At a further remove from Paul, one encounters three informative documents which modern scholarship calls the "Pastorals," a 19th-century term which emphasizes their pastoral or ecclesial concerns.  Since all of Paul's letters have profound pastoral interests, it should be noted that use of this time-conditioned term is meant, in this case, to underscore the writer's great interest in church structures, orthodox doctrine, and other ecclesial concerns.  The term for us is convenient and traditional and supports modern scholars' conclusions that the author's general purpose and focus can be listed under three headings: focus on authority by employing Pauline tradition, insistence on orthodox belief as guard against false teaching or heresy, and the establishment of church structures as a strategy against disruptive beliefs and behavior.

            The three documents, though assembled in the NT canon as addressed to individuals and listed according to length, are nonetheless believed to have been composed in the following order: 2 Timothy, Titus, and 1 Timothy.  Three important themes or factors point to such a conclusion.  The first of these, the use and appeal to Pauline authority, leaves its mark less and less on the letters as the author's assumed Pauline authorship and authority become established among the readers--2 Timothy goes at great length to insist that the letter comes from Paul (2 Tim 4:9-22); the other two insist less and less on this point as the readers accept the authorial strategy.  The second issue, that of structural, ministerial organization, shows clear progress from 2 Timothy (1:6; 2:1-2), to Titus (1:5f), and 1 Timothy (4:4; chapters 3 and 5), where the rudimentary "laying on of (apostolic) hands" and appeal to faithful witnesses are subsequently replaced by the insistence on the appointment of elders in every town and even the confirmation of this by a council of elders.  The last letter develops at length the qualifications demanded of those who hold positions of authority.  And thirdly, one notes that the problem of heresy is handled in an equally progressive way as trouble-makers or heretics are first singled out, then avoided, and finally
excommunicated (see 2 Tim 2:17; 4:14; Tit 3:10; and 1 Tim 1:20).  These indicators of progression confirm the order of writing as well as underscore the problems encountered by the communities being addressed.

            The author's strategy then is to establish a chain of command and thereby, in lieu of the problems being encountered by a growing Church, exercise some control over doctrine, ideas, and membership.  By insisting on the good behavior of candidates for office (see 1 Tim 3:1f, 8f on bishops and deacons) the author sets in motion a process which governs the choice and evaluation of persons in authority.  Also by insisting on specific qualifications and behavior the author underscores the value of tradition for sound doctrine (the term didaskalia or "sound doctrine" is used no fewer than 15x by the author).  Thus, sound doctrine becomes a rallying cry for the author who employs control over ecclesial structures and functions as the means to combat various heresies in the growing communities.

            Many things could be said about the doctrine or thinking of these early documents.  One could praise the author's insistence on a positive view of creation (1 Tim 4:4--reiteration of Genesis 1), on a strong theological doctrine (God as Sovereign One, as Savior), and on a well-developed teaching on virtue.  For the last mentioned one would note that the author is strongly influenced by the Greek model of ethics: virtue through example, proper behavior, and great insistence on reverence for the deity, concern for others and especially self-discipline.  These are the virtues that citizens of the world should emulate (in a Christian context, of course--see 1 Tim 5:1f, 3f, 9f).  Finally, one should note a strong Christological teaching in these writings which, while expressing an explicit, low Christology, insists on Jesus' role as salvific mediator (1 Tim 2:3b-6).  The picture of Jesus, therefore, which emerges from this document
            is intimately related to the Pastor's purpose in writing.  Jesus, as God's mediator, performs a
            soteriological function as he brings God's salvation to a world that needs it and profits from it.
            Through Christ Jesus the mercy and grace of God have been poured out abundantly upon
            those who believe that they might in turn, in the hope of eternal life, apply themselves to good
            and profitable deeds (Titus 3:5-8)"--see Jesus, p. 361.

          Good luck with exam on Friday--and give serious thought to your paper for next week.

            Another disciple of Paul tackles a different type of community problem.  As one gathers from various polemical statements within the letter (2:8f), some/many people within the community have made their newly-discovered Christian belief system an extension of pagan/Jewish syncretism (i.e., mixtural of systems).  They have taken their belief in Jesus as lord as an extension and indeed a complement to their pervasive submission and worship of the divine powers of the Hellenistic world.

            People of that time and culture believed that there existed above the human domain a hierarchy of heavenly or divine beings. Below the supreme God or gods (depending on one's monotheistic or polytheistic stance) was situated a whole layer of angelic or godly beings whose functions involved the governance of the cosmos and the direction of earthly and human affairs.  The planets needed movers; the nations needed cosmic protection and guidance.  Even human affairs and destiny were assumed to be subject to "these elemental spirits of the universe" or "angelic" powers (2:8, 18--see also Paul in 1 Cor 15:24).   This cosmological view then had important cultural, religious, and cosmic implications.

            On becoming believers in Christ, the members of the community had assumed that their relations to the "powers" continued unabated.  They persisted in worshipping or placating these powers through magic-like observances (visions, sensual and ascetic practices), rituals, and festivals (new moons, sabbaths--2:16-20).  Presumably their nod to their new Christian commitment was to add Christ to their pantheon of powers to be placated.  Jesus Christ would then become a new, powerful figure or power of special interest to the Christian believer, but nonetheless one power among many.

            The author insists that belief in such powers and worship of these amount to a false "philosophy," "empty deceit," or a claim to "special knowledge" (2:8f--these are of course polemical terms).  Such continued practice is a false submission to "the elemental spirits of the universe" or, in more Jewish terms, to "angelic powers."  The author qualifies this as a problem or disease and presents a doctrine of Christ's lordship as antidote.  Christ is the creator and conqueror of the powers (1:15-17; 2:15), therefore lord of the cosmos (1:16; 2:10, 15).  Thus, one must direct one's attention to him, the creator and lord, and not to the creatures and conquered subjects.  This letter then is an exaltation of Christ's lordship (see the beautiful Christ hymn of 1:15-20).  Note too that the author expresses clearly what we would call a high christology whereby divine being and status are claimed for Christ (see 1:15, 19; 2:9).  Further, the author insists that Christ is not only (with God) ruler on earth and in heaven but also head of the church which is his body (1:13, 18, 24).

            The letter concludes (a topic only mentioned in class but included on our class handout) by insisting that believers live according to heavenly (those related to Christ) and not earthly realities (those related to the elemental spirits--see 3:1f).  One must seek what is above (that which is virtuous) and avoid what is below (that which stems from vice--see chaps 3:5f and 12f).  The letter thus focuses on Jesus' lordship in terms of belief and behavior.   This document then will play an important role in the development of Christology (i.e., who Jesus is and what his role in Christian doctrine is).

            A disciple of Paul writes a letter in Paul's style and in imitation of 1 Thessalonians to counter an acute case of apocalyptic fervor.  Members (at least a large number) of a community (somewhere--we are unsure of the place) are under the spell of charismatic preachers who insist "that the day of the Lord has already" arrived (2:2)--note their apocalyptic preaching and use of Pauline authority (even 1 Thessalonians) to foster their ends (reread v. 2:2).  They seemingly have turned the community in question into an idle (3:6f), misguided group whose only concerns are the end of the world, discussion of its signs, and preparation for the anticipated return of Jesus "from heaven with his mighty angels in flaming fire" to "inflict vengeance" on their enemies (1:7-8).

