. SPERANZA DI PAOLO NELLA RISURREZIONE UNIVERSALE
3. «COME RISUSCITANO I MORTI?»
4. VISIONE UNITARIA DELLA PERSONA UMANA
5. IMMORTALITÀ DELL’ANIMA
6. EXCURSUS: IL «MISTERO» MISERICORDIOSO DELL’ALDILÀ
7. ESEGESI E VITA: RENDERE RAGIONE DELLA NOSTRA SPERANZA


XV. VANTO, ORGOGLIO ED ESIGENZE PASTORALI
NELLA SECONDA LETTERA AI CORINZI
1. PROSPETTIVA DELL’INDAGINE: IL VANTO COME ESPEDIENTE PASTORALE
2. CALUNNIE DEGLI AVVERSARI DI PAOLO
3. «TATTICA» PASTORALE DEL VANTO
4. MOTIVI DEL VANTO DI PAOLO
5. ESEGESI E VITA: TENERE BUONA LA «TATTICA» PASTORALE DI PAOLO


XVI. MINISTERO APOSTOLICO
NELLA SECONDA LETTERA AI CORINZI
1. PROSPETTIVA DELL’INDAGINE: «IMMEDESIMAZIONE» DI PAOLO
CON CRISTO
2. APOLOGIA DEL MINISTERO APOSTOLICO AUTENTICO
3. MINISTERO DELLA NUOVA ALLEANZA
4. UN MINISTERO CHE MANIFESTA LA MORTE SALVIFICA DI CRISTO
5. UN MINISTERO NELLA COLLEGIALITÀ ECCLESIALE
6. ESEGESI E VITA: «IMMEDESIMARSI» CON CRISTO


XVII. POTENZA DI DIO TRAMITE LA DEBOLEZZA CREDENTE
DELLA CHIESA NELLA SECONDA LETTERA AI CORINZI
1. PROSPETTIVA DELL’INDAGINE: MODO PARADOSSALE DI RIVELARSI DI DIO
2. CONTESTO LETTERARIO ED ESISTENZIALE
3. LA «SPINA NELLA CARNE» DI PAOLO
4. DISCERNIMENTO SPIRITUALE DI PAOLO
5. DISCERNIMENTO SPIRITUALE SULLA DEBOLEZZA DELLA CHIESA
6. ESEGESI E VITA: FIDARSI DELLA PROMESSA DEL SIGNORE


XVIII. RIVELAZIONE DELL’IRA DI DIO
NELLA LETTERA AI ROMANI
1. PROSPETTIVA DELL’INDAGINE: L’IRA DI DIO NELLA STORIA
DELLA SALVEZZA
2. «L’IRA DI DIO SI MANIFESTA CONTRO OGNI EMPIETÀ»
3. INTERPRETAZIONE DELL’IRA DI DIO ALLA LUCE DI CRISTO
4. GIUSTIFICAZIONE DIVINA
5. ESEGESI E VITA: RICONOSCERE IL PRIMATO DELLA GRAZIA


XIX. FEDE IN CRISTO E PECCATO DI ADAMO
NELLA LETTERA AI ROMANI
1. PROSPETTIVA DELL’INDAGINE: FONDAMENTO BIBLICO DEL DOGMA
DEL PECCATO ORIGINALE
2. VERITÀ DI FEDE DEL PECCATO ORIGINALE
3. CENTRALITÀ DI CRISTO NELLA RIFLESSIONE NEOTESTAMENTARIA
4. CENTRALITÀ DI CRISTO NELLA RIFLESSIONE PAOLINA
5. RIFLESSIONE PAOLINA SUL PECCATO D’ORIGINE
6. IL PECCATO UNIVERSALE IN GAUDIUM ET SPES
7. ESISTENZA E VITA: ABBANDONARSI CONSAPEVOLMENTE
ALLA MISERICORDIA DI DIO

XX. GIUSTIFICAZIONE, AZIONE E TENTAZIONE
NELLA LETTERA DI GIACOMO E NELLA BIBBIA
1. PROSPETTIVA DELL’INDAGINE: COMPLEMENTARIETÀ
DELLA LETTERA DI GIACOMO CON LE LETTERE DI PAOLO
2. «LETTERA DI PAGLIA»?
3. GIUSTIFICAZIONE DIVINA E AZIONE UMANA IN GC 2,14-26
4. APPROFONDIMENTO ESEGETICO SULLA VICENDA DI FEDE DI ABRAMO
5. MISTERIOSO RAPPORTO DI DIO CON LA LIBERTÀ DEL CREDENTE
6. TENTAZIONE DEMONIACA
7. EXCURSUS: TENTAZIONE DEMONIACA
8. ESISTENZA E VITA: «SOTTOMETTETEVI A DIO!
RESISTETE AL DIAVOLO!»


