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The First Paul: Reclaiming the Radical Visionary Behind the Church’s Conservative Icon
“Borg and Crossan reveal a figure who, besides being neither anti-Semitic, anti-sex, nor misogynist, stresses social and political equality among Christians and between them and others. A refreshing and heartening exculpation of a still routinely maligned figure of the first importance to culture and civilization.” — Booklist (starred review)
John Dominic Crossan and Marcus J. Borg—two of the world’s top-selling Christian scholars and the bestselling authors of The Last Week and The First Christmas—once again shake up the status quo by arguing that the message of the apostle Paul, considered by many to be the second most important figure in Christianity, has been domesticated by the church. Borg and Crossan turn the common perception of Paul on its head, revealing him as a radical follower of Jesus whose core message is still relevant today.
John Dominic Crossan and Marcus J. Borg—two of the world’s top-selling Christian scholars and the bestselling authors of The Last Week and The First Christmas—once again shake up the status quo by arguing that the message of the apostle Paul, considered by many to be the second most important figure in Christianity, has been domesticated by the church. Borg and Crossan turn the common perception of Paul on its head, revealing him as a radical follower of Jesus whose core message is still relevant today.
242 pages, Kindle Edition
First published March 3, 2009
195 people are currently reading
948 people want to read
About the author
Marcus J. Borg
48 books355 followersBorg was born into a Lutheran family of Swedish and Norwegian descent, the youngest of four children. He grew up in the 1940s in North Dakota and attended Concordia College, Moorhead, a small liberal arts school in Moorhead, Minnesota. While at Moorhead he was a columnist for the school paper and held forth as a conservative. After a close reading of the Book of Amos and its overt message of social equality he immediately began writing with an increasingly liberal stance and was eventually invited to discontinue writing his articles due to his new-found liberalism. He did graduate work at Union Theological Seminary and obtained masters and DPhil degrees at Oxford under G. B. Caird. Anglican bishop N.T. Wright had studied under the same professor and many years later Borg and Wright were to share in co-authoring The Meaning of Jesus: Two Visions, an amicable study in contrast. Following a period of religious questioning in his mid-thirties, and numinous experiences similar to those described by Rudolf Otto, Borg became active in the Episcopal Church, in which his wife, the Reverend Canon Marianne Wells-Borg, serves as a priest and directs a spiritual development program at the Trinity Episcopal Cathedral, Portland, Oregon. On May 31, 2009, Borg was installed as the first canon theologian at Trinity Episcopal Cathedral.
Marcus J. Borg is Canon Theologian at Trinity Episcopal Cathedral in Portland, OR. Internationally known in both academic and church circles as a biblical and Jesus scholar, he was Hundere Chair of Religion and Culture in the Philosophy Department at Oregon State University until his retirement in 2007.
Described by The New York Times as "a leading figure in his generation of Jesus scholars," he has appeared on NBC's "Today Show" and “Dateline,” PBS's "Newshour," ABC’s “Evening News” and “Prime Time” with Peter Jennings, NPR’s “Fresh Air” with Terry Gross, and several National Geographic programs. A Fellow of the Jesus Seminar, he has been national chair of the Historical Jesus Section of the Society of Biblical Literature and co-chair of its International New Testament Program Committee, and is past president of the Anglican Association of Biblical Scholars. His work has been translated into eleven languages: German, Dutch, Korean, Japanese, Chinese, Indonesian, Italian, Spanish, Portugese, Russian, and French. His doctor's degree is from Oxford University, and he has lectured widely overseas (England, Scotland, Austria, Germany, Belgium, Hungary, Israel and South Africa) and in North America, including the Chautauqua and Smithsonian Institutions.
Marcus J. Borg is Canon Theologian at Trinity Episcopal Cathedral in Portland, OR. Internationally known in both academic and church circles as a biblical and Jesus scholar, he was Hundere Chair of Religion and Culture in the Philosophy Department at Oregon State University until his retirement in 2007.
Described by The New York Times as "a leading figure in his generation of Jesus scholars," he has appeared on NBC's "Today Show" and “Dateline,” PBS's "Newshour," ABC’s “Evening News” and “Prime Time” with Peter Jennings, NPR’s “Fresh Air” with Terry Gross, and several National Geographic programs. A Fellow of the Jesus Seminar, he has been national chair of the Historical Jesus Section of the Society of Biblical Literature and co-chair of its International New Testament Program Committee, and is past president of the Anglican Association of Biblical Scholars. His work has been translated into eleven languages: German, Dutch, Korean, Japanese, Chinese, Indonesian, Italian, Spanish, Portugese, Russian, and French. His doctor's degree is from Oxford University, and he has lectured widely overseas (England, Scotland, Austria, Germany, Belgium, Hungary, Israel and South Africa) and in North America, including the Chautauqua and Smithsonian Institutions.
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March 16, 2009
I always enjoy reading Borg and Crossan This book is every bit the joy to read that their previous works have been. Scholarly but highly readable, clear, concise, and very informative.
The essential point of the book is that Paul has been misread by nearly everyone. Paul is typically read as ordering wives to submit to their husbands, condemning gays, and as offering up the Christian faith as a set of doctrines which are dogmatically asserted to be "beyond dispute." Religious conservatives read Paul this way and rejoice, religious liberals read Paul this way and recoil.
The Problem is, as Borg and Crossan see it, tha tthis is just not Paul. To begin with, although there are 14 letters in the New Testament attributed to Paul, there is a a massive scholarly consensus that Paul surely did not write at least 4 of these, and probably only wrote 7 of the letters attributed to him. If this claim is accepted, and there is good reason to accept it, then the Passages in Paul commanding slaves to obey their masters and wives their husbands vanish from the authentic Paul's writings.
Borg and Crossan claim that those later "Pseudo-Pauline" letters contain passages deliberately created to subvert the real Paul's message, which was radically egalitarian - seeing all people regardless of gender, social status, etc as fundamentally equal in Christ and before God. There are numerous passages that support this reading of Paul. From his comments about inclusion regarding celebration of the Eucharist, to his constant reference to and praise of female "co-workers and Apostles."
Most famously however is Paul ecstatic assertion in Galatians (also repeated in Romans) that "There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus" (3:28). Add to this exclamation Paul’s request to Philemon (in the letter of that name) that he free his runaway slave Onesimus and accept him as an equal "brother" and you have Borg and Crossan's case for a "radically egalitarian" Paul. It is compelling.
Despite my admiration for their book, I have some criticism of Borg and Crossan. They downplay those passages - present frequently even in in the letters they accept as authentic - in which Paul stresses God's judgment, wrath, and exclusion of "the unrighteous." Presumably they are uncomfortable with this; so am I. But those passages display a genuine aspect of Paul's thought and they must be dealt with.
Likewise, though they correctly argue that Paul opposed the Lordship of Jesus to that of Caesar and thereby explicitly rejected Roman social norms and Imperialism, Borg and Crossan fail to adequately deal with the obvious fact that Paul had no real program for social reform. Since Paul thought Christ would very soon return to earth to establish the Utopian Kingdom of God on earth, what need was there for practical reform? Borg and Crossan recognize that Paul believed in Jesus' imminent return, but seem to brush it off as peripheral. That is problematic.
When all is said and done, however, Borg and Crossan have accomplished their task. Anyone who reads their book cannot help but come away from it with a great appreciation of Paul. Paul was not the conservative enforcer of religious dogma and hierarchy, but a radical egalitarian, whose vision was one of everlasting peace with all people equal before, and one with, the God in whom “we live, and move, and have our being” (Acts 17: 28a).
The essential point of the book is that Paul has been misread by nearly everyone. Paul is typically read as ordering wives to submit to their husbands, condemning gays, and as offering up the Christian faith as a set of doctrines which are dogmatically asserted to be "beyond dispute." Religious conservatives read Paul this way and rejoice, religious liberals read Paul this way and recoil.
The Problem is, as Borg and Crossan see it, tha tthis is just not Paul. To begin with, although there are 14 letters in the New Testament attributed to Paul, there is a a massive scholarly consensus that Paul surely did not write at least 4 of these, and probably only wrote 7 of the letters attributed to him. If this claim is accepted, and there is good reason to accept it, then the Passages in Paul commanding slaves to obey their masters and wives their husbands vanish from the authentic Paul's writings.
Borg and Crossan claim that those later "Pseudo-Pauline" letters contain passages deliberately created to subvert the real Paul's message, which was radically egalitarian - seeing all people regardless of gender, social status, etc as fundamentally equal in Christ and before God. There are numerous passages that support this reading of Paul. From his comments about inclusion regarding celebration of the Eucharist, to his constant reference to and praise of female "co-workers and Apostles."
Most famously however is Paul ecstatic assertion in Galatians (also repeated in Romans) that "There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus" (3:28). Add to this exclamation Paul’s request to Philemon (in the letter of that name) that he free his runaway slave Onesimus and accept him as an equal "brother" and you have Borg and Crossan's case for a "radically egalitarian" Paul. It is compelling.