            The author, whom we must qualify as an orthodox Christian believer whose perspective on the endtime scenario (involving endtime signs, cosmic and civil disturbances, age of evil, and parousia resulting in a cosmic  battle and judgment) is very similar to that of Mark (reread chapter 13), argues with the community that the endtime process has not yet begun.  Instead of being a witness to the fabled "age of evil" when Satan will be revealed, prior to Christ's return, the community (the writer insists) is experiencing "the mystery of lawlessness [or evil] which is already at work" in the present (2:7).  There is in place some type of mysterious "restrainer" which is keeping back the end of the world (see 2:6-7--probably Roman civil structures).  The author insists that the end of the world has not yet arrived, i.e., that the cosmic clock (or "endtime process") has not yet begun its "count down."

            The letter is an attempt, successful we assume, to convince misguided apocalypticists that the Christian message is not to be situated in a reckless, idle wait for Jesus' imminent return (see especially 3:6f) but instead must view Jesus as present, earthly lord who is to be glorified now (1:12), who gives comfort to those who are persecuted (2:17), who strengthens and guards those who believe (2:16-17; 3:3), indeed who is director of hearts (3:5).  Believers must view Jesus not only, nor especially as the returning warrior/judge but as present lord of believers.  Believers must work and live in the world to change that world rather than to escape what is presumed to be an evil world. One must focus on the present but with an eye to future judgment.

A Short note on "the Paulinists Writers"

First Observation: Romans

            Paul's letter to the Romans is by all accounts his most important letter and contains the final and perhaps fairly good overview of his thought.  It, like his other letters, was written for a specific community.  It is an "occasional" letter despite its length and ponderous character.  He is here writing to a community he has never visited, much less founded.  Careful examination of the letter, particularly chaps 9-11, 13, 14-15, nonetheless reveals a relatively good acquaintance with the issues that were of concern to the complex Roman Christian community.   I add here some observations which I did not have time in class to make.

            The Roman situation.  It is readily admitted at this stage of scholarly work that the Roman community had originally been predominantly Jewish Christian in character, but, as a result of the Claudian edict (c. 41 or 49 AD) and other factors, had become largely Gentile.  Indeed, once the Jews (including the Jewish Christians) had returned to the imperial capitol after their lengthy banishment, they found themselves a minority group within the community they had once controlled.  Paul easily detects the Gentile tendency to look down on the older Jewish members (thus Paul's imagery of the "wild olive shoot" grafted to "the rich root of the olive tree" to describe the Gentile's relation to the Jewish-Christian Church of Jerusalem as well as the Jewish-Christians of the Roman community).  Additionally, he is aware of other problems which the community members are undergoing, namely the question of taxation in chapter 13 and the continued problem of Jew and Gentile in Christ in chapters 14-15, where he designates the former as "the weak" and the latter as "the strong."

            Paul's plans, the role of the Roman community, and the major themes of the Roman letter.  Paul is convinced finally that his mission in the eastern part of the Roman empire (from Jerusalem to Illyricum--Rom 15:19) is coming to an end (contrast with 2 Cor 10:15-17). So he now turns his attention to the western Mediterranean and wishes to devote his missionary activity to Spain.  To do this he will need moral, financial, and personnel assistance.  He proposes to come to Rome, to visit, even preach there, and "be sent on by" the Roman community to his new missionary endeavor (see Rom 15:22-24).  First, however, he must make a final trip to Jerusalem with the Greek (Macedonian and Achaian) contribution to the collection for the famine-struck saints in Judaea (15:25).  Paul emphasizes that this is a gesture of appreciation from the Gentiles to the "mother Church" for the "spiritual blessings" they have received through them.

            This last point goes a long way in explaining the character of Paul's major letter.  Indeed it contains a fairly good overview of Paul's thinking as a self introduction to the mixed (Jewish Christian and Gentile), eminent (prominent community of the empire's capitol) Church of Rome.  It is no surprise then that Paul paints his view of the Christ-event in such broad strokes for this community's consideration.  First, viewing the world from a Jewish perspective, Paul speaks of two principal groups (Jew and Gentile) and their relation to the Christ-event; secondly, considering the coming of Jesus as the pivotal event of God's plan, Paul considers these groups from a past, present, and future perspective.  Thus, a) 1:16-2:16 treats of Gentiles, or God's human subjects more generally, as being guilty for not recognizing the Creator in created things and especially for not acknowledging God's lordship (see 1:20f).  Paul concludes that humanity's situation, i.e., the Gentile without Christ, is one of depravity (Paul here paints a dismal, traditional picture of the non-Jewish, Gentile world.  b) Secondly, Paul in 2:17-4:25 turns to the Jews as people who subscribe to the Law, but following a relatively brief analysis of Jewish behavior and relation to God, concludes that they are not justified by the Law and its work, but instead fall far short of God's glory (3:21-23).  This indeed is Paul's view of the Jew before Christ.  During this time, he insists, God made a promise to Abraham to save humanity through faith, through Abraham's descendant.  c) Finally, in 5:1-8:29 Paul turns to the Christ-event.  Through Christ's death and resurrection (i.e.,  through the Lord Jesus Christ, descendant of Abraham) God has granted peace to humanity.  Thus, both the Jew and the Gentile are now in Christ; both pledge their loyalty to Christ as their lord.  So Paul in chapters 5, 6, and 7 discusses how Christ (and the believer with him) has defeated death and sin and in chapter 8 speaks of Christian life as dominated by grace, the gift of the Spirit, and views the believer as a child now made free to love and serve God as a loving parent.  Note these chapters of Romans merit careful and repeated reading.

            A final, heart-breaking note must be underscored, for Paul in chapters 9-11 devotes his attention to a sad, unresolved issue: what about Jews apart from Christ?  Paul is painfully aware that what he considers to be the key to God's care for humanity, the Christ-event, has not been embraced by the Jewish people generally.  Paul in these chapters discusses and ponders over the privileges, the situation, and the mystery of his "kindred according to the flesh" (9:3).  He would be willing even to be cut off from Christ for them.  He concludes after much consternation that their fate is in God's hands and expresses the conviction that finally "all Israel will be saved" (11:26).

            With this letter Paul disappears from firmly-recorded history.  It is doubtful that he made it to Spain.  Indeed, his reputation seems to have gone into decline following this rush of missionary activity.  His letters are lost sight of for a time (Luke does not know nor cite his letters in Acts) but will be edited for posterity and imitated by disciples (Paulinists).  Eventually all known Pauline and a few Paulinist documents will enter the Church's canon of sacred writings.  It is from these that later centuries of Christian believers will draw from Paul profound insights concerning the Christ-event and God's plan for human salvation.

Second Observation: Pauline Thought

            Originally made in conjunction with a study of Paul's Letter to the Romans, these overall remarks are here given as a  conclusion to our study of Paul's thought, especially his views on the Jesus movement and God's plan for human salvation.  Paul, the Jewish- Christian, sees the sweep of God's activity and the Christ-event itself as an unfolding of God's relationship to humanity.  His views find their origin in basic Jewish presuppositions:  God's creation and lordship.  Paul the philosopher theologian bases his view of life and its goal in the belief that everything God created was good and particularly that the human being was created in God's "image and likeness" and was to manage the world for the creator.  The human being was blessed by God and commanded to govern God's creation and make it productive (Gen 1:27-28).  In Pauline terms the goal of creation and the responsibility of the creature was the bestowing of honor and thanks to the creator (Rom 1:21).

