Both Wayne and Jock felt that Wilson had stretched us and informed us and
we were glad of that. But certain aspects of his book caused us some concern
- namely his view that Jesus was an ememplary Jew and no more while Paul
invented Christianity out of context with the Historical Jesus and largely
embracing pagan spirituality.
The Jesus Seminar scholars have become our new mainstream of scholarship,
and two of these in particular, Marcus Borg & John Dominic Crossan.
And it just happens that they have just released a book on Paul, so we
felt this a balance in the present study. Wayne introduces this new book,
and Jock presents some video clips from the two that speak to the Jesus
and Paul themes of this study. This will help prepare for next weeks teleconference
with Marcus Borg, who has kindly agreed to chat with us on these themes
of Jesus and Paul.
The Living the Questions is an excellent new multimedia program in our
church, and Borg and Crossan have contributed to a new series in LTQ. There
are a considerable number of excerpts of good programs like LTQ and good
speakers like Borg and Crossan. They enevitably migrate to Youtube.com.
It is encouraging that in the last while, the progressive voice is now
appearing as complement if not antidote to the more strident views that
people associate with religion. And now the Living the Questions people
have themselves made a Living the Questions - Youtube Page. A nice part about browsing Youtube, is that as you search one starting
theme, related videos are shown ready to look at next.
Introducing the book: THE FIRST PAUL: Reclaiming the Radical Visionary Behind the Church's Conservative Icon, by Marcus Borg & John Dominic Crossan. HarperOne: Toronto, ON. March,
2009. Hardcover. 230 pages. $32.99 CAD. ISBN 978-0-06-143072-5.
Key Points
1. Catholics and Protestants see Paul's Importance Differently
Protestants have always viewed Paul as foundational for Christianity, while Catholics have not given him such a central position. For Catholics Paul shares that role with the apostle Peter.
Borg: My Lutheran background taught me to see Jesus, God and the Christian
gospel through a Pauline lens mediated by Luther.
Crossan: "Peter and Paul" were the twin heroes of Christian Rome
and were emphasised together as the martyred founders of the new Christian
Rome. The Catholic church within which I was raised believed that "Peter
steered the boat and Paul guided it." (pages 5-7)
2. Presenting a New Focus for Paul
"Our common hope is that we can get Paul out of the Reformation world and back into the Roman world, to see him properly (and in his original context) as contrasting not Christianity to Judaism or Protestantism to Catholicism, but Jewish covenantal traditions to Roman imperial theology." (page 7)
Paul's real contention was not with Judaism but with Roman imperial power. Paul did not pervert the message of Jesus into a set of abstract doctrines "about" Jesus. He did not transform the religion of Jesus into a religion "about" him.
Paul was a strong voice, but not the only voice, in the emerging Christian church.
With these statements, Borg and Crossan stand firmly opposed to several key arguments presented by Barrie Wilson.
3. Jesus, Not Caesar, is Lord
"We are admirers of Paul" say Borg and Crossan. "He was
a faithful apostle of the radical Jesus who became his Lord."
4. Return to the Original Context of Paul
There is not one, but several Pauls found in a careful reading of the New Testament.
These come from the Pauline letters - which are of three kinds: genuine,
those not written by him, and those of disputed authorship. In addition,
the book of Acts serves as a secondary, not a primary, source of what we
know of Paul. Paul wrote out of four concentric social situations -
- as part of local communities which he founded;
- as part of the early Christian movement of which he was a member;
- as part of the Jewish faith which he never rejected;
- and as part of the Roman world which dominated everything politically.
5. Paul Emphasised Experience, not Belief
Paul's message was not based on beliefs about Jesus. It was grounded in a life-changing and sustaining experience of the risen Christ. Experience, not belief, was central for Paul. He did not have a belief about Jesus, but a faith in Jesus.
His theology of Christ, his Lord, stood clearly against the theology espoused
by the imperial power of Rome.
6. Paul as Jewish Christ Mystic
Paul is best understood as a Jewish Christ mystic. The radical Paul is a faithful follower of the radical Jesus.
A mystic is one who seeks union with God. For Paul, this meant finding enlightenment and illumination in the "Way of Jesus."
Paul's life can be divided into two main parts. "Pre-and-Post- Damascus road vision of the post-Easter Jesus." Damascus was clearly the transformative experience of his life.
7. Jesus was Lord.
Paul came to believe that God raised Jesus from death and this became the cornerstone of his faith in Jesus. For him Jesus, not Caesar, was Lord.
8. Conclusion:
The authors present a "post Catholic" and a "post Protestant"
Paul and this moves us forward in our understanding of him. They view Paul
as respecting the Jewish covenantal tradition but adding a Christian dimension
to that tradition. God did not reject the Jewish people because they rejected
Jesus as Messiah and Lord. Christians, because of Jesus, now share in God's
covenant with the Jewish people, but they cannot claim it exclusively for
themselves.
Borg & Crossan help us to transcend centuries of theological insularity. They do this motivated by a serious attempt to rediscover and reconstruct the "primitive" apostle in his original context and not with the understandings most Jews and Christians have long held about Paul. |
