Paul: The Man and the Myth (Studies on Personalities of the New Testament) - Hardcover

Roetzel, Calvin J.

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1570032645 ISBN 13: 9781570032646

Publisher: Univ of South Carolina Pr, 1998

Synopsis

Characterizes the most influential apostle of the early Christian church as an evangelist anxious about the welfare of his churches; a theologian facing fierce opposition; a missionary at the mercy of the elements; and a man suffering physical assaults, slander, and imprisonment. Also contrasts the depiction in the Bible by presenting him as physically weak, even sickly, and a letter writer and preacher unskilled in speech. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

About this title

About the Author:

Calvin Roetzel is the Arnold Lowe Professor of Religious Studies at Macalester College, St. Paul, Minnesota.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.:

We are left to reconstruct a portrait of Paul with only scraps of what was once a large and imposing canvas---a small collection of letters and a historical narrative written a generation after his death. This reconstruction focuses on important parts of the image that usually fall in the shadows, parts dealing with Paul's sexual asceticism, his preoccupation with holiness---Holy Spirit, holy community, and holy ethos---the evolution of his theology, and his emergence as a legendary figure. Although I have tried to follow the strict rules of historical investigation, of necessity much guesswork is involved in any exploration of Paul's life. . . . All of these efforts are attempts to deal with the gaps in the text, understood in the broadest sense to include not just Paul's written words but also the culture, social world, and political realities surrounding them. ---from the Introduction

About this edition

• Publisher: Univ of South Carolina Pr
• Publication date: 1998
• ISBN 10: 1570032645
• ISBN 13: 9781570032646
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 269