            For Paul, and for any knowledgeable Jew, the story goes on.  The human being does not accept this scenario; there is a rebellion, a story told in picturesque detail in the Adam and Eve narrative. The story is essentially about a rebellion against God's lordship, for the human being, in various ways, wrongly aspires to "be like gods" (Gen 3:5) or again, in Pauline terms, "grasps at equality with God" (Phil 2:6--NAB).  We know the sequel as the expulsion from the garden (Genesis 3).  As a result of this disobedience or rebellion sin and evil dominate the world (see the Cain/Abel story as the first murder in Genesis 4 and the proliferation of sin in Genesis 5-11).  From then on there is a continual battle between good and evil, a concept highlighted by the image of the holy man who does battle in a world dominated by evil and strives to direct humans to side with God.  See Paul's description of the non-Jewish or Gentile world, i.e., humanity without Christ.  It is futile in its thinking; its minds are senseless; indeed, they worship the creature rather than the creator (Rom 1:21f, 25f).

            The Jewish story about evil does not end there for God set in motion a plan of salvation history or better still a plan to salvage the disruption which occurs in divine and human relations.  That story starts again with the figure of Abraham who is called by God (Genesis 12).  It is the story of faith and of promise of posterity.  With Abraham begins a long relationship between God and the chosen people, a  relationship of covenantal love and betrayal.  Within this greater story, from Paul's perspective, one must insert the work of Moses and examine the role played by the Torah or Law.  Paul is well acquainted with the important themes of the Exodus and of the Sinai revelation but, in Christian terms, focuses on the role of Moses and the Law.  In a more positive vein, he treats of the Law as God's great gift to the chosen people, for to them "belong the adoption, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the worship, and the promise; to them belong the patriarchs, and from them, according to the flesh, comes the Messiah, who is over all, God blessed forever. Amen" (Rom 9:4-5).  But in a more negative context, namely the great battle concerning the relative roles of Jesus and the Law in God's plan, Paul insists that the Law played the role of a disciplinarian, custodian, or pedagogue which both protected and imprisoned the human subject (personified by the Israelites), until faith or Christ's coming (Gal 3:23-29).  Human beings were like children before the Messiah's coming.  Now that he has arrived they, as children of God, are to put away the Law now as adults in Christ.  God has chosen the Christ event, or faith in Christ, as the means for salvation.

            Now that Christ has come, the relationship between God and humanity has been restored.  Through faith Jew and Gentile submit to Christ as their lord.  Through his death and resurrection he has won the battle against evil and rebellion, for he has submitted in faith to God.  The battle on the one hand has been won on the heavenly plain but has yet to be won on the human level, for humans, indeed each human being, must respond in faith to Jesus as lord.  Paul would insist that the goal of this christological victory and ultimate submission of human subjects to Christ in faith is the prelude to the establishment of God's kingdom.  At the end Jesus Christ the Lord will hand over all his believing subjects "to God the Father, after he has destroyed every ruler and every authority and power."  Even death the last enemy will be destroyed and "when all things are subjected to [Christ], then the Son himself will also be subjected to the one who put all things in subjection under him, so that God may be all in all" (1 Cor 15:24, 26, 28).

            The goal of the Jesus movement or christianity for Paul is the realization of the present (as opposed to future) lordship of Christ.  It is the time when there is a struggle for lordship.  Before Christ gentiles and Jews were sinners, enemies at war with God (see Rom 5:1f-- also in Jesus, 330f).  They were ungodly and subject to the Law, sin, death or the earthly powers.  Now that Christ has come, humans, in faith, are justified, i.e., they are restored once more to a proper relationship with God.  They are at peace and have received grace or divine gifts which allow them to live in and through Christ and indeed to receive God's Spirit, which addresses God as "Abba Father" (Rom 8:15).  For Paul then it is the Christ-event that brings about reconciliation between God and humanity, that brings about an expiation for human error or sin, that restores a proper relationship between creator and creature, that indeed grants the human subject the freedom intended by God, namely, freedom from the old domains of power (sin, evil, and death--even the Law) and submission to God as the power of creation, good, creativity, and fulfillment.

            So believers, as a new creation, have access to divine grace (or the power of the Spirit) and are servants no longer but now are children of God.  They are a new family through their response to the Christ-event.  Their duty is to respond to the Christ-event in love as a concern for others (whether love for brothers and sisters or proper behavior toward outsiders) and in hope as a foundation for faith and action.  Paul's ethics therefore might best be described as the new responsibility of people with a new status.  Thus as children of God they are to live in holiness, in imitation of Jesus the Lord, in the power of the Spirit, and in full acclamation of Jesus' lordship.  They are a noble race and in accordance: "noblesse oblige"--they are to live in accordance to their status as God's beloved children--according to Paul.

            For our next class we will begin our study of the Paulinists (see Jesus, chapter 9) with a look at 2 Thessalonians.

            In the interest of time I will offer just a few brief observations and will treat both letters, even though, in class, we focused almost primarily on 1 Corinthians.

            1. Introduction to the ministry, the correspondence, Paul's lengthy association with this fascinating community, the complex chronology of that relationship, and the fragmentary character of 2 Corinthians.  All of these topics are dealt with at length in Jesus, 274-82.   The ministry began immediately after Paul's Macedonian work (see 1 Thessalonians and Philippians) and that ministry marked the beginning of a long association of Paul with the wild and interesting community of Corinth.  Paul was responsible not only for the conversion of the communities in that Greco-Roman city and its environs but also addressed a number of letters to them, one of which is now lost (see 1 Cor 5:9, 11).   Additionally his relationship with the community was stormy at worst and reconciliatory at best.  Further, though 1 Corinthians is a complete letter (a long and complex series of answers to Corinthian questions), 2 Corinthians is a composite document made up of a series of memos and letter fragments.

            2. Structure, character, and content of 1 Corinthians.  The letter, if one compares it to contemporary correspondence, particularly a letter from "Andro to Milo" (see Jesus, 283), is basically a series of responses to "reports" and "questions" brought to Paul by Chloe's people, either in oral or written form.  Thus, the first part of the letter, chapters 1-6, addresses oral reports brought to Paul by the Corinthian messengers (see 1:11; 5:11--"it is reported") and the second, chapters 7-16, deals more directly with the letter sent by the Corinthian community with its questions (see 7:1, 25; 8:1; 12:1; 16:1, 12-- "concerning the...").

            About the character of the letter one might say that Paul addresses the issues raised by various members of the Corinthian community either to resolve problems, clarify other issues, warn against certain abuses, or simply to provide information.  In some cases it is clear that there are several points of view to consider, either in resolving the conflict between parties (the weak and the strong and the issue of meat offered to idols--8:1-11:1) or in admonishing members of the community for wrong-headed belief or behavior (divisions and partisanship, public lawsuits, or dress and behavior at 1:10f; 6:1f; and 11:2f, respectively).