XXI. «L’IMMAGINE» E LE IMMAGINI «DEL DIO INVISIBILE»
NELLE LETTERE AGLI EFESINI E AI COLOSSESI
1. PROSPETTIVA DELL’INDAGINE: DIO, IL FIGLIO, LE CREATURE
E GLI SPOSI
2. «L’IMMAGINE DEL DIO INVISIBILE»
3. «CONFORMI ALL’IMMAGINE DEL FIGLIO SUO»
4. «QUESTO MISTERO È GRANDE!»
5. ESISTENZA E VITA: LASCIAR TRASPARIRE LA «BELLA NOTIZIA»


XXII. SACRIFICI «CARNALI» E SACRIFICIO «SPIRITUALE»
NELLA LETTERA AGLI EBREI
1. PROSPETTIVA DELL’INDAGINE: UN’OMELIA SU CRISTO E LA CHIESA
PER CRISTIANI ADULTI
2. UNA CHIESA VICINA ALLA COMUNIONE CELESTE CON DIO
3. UNA CHIESA ORGANICAMENTE STRUTTURATA
4. NON PARTECIPAZIONE DELLA CHIESA ALL’ANTICO CULTO «CARNALE»
5. PARTECIPAZIONE DELLA CHIESA AL NUOVO CULTO DI CRISTO
6. ESISTENZA E VITA: CAMMINARE VERSO LA SANTITÀ


XXIII. CRISTO, SOMMO SACERDOTE AFFIDABILE E MISERICORDIOSO
NELLA LETTERA AGLI EBREI
1. PROSPETTIVA DELL’INDAGINE: SINGOLARITÀ
DELLA MEDIAZIONE SACERDOTALE DI CRISTO
2. IL SOMMO SACERDOZIO DI CRISTO,
COMPIMENTO DI QUELLO ANTICOTESTAMENTARIO
3. CONTINUITÀ: TRATTI COMUNI DEL SACERDOZIO DI CRISTO
E DI QUELLO ANTICOTESTAMENTARIO
4. DISCONTINUITÀ: INEFFICACIA SALVIFICA DELLA MEDIAZIONE
DEI SACERDOTI ANTICHI
5. PROGRESSIONE: «PERFEZIONAMENTO» EFFICACE DI CRISTO
6. ESISTENZA E VITA: PARTECIPARE DA BATTEZZATI
AL SACERDOZIO DI CRISTO


XXIV. DIACONATO NELLA PRIMA LETTERA A TIMOTEO
E NEL NUOVO TESTAMENTO
1. PROSPETTIVA DELL’INDAGINE: FONDAMENTO BIBLICO DEL DIACONATO
2. FONDAMENTO, ORIZZONTE E TRASMISSIONE DELLA DIAKONÍA
3. DIACONI NELLA LETTERA AI FILIPPESI
4. DIACONI NELLA PRIMA LETTERA A TIMOTEO
5. I SETTE MINISTRI DEGLI ATTI DEGLI APOSTOLI
6. DIAKONÍA DELLA LITURGIA, DELLA PAROLA E DELLA CARITÀ
7. ESISTENZA E VITA: RIDONARE ALLA CHIESA E AL MONDO
IL GUSTO DEL SERVIZIO


EPILOGO
ULTIMO SGUARDO AL PASTORE E AI SUOI AFFETTI
1. DALL’AFFETTO CREDENTE PER CRISTO ALLA CARITÀ PASTORALE
2. DAL SERVIZIO AL CORPO ECCLESIALE DI CRISTO
ALLA CURA PERSONALIZZATA DEI FEDELI
3. DALLA VASTA ATTIVITÀ PASTORALE ALLA PROFONDA UNITÀ INTERIORE
4. DAI SENTIMENTI DI CRISTO ALLE SUE STESSE «PREFERENZE»