Despite my admiration for their book, I have some criticism of Borg and Crossan. They downplay those passages - present frequently even in in the letters they accept as authentic - in which Paul stresses God's judgment, wrath, and exclusion of "the unrighteous." Presumably they are uncomfortable with this; so am I. But those passages display a genuine aspect of Paul's thought and they must be dealt with.
Likewise, though they correctly argue that Paul opposed the Lordship of Jesus to that of Caesar and thereby explicitly rejected Roman social norms and Imperialism, Borg and Crossan fail to adequately deal with the obvious fact that Paul had no real program for social reform. Since Paul thought Christ would very soon return to earth to establish the Utopian Kingdom of God on earth, what need was there for practical reform? Borg and Crossan recognize that Paul believed in Jesus' imminent return, but seem to brush it off as peripheral. That is problematic.
When all is said and done, however, Borg and Crossan have accomplished their task. Anyone who reads their book cannot help but come away from it with a great appreciation of Paul. Paul was not the conservative enforcer of religious dogma and hierarchy, but a radical egalitarian, whose vision was one of everlasting peace with all people equal before, and one with, the God in whom “we live, and move, and have our being” (Acts 17: 28a).
May 23, 2010
Borg and Crossan are both insightful Biblical scholars and pithy writers, so this book about the apostle Paul is as enjoyable as it is thought-provoking. Simply put, the authors have some controversial viewpoints on many of the aspects of Paul's teachings/writings, but, for the most part, they back them up with extensive research and credible, logical reasoning. After reading this book, I can say three things appreciatively: I learned a lot; my spirituality was both broadened and deepened by the authors' perspectives; and I enjoyed the trip.
The controversy starts almost immediately, as the opening salvo from the authors posits that there are actually three Pauls reflected in the New Testament (NT): the "genuine" and "radical" Paul of seven NT books that most scholars agree that he wrote in the 50s CE; the "reactionary" Paul of the three "pastoral letters" that are considered to be written in his name but probably not by him and are "non-Pauline" in style and content; and the "conservative" Paul of three books whose authorship is disputed and that many if not most scholars think Paul did not write and are effectively "post-Paul" and often contradictory in message.
They go one to assert many more intriguing (and, in some cases, outlandish) perspectives, but most of the time they are able to explain context and cross-reference other sources, both scriptural and secular, that offer compelling support to their theses. For example, they show that Paul is often misunderstood, including relative to some of his more controversial passages on slavery, patriarchy and homosexuality. For the first two issues, the authors rather effectively demonstrate that the common perception of Paul as a supporter of these two practices is mistaken and that, in fact, he is actually an advocate for their opposites, totally equality of people irrespective of class, race and gender - a very radical position for that time and, sadly, still too often in ours. Their address of Paul's stand against homosexuality is both less well developed and, accordingly, far less persuasive in suggesting that he was not homophobic. I would argue that, given the authors' often antipodal theses, two out of three isn't bad....
In addition to rather stunning and often controversial takes on various aspects of Paul's theology and writings, Borg and Crossan also analyze myriad scriptural passages in piercingly insightful and moving ways. For example, most Christians (and even many non-believers) and/or anyone who's been to a wedding in the past fifty years are familiar with the famous 13th chapter in his first letter to the Corinthians. (You know, beginning at verse 4, "Love is patient; love is kind....") Yet, in reflecting on Paul's intent for this chapter, to "extol the supreme importance" of love, the "greatest spiritual gift," they give context and break down the all-too-familiar passage in a way that is fresh, insightful and incredibly moving. Having studied, read and/or heard this particular passage hundreds of times, frankly, I doubted that anyone could tell me something new and meaningful about it. Wrong! Borg and Crossan illuminate it so beautifully and discerningly that I have come to appreciate it in a new and even more profoundly impactful way. To be able to re-engage and elevate a skeptic like me (who is still recovering from too many years of religious schooling in several different belief systems) takes some doing, so hat's off to them.
This being said, this book, though excellent, is not perfect. There are quite a few passages in it that could be tightened up to increase their clarity. Also, though generally pithy, some of their commentary can be snide or otherwise indelicate occasionally. Finally, their arguments in some cases are not particularly well-developed and therefore not convincing, in large part because their track record in the vast majority of the rest of the book stands in such contrast. This being said, though, this book is still tremendous and worthy of everyone's serious attention.
Accordingly, I both thoroughly enjoyed The First Paul and recommend it highly to others. It is well-written, incredibly insightful and very often especially moving, so, in addition to learning a lot, readers will enjoy the journey as well.
The controversy starts almost immediately, as the opening salvo from the authors posits that there are actually three Pauls reflected in the New Testament (NT): the "genuine" and "radical" Paul of seven NT books that most scholars agree that he wrote in the 50s CE; the "reactionary" Paul of the three "pastoral letters" that are considered to be written in his name but probably not by him and are "non-Pauline" in style and content; and the "conservative" Paul of three books whose authorship is disputed and that many if not most scholars think Paul did not write and are effectively "post-Paul" and often contradictory in message.
They go one to assert many more intriguing (and, in some cases, outlandish) perspectives, but most of the time they are able to explain context and cross-reference other sources, both scriptural and secular, that offer compelling support to their theses. For example, they show that Paul is often misunderstood, including relative to some of his more controversial passages on slavery, patriarchy and homosexuality. For the first two issues, the authors rather effectively demonstrate that the common perception of Paul as a supporter of these two practices is mistaken and that, in fact, he is actually an advocate for their opposites, totally equality of people irrespective of class, race and gender - a very radical position for that time and, sadly, still too often in ours. Their address of Paul's stand against homosexuality is both less well developed and, accordingly, far less persuasive in suggesting that he was not homophobic. I would argue that, given the authors' often antipodal theses, two out of three isn't bad....
In addition to rather stunning and often controversial takes on various aspects of Paul's theology and writings, Borg and Crossan also analyze myriad scriptural passages in piercingly insightful and moving ways. For example, most Christians (and even many non-believers) and/or anyone who's been to a wedding in the past fifty years are familiar with the famous 13th chapter in his first letter to the Corinthians. (You know, beginning at verse 4, "Love is patient; love is kind....") Yet, in reflecting on Paul's intent for this chapter, to "extol the supreme importance" of love, the "greatest spiritual gift," they give context and break down the all-too-familiar passage in a way that is fresh, insightful and incredibly moving. Having studied, read and/or heard this particular passage hundreds of times, frankly, I doubted that anyone could tell me something new and meaningful about it. Wrong! Borg and Crossan illuminate it so beautifully and discerningly that I have come to appreciate it in a new and even more profoundly impactful way. To be able to re-engage and elevate a skeptic like me (who is still recovering from too many years of religious schooling in several different belief systems) takes some doing, so hat's off to them.
This being said, this book, though excellent, is not perfect. There are quite a few passages in it that could be tightened up to increase their clarity. Also, though generally pithy, some of their commentary can be snide or otherwise indelicate occasionally. Finally, their arguments in some cases are not particularly well-developed and therefore not convincing, in large part because their track record in the vast majority of the rest of the book stands in such contrast. This being said, though, this book is still tremendous and worthy of everyone's serious attention.
Accordingly, I both thoroughly enjoyed The First Paul and recommend it highly to others. It is well-written, incredibly insightful and very often especially moving, so, in addition to learning a lot, readers will enjoy the journey as well.
April 2, 2018
This book was a revelation to me. It felt like a vindication and an illumination. It is very scholarly in spots and full of grace in others. I would hope anyone who has any interest in Christianity would at least expose themselves to this analysis of one of its most important founders.
February 27, 2013
From some of the other reviews here, I'm not sure all of those people really read Borg's book. These are not Borg's ideas, but he is interpreting standard Biblical scholarship for us laypeople.
The pop culture and the mass media apparently haven't done their Biblical homework. Paul turns out not to be the anti-feminist he has been painted out to be.
Paul only wrote Romans, Galatians, I Corinthians, II Corinthians, I Thessalonians, Philippians, and Philemon. HE DID NOT WRITE Ephesians or the two letters to Timothy where the "women must keep silent" and "obey your husbands" texts appear.
The books he did write reveal a respect for women that was RADICAL in it's time. Women had leading roles in many early churches, and Paul MENTIONS THEM BY NAME in these letters. An anti-feminist set of verses that do appear in I Corinthians are believed to have been added.
Roman society was very patriarchal, and women were devalued in Roman society, expected to keep in the background. The later letters that scholars believe Paul didn't write caved to the popular culture, in contrast to the radicalism of Jesus and Paul.
Kudos to Marcus Borg for pointing this out and, because of his popularity as a writer, breaking through the inaccurate stereotype of Paul.
The pop culture and the mass media apparently haven't done their Biblical homework. Paul turns out not to be the anti-feminist he has been painted out to be.
Paul only wrote Romans, Galatians, I Corinthians, II Corinthians, I Thessalonians, Philippians, and Philemon. HE DID NOT WRITE Ephesians or the two letters to Timothy where the "women must keep silent" and "obey your husbands" texts appear.