            Paul addresses numerous problems in 1 Corinthians.  Beyond the ones mentioned above, we might note the following: God's standards (1:18f), true and false wisdom (God chose the weak things of the world; in terms of salvation God chooses the kerygma or death and resurrection of Jesus, not worldly wisdom nor miracles or signs--see 1:21-3:4), the apostles as servants of God (3:5f--read especially 3:6), sexual morality and immorality (chaps 6 and 7), and the resurrection (15:1-58--a major chapter for Pauline thought).  One might focus especially on the issue of "speaking in tongues" (as we did in class), an issue Paul seems particularly concerned about (already in the thanksgiving section-1:7) speaking in tongues and thereby misunderstand both what God's gifts mean and how they are to be used.  In chapter 12 he dwells on the issue of gifts and discusses the list of spiritual gifts given to believers, the highest being prophecy and the lowest being tongues.  He then launches into the beautiful discourse (chap 13) on love as the greatest gift, the one without which the others are a sham (tongues, prophecy, knowledge, or service without love are bankrupt).  He pleads with the Corinthians to put away these childish ways (13:11f) and to seek to make use of God's gifts for the good of the community (chap 14).  The community, the Church, is one body and the gifts are its many and necessary parts.  All gifts have their place; they are to be exercised for the "upbuilding" or edification of the community (14:3f) and must be done "decently and in order" (14:39).

            3. A final note on 2 Corinthians (seen only briefly in class--see handout).  The document, in my opinion, is a composite of a number of Pauline fragments, whether of a presumed lost earlier letter (1:1f), correspondence dealing with Paul's troubles with the community (the "letter written with many tears"--chaps 10-13), two separate memos about the well-known collection for the Jerusalem Church (chaps 8 & 9), and later pastoral documents (2:14f).  These various fragments have been combined in a single document and testify to Paul's versatility and depth as a Christian thinker whose major goal is the evangelization of the Gentile areas of the Roman empire and whose concern is for the well being and continued commitment of the communities he founded.

            During his early ministry while traveling through Asia Minor (through the area or province of Galatia), Paul becomes deadly sick and is cared for by Galatian inhabitants whom he evangelizes (see 4:13).  From this point on his communities in Galatia seem to have thrived.  But at a later date Law observant missionaries arrive in the area and insist that the Galatian Christians, who are Gentile in origin, submit to the Torah as part of their Christian commitment.  This Jerusalem group, or at least a group one might describe as a "circumcision party" come from James and supported by the Jerusalem church, represents a form of Jewish Christianity which insists that God works through the Law and through Christ.  The letter then is Paul's reaction to this new situation.

            An Introduction to the Galatian Letter.  While there is some debate concerning the nature of the letter, some insisting that it is a personal apology on Paul's behalf and others preferring to see it as polemics against the Judaizing right wing of the early Church, I see the letter instead as a defense of the Gentile mission expressed first as a history of that mission and then as a fight for the centrality of the cross.  There is no doubt that Paul is angry (he even omits a thanksgiving), that he dwells at length on his own background, and that he is led to cite the Jewish Scriptures at length.  These features provide the letter with an unusual tone and character.   Seemingly, Paul is greatly concerned about his own reputation and role in the matter.  One presumes that the new-comers have questioned his apostleship, his orthodoxy, and even his competence.  Nonetheless, it is not the autobiographical character of the letter which predominates but rather the defense of the Law-free Gentile mission to which Paul has devoted his mission and his energies.

            The letter begins by emphasizing the true character of Paul's apostleship; he was called by God; he became a follower of Christ; he did not receive his commission from Jerusalem (the claim presumably made by the newly-arrived missionaries; see 1:1f and 10).   He then proceeds to show that he had little contact with the Jerusalem authorities (1:16-2:1)and that they nonetheless agreed with his Law-free Gentile mission.  Indeed, he insists, these pillars of the Church, did not object to the young Greek Christian whom Paul brought with him to the Jerusalem council (even though some right-wing radicals tried to subvert the proceedings in Jerusalem; 2:3-6).  Additionally, they gave Paul and Barnabas the right hand of fellowship in agreeing to a partition of the apostolic mission: Peter and colleagues would evangelize the Jewish community (the circumcised) and Paul and his colleagues would go to the uncircumcised (2:6-10).  Such was the agreement which the new comers in Galatia were violating by preaching a Law observant gospel.  Paul is aware that others (Peter and Barnabas), even at Antioch, were less than stellar in their confirmation of the Law-free mission to Gentiles, for they were not able to see the  ramifications of such a basic principle (2:11-14).

            The principal issue of Galatians then is Paul's objection to the position of Law-observant Christian missionaries, that it is necessary to obey the Law of Moses to be justified before God.  The issue is about the respective roles of Christ and the Law in God's plan.  On the one hand, Paul insists on the absoluteness of the Christ-event (3:21) and the freedom which it brings (2:4; 5:1f).  One must not submit to the Law, a state to be compared to a return to slavery and a renouncing of freedom.  Instead Paul insists that believers are children of Abraham (3:5f) not of Moses, i.e., heirs of faith not of the Law (3:2).  God's promise to Abraham concerning his descendant (Christ) is fulfilled in the Christ event: Christ's followers have become heirs of Abraham's promise and are no longer slaves of the elemental spirits of the flesh, or of the Law (3:29-4:1).  In and through Christ they gain freedom as children of God and therefore walk in the Spirit (5:25).  Justification then came through Christ, namely by his death, not through the Law.  Paul then is interested, in this letter, to defend the role of Christ in God's plan.  On the other hand, Paul is led to discourse also on the role the Law plays in that same plan (we did not really see this in classs though I often referred to the "role of the Torah."  The Torah or Law was given to humanity, personified in Israel, as a custodian or disciplinarian (paidagogos) until the Christ's coming.  Humans were like children in need of a custodian.  But now that Christ's coming has brought about the reign of faith, believers, who are constituted children of God through faith and have clothed themselves with Christ, are therefore adults in Christ and are no longer subject to the Law or Torah, seen as disciplinarian (see 3:23-29).