BIBLIOGRAFIA ITALIANA SELEZIONATA

Although the long-standing debate about the meaning of hilastērion in Rom. 3.25 has led to no consensus, readings are nearly always either (1) metaphorical (hilastērion as place of atonement/expiation) or (2) metonymic (hilastērion as a means of atonement/ expiation). However, in many Second Temple Jewish texts, the word refers to a place of divine revelation. Proposing a fresh semantic typology of the word’s usage, this article argues that there is no unambiguous metonymic usage of the word, and that references to atonement in Lev. 16 are secondary to the revelatory function of the 'mercy seat'. Attending to overlooked intertextual complexities, it suggests that the hilastērion was the site where God promised to reveal the definitive interpretation of his law. The revelatory function of the hilastērion possesses prima facie plausibility as a reading of Rom. 3.21-26, which is driven by the theme of God's self-revelation in Jesus.

A wide-ranging, academically oriented list of over sixty forthcoming publications on the Pastoral Epistles (as of April 2022) including essays, monographs, and commentaries. This list helps students of the Pastorals to see current trends in research. The list was compiled mainly through contacting academic publishers and Pastorals scholars who have published previously on the letters. In some cases, authors provided a brief synopsis of their work specifically for this project.

From a close analysis of the idea of baptism in Pauline literature, one can identify the following conclusions: Paul nowhere identifies baptism in water as a work of merit that cannot save. Paul abundantly describes burial in water as best fulfilling his own description of baptism in Romans 6:4 and in Colossians 2:12. Paul describes baptism as a personal death of the one who is baptized, being "crucified with Him." This is similar to Peter's description of baptism as salvific and simultaneously, a pledge or promise to give up sin in ! Peter 3:21, as if it's a contract or agreement in which one agrees to give up sin while God in Christ forgives our past sins that He bore in his body on the cross in I Peter 2:24. Paul describes baptism as being buried and rising and being made alive with Christ. Hence, one is forgiven of past sins, circumcised not made with hands, include both male and female, performed by divine arrangement, and the Spirit is given as a gift, at that moment. Baptism is a personal conscious choice by the one baptized to enter a relationship with or being united with Christ. One is baptized into Christ and his death and in that moment one is forgiven, receives the Spirit as a gift, and is raised with Christ and made alive. So Paul who champions grace, nowhere describes baptism in water as a good work to be eschewed, relegated to a work of personal human merit. Let each party bring forth its prooftexts, and we shall conclude that there is no systematic or consistent theology in the Bible. Some think the Mashiach was to be a political or military leader but how does this view fit with the gentle, humble Yeshua who dies and is made aiive? Is there consistency in sacred scripture?

Travail de Master réalisé en 2017 cherchant à développer des fondements éthiques proprement chrétiens pour répondre aux questions écologiques qui sont les nôtres.
La réflexion prend pour point d'ancrage une péricope bien connue de la lettre aux Romains (8, 18-30) qui est analysée sur la première moitié du travail. L'exégèse se veut complète et propose une interprétation à la lumière de la lettre aux Romains dans sa totalité.
La deuxième moitié est consacrée au développement d'une herméneutique verte sur la base de l'exégèse en insistant sur l'ancrage juif de la pensée de Paul. Le travail se termine par des pistes de réflexions éthiques.

This paper is one of several presented at the 2010 SBL NAASR session in Atlanta concerning anachronism and translation in the study of early Christianity. It argues that the concept of pneuma’s central importance to Paul’s thought makes it a prime candidate to remain untranslated in scholarship. Most scholarship on pneuma translates this word ‘Spirit’, which imports normative Christian theological implications. This reflects a modern, Western understanding of religion that is derived from thinkers like Kant and Descartes, which privileges dualisms of mind/body and material/spirit, and which foregrounds the importance of a private, internal, subjective religious experience anachronistic relative to Paul. I redress this through a theoretical shift toward contextualizing Paul’s understanding of pneuma as a physiological process with analogues in ancient Greco-Roman medical thought. This approach is briefly compared to other influential accounts of pneuma in New Testament studies, and subsequently treats several Pauline passages within this new lens.