The books he did write reveal a respect for women that was RADICAL in it's time. Women had leading roles in many early churches, and Paul MENTIONS THEM BY NAME in these letters. An anti-feminist set of verses that do appear in I Corinthians are believed to have been added.
Roman society was very patriarchal, and women were devalued in Roman society, expected to keep in the background. The later letters that scholars believe Paul didn't write caved to the popular culture, in contrast to the radicalism of Jesus and Paul.
Kudos to Marcus Borg for pointing this out and, because of his popularity as a writer, breaking through the inaccurate stereotype of Paul.
July 26, 2010
First in proper deference to the authors for obviously an intense amount of research and labor, I acknowledge the scope of their writings to be a commendable task. I must say, I had looked forward to reading this book for perhaps a fresh view of the great apostle Paul, and was somewhat disappointed. The book appears to pit the apostle against the Roman-Greco empire as if that was what the gospel was all about, to replace the rule of Caesar and his kingdom with the rule of Christ and his kingdom. I think we must recall that Jesus said, "my kingdom is not of this world".
To me, it was not a battle between Roman theology and Christian theology, it was a matter of the introduction of the good news to all the world whether Rome was the ruling power or not. The kingdom of God that Jesus spoke of came with power on the day of Pentecost when the Spirit of God entered those early believers, for Jesus had said regarding the kingdom that "it is within you". That fact continued to be confirmed in all believers from that time forward. I might add the fruits of the kingdom should reflect itself to the outside world and I think it has in a multitude of ways in a multitude of countries.
I was a bit disappointed in the "twists and turns" over how many Pauls there were, referring to the epistles bearing his name. I don't think this will set well with most believers, they might prefer to interpret his statements about specific things elaborated on in different epistles in different ways to be based on both the circumstances of the times and the emphasis necessary for the moment. I also was quite saddened by the fact that the authors chose to attempt to dismantle the concepts of "substitution","justification by grace", and the meaning of the "atonement",by suggesting that their theology is a better interpretation than the prime figures of the Reformation. The authors almost wear out the word "misunderstanding" to refer to many of the doctrines so many believers hold dear and which has sustained their faith for centuries. The authors almost insist that they know exactly what Paul meant by what he said and others have been mistaken in their interpretaions.
The matter of judgement, the authors say, has nothing to do with the gospel. I would venture to say it is precisely because of current and impending judgement that the gospel is addressed to the human race. Death is still the wages of sin and we are told there will be a final judgement. Christ crucified! cancels our debt. I will not go into other specifics of the faith that are challenged by the authors, I would simply say we should attempt to add to the faith, to bolster and strengthen it among believers and not tear it down. With all due respect, I would just say to the authors that they should follow their own admonition on page 159 "when all else fails,read the text". To me it is not theology or church history that holds the greatest relevence. it is "the text" itself.
To me, it was not a battle between Roman theology and Christian theology, it was a matter of the introduction of the good news to all the world whether Rome was the ruling power or not. The kingdom of God that Jesus spoke of came with power on the day of Pentecost when the Spirit of God entered those early believers, for Jesus had said regarding the kingdom that "it is within you". That fact continued to be confirmed in all believers from that time forward. I might add the fruits of the kingdom should reflect itself to the outside world and I think it has in a multitude of ways in a multitude of countries.
I was a bit disappointed in the "twists and turns" over how many Pauls there were, referring to the epistles bearing his name. I don't think this will set well with most believers, they might prefer to interpret his statements about specific things elaborated on in different epistles in different ways to be based on both the circumstances of the times and the emphasis necessary for the moment. I also was quite saddened by the fact that the authors chose to attempt to dismantle the concepts of "substitution","justification by grace", and the meaning of the "atonement",by suggesting that their theology is a better interpretation than the prime figures of the Reformation. The authors almost wear out the word "misunderstanding" to refer to many of the doctrines so many believers hold dear and which has sustained their faith for centuries. The authors almost insist that they know exactly what Paul meant by what he said and others have been mistaken in their interpretaions.
The matter of judgement, the authors say, has nothing to do with the gospel. I would venture to say it is precisely because of current and impending judgement that the gospel is addressed to the human race. Death is still the wages of sin and we are told there will be a final judgement. Christ crucified! cancels our debt. I will not go into other specifics of the faith that are challenged by the authors, I would simply say we should attempt to add to the faith, to bolster and strengthen it among believers and not tear it down. With all due respect, I would just say to the authors that they should follow their own admonition on page 159 "when all else fails,read the text". To me it is not theology or church history that holds the greatest relevence. it is "the text" itself.
December 13, 2025
Eye-opening. This book has definitely changed the way I see Paul. The authors offer a reading of Paul as a radical who saw the movement inaugurated by Jesus as a rejection of the world as it was at that time in the Roman empire. In particular, Roman hierarchy, Rome's version of peace through military victory, and Rome's leaders. In the process of this recontextualization, they also argue that many core Christian doctrines are misunderstandings of Paul's theology, particularly regarding salvation and the significance of Jesus's death. These ideas were all very new to me and offered an interpretation totally different from what I've grown up believing, and I felt like I needed quite a bit more discussion of these points and considerations of counter arguments than the book offered. The authors spent more time arguing for what Paul didn't mean than what he did, and so I was left feeling a bit fuzzy on what exactly they were arguing Paul did believe. They argue that Paul didn't see Jesus's death as a payment for human sin but rather as the making of a way for humanity to be reconciled to God through a transformation of our characters and the world. That is, the world operates in a way totally foreign to God's kingdom and that Jesus came to show us how God's kingdom works and how broken our world is, and the world killed him for this. In other words, for Paul, Jesus's life and death were all about life now on earth rather than any life to come. This is something I'll need to do more study on.
The book also doesn't address at all what seems to me a pretty important question: What is a Christian to do with those letters attributed to Paul but mostly likely not written by him? It's all well and good to ignore those books if one is attempting to reconstruct Paul's authentic ideas. But what about someone going to the Bible for guidance on what they are to believe and do today? Should these inauthentic letters be ignored? Why give Paul precedence over these other authors? How do Paul and these other authors fit with other new testament authors? Questions like these are probably beyond the scope of this book. But they seem worth a mention at least.
I wish the authors had included more citations and or suggested further reading. But I'm very glad to have read this book.
The book also doesn't address at all what seems to me a pretty important question: What is a Christian to do with those letters attributed to Paul but mostly likely not written by him? It's all well and good to ignore those books if one is attempting to reconstruct Paul's authentic ideas. But what about someone going to the Bible for guidance on what they are to believe and do today? Should these inauthentic letters be ignored? Why give Paul precedence over these other authors? How do Paul and these other authors fit with other new testament authors? Questions like these are probably beyond the scope of this book. But they seem worth a mention at least.
I wish the authors had included more citations and or suggested further reading. But I'm very glad to have read this book.
March 31, 2022
Others here have offered very good and thorough reviews, so I will be succinct in summarizing my own takeaways from this lovely book:
Love is the highest commandment and also the greatest of the spiritual gifts. This love leads us to be kind as Jesus was kind, charitable and merciful as Jesus also was, and leads us to be just and to act to make the world just. This is what Paul means by "justification" - we become just. First, we are transformed; then we transform the world.
The Roman world was a domination system in which brutal force was employed to sustain the wealth and power of a few while imposing slavery on some, and poverty on many more. Jesus was crucified by the Romans because He called out that injustice and proclaimed again and again that this injustice would come to an end in the Kingdom of God.
Some of the writings attributed to Paul were almost certainly written by someone else, including some of the writings we find offensive and misconceived today. Borg and Crosson want us not to miss the main point - the point that is most clear in the writings authentically attributed to him. Paul had a radical vision and he expressed it with great power and beauty. We are called to end injustice in the world. This is the faith by which we are justified / become just. Anything less than this is not the way, is not enough.
Love is the highest commandment and also the greatest of the spiritual gifts. This love leads us to be kind as Jesus was kind, charitable and merciful as Jesus also was, and leads us to be just and to act to make the world just. This is what Paul means by "justification" - we become just. First, we are transformed; then we transform the world.
The Roman world was a domination system in which brutal force was employed to sustain the wealth and power of a few while imposing slavery on some, and poverty on many more. Jesus was crucified by the Romans because He called out that injustice and proclaimed again and again that this injustice would come to an end in the Kingdom of God.
Some of the writings attributed to Paul were almost certainly written by someone else, including some of the writings we find offensive and misconceived today. Borg and Crosson want us not to miss the main point - the point that is most clear in the writings authentically attributed to him. Paul had a radical vision and he expressed it with great power and beauty. We are called to end injustice in the world. This is the faith by which we are justified / become just. Anything less than this is not the way, is not enough.