            Paul's Response in Summary Form.  Paul's letter to the Galatians then is written in a period of crisis, a situation that calls for a serious response.  Paul sees the challenge of the Judaizers and their Law-observant mission as questioning or even denying Christ's role and as jeopardizing the Gentile mission.  Therefore, we might summarize Paul's response to this crucial situation in the following way--using the six items listed on the board during class, along with others.
            1) The Apostle--1:1f.  At the simple mention of the term "apostle" in the opening of the letter, Paul is reminded of the attacks against him as being less than an apostle, one in effect who is or should be subject to the Jerusalem apostles.  He insists that his commission is from God through Christ (1:1, 11 12)--not through humans or a human institution (this is a clear reference to the circumcision faction and its claims that it represents the Jerusalem authorities).
            2) Jesus Christ--1:3f.  After resuming the letter form and ending the greeting "from God...and the Lord Jesus Christ," Paul is reminded also of the challenge to Jesus' role and insists solemnly on the essential character of the Christ-event (1:4-5), a topic to which he will return often, especially in chapters 3-4.
            3) No Thanksgiving --> astonished--1:6f.  Paul is so disturbed by the Judaizers and disappointed in the Galatians that he omits the  traditional thanksgiving and expresses astonishment at the Galatians' gullibility for so easily abandoning what they were taught and opting for a gospel that does not have Christ as its center.  Paul, in his criticism and biting language, spares neither the Judaizers (let such be accursed--1:9-10) nor the Galatians (see 3:1: "foolish Galatians"), and not even his missionary colleagues Cephas/Peter and Barnabas (see below).
            4) Paul's History & that of the Gentile Mission--1:13-2:10.  Paul begins a long autobiographical narrative about his persecution of the Church, his life as a Jew, his call by God to accept the Son, and his role in the Gentile mission, a role that had little to do with Jerusalem, its pillars, its authority, or its teaching.  He wishes to minimize his contacts with Jerusalem in order to defend his and the Gentile mission's independence and divinely approved status (Paul was called to "proclaim [Christ] among the Gentile"--1:16).
            5) Focus on the Council & Its Decisions--2:1-10.  Paul lends his attention especially to the Jerusalem council and the approval of the Jerusalem pillars for dual missions: Peter et al to the circumcised and Paul et al to the uncircumcised.
            6) Paul, Peter, and Barnabas--2:11-14.  Paul cannot resist pointing out that not only the Judaizers have violated the Jerusalem agreement (or "right hand of fellowship"--2:9), but even Cephas/Peter and Barnabas were less than exemplary in their behavior and convictions during their stay at Antioch when people "from James" or "the circumcision faction" (2:12) applied pressure on them for their association ("eating with Gentiles") with non-circumcised Christians there.  Paul confronts them and even uses the term "hypocrisy" to characterize their behavior.
            7) Christ Crucified --> not the Law--2:15f.  Paul insists that the central element for Christian belief is the Christ-event or the death and resurrection of Christ, not the Law.  The Galatians are reminded that they received the Spirit through Paul's preaching of "Christ crucified" not through the flesh (circumcision) nor works of the Law" (3:1-5).
            8) The Scriptures & the Christ-Event--3:8f.  Paul focuses at length and in typical Jewish fashion on the Hebrew Scriptures to discuss the nature, the role, and indeed the essential character of the Christ-event, speaking at length on Abraham and faith, on the Law and faith, the role of the Law (see # 9), the concept of "heirs of the promise," enslavement to the Law, and the children of the free or of the slave woman (4:21-31).  (See C.J. Roetzel, World the Shaped the NT, 91-93, for a discussion of Paul's use of the Jewish Scriptures in Galatians 3 and Romans 4.)
            9) The Law as Disciplinarian--3:23-29.  The Law functioned, in the past, as a disciplinarian (see earlier discussion).  In this polemical, Judaizing context, such is Paul's immediate statement about the role of the Law; see Romans for a different context and perspective.
            10) Christ, the Spirit, and Freedom --> a New People in Christ--chapter 5-6.  Paul is led in conclusion to discuss at length the relation between the Christ-event, the granting of and life in the Spirit, and the freedom which Christ gives to believers through the Spirit.  Paul concludes: in Christ "neither circumcision nor uncircumcision is anything; but a new creation is everything!" (6:15).

            Paul's letter ends with a brief statement of the facts and pleads with his readers that they submit themselves not to the Law but to the cross of the Lord Jesus Christ and thus through him become "a new creation" (6:11-16).

            Sometime while Paul is in jail, perhaps at the time the first Philippian missive (1:1-3:1a + 4:10-23) was written, he has the occasion to communicate with a convert of his, Philemon, about an important but delicate matter.  Indeed, the letter is a rhetorical masterpiece of persuasion and we presume that Paul was successful in getting what he wanted.

            The letter is short (25 verses in all) and presents a classic structure: a brief opening, followed by a brief, benevolent thanksgiving, a fairly lengthy body where he argues his case for the request being made, and a relatively concise closing.  The letter reverberates with pathos, with the language of camaraderie, familial relations, and clever innuendo, and with an attitude of deference yet firmness to ensure voluntary obedience to Paul's request.  Paul stresses his status as prisoner in need of help, help owed him by Philemon or his substitute.  He speaks of himself as a father figure both to Philemon and of his run-away slave Onesimus.  He wishes to send back the now-converted slave to his master but insists that since he is now Onesimus' father, he is really sending back part of himself, his own heart, or his own child.

            Beyond this Paul focuses on the language of camaraderie.  Philemon, though his own convert, is addressed as brother, coworker, partner in the ministry, even a benefactor of Paul who has refreshed Paul's heart, who has contributed to Paul's ministry, who can now extend his benevolence to the jailed Paul.   Of equal significance is the language of familial relations: that of father, son, brother and sister.  As regards innuendo, one does not cease to marvel at Paul's clever turns of phrase, whether a pun on Onesimus' name as underscoring the importance both of the situation (a useless run-away slave) and of the request (a servant of God and companion of Paul who is useful beyond human measure) or use of an "a minore ad majus" argument (from minor to major): if you refresh the hearts of the many brothers and sisters how much more should you refresh the heart of your own father in the faith, by doing what I ask.

            Paul requests that Philemon welcome back his run-away slave as a brother or fellow Christian.  This is the clearest part of the request.  Paul however wants more than this but does not wish to force the issue.  Paul is confident, after much rhetorical effort, that Philemon will not only forgive Onesimus his indiscretions, and perhaps theft, but will send Onesimus back to him to assist him in his missionary task of preaching the gospel.

            This short rhetorical masterpiece made it into the NT canon no doubt because it is by Paul, but one suspects that many ancient readers detected the profound sense Paul expresses in this letter of the freedom which a life of faith should engender.  Paul tries his utmost to convince, to persuade Philemon to do what he considers best yet he will not cross the line of using his authority to command that the action be done.  Ideal Christian behavior is voluntary not forced--such is Paul's moral attitude and conviction toward the members of his communities (further, see concluding paragraphs on Philemon in Jesus, pp. 261 62).

            Prior to his arrival at Thessalonica (1 Thess 2:7) Paul had already spent some time at Philippi where he and colleagues had been rather successful in their ministry, so successful that the Philippian community had repeatedly sent them monetary assistance (as well as the services of Epiphraditus) during the Thessalonian mission (Phil 4:16).  Over a period of time, involving both the missionary visit and subsequent contact with the community, there had developed a deep bond between the Philippians and the apostolic preachers (Paul among them).

            The document we are about to examine, though composite in nature (see below) is written at a later date, probably in the late 40s, some time after Paul had finished his Macedonian ministry (i.e., after the Thessalonian missives).  In effect two different settings seem to be called for to explain the complexity of the document.  Again one encounters in this document several transitional passages, along with some short memos, which point to the combination of two letters  (see 3:1-2; 2:19f; and 2:25f).  In particular the transition between 3:1 ("finally" and theme of rejoicing) and 3:2f (the excoriating attack against Judaizing missionaries) suggests the combination of two letters.  Equally, the repetition at 4:8 of "finally" once more (along with the theme and tone of joy) points to the same conclusion.  One document (1:1-3:1a + 4:10-23) seemingly relates to Paul's imprisonment (1:7, 12f) and the arrival of gifts from Philippi (4:18) and a second (3:1b-4:9) presumes a later setting (probably just prior to the Jerusalem council and its concern for the Gentile mission and the issue of circumcision, as seen in the Letter to the Galatians) about unacceptable Judaizing activity within the Pauline community.

