In my previous post, I promised to write more about the innovative nature of Paul's letters. No one denies that Paul lived in the Greco-Roman world as a devout Jew. But it is one thing to know that fact but is another to claim that Paul was nothing but an ordinary Jew living in the … Continue reading Paul the Innovative Letter-Writer
T. S. Eliot and the Apostle Paul
The 1948 Nobel Literature Prize laureate T. S. Eliot (1888-1965) wrote the seminal essay titled "Tradition and the Individual Talent" (1917). This short paper was a fire he shot that was to be eventually heard around the world within less than a century. As the title of the article shows, Eliot contrasts tradition and the … Continue reading T. S. Eliot and the Apostle Paul
Arrogant Sin of Rejecting Christ
Imagine traveling from Canada to, say, Japan by a paper plane. It is impossible. We need a passenger jet. Even with it, it will take more than ten hours. Imagine then you're flying from Toronto to Tokyo with your friends. One of them--let's call him Tom--however, shows up at the airport with a bag of … Continue reading Arrogant Sin of Rejecting Christ
Sin (罪)
Who likes to talk about sin? None. Because it makes us uncomfortable. I think that the Apostle Paul was adamant in discussing the sin issue that severed us from God. Sin is not a popular topic and it never has been. It, however, seems to me that both "New Perspective on Paul" and "Paul within … Continue reading Sin (罪)
Three Perspectives on Paul’s Relationship to Judaism
The traditional view (Old Perspective) presents Paul as being in a hostile relation to Second Temple Judaism; according to the Old, the Apostle Paul left Judaism because Judaism was legalistic. So, in the Old Perspective, Judaism and Christianity parted ways and exist as distinct entities. The so-called New Perspective, too, pits Paul against Judaism, but … Continue reading Three Perspectives on Paul’s Relationship to Judaism