July 27, 2018
Refreshing, brisk exploration of Paul. I especially appreciated the care with which Borg and Crossan presented the various theological strains that have emerged over time. I've been reading quite a few books about early Christianity lately (Boyarin, Pagels, etc) and that diversity of thought within Christianity over time is such an important thing to understand. The fact that so much of the more conservative/fundamentalist approach to Christian theology (especially the rather crabbed, bloody, and mechanical versions of penal substitutionary atonement that are in the ascendant on the right these days) emerged closer to today than to Jesus' time cannot be emphasized enough, and Borg and Crossan discuss this carefully, kindly, but firmly. Their discussion of Phoebe delivering the messages of Paul are particularly persuasive on these matters.
Much better than I expected. Fascinating and a fine tonic.
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Edit to add: As the title/subtitle suggests, this book does a fine job of providing better context for Paul. If you've felt (as I certainly have) impatient and even angry with Paul over the years, and would like to move beyond that, this book will help you. (It does so, though, in part by using the biblical/historical/textual scholarship of the last 150 years to distinguish between the letters Paul almost certainly wrote, those he probably didn't, and those he certainly didn't. Beyond the textual evidence, Borg/Crossan show a rather clear difference in content amongst the letters, and distinguish the Radical Paul from the Conservative Paul from the Reactionary Paul. I found this portion of the book persuasive and very helpful.)
Much better than I expected. Fascinating and a fine tonic.
-----
Edit to add: As the title/subtitle suggests, this book does a fine job of providing better context for Paul. If you've felt (as I certainly have) impatient and even angry with Paul over the years, and would like to move beyond that, this book will help you. (It does so, though, in part by using the biblical/historical/textual scholarship of the last 150 years to distinguish between the letters Paul almost certainly wrote, those he probably didn't, and those he certainly didn't. Beyond the textual evidence, Borg/Crossan show a rather clear difference in content amongst the letters, and distinguish the Radical Paul from the Conservative Paul from the Reactionary Paul. I found this portion of the book persuasive and very helpful.)
July 14, 2018
This book provides new interpretations, and new insights, into the life and writings of the Apostle Paul. I particularly liked the way the authors looked so closely at the culture and historical context in which Paul was writing, and at the whole body of his work, finding the consistencies within, and also with their guidance in examining the seven books most surely written by Paul, and the other six often attributed to him, but most likely written by others after his death. This has given me a new appreciation of this historical man and his teachings.
January 3, 2024
The First Paul: Redeeming the Radical Visionary Behind the Church’s Conservative Icon by Marcus J Borg and John Dominic Crossan
BIBLIOGRAPHIC DETAILS
-PRINT: © March 3, 2009; 978-0061430725; HarperOne; 240 pages; unabridged (Hardcover Info from Amazon.com)
-DIGITAL: © February 19, 2009; HarperOne; 244 pages; unabridged (Digital version info from Amazon.com)
- *AUDIO: © June 8, 2009; Tantor Audio; 8 hours, 20 minutes; unabridged (Audio info from Audible version)
-FILM: No
SERIES: No.
CHARACTERS: N/A
SUMMARY/ EVALUATION:
-SELECTED: This is another book that Don had added to our Audible Library years ago, that I finally got to.
-ABOUT: The scripture scholars, Marcus Borg and John Dominic Crossan discuss historically and anthropologically filtered Biblical studies of Saul / Paul. They contend that Paul’s image has been exploited and altered through multiple letters in the New Testament miss-assigned to his authorship, and sometimes doctored authentic letters. They point out contradictions between the first 7 letters thought for certain to have been authored by Paul and the six letters considered not to be.
They explain that In the ancient world it was common to write documents in the name of revered figures. Not to pretend to be that person, but to borrow their authority.
The authors state that the authentic Paul was a radical who believed in equality between men and women, did not support slavery, and held that the death of Jesus was not about dyeing in our place, not a substitution, but a demonstration in the resurrection, and an assurance that all mankind is accepted, loved, and one under, God.
They also contend that in Ancient times gender identification could only be made by physical attributes, whereas in modern times we understand that it is a combination of that, chemistry and psychology.
-OVERALL IMPRESSION: I enjoy non-standard yet studied interpretations of scripture.
AUTHOR: Marcus Joel Borg - Excerpt from Wikipedia
“(March 11, 1942 – January 21, 2015) was an American New Testament scholar and theologian.[4] He was among the most widely known and influential voices in Liberal Christianity. Borg was a fellow of the Jesus Seminar and a major figure in historical Jesus scholarship.[5] He retired as Hundere Distinguished Professor of Religion and Culture at Oregon State University in 2007. He died eight years later at the age of 72, of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis at his home in Powell Butte, Oregon.[6][7][8]
Borg was born March 11, 1942, in Fergus Falls, Minnesota,[9] and raised in a Lutheran family in North Dakota. After high school he attended Concordia College in Moorhead, Minnesota, where he double-majored in political science and philosophy. Though plagued by doubt as a young adult, after his undergraduate studies Borg accepted a Rockefeller Brothers Theological Fellowship to study at Union Theological Seminary in New York City, where he became familiarized with liberal theology. A profound influence on Borg during his seminary years was the theologian W. D. Davies. After his studies at Union, he matriculated at Mansfield College, Oxford, where he earned both his Master of Theology and Doctor of Philosophy degrees.[10]”
AUTHOR: John Dominic Crossan – Excerpt from Wikipedia
“(born 17 February 1934) is an Irish-American New Testament scholar, historian of early Christianity, former Catholic priest who was a prominent member of the Jesus Seminar, and emeritus professor at DePaul University. His research has focused on the historical Jesus, the theology of noncanonical Gospels, and the application of postmodern hermeneutical approaches to the Bible. His work is controversial, portraying the Second Coming as a late corruption of Jesus' message and saying that Jesus' divinity is metaphorical.[1] In place of the eschatological message of the Gospels, Crossan emphasizes the historical context of Jesus and of his followers immediately after his death.[1] He describes Jesus' ministry as founded on free healing and communal meals, negating the social hierarchies of Jewish culture and the Roman Empire.[2]
Crossan is a major scholar in contemporary historical Jesus research.[1][3] In particular, he and Burton Mack advocated for a non-eschatological view of Jesus, a view that contradicts the more common view that Jesus was an apocalyptic preacher.[3] While contemporary scholars see more value in noncanonical gospels than past scholars did, Crossan goes further and identifies a few noncanonical gospels as earlier than and superior to the canonical ones.[3] The very early dating of these non-canonical sources is not accepted by the majority of biblical scholars.[4]”
\
NARRATOR: Mel Foster – From Tantor Media
“Mel Foster, an audiobook narrator since 2002, won an Audie Award for Finding God in Unexpected Places by Philip Yancey. He has also won several AudioFile Earphones Awards. Best known for mysteries, Mel has also narrated classic authors such as Thoreau, Nabokov, and Whitman.”
GENRE: Non-Fiction; Biblical Biography; Commentaries
SUBJECTS: Biblical scripture; translations; Paul; Crucifixion; Jesus; Rome; Romans; Augustus Cesar; Greeks; Language; Religion; Jews; Gentiles; Slavery; Equality; Genders; Greek Mythology; Anthropology; Greek language; History; Christianity, Traditional, Christianity, Liberal; Culture
DEDICATION: Not found
SAMPLE QUOTATION: From “Paul: Appealing or Appalling?”
“Paul is second only to Jesus as the important person in the origins of Christianity. Yet he is not universally well regarded, even among Christians. Some find him appealing, and others find him appalling; some aren’t sure what to think of him, and others know little about him.
The cover of Newsweek for May, 2002, asked, “What Would Jesus Do?” The story inside referred to Paul as well, citing passages attributed to him on slavery, anti-Semitism, misogyny, and heterosexism:
'The Biblical defense of slavery is: “Slaves, obey your earthly masters with fear and trembling, in
singleness of heart as you obey Christ.” Writes Saint Paul. Anti-Semitism was long justified by
passages like this one from I Thessalonians: the Jews “killed both the Lord Jesus and the
prophets.” Ant the subjugation of women had a foundation in I Timothy: “As in all the churches
of the saints, women should be silent in the churches . . . . If there is anything they desire to
know, let them ask their husbands at home. For it is shameful for a woman to speak in church.”
And yet in each case, enlightened people have moved on from the worldview such passages
express. . . .
And if science now teaches us that being gay may be a “natural” state, how can a reading of the
Bible, including Saint Paul’s condemnation of same-sex interaction in Romans, inarguably cast
homosexuality in “unnatural” terms?'
These are among the passages in letters attributed to Paul that many find more appalling than appealing. So we begin our story of Paul by speaking about his importance, the reasons for his mixed reputation, and the foundations for our way of seeing him.
Paul’s importance is obvious from the New Testament itself. There are twenty-seven books in the New Testament, though to call them “books” is a bit of a misnomer, for some are only a page or a few pages long. Of these twenty-seven, thirteen are letters attributed to Paul. Not all were actually written by Paul, as we sill soon report, but they bear his name. To these add the book of Acts, in which Paul is the main character in sixteen of its twenty-eight chapters. Thus half of the New Testament is about Paul.
