Reframing Paul: Conversations in Grace and Community

The Greco-Roman world was shaped by ideals and abstract ideas. The Apostle Paul left them behind. But they continue to shape evangelical teaching and practice.This picture contradicts the common impression of Paul as an abstract theologian, someone who wrestled with deep theological doctrine while hovering six feet above everyday reality. But in fact, it was the philosopher's of Paul's day--and even some of Paul's Christian opponents--who traded heavily in abstractions, one-way rhetoric and top-down hierarchies while depreciating the currency of common experience. By contrast, Paul the tentmaker was a conversationalist of God's good news, a storyteller of Jesus Christ, an apostle who walked the avenues and back alleys of everyday reality. His passion was for communities of grace and conversation where the new reality of Christ was explored and embodied within the daily messiness of life.Reframing Paul unveils this Paul in his original context and invites us to engage him onnew terms. Courageously author Mark Strom draws Paul into vital conversation with contemporary evangelicalism. His book is for those who wonder why people leave churches for alternative spiritual paths--and who may even be tempted to do so themselves. More than anything, his book is for those who wonder what's gone wrong and who want to learn how the church can be an attractive community of transforming grace and conversation.

Mark Strom is currently the CEO of Second Road, a unique strategy and innovation firm based in Sidney, Australia. He was previously CEO of Laidlaw College in Auckland, New Zealand. Mark's Ph.D. explored the intellectual and social background of Paul and his place as a major innovator in western thought.