The Apostle to the Foreskin: Circumcision in the Letters of Paul

by Ryan D. Collman

This volume offers a comprehensive examination of circumcision and foreskin in the undisputed Pauline epistles. Historically, Paul's discourse on circumcision has been read through the lens of Paul's supposed abandonment of Judaism and conversion to 'Christianity.' Recent scholarship on Paul, however, has challenged the idea that Paul ever abandoned Judaism. In the context of this revisionist reading of Paul, Ryan Collman argues that Paul never repudiates, redefines, or replaces circumcision. Rather, Paul's discourse on circumcision (and foreskin) is shaped by his understanding of ethnicity and his bifurcation of humanity into the categories of Jews and the nations—the circumcision and the foreskin. Collman argues that Paul does not deny the continuing validity (and importance) of circumcision for Jewish followers of Jesus, but categorically refuses that gentile believers can undergo circumcision. By reading this language in its historical, rhetorical, epistolary, and ethnic contexts, Collman offers a number of new readings of difficult Pauline texts (e.g., Rom 4:9–12; Gal 5:1–4; Phil 3:2–3).

256 pages, Paperback

Published November 4, 2024

Reviews

[Jon · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a really excellent treatment of circumcision in the so-called undisputed Pauline letters. Though this is a published PhD thesis, it reads remarkably well overall. Although I still have some questions about his proposal, I was thoroughly convinced by his exegesis that these Pauline texts never denigrated circumcision or abandoned it for Jewish followers of Jesus. I do wish we would stop talking about “Paul” while leaving out half the corpus, but that is a gripe I have for most of the field. I’d highly recommend this to anyone interested in scholarship on “Paul within Judaism” and early Christian views of circumcision.

[Davis Sutton · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent work on circumcision in Paul’s letters. Collman exhibits excellent exegetical work. It will definitely disrupt a few familiar passages (like “they worship their bellies" in Philippians and the translation of ακροβυστια) but it’s absolutely worth a read. Paperback version is clutch, by the way, so much more affordable!

[Charles Meadows · Rating 5 out of 5]

This new book falls squarely in the "Paul within Judaism" group and argues that Paul was against gentile circumcision because gentile followers of Jesus could approach Israel's God while in their foreskins! The author sees male anatomic references in some subtle places such as Paul's use of "dogs" in Philippians 3. Very well written and clearly argued. His conclusions are similar to those of Thiessen and Fredriksen.