Moreover, according to the New Testament, Paul was chiefly responsible for expanding the early Jesus movement to include Gentiles (non-Jews) as well as Jews. The result over time was a new religion, even though Paul (like Jesus) was a Jew who saw himself working within Judaism. Neither intended that a new religion would emerge in his wake.”
RATING: 5 stars.
STARTED-FINISHED
12/25/23-1/3/24
BIBLIOGRAPHIC DETAILS
-PRINT: © March 3, 2009; 978-0061430725; HarperOne; 240 pages; unabridged (Hardcover Info from Amazon.com)
-DIGITAL: © February 19, 2009; HarperOne; 244 pages; unabridged (Digital version info from Amazon.com)
- *AUDIO: © June 8, 2009; Tantor Audio; 8 hours, 20 minutes; unabridged (Audio info from Audible version)
-FILM: No
SERIES: No.
CHARACTERS: N/A
SUMMARY/ EVALUATION:
-SELECTED: This is another book that Don had added to our Audible Library years ago, that I finally got to.
-ABOUT: The scripture scholars, Marcus Borg and John Dominic Crossan discuss historically and anthropologically filtered Biblical studies of Saul / Paul. They contend that Paul’s image has been exploited and altered through multiple letters in the New Testament miss-assigned to his authorship, and sometimes doctored authentic letters. They point out contradictions between the first 7 letters thought for certain to have been authored by Paul and the six letters considered not to be.
They explain that In the ancient world it was common to write documents in the name of revered figures. Not to pretend to be that person, but to borrow their authority.
The authors state that the authentic Paul was a radical who believed in equality between men and women, did not support slavery, and held that the death of Jesus was not about dyeing in our place, not a substitution, but a demonstration in the resurrection, and an assurance that all mankind is accepted, loved, and one under, God.
They also contend that in Ancient times gender identification could only be made by physical attributes, whereas in modern times we understand that it is a combination of that, chemistry and psychology.
-OVERALL IMPRESSION: I enjoy non-standard yet studied interpretations of scripture.
AUTHOR: Marcus Joel Borg - Excerpt from Wikipedia
“(March 11, 1942 – January 21, 2015) was an American New Testament scholar and theologian.[4] He was among the most widely known and influential voices in Liberal Christianity. Borg was a fellow of the Jesus Seminar and a major figure in historical Jesus scholarship.[5] He retired as Hundere Distinguished Professor of Religion and Culture at Oregon State University in 2007. He died eight years later at the age of 72, of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis at his home in Powell Butte, Oregon.[6][7][8]
Borg was born March 11, 1942, in Fergus Falls, Minnesota,[9] and raised in a Lutheran family in North Dakota. After high school he attended Concordia College in Moorhead, Minnesota, where he double-majored in political science and philosophy. Though plagued by doubt as a young adult, after his undergraduate studies Borg accepted a Rockefeller Brothers Theological Fellowship to study at Union Theological Seminary in New York City, where he became familiarized with liberal theology. A profound influence on Borg during his seminary years was the theologian W. D. Davies. After his studies at Union, he matriculated at Mansfield College, Oxford, where he earned both his Master of Theology and Doctor of Philosophy degrees.[10]”
AUTHOR: John Dominic Crossan – Excerpt from Wikipedia
“(born 17 February 1934) is an Irish-American New Testament scholar, historian of early Christianity, former Catholic priest who was a prominent member of the Jesus Seminar, and emeritus professor at DePaul University. His research has focused on the historical Jesus, the theology of noncanonical Gospels, and the application of postmodern hermeneutical approaches to the Bible. His work is controversial, portraying the Second Coming as a late corruption of Jesus' message and saying that Jesus' divinity is metaphorical.[1] In place of the eschatological message of the Gospels, Crossan emphasizes the historical context of Jesus and of his followers immediately after his death.[1] He describes Jesus' ministry as founded on free healing and communal meals, negating the social hierarchies of Jewish culture and the Roman Empire.[2]
Crossan is a major scholar in contemporary historical Jesus research.[1][3] In particular, he and Burton Mack advocated for a non-eschatological view of Jesus, a view that contradicts the more common view that Jesus was an apocalyptic preacher.[3] While contemporary scholars see more value in noncanonical gospels than past scholars did, Crossan goes further and identifies a few noncanonical gospels as earlier than and superior to the canonical ones.[3] The very early dating of these non-canonical sources is not accepted by the majority of biblical scholars.[4]”
\
NARRATOR: Mel Foster – From Tantor Media
“Mel Foster, an audiobook narrator since 2002, won an Audie Award for Finding God in Unexpected Places by Philip Yancey. He has also won several AudioFile Earphones Awards. Best known for mysteries, Mel has also narrated classic authors such as Thoreau, Nabokov, and Whitman.”
GENRE: Non-Fiction; Biblical Biography; Commentaries
SUBJECTS: Biblical scripture; translations; Paul; Crucifixion; Jesus; Rome; Romans; Augustus Cesar; Greeks; Language; Religion; Jews; Gentiles; Slavery; Equality; Genders; Greek Mythology; Anthropology; Greek language; History; Christianity, Traditional, Christianity, Liberal; Culture
DEDICATION: Not found
SAMPLE QUOTATION: From “Paul: Appealing or Appalling?”
“Paul is second only to Jesus as the important person in the origins of Christianity. Yet he is not universally well regarded, even among Christians. Some find him appealing, and others find him appalling; some aren’t sure what to think of him, and others know little about him.
The cover of Newsweek for May, 2002, asked, “What Would Jesus Do?” The story inside referred to Paul as well, citing passages attributed to him on slavery, anti-Semitism, misogyny, and heterosexism:
'The Biblical defense of slavery is: “Slaves, obey your earthly masters with fear and trembling, in
singleness of heart as you obey Christ.” Writes Saint Paul. Anti-Semitism was long justified by
passages like this one from I Thessalonians: the Jews “killed both the Lord Jesus and the
prophets.” Ant the subjugation of women had a foundation in I Timothy: “As in all the churches
of the saints, women should be silent in the churches . . . . If there is anything they desire to
know, let them ask their husbands at home. For it is shameful for a woman to speak in church.”
And yet in each case, enlightened people have moved on from the worldview such passages
express. . . .
And if science now teaches us that being gay may be a “natural” state, how can a reading of the
Bible, including Saint Paul’s condemnation of same-sex interaction in Romans, inarguably cast
homosexuality in “unnatural” terms?'
These are among the passages in letters attributed to Paul that many find more appalling than appealing. So we begin our story of Paul by speaking about his importance, the reasons for his mixed reputation, and the foundations for our way of seeing him.
Paul’s importance is obvious from the New Testament itself. There are twenty-seven books in the New Testament, though to call them “books” is a bit of a misnomer, for some are only a page or a few pages long. Of these twenty-seven, thirteen are letters attributed to Paul. Not all were actually written by Paul, as we sill soon report, but they bear his name. To these add the book of Acts, in which Paul is the main character in sixteen of its twenty-eight chapters. Thus half of the New Testament is about Paul.
Moreover, according to the New Testament, Paul was chiefly responsible for expanding the early Jesus movement to include Gentiles (non-Jews) as well as Jews. The result over time was a new religion, even though Paul (like Jesus) was a Jew who saw himself working within Judaism. Neither intended that a new religion would emerge in his wake.”
RATING: 5 stars.
STARTED-FINISHED
12/25/23-1/3/24
September 19, 2009
I used to have a very negative view of Paul. I thought Paul was very sexist and promoted immorality like slavery and I thought Paul was the opposite of everything Jesus stood for. But this book by the biblical scholars Marcus Borg and John Dominic Crossan explains how the issues with Paul's writings are much more complex than this. Like Paul didn't actually write all the letters attributed to him. The Pastorial epistles which contain the verses I found troubling about Paul in regards to women was actually written by later Christian scribes who were writing in Paul's name long after Paul had died. Even in the authentic letters of Paul, there are chapters attributed to Paul that were added in later to suppress the role of women in the church. In actuality, women played a very large role in Paul's early church. Phoebe was a female deacon, Junia was an apostle who was a woman, and women and men were equal partners in a marriage relationship.
I also appreciated how they went into a detailed verse-by-verse examination of Philemon as Philemon is a book that isn't really study that much in church and show that Paul was actually very anti-slavery and pro-slavery books were written in Paul's name by the later church. Borg and Crossan then examine Paul's theological beliefs and the history and flaws of the classic orthodox view of atonement theology. My only disappointment was that I wish they had examined the rest of orthodox Pauline beliefs like original sin and his views on the afterlife but you would probably have to devote a whole different book just to Paul's theology alone and I still give this book five stars because I think it succeeded in what it set out to do and I don't have any other real complaints with it. If you've only had a negative view of Paul or if you're only familiar with the orthodox views of Paul and want to see a different way of reading Paul, I highly recommend this very fascinating and challenging book.
