Unity and Diversity in Christ: Interpreting Paul in Context

Collected Essays

William S. Campbell

• Publisher: Cascade Books
• Year: 2013
• Print ISBN:
  9781620322932
  9781498216647
• eBook ISBN:
  9781621896722
• Topic: Theology & Religion
• Subtopic: Biblical Studies

These essays represent William Campbell's ongoing challenge over the last two decades to a residual aspect of the paradigm of Paulinism, namely that of interpreting Paul in antithesis to his Jewish roots. Campbell has proposed a new approach to Paul focusing on such themes as diversity, identity, and reconciliation as the basic components of transformation in Christ. The stance from which Paul theologizes is one that recognizes and underpins social and cultural diversity and includes the correlative demand that since difference is integral to the Christ-movement, the enmity associated with difference cannot be tolerated. Thus reconciliation emerges as a fundamental value in the Christ-movement. Such reconciliation respects and does not negate the particularities of the identity of Jews and those from the nations. This paradigm transformation implies the reevaluation of all things in Christ, whether of Jewish or Gentile origin. An underlying trajectory permeates these essays. What unites them is the emphasis on continuity between Judaism and the Christ-movement, particularly as exemplified in Paul's letter to the Romans. Such continuity is vitally important not only for understanding the past and present of Christ-followers, but even more significantly for the contemporary understanding of the identity of both Judaism and Christianity.

Table of contents

• Title Page
• Permissions
• Abbreviations
• Chapter 1: Trajectories of Conversations with Paul and Others
• Chapter 2: The Contribution of Traditions to Paul’s Theology
• Chapter 3: The Rule of Faith in Romans 12:1—15:13
• Chapter 4: Divergent Images of Paul and His Mission
• Chapter 5: “All God’s Beloved in Rome!” Jewish Roots and Christian Identity
• Chapter 6: “As Having and as Not Having”
• Chapter 7: Unity and Diversity in the Church
• Chapter 8: The Addressees of Paul’s Letter to the Romans
• Chapter 9: “Let Us Maintain Peace” (Rom 5:2)
• Chapter 10: Universality and Particularity in Paul’s Understanding and Strategy of Mission
• Chapter 11: “I Rate All Things as Loss”: Paul’s Puzzling Accounting System
• Bibliography