            First letter--1:1-3:1a + 4:10-23--dated to late 40s.  Of special interest in this fully-developed letter, on the one hand, is the frequently-noted fact that Paul both is in prison and that his imprisonment is a boon to the group's missionary activity (see 1:12-14).  On the other, despite the less-than-ideal situation of being in prison, Paul is most joyful (the term is used 12x in this letter).  As one reads the letter carefully one notes especially in 1:15-17 that there are some "new" ministers in Philippi who insist that Paul's imprisonment is a sign of God's disfavor toward him; Paul has hit "rock bottom" and has been abandoned by God. Others, however, are more genuinely perceptive (indeed Christian in their insight) in their analysis of the situation, for they understand that God has placed Paul in jail "for the defense of the gospel" (passive form: "I have been put here"--i.e., by God).  Paul is convinced about what he states in 1:15-16 because of the recent arrival of a Philippian emissary (Epiphraditus) with gifts or contributions for the imprisoned Paul.  This Paul concludes is proof of the Philippians' understanding of what Christian discipleship is all about.  Paul, like the crucified Christ, like the child-like figure of the Jesus tradition, is in his most genuinely Christian state.  He is most like Christ when he is lowest; he is giving up his freedom and life for the gospel (he is unsure of the outcome of his imprisonment--see 1:19f).  Paul in jail is not a Christian failure but rather a most genuine follower of Christ.  This is what the people of Philippi indicate by their gift to Paul.  The Philippians see in the imprisoned Paul not abandonment but a Christ-like pattern as forming part of God's plan.  So Paul is overjoyed about the genuineness of the Philippians' faith and is even ready to forgive those who preach with less-than-good motives, since even they preach Christ (see 1:18).

            At this point I might add that Paul seizes the opportunity to insert an early Christological hymn to underscore even further the truth of the lesson noted above, namely, that even Christ chose to be a servant rather than a master, chose the cross rather than self-exaltation.  Of course the hymn (2:6-11) usually is interpreted as suggesting a high Christological status for Jesus, i.e., he was divine and emptied himself or gave it up or, in the terms of the NRSV, did not "exploit" this divine status.  I, along with other NT scholars, view this pre-Pauline hymn as expressing a low, Adam Christology.  Jesus, who like Adam, was created according to God's "likeness and image" ("in the form of God") was unlike Adam (Gen 3:5-6) in that he "did not regard equality with God something to be grasped" (see the NAB).  Jesus, all the same, gave up high status for servant-like status, "even death on a cross" (Phil 2:8).  Paul wishes his Philippian community to be like Jesus ("to have the same mind") and indeed like himself.  Servanthood is Jesus' and the believer's task, exaltation is God's domain (see Phil 2:9f).  Jesus is the model of discipleship and Paul, while in jail, is most like Christ crucified.  Paul wrote this short letter because Christian discipleship and the very nature of the Christ-event itself were in danger of not being properly understood.

            Second letter--3:1b-4:9--dated at the end of the 40s or beginning of the 50s, probably before the Jerusalem council.  This short missive (missing only its opening and closing?) addresses two rather significant issues which will concern Paul in other parts of his correspondence: circumcision and the role of Christ on the one hand and the nature of salvation or its future character on the other.

            1) In the first case, it is clear that Jewish-Christian missionaries have arrived and, as will be noted later in Galatians, will attempt to impose observance of the Jewish Torah on the Gentile converts.  Paul opposes this, but first questions these Judaizing missionaries' superior Jewish status.  Presumably, they are saying that their Jewish pedigree (perhaps related to Jesus' Jewish origins and the leanings of the Jerusalem/circumcision party) and background authorize them to preach and impose a Law-observant mission which involves the circumcision of Gentile converts.  Paul attacks them and, after focusing on his exquisitely Jewish pedigree, insists that all this privilege (or gain) must, in Christian terms, be given up or lost, so that one might gain Christ (see 3:7-11).  Paul insists that he gave up this Jewish privilege or gain (i.e., he regarded it as loss or rubbish) that he might gain Christ (see vv. 7-8).  It is not the Torah or Law that he wishes to know but the power of Christ's death and resurrection (v. 10).

            2) A second issue is raised, presumably by the people of Philippi, namely, that some believe that they "have already obtained" the status of perfection, salvation, or righteousness (3:12-16; of course we did not have time to treat this subject in class).  Paul immediately sees the danger of such a position and uses the imagery of the race to insist that salvation or perfection in Christian terms is a goal to be reached at the end of the race; it is the crown/prize which the runner receives for a well-run race.  A Christian must always be aware of the "already" and the "not-yet" character of salvation.  Through the Christ-event, Paul insists, the believer has been made righteous (has been placed in a right relation with God) but only once the race has been run or in light of one's loving activity will the crown or prize of salvation be obtained.  So Paul says of himself: "forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the heavenly call of God in Christ Jesus" (Phil 3:13-14).

            This short missive then addresses later but important problems which Paul encountered among his converts and addresses them with his unfailing wisdom and insight, insights which seemingly speak even now to much later, extended readers.  Paul even has the courage to command that his children in Christ join in imitating him (3:17), who strives mightily to imitate Christ his servant and lord.

            Paul's Early Aegean Ministry.  In the early years after his acceptance of Christ (c. 36), after a brief ministry in Arabia (c. 39-40), and, we presume, after an extended period of work in Asia Minor (beginning in 40--see Gal 1:17, 21-see class handout part 5), Paul (now a senior missionary) and colleagues crossed the Hellespont and began missionizing the major cities along the Via Egnatia. We know that he, Silvanus, and Timothy preached first in Philippi for an extended period of time (perhaps a year or so) and then moved on some 100 miles further west to the important city of Thessalonica.  He and his coworkers are given a warm reception (1 Thess 1:9; 2:2).

            The new site of Paul's missionary activity was an important port city of the Roman province of Macedonia, indeed, a major commercial city founded at the time of Alexander.  The city was later made capital of the Roman province and was a thriving cosmopolitan urban center.  Paul and colleagues no doubt received, initially, the mixed welcome reserved for street philosophers and entertainers (see 1 Thess 2:1-12) but soon founded thriving communities in the city (see Phil 4:15-16 for the length of Paul's stay).

            A Composite Document.  As one looks at the document, which scholars universally consider Paul's earliest extant writing, one quickly notes some literary and theological  problems.  Among these one notes double thanksgivings (1:2f & 2:13f) and conclusions (4:11f & 5:25: concluding prayers and even "finally" in 4:1).  One also has an uneasy sense that some elements of the document suggest that only a short period of time has lapsed since the missionary visit, while others presume a considerable gap between the time of evangelization and the writing of the document (see the short time of 2:17 and the longer time of 1:8f).  One gets the impression (confirmed by content analysis) that the document, in its present state, combines a note about an immediate issue (2:13-4:2) and a longer letter about long-range, maturing problems (1:1-2:12 & 4:3-5:28).  The former, short memo, would have been placed within the framework of the longer letter, between 2:12 and 4:3, by a later editor.