I also appreciated how they went into a detailed verse-by-verse examination of Philemon as Philemon is a book that isn't really study that much in church and show that Paul was actually very anti-slavery and pro-slavery books were written in Paul's name by the later church. Borg and Crossan then examine Paul's theological beliefs and the history and flaws of the classic orthodox view of atonement theology. My only disappointment was that I wish they had examined the rest of orthodox Pauline beliefs like original sin and his views on the afterlife but you would probably have to devote a whole different book just to Paul's theology alone and I still give this book five stars because I think it succeeded in what it set out to do and I don't have any other real complaints with it. If you've only had a negative view of Paul or if you're only familiar with the orthodox views of Paul and want to see a different way of reading Paul, I highly recommend this very fascinating and challenging book.
August 15, 2009
The writing is a tad dry in places, but the authors present a thoroughly researched and argued, scholarly objective and yet still easy to read and understand case that there was more than one Paul responsible for the letters of Paul in the New Testament. And that the real, "first" Paul was actually a radical in terms of the religion, society and (especially) politics of his day, rather than the conservative, status quo supporter he's usually viewed as (One of the two most anti-gay parts of the Bible, for example, comes in a letter from Paul, although it is one probably written by a third Paul; passages of some of the letters also seem to support the subjugation of women and the support of slavery).
Not only was Paul not such a bad guy, according to the authors, but he actually seems like he was probably pretty awesome.
Also something of a revelation (if one can use that word when talking about Christian theology in this context) was the authors' interpretation of Paul's interpretation of some of the central mysteries of Christianity, and how different they were from what now seems to be commonplace.
Not only was Paul not such a bad guy, according to the authors, but he actually seems like he was probably pretty awesome.
Also something of a revelation (if one can use that word when talking about Christian theology in this context) was the authors' interpretation of Paul's interpretation of some of the central mysteries of Christianity, and how different they were from what now seems to be commonplace.
March 22, 2014
This is a very engaging read. Very enlightening on the historical Paul. I have always felt that Paul hasn't been given a very fair shake in terms of modern scholarship and that is because of a laziness in researching the historical context of his world along with nearly two thousand years of misinterpretation. That and people today have a hard time understanding a world without their 21st century, democratic Western lenses on. Borg and Crossan don't fall into any of those pitfalls and, as a result, First Paul shows Paul for who he was: A sincere and devoted Apostle of the Risen Christ who was a radical visionary and a fierce proponent for radical equality! He was flawed, and which one of us can hold that against him? But the truth be told, he is someone the church needs to rediscover and reclaim in a way that is true to the radical vision of equality he put forth!
November 7, 2014
I truly enjoyed this book. It was an engrossing look into the early Christian community and a contextually-based analysis of what one of the early fathers of Christianity, Paul, really thought about his Lord's teachings. If you are a Christian (and even if you are not one!) and you want to learn more about the early church you should totally give it a shot.
April 19, 2014
It was a very interesting interpretation of Paul's theology. One point was that he didn't believe in Christ's ressurection.
April 23, 2023
Some Christians find Paul appealing, others find him appalling, and usually for the same texts. His views on women, especially, have alienated him from modern feminists. But was that the real Paul writing?
Borg and Crossan divide the Letters attributed to Paul into three categories: letters written by him, letters not written by him, and letters about which authorship is uncertain. The seven authentic letters--1 Thessalonians, Galatians, 1 and 2 Corinthians, Philemon, Phillipians, and Romans--are the earliest documents in the New Testament, pre-dating the first Gospel, Mark, by as much as 20 years. In addition to the letters, we have the book of Acts, over half of which is about Paul. Acts was likely written near the end of the first century, thirty years or so after Paul's death.
By comparing and contrasting the seven authentic letters with the post-Pauline letters and with Acts, the authors show how the earliest Christian communities began to accommodate themselves to the normalcy of the Roman imperial world in which they lived. That's why in the earliest documents Paul refers to many women as co-equal leaders of their communities and admonishes a Christian master to free his enslaved Christian, while in later documents, not written by Paul, women and slaves are placed back into the hierarchical relationships that were considered normal in the world dominated by the Roman Empire.
Jesus and Paul both preached and lived a life of radical equality and justice. I was often reminded of the saying attributed to Mahatma Gandhi: "the Earth has enough to meet everyone's needs, but not everyone's greed." Both believed that God had already begun the transformation of the world from the violent injustice of the Roman Empire to a world of nonviolent justice. But we have a problem with written scriptures, the same problem we have today with certain portions of the U.S. Constitution. The meanings of words change over time, especially words like "sacrifice," "justice" and "justification," "righteousness," "grace," "faith," "works," "vindication," "salvation," and "atonement." Watching these words change over time is watching the religion OF Jesus and Paul change into a religion ABOUT Jesus, and marks the change from God's distributive justice to the retributive justice so beloved by many fundamentalist Christians who believe that John's Revelation is a prophecy that will be fulfilled Real Soon Now. So the divisions we see today in Christianity have their roots in the first century clash of Roman imperial culture with Pauline nonviolent justice and equality.
This is a book I want to read again. With all the books on my to-read list, that's the highest praise I can give.
Borg and Crossan divide the Letters attributed to Paul into three categories: letters written by him, letters not written by him, and letters about which authorship is uncertain. The seven authentic letters--1 Thessalonians, Galatians, 1 and 2 Corinthians, Philemon, Phillipians, and Romans--are the earliest documents in the New Testament, pre-dating the first Gospel, Mark, by as much as 20 years. In addition to the letters, we have the book of Acts, over half of which is about Paul. Acts was likely written near the end of the first century, thirty years or so after Paul's death.
By comparing and contrasting the seven authentic letters with the post-Pauline letters and with Acts, the authors show how the earliest Christian communities began to accommodate themselves to the normalcy of the Roman imperial world in which they lived. That's why in the earliest documents Paul refers to many women as co-equal leaders of their communities and admonishes a Christian master to free his enslaved Christian, while in later documents, not written by Paul, women and slaves are placed back into the hierarchical relationships that were considered normal in the world dominated by the Roman Empire.
Jesus and Paul both preached and lived a life of radical equality and justice. I was often reminded of the saying attributed to Mahatma Gandhi: "the Earth has enough to meet everyone's needs, but not everyone's greed." Both believed that God had already begun the transformation of the world from the violent injustice of the Roman Empire to a world of nonviolent justice. But we have a problem with written scriptures, the same problem we have today with certain portions of the U.S. Constitution. The meanings of words change over time, especially words like "sacrifice," "justice" and "justification," "righteousness," "grace," "faith," "works," "vindication," "salvation," and "atonement." Watching these words change over time is watching the religion OF Jesus and Paul change into a religion ABOUT Jesus, and marks the change from God's distributive justice to the retributive justice so beloved by many fundamentalist Christians who believe that John's Revelation is a prophecy that will be fulfilled Real Soon Now. So the divisions we see today in Christianity have their roots in the first century clash of Roman imperial culture with Pauline nonviolent justice and equality.
This is a book I want to read again. With all the books on my to-read list, that's the highest praise I can give.
November 16, 2017
It has been awhile since I read a book by Borg and Crossan. It has been awhile since I did any reading in the theology area. At one time, I read a lot in this area. This book was consistent with my recollection of Borg's prior work. I highly recommend his Meeting Jesus Again for the First Time.
This book deals with the thorny issue of the contradictory Paul. Paul supposedly wrote 13 books of the New Testament (out of, I think, 27). That's a lot! But these 13 books are not consistent in how they deal with the issues. This book takes an academic look at determining which of the conflicting messages are truly Paul's. They start by providing some facts concerning the current state of academic research and conclusions. The primary one is that of the 13 books, the majority of biblical scholars agree that only 7 can be attributed to Paul. Of the other 6, the majority agree that Paul did not write 3 of them and there is still significant debate about the other 3. Borg and Crossan have given each of these three categories a name: they call the 7 that most agree Paul wrote books written by the "Radical Paul;" the 3 disputed books, they say were written by "Reactionary Paul;" and the 3 books most agree were not written by Paul, they say were written by "Conservative Paul." The bulk of Borg and Crossan's book concerns the work of "Radical Paul," whom they consider the real Paul and the one who needs to be reclaimed.
Radical Paul was indeed radical. Borg and Crossan present him as a believer in distributive justice rather than retributive justice, a believer in equality for men and women, and against slavery for those slaves who accepted Christ, among other positions that were indeed radical in the ancient Roman world that Paul lived in. I particularly enjoyed how they parsed Paul's position on whether Christ actually disappeared from the tomb and returned in bodily form.
The book is written in a style that makes it very accessible to the everyday church attendee who is interested in exploring contradictions in biblical text. The narrator of this audible book was good.
This book deals with the thorny issue of the contradictory Paul. Paul supposedly wrote 13 books of the New Testament (out of, I think, 27). That's a lot! But these 13 books are not consistent in how they deal with the issues. This book takes an academic look at determining which of the conflicting messages are truly Paul's. They start by providing some facts concerning the current state of academic research and conclusions. The primary one is that of the 13 books, the majority of biblical scholars agree that only 7 can be attributed to Paul. Of the other 6, the majority agree that Paul did not write 3 of them and there is still significant debate about the other 3. Borg and Crossan have given each of these three categories a name: they call the 7 that most agree Paul wrote books written by the "Radical Paul;" the 3 disputed books, they say were written by "Reactionary Paul;" and the 3 books most agree were not written by Paul, they say were written by "Conservative Paul." The bulk of Borg and Crossan's book concerns the work of "Radical Paul," whom they consider the real Paul and the one who needs to be reclaimed.