This study for the sake of space will limit its scope to the book of Acts. We will look at Paul’s missionary theology and practice as seen through Luke’s writing in Acts. Thus this paper will be a sort of biographical sketch of Paul’s development of a biblical theology of mission. There are two questions I aim to answer in this paper. First, what impact do we see that Paul’s Jewish background had on his missiology? Second, and related to the first question, we will look at what Paul’s mission and method to find out what they were. Through an overview of Luke’s account of Paul and his mission, we will see that Paul was sovereignly prepared and chosen to be a witness to the nations by preaching Jesus as the Christ and planting churches that would carry on the mission in their local context.

This essay discusses whether civil disobedience is an option for Christians in light of Paul's teaching in Romans 13. Using canonical and rhetorical criticism, and including a very brief section noting some important examples in the history of interpretation, the essay concludes that Romans 13 does not preclude the possibility of civil disobedience for Christians. The essay does not discuss the conditions under which civil disobedience might be right or necessary, though it does outline some theological and moral boundaries that mark faithful Christian civil disobedience.

An reexamination of Paul's hermeneutics in light of Old and New Testament traditions. A consideration of further revelation and the beginnings of ecclesiocentric hermeneutics for the New Testament followers of Yeshua. It was Pauline truth and teaching from which all had "turned away." It was this turning away from the truth as taught by the Holy Spirit through Paul, especially as contained in the Epistle to the Ephesians, that led necessarily: To the loss of the teaching concerning the Mystery; that truth concerning the One Body of Christ

Focusing on the work of N.T. Wright, J. Louis Martyn, and Douglas Harink, in this essay I offer a theological analysis of the debate between salvation-historical and apocalyptic readings of Paul as a debate in Christology. I argue that in the end they are Christologically deficient in ironically similar ways: both positions conceive of Christ as accidental to the divine intent for creation, a notion that falls short of the robust Christology Paul adheres to. I offer an alternative that preserves both the notions of a salvific history and an apocalyptic revelation, but is also imbedded in what I call a supralapsarian Christology

[Portuguese] Com base no capítulo XIX da Confissão de Fé de Westminster, aborda o tema Lei e Graça: A perspectiva de Paulo. Faz uma análise da carta de Paulo aos gálatas, baseado em João Calvino e Martinho Lutero observando a teologia paulina sobre Lei e Graça e como nós, reformados, interpretamos esta doutrina. Aborda a “Nova Perspectiva de Paulo” baseado em Dunn e Sanders, para ver o que eles tem ensinado e quais são os pontos de divergência entre a perspectiva tradicional e esta nova perspectiva. Procura responder biblicamente aos pontos fracos desta Nova Perspectiva de Paulo. Propõe-se a responder a pergunta: Para quê serve a lei se vivemos na era da graça? De acordo com a teologia reformada e de uma maneira prática, mostra qual a maneira correta de lidarmos com a lei.

[English] Based on chapter XIX of Westminster Confession of Faith, this monograph approaches the theme: Law and Grace: The Perspective of Paulo. It analyzes Paul's letter to the Galatians, based on the commentaries of John Calvin and Martin Luther, with the purpose of demonstrating the Paul's theology of Law and Grace, and how the Reformed theologians interpret this doctrine. This monograph also discusses the "New Perspective of Paul" based on Dunn's and Sanders' writings, in order to see what they have taught and what are the divergence points between the traditional perspective and the new perspective. It seeks to respond biblically to the New Perspective of Paul. It is proposed to answer the question: Is the law useful today?

Leslie Hardin is a contributor to the Journal of Spiritual Formation and Soul Care and wrote The Spirituality of Jesus for Kregel (2009). Like his previous book Hardin does not write a book on practice spiritual disciplines, but rather a series of short reflections on what Paul thinks is key to spirituality. Although this is not a “how to” guide for spiritual life, readers will be encouraged as they reflect on what Paul says about these topics. For Hardin, Pauline spirituality is a “practical partnership with the Spirit,” an expression of the Spirit of God already at work in the life of the believer (17).