            Earlier letter--2:13-4:2.  The earlier document, probably dating to the early 40s, would be a nearly-complete letter, missing only its opening (probably identical to 1:1) and perhaps some of its closing or ending.  Its purpose, as one gathers from reading 2:17-3:6, is the expression of Paul's gratitude and joy, on Timothy's return from a visit to Thessalonica (3:6), that the recently founded, loved community has survived despite the apostolic preachers' departure and some unknown difficulties it is having.  The community, as Paul, Silvanus, and others had feared (3:1,5), had not only survived the difficulties of being Christian in a non-Christian world and had resisted the temptation to return to their "enticing" pagan ways, but was actually thriving.  Indeed, Timothy, the young emissary sent by the preachers from Athens (3:1-2 and especially by Paul himself: 3:5), had returned from a visit with the Thessalonian community and was able to report "the good news of [their] faith and love"- faith as a firm commitment to God through Christ and love as a sign of loving commitment to others (fellow Christians and even outsiders).  The community also misses the missionaries (see 2:17-20 and 3:6b), and wishes them to pay a return visit (3:6b), a thing Paul hopes in prayer will happen (2:11).

            So the earlier document is a short missive of concern and attachment.  Paul relates that the missionaries are most concerned about the community's survival ("could bear it no longer"--3:1, 5) and were most happy when Timothy was able to check in on them and report back with good news.  The short letter is a beautiful witness to the joy of missionary work, of loving relations between committed believers, and the seriousness, devotion, and wisdom with which Paul devoted himself to his life-work--an analysis of 2:19-20 bears this out.

            Later letter--1:1-2:12 + 4:3-5:28.  The second, probably-complete letter is composed at a later date and addresses the concerns and problems of a growing and maturing community.  Further, as one notes in 4:9, 13; and 5:1 ("now concerning love..., concerning those who have fallen asleep..., concerning the times and the seasons..."), the letter is an extended response bearing a series of questions from the Thessalonian community as well as other queries and concerns communicated to Paul (see a similar situation for the analysis of 1 Corinthians--later).

            After a brief opening (1:1) Paul expresses his thanks to God for the gift of faith received by the community through apostolic preaching, a commitment to God which has now become an example far and wide ("faith went forth") as the Thessalonians developed as a believing community (their reputation precedes them) and as they generously supported the missionary effort by furnishing both materiel and personnel (1:2-8).  The letter proceeds to address a variety of issues such as the apostles' welcome at Thessalonica (1:9-10) and their behavior during the mission there as being exemplary (2:1-12- how the community has become so dear to the missionaries who are like a mother and father to their children in the faith--see 2:7 & 11).  Following that, Paul treats a series of crucial issues: the matter of holiness in sexual and social spheres (4:3-8), the love of others, even outsiders (4:9-12), the problem of Christians who die before Christ's return (4:13-18--they will be raised to meet the returning Lord), readiness for the Lord's return (5:1-11), and more general advice to the community (5:12-22), followed by an epistolary closing (5:23-28).  One sees already in this first letter the depth, concern, and creativity of Paul the great missionary and pastor.  He addresses a series of community problems that have been communicated to him and, as a father speaks to his children, gives them advice on these issues (see 2:11).  Of special interest in this missive is his discussion of eschatological issues (life after death and living with the day of the Lord in view) and of Christians and their lives in the world.  Paul is most dedicated to his audience and is concerned about their commitment and growth.  His letters address the various stages of his evangelical work, especially that period which followed and grew out of his initial missionary visit to the community, when he and colleagues founded communities and nurtured them for a while and then continued to assist them at a distance (via letter)--Paul the missionary becomes a letter-writer.  Paul's letters then are the fruit of his pastoral concern for his children in the faith as they encountered the challenge of living as Christians in the world of their time.  The extended reader can learn much from these insights of Paul the early missionary, who helped to formulate much of what will become the best of early Christian tradition.

           1) Paul's entire ministry and correspondence must be situated prior to the writing down of the Jesus tradition by Mark (before 65-70 AD) and probably also by the writer of the Q document.  What Paul preached concerning Jesus, what story(s) Paul and contemporary communities had access to, or what Paul and his fellow believers knew about Jesus is hard to decipher from his letters, since he speaks not of the evangelical process (though see 1 Thess 2:1-12) but rather about various issues of concern to communities he or others had already evangelized.  In other words, we do not know what story, what facts, or what claims Paul and other missionaries made about Jesus as they announced or proclaimed the good news.  Paul does say to the Galatians: "It was before your eyes that Jesus Christ was publicly exhibited as crucified" (3:1).  What exactly that means, we do not know, especially since there does not seem to have existed at that point a written sequence or life of Jesus ("gospel") for preaching purposes.  Note, even though we study Paul after the gospel writers, we nonetheless must understand that his entire ministry and correspondence must be dated prior to the writing down of the Jesus traditions into gospels.

            2) A fixed chronology of Paul's life  and correspondence is not easily established though there are a number of clues for attempting such a reconstruction, clues that come from Paul's correspondence exclusively.  One could employ "the" standard chronology (see class handout) but this depends of course on Acts entirely and is, in my estimation, suspect.  Thus, without relying on Acts, three relatively stable points for establishing Pauline chronology can be established with some confidence (see verso of class handout): Paul's becomes a Christian, his first visit to Jerusalem (both related to his activity in Damascus; see below), and his second visit to Jerusalem for what is usually called the "council" meeting.

            a. Paul becomes a Christian--c. 36 AD.  By examining Gal 1:13-18, one arrives at the conclusion that Paul ceased persecuting Christians and became one himself just a few years after Jesus' death.  We might summarize the data by citing J.A. Fitzmyer, "Paul" in The New Jerome Biblical Commentary, p. 1330:
                    In Paul's own letters the only incident that can be dated extra biblically is his Damascus escape (2 Cor 11:32
                    -33): the ethnarch of King Aretas closed off the city to take Paul captive, but he escaped by being let down
                    in a basket through a window in the city wall (cf Acts 9:24-29).  That occurred at the end of Paul's three
                    years in Damascus (Gal 1:17c-18).  Since Damascus was apparently under Roman rule until Tiberius's death
                    (March 16, AD 37; cf. Josephus, Ant. 18.5.3 # 124) and the Nabatean Aretas IV Philopatris (9 BC-AD 39)
                    was given control over it by the emperor Gaius Caligula, Paul's escape must have occurred between AD 37
                    and 39, probably in AD 39....  Paul's conversion was about three years earlier, probably in AD 36."
Note that I prefer to speak of Paul becoming a Christian (follower of Christ) rather than of conversion, a concept which connotes guilt (see Phil 3:6).  Immediately after joining the Jesus movement, he becomes an active missionary (Gal 1:17).

            b. First Jerusalem visit--c. 39-40.  Also according to the framework given in Gal 1:18-24, one must conclude that Paul made a first, short (15 day) trip to Jerusalem when he met Cephas/Peter and James.  This trip is made three years after his becoming a Christian and after his initial pastoral work in the area of Arabia and Damascus.  He insists that he is not, at this point known "by sight" in the region of Judaea (contrary to later tradition, even Acts, Paul is neither a native of Palestine nor was he educated in Jerusalem).   Further, he suggests that following this first visit to Jerusalem he moved to "the regions of Syria and Celicia."  From this I gather that he joined the missionary work that was being carried out in Asia Minor (modern Turkey) and further north and west in the Greek mainland, i.e., in the provinces of Galatia and Asia, then across the Aegean in the Greek provinces of Macedonia and Achaia.  This missionary work would have occupied the time span between his two Jerusalem visits (see Gal 1:18 and 2:1), a period of time described as "after
fourteen years"--one presumes this does not include the three years in Arabia and Damascus.  The date of  Paul's second Jerusalem visit (see below) would have been c. 49-50.

