Pauls Letters

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Pauls Letters

• BI 192 Pauline Letters and Mission
• David J. Lull

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el Greco and Rembrandt
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Types of Contents
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Pauls Typical Letter Form

• Opening (e.g., Phil 1.1-2)
• Sender(s)
• Addressee(s)
• Salutation
• Thanksgiving (e.g., Phil 1.3-11)
• Body (e.g., Phil 1.12-4.20)
• Doctrines
• Exhortations (parenesis)
• Closing (e.g., Phil 4.21-23)
• Recapitulation
• Final exhortations
• Exchange of greetings
• Benediction

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Epistolary Styles and Rhetorical Elements

• Ethos/character (Phil 1.3-11, 2.19-30, 3.18-19)
• Logos/proof (Phil 2.5-11, 3.2-4.1)
• Pathos/emotion (Phil 2.17-18)

• Defense (2 Cor 1.15-4.6, 7.2-16, Gal 1.10-2.21)
• Persuasion/dissuasion (Philippians 4)
• Consolation (Phil 1.12-26)
• Friendship (Phil 1.12-26)
• Blame (Phil 3.2, 18-19, Gal 6.12-13)
• Praise (Phil 2.19-30, 1 Corinthians 13)

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Styles of Speeches and Rhetoric(see Aristotle,
On Rhetoric, 1.3.3-5)
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Paul the Apostle(Gorman pp. 56-65)

• Apostle (Rom 1.1, 5, 1 Cor 1.1, 9.1, 15.7-11, 2
  Cor 1.1, Gal 1.1, 1 Thess 2.7 Col 1.1, Eph 1.1,
  Pastorals)
• Slave (Rom 1.1, Tit 1.1)

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Letters as Personal Presence

• 2 Cor 10.11

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Contextual-Pastoral Theology and Community
Formation(Gorman pp. 76-78)

• Occasion-context-situation
• One-sided dialogue
• Public letters (1 Thess 5.27, Col 4.16)

• Examples of community formation
• 1 Corinthians
• Galatians
• Philippians
• 1 Thessalonians
• Phlm 1-2

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Stories Behind and Within Letters(Gorman pp.
75-76)

• Gods Story
• Pauls Story
• The Addressees Story

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Collection of the Letters(Gorman pp. 91-96)

• Occasional/contextual universal
• 1 Clement (ca. 96 CE)
• 2 Pet 3.16 (early 2nd century CE)
• Irenaeus (ca. 200 CE)

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P 46 (ca. 200 CE)RomansHebrews1 2
CorinthiansEphesiansGalatiansPhilippiansColoss
ians1 Thessalonians
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Muratorian Canon, ca. 200 CE(http//www.earlychri
stianwritings.com/muratorian.html)

• Letters to churches
• 1 2 Corinthians
• Ephesians
• Philippians
• Colossians
• Galatians
• 1 2 Thessalonians
• Romans
• Letters to individuals
• Philemon
• Titus
• 1 2 Timothy

• Forgeries (to further the heresy of Marcion)
• Laodiceans (cf. Col 4.16 also see 2 Thess 2.2)
• Alexandrians (Marcions revision of Ephesians)

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Order of the Letters(Gorman pp. 91-96)

• Letters to churches
• Rom
• 1  2 Cor
• Gal
• Eph
• Phil
• Col
• 1  2 Thess

• Letters to individuals
• 1  2 Tim
• Tit
• Phlm

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Authorship and Authenticity (Gorman 87-89)

• Co-senders, secretaries (Rom 16.22 cf. 1 Cor
  16.21, Gal 6.11, Phlm 19 also see Col 4.18, 2
  Thess 3.17)
• Language and style
• Content (e.g., eschatological perspectives)
• Situation (e.g., institutionalization)

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The ConsensusPseudonomous/Deutero-Pauline

• 2 Thess (50)
• Col (60)
• Eph (70)
• 2 Tim (80)
• 1 Tim Tit (90)

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Interpolations?

• Rom 13.1-7
• 1 Cor 14.33b-35/36
• 1 Thess 2.14-16
• Rom 7.25b

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Historical and Theological Observations (Gorman
pp. 89-91)

• The last word has not been written.
• What if similarities between Phlm and Col (and 2
  Tim and 1 Tim) were given greater weight?
• Imitation was the sincerest form of flattery and
  discipleship.
• Tastes and biases enter in, and change.
• Inspiration is not pinned to authorship.
• All are part of the Christian canon/Bible
  regardless of their authorship.