Abstract: This article addresses the ‘touch-event’ as a mediated affective encounter that pivots around a tension between intimacy and distance, seduction and sovereignty, investment and withdrawal. Through a rereading of the Pauline event of conversion to Christianity, it argues that an analysis of the evolving significance of touch-events for Catholic liturgy and a religious congregation shows the theopolitical as always already constituted within an economy of enfleshed virtues. Focusing on contemporary examples of touch-events from the life of Francis, the first pope from the Americas, as well as from fieldwork among a group of female Latin American Catholic migrants in Rome, I argue for a closer examination of touch-events in order to grasp some of their theopolitical, radical, emancipatory, and, in some contexts, subjugating effects.
Keywords: Atlantic Return, economies of virtues, incarnation, Pauline event, Pope Francis, sovereignty, theopolitics, touch-event

In light of the current racial tensions, statues have become a locus for protest, as evidence of historic racism emerges. In Poole, UK, the sculpture of youth ministry "hero" Robert Baden Powell has been removed, having been targeted. We will explore several ideas related to the hero construct, asking if and how youth ministry can boast of heroes. Is the youth minister role predicated on the heroic form? The paper contributes to building a better narrative to frame the hero for the Body of Christ in its work with young people.

In der Forschung redet man bezüglich Röm 13,1-7 immer wieder über die unbegrenzte Obedienz gegenüber der staatlichen Ordnung.  Die Lehre von Paulus geht nicht um Wiederstand oder Obedienz. Es geht um Tröstung in einer gegebenen Lebenssituation, wo keine andere Möglichkeit gewesen ist, als zu gehorchen. Paulus will hier nicht über die staatliche Macht lehren, sondern er gibt Hoffnung in einer Zeit, wo die Christen ihren Platz in der Gesellschaft suchten. Ihre Frage war, ob sie in ihrer Situation so leben können, wie es Gottes Willen entspricht. Der Apostel hat diese Frage mit einem beruhigenden Ja beantwortet. Der Apostel hat im Röm 13,1-7 nicht über die politische Macht gelehrt, sondern über das Leben die Gemeinde.

Given modernity’s explosion of diversity and specialization of knowledge, few ideas or concepts can be thought of as truly universal or unifying. However, the idea of living and dying well, also known as “human flourishing” (expressed in antiquity as εὐδαιμονία in the Greek, Maat in Egyptian, and ars vivendi/ars moriendi in Latin), has been a thematic thread that has woven its way throughout the warp and weft of the tapestry of human history. Bedrock to human existence are questions such as: “What does it mean to live and die well?”; and “What of human suffering and death?” Paul’s Epistle to the Philippians, perhaps more than any other New Testament (NT) writing, succinctly addresses these questions and more. Surprisingly, there is a lacuna in contemporary scholarship regarding Paul's conception of human flourishing within Philippians. This essay seeks to fill (albeit, partially) this lacuna. In this essay, I contend that Philippians is central to Paul’s reimagined conception of human flourishing as a cruciform life, and that while he was surely aware of the topic of living and dying well in the cultures around him, Paul stands in stark contrast to them.

What does it mean to “read Romans with Eastern eyes”? Combining research from Asian scholars with his many years of experience living and working in East Asia, Jackson directs our attention to Paul's letter to the Romans. He argues that some traditional East Asian cultural values are closer to those of the first-century biblical world than common Western cultural values.

In addition, he adds his voice to the scholarship engaging the values of honor and shame in particular and their influence on biblical interpretation. As readers, we bring our own cultural fluencies and values to the text. Our biases and backgrounds influence what we observe―and what we overlook. This book helps us consider ways we sometimes miss valuable insights because of widespread cultural blind spots.

In Reading Romans with Eastern Eyes, Jackson demonstrates how paying attention to East Asian culture provides a helpful lens for interpreting Paul's most complex letter. When read this way, we see how honor and shame shape so much of Paul's message and mission.

Drawing on Mikhail Bakhtin’s theory of double-voicedness and James Scott’s theory of public and hidden transcripts, this essay investigates the colonial context of Romans 13:1–7 with particular attention to the Roman imperial cult. It is my contention that Paul attempts to persuade the audience to resist the imperial cult, whilst negotiating colonial power and authority. It is assumed that colonial discourse is, by nature, a double-voiced discourse in that the public transcript of the dominant and the hidden transcript of the suppressed coexist in a continued state of internal tension and conflict. Seen in this light, Paul as a colonised subject parodies the public transcript of the elites in his own hidden transcript. However, Paul’s doubled-voiced discourse finally turns out to be subversive against the dominant culture by suggesting that ultimate honour, fear, and authority should not be due to the rulers of the Roman Empire but to God.