            During the time between the visits, Paul, with other missionary colleagues (especially Silvanus and Timothy), would have established numerous communities in the Greek areas of Asia Minor and mainland Greece--we have evidence for Galatia (see Gal 4:13-14), vague indications for the province of Asia (see Phil 4:15; 2 Cor 1:8f), and clear data for Macedonia (Philippi and Thessalonica), and Achaia (Corinth and Athens).  This would also have been the time when he began to write short and longer memos and letters, some of which were destined to survive and be collected by later admirers of his thought:
                    early 40s:                  1 Thess 2:13-4:2
                    later 40s:                   1 Thess 1:1-2:12 +4:3-5:28
                                                      Phil 1:1-3:1a + 4:10-23
                                                      Philemon
                    end 40s/beg 50s:       Phil 3:1b-4:9.

            c. Second Jerusalem visit--c. 49-50.  Fourteen years after his becoming a Christian (one could also insist on the period of time being 17 years later: 14 + 3 ), he travels again to Jerusalem, this time with Barnabas and Titus, to discuss the Gentile mission (see Gal 2:1-21).  The conclusion is reached that circumcision is not necessary for Gentile converts, that Peter and colleagues will direct their efforts to the circumcised (Jewish population) and Paul and colleagues (Barnabas is mentioned) to the uncircumcised or Gentiles.  Additionally, there is agreement on this with the pillars (James, Cephas, and John); there is given a "right hand of fellowship"; and there is a request that the Gentile churches contribute to the impoverished communities of Palestine ("that we remember the poor"--Gal 2:10).  The last mentioned marks the beginning of a major Pauline project: the "collection," a theme mentioned in all of his later correspondence.

            Clearly there develops a new missionary strategy and Paul's remaining career is to be seen in light of this ecclesial agreement.  After the Jerusalem meeting we are to date the Galatian letter which recounts the details of the meeting as well as Paul's displeasure at the failure of some in the Jerusalem community, and various other ultra-conservatives that claimed ties with James and "the circumcision faction" (Gal 2:12), to abide by the Jerusalem agreement concerning the Gentile mission.

            The remainder of the Pauline correspondence,
                    after 50/council:         Galatians
                    mid-50s:                     Corinthian correspondence
                    c. 58:                          Romans,
is to be dated in the period after the Jerusalem meeting, so is a great deal of Pauline activity in Antioch, in Ephesus and surrounding area in the province of Asia (and even  Galatia--see 1 Cor 16:8-9), and further travels to Macedonia and Achaia, particularly to and from Corinth (see 2 Corinthians 1-2).  Note, one could spend some time and effort in examining Paul's lengthy relationship to the Corinthian community (see Jesus, 274-81).

            3) An overview of Paul's ministry and pastoral correspondence then must view his activity as expanding well over a 20-25 year period from his becoming a Christian, c. 36, to the date of his last letter, Romans, c. 58.  This activity then completely predates the gospels and, in traditional terms, seems to be independent of any given, known Jesus tradition as available to us today through the Synoptic writers or John.  Paul disappears from well-documented history with his plans to move to the Iberian peninsula (Spain) to continue his pastoral, missionary work.  Later tradition suggests that he went to Rome, as planned (Rom 15:22f), but that he either languished there in prison (Acts 28) or, after being freed and ministering in the West (Spain or even the Eastern Mediterranean), was again arrested and martyred in Rome (Clement of Rome and Eusebius).

            At this point we might add a note on Paul's "Jewish-Hellenistic background" as presented in his own letters.  For this I will rely on a brief passage from Jesus, pp. 244-46 (only the footnotes have been eliminated):
                    "Paul gives ample information about his background and life.  On several occasions he underscores his
                    Jewish culture; he belongs to the Jewish race, i.e., he is "of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin,
                    a Hebrew of Hebrews" (Phil 3:5; see also Rom ll:l; 2 Cor ll:22); he was circumcised on the eighth day,
                    was an eager defender of the tradition of the Fathers, and was a zealous persecutor of the church (Phil
                    3:5-6; Gal l:l3-l4; also l Cor l5:9).  Though we might expect Paul to be exaggerating when he says in
                    Gal l:l4, "I advanced in Judaism beyond many of my own age among my people," we conclude that he
                    was as deeply attached to Jewish tradition as he was later to the Jesus movement.  Paul proudly recalls
                    these when he counters the claims of Jewish or Judaizing opponents (2 Corinthians, Galatians, Philip-
                    pians) or defends the rights of non-Christian Jews (Romans).  These are his credentials as far as race are
                    concerned and are all found in passages of self-defense or intense pastoral argument.  In one instance he
                    even claims to have been a Pharisaic adherent of the Law and blameless under that same Law (Phil
                    3:5-6).  However, if he takes pride in his Jewish background; he is nonetheless true to his absolute com-
                    mitment to Christ crucified, when he Paul concludes "but whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the
                    sake of Christ" (Phil 3:7).  Thus, more than polemics is involved in Paul's autobiographical outbursts.

                            "A major event turned Paul's world upside down; God revealed the Son to him (Gal l:l6).  This
                    event Paul himself compares to the resurrection appearances of Christ to his early followers (l Cor l5:8). 
                    In other words, Paul transferred his single-minded allegiance from Pharisaic zeal for the Torah to an
                    absolute faith in Christ crucified (we will return later to the meaning of the Christ-event for Paul).  The
                    successes and failures, the joys and sufferings, and feverish activity of the apostle to the Gentiles are
                    glimpsed at various points throughout the Pauline correspondence, (e.g., 2 Cor ll:23f; Gal l:l6f; Phi
                    3:7f).

                            "Paul was proud of his Jewish culture and spent much effort developing the ramifications of the
                    relationship between Israel and the Christ-event.  When some (advocates of a Law-observant mission
                    to Gentiles) attempted to relativize the role of Christ by subjugating his activity to Moses and the Law,
                    Paul insisted that one "is justified by faith in Christ, and not by works of the Law" (Gal 2:l6); or when
                    others (Jewish missionary opponents from Palestine) tried to usurp Paul's place and undermine his
                    gospel of freedom by boasting of their Jewish pedigree, Paul did not hesitate to claim as much for
                    himself, noting that all such boasting was foolishness anyway (2 Cor ll:2lf).  In less polemical situations,
                    where Judaism is not at issue, Paul draws from his background and personal history to explore the rich-
                    ness of the Christ-event and to exemplify Christian behavior by using himself ("join in imitating me,"
                    Phil 3:17) or Christ ("have this mind among yourselves which is yours in Christ Jesus," Phil 2:5) as
                    paradigm.  Finally, Paul theologizes by appealing to the Hebrew scriptures, from which he draws in-
                    spiration for his Christ-centered message.  He quotes the Septuagint frequently and draws upon oral
                    tradition to formulate his pastoral responses."

            Finally, for a discussion of "Paul and the epistolary conventions of the Hellenistic world," see also Jesus, pp. 235-239 and 282-283 and also class notes and handout.  Remember; we referred specifically to Paul's letter to Philemon and to a Hellenistic letter ("Andro to Philo"--see class handout, verso).