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$16.49 - The First Paul: Reclaiming the Radical Visionary Behind the Church's Conservative Icon
Product Description Bestselling authors of The Last Week and The First Christmas, Marcus J. Borg and John Dominic Crossan join once again to present a new understanding of early Christianity—this time to reveal a radical Paul who has been suppressed by the church. Paul is second only to Jesus as the most important person in the birth of Christianity, and yet he continues to be controversial, even among Christians. How could the letters of Paul be used both to inspire radical grace and to endorse systems of oppression—condoning slavery, subordinating women, condemning homosexual behavior? Borg and Crossan use the best of biblical and historical scholarship to explain the reasons for Paul's mixed reputation and reveal to us what scholars have known for decades: that the later letters of Paul were created by the early church to dilute Paul's egalitarian message and transform him into something more "acceptable." They argue there are actually "Three Pauls" in the New Testament: "The Radical Paul" (of the seven genuine letters), "The Conservative Paul" (of the three disputed epistles), and "The Reactionary Paul" (of the three inauthentic letters). By closely examining this progression of Paul's letters—from the authentic to the inauthentic—the authors show how the apostle was slowly but steadily "deradicalized" to fit Roman social norms in regards to slavery, patriarchy, and patronage. In truth, Paul was an appealing apostle of Jesus whose vision of life "in Christ"—one of his favored phrases—is remarkably faithful to the message of Jesus himself.
Most Recent Customer ReviewsDate : 2010-02-15
Summary : Worth reading twice
Two friends and I chose to read this book together and soon decided we enjoyed it so much, we'd read it twice! Our first time was an "overview" run through and our second time was a slower, more in depth study with Bible in hand.
In short, if you thought you knew Paul, think again! After reading this book, I saw Paul in a whole new light. The brilliant historical and theological scholarship and the insight of the authors helped me to read Paul's letters in the context of his era and thus understand Paul's writings in a whole new way. This book was quite wonderful and a pleasure to read.
Date : 2010-02-01
Summary : Charlene U Maresca
The First Paul is a wonderful book for a Bible Study or to read on your own! If you are one that doesn't like some of the things the Apostle Paul taught, this book is for you. It is an easy read and clears up many questions and concerns I have had for many years on many contradictions of Pauls teachings.
Date : 2010-01-30
Summary : Attractive Cover; very academic
I led a small book study at my church wanting to understand more about St. Paul. The book is very academic, citing historical background for the times and also presents theological views as to why Paul wrote his letters. It is rather dry, at times was difficult for us to keep focused. For our purpose, it would have helped if I had some questions to use along with the reading to prompt my thinking. However, we did learn some valuable information from this book.
Date : 2010-01-17
Summary : enlightenment
As one would expect from the authors, an accessible and valuable insight into Paul and the formation of the Bible. For all who find the Bible's apparent contradictions troubling this book will help to dissipate some of the fog.
Date : 2010-01-05
Summary : Excellent
I'm not a huge fan of Borg or Crossan, but this book was excellent. After reading this book you will never read the Bible, at least Paul's writings, the same. Scholarly, yet readable for lay people who are interested in the profound New Testament man, St. Paul.
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