Radical Paul was indeed radical. Borg and Crossan present him as a believer in distributive justice rather than retributive justice, a believer in equality for men and women, and against slavery for those slaves who accepted Christ, among other positions that were indeed radical in the ancient Roman world that Paul lived in. I particularly enjoyed how they parsed Paul's position on whether Christ actually disappeared from the tomb and returned in bodily form.
The book is written in a style that makes it very accessible to the everyday church attendee who is interested in exploring contradictions in biblical text. The narrator of this audible book was good.
March 6, 2021
A close (or for that matter, cursory) reading of St. Paul's 13 epistles to the various churches and one man (Philamon) is almost enough to make any thinking, educated Christian chuck it all. The man obviously condoned slavery, denigrated women, and disparaged gays. Guess what? Paul—the real Paul—was a radical for his times and is greatly misunderstood in our times.
First know this: Of Paul's 13 letters, only seven can be authenticated as his. The others were written by Paul imposters and some after his death. (In those days, it was actually a common thing to do that; write something and pretend it was written by someone well known and respected so your writings would be taken seriously.)
This book by Marcus J. Borg and John Dominic Crossan is an eye-opening, surprising analysis and assessment of who Paul really was and the meaning behind his authenticated writings. Since he is second only to Jesus Christ in the origins of Christianity and about half the New Testament is credited to him, it's essential that Christians better understand who he was. This book is an excellent resource for that.
Find out:
• why Paul declaring "Jesus Christ is Lord" was a deeply radical and political statement—so radical he risked his life by saying it;
• Paul's understanding of the cross and Resurrection, which is radically different from commonly accepted Christian thinking today;
• Paul's definition of "salvation," which has nothing at all to do with the afterlife;
• what Paul meant by the phrase "in Christ," which he uses more than 100 times;
• Paul's vision for a Christian community—one that is quite different from ours today.
This is an absolutely fascinating study of St. Paul that will shatter almost everything you thought about the man. While it occasionally gets bogged down in hard-to-follow theology, it is mostly highly accessible for those of us who didn't go to seminary.
Bonus: The epilogue, which the authors admit is conjecture, is a fascinating explanation of how Paul probably died.
First know this: Of Paul's 13 letters, only seven can be authenticated as his. The others were written by Paul imposters and some after his death. (In those days, it was actually a common thing to do that; write something and pretend it was written by someone well known and respected so your writings would be taken seriously.)
This book by Marcus J. Borg and John Dominic Crossan is an eye-opening, surprising analysis and assessment of who Paul really was and the meaning behind his authenticated writings. Since he is second only to Jesus Christ in the origins of Christianity and about half the New Testament is credited to him, it's essential that Christians better understand who he was. This book is an excellent resource for that.
Find out:
• why Paul declaring "Jesus Christ is Lord" was a deeply radical and political statement—so radical he risked his life by saying it;
• Paul's understanding of the cross and Resurrection, which is radically different from commonly accepted Christian thinking today;
• Paul's definition of "salvation," which has nothing at all to do with the afterlife;
• what Paul meant by the phrase "in Christ," which he uses more than 100 times;
• Paul's vision for a Christian community—one that is quite different from ours today.
This is an absolutely fascinating study of St. Paul that will shatter almost everything you thought about the man. While it occasionally gets bogged down in hard-to-follow theology, it is mostly highly accessible for those of us who didn't go to seminary.
Bonus: The epilogue, which the authors admit is conjecture, is a fascinating explanation of how Paul probably died.
January 21, 2022
dua orang penulis ini memang sering menulis bersama dalam sebuah buku.
saya tidak tahu bagian mana yang ditulis oleh marcus dan bagian mana yang ditulis oleh john.
di buku ini pun kita tidak mudah memisahkan keduanya.
dua orang yang berbeda tradisinya tapi melihat dalam perspektif yang kurang-lebih sama, yakni perspektif yesus historis. marcus terbina dalam tradisi lutheran, sedangkan john adalah mantan imam katolik. keduanya orang besar dalam perspektif yesus historis.
seperti biasa,
tulisan mereka inspiring.
di buku ini, paulus dibicarakan setelah 'dibersihkan' dari 'pauline'. tulisan-tulisan yang mewakili pemikiran paulus dibersihkan dari tulisan-tulisan yang sebenarnya bukan dia yang menulis tapi yang mengikuti cara dia berpikir dan menulis. apa yang didapat dari prosedur itu ialah "the first paul".
lain dari itu juga prosedur mereka berdua mampu memperlihatkan ide-ide cemerlang dari paulus yang selama ini terkubur dalam tradisi konservatif liturgi, sehingga kita seperti bisa melihat pesan asli, karakter asli dari tokoh penting dalam perjanjian baru ini.
ini yang saya maksud dengan inspiring, sebab bisa dipraktikkan di tempat lain juga, ketika kita berjumpa dengan teks kuna, tradisi kuna, yang sudah telanjur dilapisi oleh lapisan-lapisan penafsiran konservatif dan sampai kepada kita.
mengelotok, atau melucuti itu semua, membikin saya sadar kesementaraan tafsiran yang ada sekarang. ia akan dibongkar lagi, dibaca dan dikupas lagi kulit-kulit yang tidak relevan...
membaca teks kuna jadi suatu kegiatan yang menantang.
saya tidak tahu bagian mana yang ditulis oleh marcus dan bagian mana yang ditulis oleh john.
di buku ini pun kita tidak mudah memisahkan keduanya.
dua orang yang berbeda tradisinya tapi melihat dalam perspektif yang kurang-lebih sama, yakni perspektif yesus historis. marcus terbina dalam tradisi lutheran, sedangkan john adalah mantan imam katolik. keduanya orang besar dalam perspektif yesus historis.
seperti biasa,
tulisan mereka inspiring.
di buku ini, paulus dibicarakan setelah 'dibersihkan' dari 'pauline'. tulisan-tulisan yang mewakili pemikiran paulus dibersihkan dari tulisan-tulisan yang sebenarnya bukan dia yang menulis tapi yang mengikuti cara dia berpikir dan menulis. apa yang didapat dari prosedur itu ialah "the first paul".
lain dari itu juga prosedur mereka berdua mampu memperlihatkan ide-ide cemerlang dari paulus yang selama ini terkubur dalam tradisi konservatif liturgi, sehingga kita seperti bisa melihat pesan asli, karakter asli dari tokoh penting dalam perjanjian baru ini.
ini yang saya maksud dengan inspiring, sebab bisa dipraktikkan di tempat lain juga, ketika kita berjumpa dengan teks kuna, tradisi kuna, yang sudah telanjur dilapisi oleh lapisan-lapisan penafsiran konservatif dan sampai kepada kita.
mengelotok, atau melucuti itu semua, membikin saya sadar kesementaraan tafsiran yang ada sekarang. ia akan dibongkar lagi, dibaca dan dikupas lagi kulit-kulit yang tidak relevan...
membaca teks kuna jadi suatu kegiatan yang menantang.
December 30, 2023
Justice and Love: Returning to the Teachings of Jesus
In this book, Borg and Crossan present the message of the earliest author in the New Testament and his declaration of what it means to be a follower of Jesus the Christ. Paul explains what it means to live "in Christ," a message and a way of life that constituted a threat to the Roman Empire and the legitimacy of the rich and powerful. The authors present the context and message of the authentic letters written by the Apostle, Paul, and at the question of how the teachings of Jesus were 'tamed' in order for Christianity to become the official religion of the Roman Empire (and of succeeding empires and governments). A renewed reading of the Bible and an attempt to avoid preconceptions and interpretations should prompt many questions about what is being taught by organized religion - ostensibly in the name of Jesus, but clearly counter to the actual Teachings, Life and Passion of Jesus. The politicalization of Christianity that is rampant in the 21st century should give all seekers of the Way, Truth and Life serious pause. Borg and Crossan, individually and together, have many other insightful books that raise the question of what it means to live in Christ. Please consider reading more of their works to explore what it means to live in the Kingdom of God.
In this book, Borg and Crossan present the message of the earliest author in the New Testament and his declaration of what it means to be a follower of Jesus the Christ. Paul explains what it means to live "in Christ," a message and a way of life that constituted a threat to the Roman Empire and the legitimacy of the rich and powerful. The authors present the context and message of the authentic letters written by the Apostle, Paul, and at the question of how the teachings of Jesus were 'tamed' in order for Christianity to become the official religion of the Roman Empire (and of succeeding empires and governments). A renewed reading of the Bible and an attempt to avoid preconceptions and interpretations should prompt many questions about what is being taught by organized religion - ostensibly in the name of Jesus, but clearly counter to the actual Teachings, Life and Passion of Jesus. The politicalization of Christianity that is rampant in the 21st century should give all seekers of the Way, Truth and Life serious pause. Borg and Crossan, individually and together, have many other insightful books that raise the question of what it means to live in Christ. Please consider reading more of their works to explore what it means to live in the Kingdom of God.