In the introduction to this second edition of Gorman’s textbook on the Pauline letters, Gorman offers ten approaches to the Apostle Paul’s letters. As is common in a Pauline introduction, the first two are the familiar traditional and new perspectives on Paul, but he also includes narrative-intertextual (Richard Hays), apocalyptic (Martyn, Gaventa, and Campbell), anti-imperialist (Richard Horsley), the “Wright-ian perspective” (N. T. Wright), Paul within Judaism (Mark Nanos), social scientific (John Barclay), feminist (Lynn Cohick, Amy-Jill Levine), and participationist (Douglas Campbell, Morna Hooker, Udo Schnelle). The reader of his introduction to Paul will find references to all of these perspectives in Gorman’s presentation since all make a contribution to our understanding of Paul.

The word arché, by which Jesus is in Col 1:18 described, is most often interpreted and translated as “beginning”. There are however hints that arché also bears connotations to arché defined as philosophical principle. It is supported by: 1) depiction of Jesus in Col 1:15-20 in categories appropriate for philosophical arché; 2) invocation in Col 2:8 of „philosophy according to the elements of the world” as a negative alternative for Christ; 3) the fact that, Paul possessed at minimum
elementary knowledge of Greek philosophy.

This article offers a critique of Stanley Porter’s note, published in ETL of 1991, on the translation of κολλώμενος in 1 Cor 6,12-20. Porter proposes to translate the verb as “to obligate oneself” instead of the more conventional “to join”, because it would better fit the single governing metaphor expressing economic subordination as expressed in v. 20 (“you were bought with a price”). In reply, it is suggested that Paul, in fact, uses three different metaphors in order to illustrate more clearly the new reality Christians are experiencing and the ethical implications of this reality. It is argued that each metaphor is operating on its own conceptual level, and fundamentally and uniquely defines its own terms. The three metaphors are briefly presented and their respective role in the pericope and in Paul’s rhetoric is assessed. It turns out that κολλώμενος is best translated as “to join,” expressing a state that “contains” the Christian as being in relation to God.

Addressing the internal conflict between the “weak” and the “strong” affecting the church of Rome, Paul attempts
to provide a solution to the problem that is consistent with “his gospel.” Central to Paul’s argument is his
quotation, in Romans 15:3, of Psalm 69:9 (LXX 68:10), which he interprets and presents here from a Christological
perspective: Jesus appears as the one upon whom fall the offenses and insults addressed by some people to
God. First, Paul reads that text typologically, as referring to Christ, the sin-bearer. Second, but equally important,
Paul reads it as a paradigm of his own experience and as a typos of the experience of the church. The offenses between
Christians are equated with casting blame upon God himself, and the shame associated with this blame is in
turn extended to all those who claim to love and serve God. Paul’s admonition to the “strong”—to endure criticism
and to forego any reactive attempt to vindicate their honor—must have been perceived as unnatural behavior for
those who belonged to a culture permeated with shame and honor values. Nevertheless, Paul encourages his fellow
believers in Rome to accept shame as a sacrifice for the sake of a higher good, i. e., the upbuilding and edification
of the Christian community.

This article investigates Paul’s use of the term οἱ δοκοῦντες in the letter to the Galatians. Firstly, the term is considered from the standpoint of lexical semantics. Secondly, select relevant parallels from Ancient Greek literature are adduced and studied comparatively. Based on these considerations, it is argued that Paul uses οἱ δοκοῦντες as a rhetorical device whereby he distances himself from the Jerusalem leaders and, in so doing, turnes his opponents’ argument against them. 

Paul serves for us as an important role model in his passion for the gospel of grace, his emphasis on the work of the Holy Spirit in the life of the Church, his missionary activity and his sufferings for Christ. But to see him as a model of religious zeal is directly to contradict his own version of his turn away from contemporary Pharisaic and Zealot values of theological education, violent action and legalism to a new ideology of the suffering servant. We have much to learn from this—there is an urgent need for our churches to understand, live out and teach the new values of Jesus's kingdom, prone as we so often are to drift back into vain religiosity.