November 21, 2024
Buddy read with Jeananne. This was an interesting book, focusing on Paul's letters. Borg & Crossan's specific argument is that, of Paul's New Testament letters, some of them are "authentic" aka written literally by Paul, some are unclear as to whether historically they were written by him ("pastoral" letters), and some were absolutely not written by him ("disputed" letters). The authors focus on the so-called authentic letters (Romans, 1 & 2 Corinthians, Galatians, Philippians, 1 Thessalonians and Philemon)*, discussing various subjects like slavery, patriarchy, sacrifice, justice/sanctification using Paul's historical perspective as a lens.
Overall it gave me a lot to think about - retributive vs restorative/distributive justice; radical Paul vs conservative Paul vs reactionary Paul - but also this book is so slim and doesn't have a lot of endnotes/sources, and I wanted more from it and also more application. (What am I supposed to DO with the fact that this made me like Potentially Real Paul better, but that the other maybe-Pauline letters are still biblical?)
Made for a good discussion, and as always much more reading to do.
*Turns out these were already my faves of the Pauline letters HMMM. The extensive look at Philemon in particular was excellent, as I had never given that one as much attention as some of the bigger names.
Overall it gave me a lot to think about - retributive vs restorative/distributive justice; radical Paul vs conservative Paul vs reactionary Paul - but also this book is so slim and doesn't have a lot of endnotes/sources, and I wanted more from it and also more application. (What am I supposed to DO with the fact that this made me like Potentially Real Paul better, but that the other maybe-Pauline letters are still biblical?)
Made for a good discussion, and as always much more reading to do.
*Turns out these were already my faves of the Pauline letters HMMM. The extensive look at Philemon in particular was excellent, as I had never given that one as much attention as some of the bigger names.
February 7, 2020
I managed to get a cheap second-hand copy, which has the bonus (?) of numerous marginal comments from the previous owner! It’s been quite an eye-opener for me. Although I knew that there were differences of opinion about which letters are genuinely by Paul, I hadn’t before seen them set out in categories of “definitely Paul”, “disputed” and “definitely not” and I certainly hadn’t read them in the light of this and seen that the theology varies between them. The idea that there are essentially 3 Pauls (or 3 phases in the development of the so-called Pauline theology): a radical early/genuine Paul, a conservative Paul (of the disputed letters), and a reactionary Paul of the non-Pauline letters was completely new to me. It makes sense of the contradictions between the epistles. The icing on the cake for me was when the troublesome passage in 1 Corinthians 14, which tells women to be silent on church, is plausibly claimed to be a later addition to the original letter.
My mind is now buzzing with about 6 ideas for sermons on St Paul’s letters!
My mind is now buzzing with about 6 ideas for sermons on St Paul’s letters!
January 15, 2024
This is an interesting book that offers some insight and nuance to the teachings of Saint Paul. In order to offer a better understanding of Paul, Borg and Crossan examine Paul's teaching and history in a couple of different ways. One is to break down the Pauline letters into three categories that many biblical scholars use - the books likely written by Paul, those that are possibly written by Paul, and those that are likely not written by Paul. Using this perspective, Borg and Crossan show how different views on topics are reflected in the likely written by Paul letters versus the possibly written by Paul versus the likely not written by Paul. Another analysis is to reconstruct Paul's travels working to triangulate between Paul's letters, Luke's accounts in Acts, and other sources. In this process, they show the different perspective Luke sought to inject into Paul's stories, and out of this analysis, Borg and Crossan are able to tease out perspective on Paul's message.
An interesting, thought-provoking book that offers insight into Paul's teachings.
An interesting, thought-provoking book that offers insight into Paul's teachings.
July 2, 2022
Checked out of the local library mostly because of name recognition of the authors. It's generally well written, and contains some helpful historical-social context about the world in which Paul wrote his letters and lived his life, but Borg and Crossan fall far short of rehabilitating Paul for the modern progressive Christian, if such a thing exists. Sections about the importance of seeing Paul as opposing the violent imperial paradigm in which he and his readers lived, as well as the parts about life in the new creation were quite good, but when it comes to the more troublesome stuff, a clear gap emerges between what the texts say and what the authors desperately want them to say. Borg and Crossan fail to refute Anselm of Canterbury's argument on substitutionary atonement, and they succeed only in further muddying the already murky waters surrounding idea of justification by faith. They take only the most definitely genuine Pauline letters and still can't make heads or tails of him.
April 27, 2023
Nice to know the Pauline letters fall into three categories: those likely by Paul, perhaps by Paul, and almost certainly by someone else. The first category, likely written before Luke suggest he was radically non-hierarchy: equality for gentile and Jew, men and women, and citizen and slave. The last category likely written after all the gospels advocate for essentially Roman values: hierarchy, obey the laws and customs of the land etc. Surprising to learn that the idea of the crucifixion redeeming humankind for Adam's sin dates only back Anselm, circa 1000 AD. The gospels and letters when the refer to Jesus' sacrifice mean something more akin to a soldier's sacrifice: throwing himself onto grenade to save his comrades -- there's no sense of substitution. Also surprising is how unformed early Christianity was: Paul, perhaps, believes the post-resurrection appears might have been visions rather than literal presence.
September 19, 2024
Christian scholars and professors Marcus Borg and John Dominic Crossan take a close look at Paul, carefully examining his writings, as well as the historical situation, context and audiences of his time. They conclude that Paul was far more radical than what is portrayed and taught in most modern churches. According to the authors, limitations and restrictions on women, homosexuals and other groups was NOT the message of Paul. Rather, like Jesus, he preached of a message of radical inclusion.
There are many, many refreshingly enlightening moments in this book. As scholars dedicated to the study of the Bible, Jesus, faith and religion, Borg and Crossan often delve into very deep philosophy and language meanings and distinctions, making their writing difficult to understand and follow. I sometimes feel their thinking is on a higher plan than mine, which can be frustrating. I struggle through as the payoff and insights are worth the effort.
There are many, many refreshingly enlightening moments in this book. As scholars dedicated to the study of the Bible, Jesus, faith and religion, Borg and Crossan often delve into very deep philosophy and language meanings and distinctions, making their writing difficult to understand and follow. I sometimes feel their thinking is on a higher plan than mine, which can be frustrating. I struggle through as the payoff and insights are worth the effort.
February 18, 2020
I appreciated the rigorous scholarship which gave Paul and his words vital historical context. Many of the scriptures attributed to Paul have been used to promote oppression, which seems to be the opposite of proclaiming the good news of God's inclusive love as seen in the life and resurrection of Jesus. By bringing up the particular contexts of Paul's various communities and the reality of the Roman Empire at the time, Borg and Crossan's book show the evolution of church interpretation: a small, radical sect, trying to survive, begins to copy the world around them. Yet, the epiphany Paul had, and his original words, shine through and inform our faith.
April 8, 2023
Borg brings some interesting perspectives to the already very challenging material that is the Apostle Paul. Paul can be very divisive and is often weaponized in discussions of Christian beliefs. Some of the ideas presented here were useful, minimally as thought experiments. Particularly of note, the ideas of the flesh as earthly ways (contrasted to ways of the spirit), the rebuttal to the substitutionary narrative, and discussion of the Lord’s Supper in Corinth (discerning the community). Others were poorly argued. It just never quite lines up for me when a present day scholar tries to convince me of Paul’s perspective on any modern social issue. Yuck- know what I mean?
December 12, 2024
This is not for the novice. This is for those familiar with Paul's supposed letters in the New Testament.
It is a historian's take but also a Christian's take, but some might find things to abhor.
I found it fascinating and would have liked to have read it probably instead of listening to it so I could annotate to my heart's content.
So a lot of historiography, a lot of close reading and examination of words and context and the like.
At times it does delve into the weeds even for someone who is interested like me but still well worth the listen.
It doesn't take that long, I was reading it "with" a friend but our schedules were not aligned and then it was due and I had to check it out again.
It is a historian's take but also a Christian's take, but some might find things to abhor.
I found it fascinating and would have liked to have read it probably instead of listening to it so I could annotate to my heart's content.
So a lot of historiography, a lot of close reading and examination of words and context and the like.
At times it does delve into the weeds even for someone who is interested like me but still well worth the listen.
It doesn't take that long, I was reading it "with" a friend but our schedules were not aligned and then it was due and I had to check it out again.
January 23, 2023
The authors of this book are introducing a way of looking at Paul that shows Paul to be more inclusionary than is frequently thought. Their whole theory is based on an understanding that not all the letters attributed to Paul were actually written by him. This book is not for those that insist that the letters were all written by the same person with a consistent theology. One point that gave me much to think about was how Rome was looking for peace on Earth through war and Paul was preaching peace on Earth through God's equality and justice for all.
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