Paul and the Giants of Philosophy: Reading the Apostle in Greco-Roman Context
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Overview
What forces shaped the intellectual world of the Apostle Paul? How familiar was he with the great philosophers of his age, and to what extent was he influenced by them? When he quoted Greco-Roman sources, what was his aim?
Pauline scholars wrestle with such questions in journal articles and technical monographs, but now Paul and the Giants of Philosophy brings the conversation into the college classroom and the church. Each essay addresses Paul’s interaction with Greco-Roman philosophical thinking on a particular topic, such as faith, slavery, gift-giving, and the afterlife. And each chapter includes discussion questions and reading lists to help readers engage the material further.
Dodson and Briones have gathered contributors with diverse views from various traditions who are united in the desire to make Paul’s engagement with ancient philosophy accessible to many readers.
- Provides a dialogue between Paul other philosophers in his cultural context
- Presents an accessible introduction to the topic
- Explores themes of faith, slavery, gift-giving, and the afterlife
Part 1: Faith and Trust
- Don’t Stop Believing: Paul and Plutarch on Faith
- Therapy Session: Paul and Philodemus on Therapy for the Weak
- All for One and One for All: Individual and Community in Paul and Epictetus
Part 2: Hope and Suffering
- What Doesn’t Kill Me Makes Me Stronger: Paul and Epictetus on Suffering
- The Good Soldier and the Good Life in Paul and the Giants of Philosophy
- The Sufferings of an Apostle and a Sage
- Caught Up to Paradise in Plato, Cicero, and Paul
- Life and Afterlife Among Paul and the Philosophers
Part 3: Love and Life
- Why Can’t We Be Friends? Paul and Aristotle on Friendship
- Slaves to the Culture? Attitudes on Slavery in Paul and Seneca
- The Stoic, the Apostle, and the Woman
- It’s the Thought That Counts: Paul and the Philosophers on Doing the Right Thing for the Right Reasons
- Breaking Bad: Paul, the Giants of Philosophy, and Man’s Calamitous Decline
- When Is a Letter Not a Letter? Paul, Cicero, and Seneca as Letter Writers
- Surprised by Paul: The Apostle Among the Philosophers and the Poets
- Strings Attached: Paul and Seneca on the Modern Myth of the Pure Gift
- Universe to Universe: The Challenge of Comparing Paul with the Giants
Top Highlights
“Comparatively, Paul puts less value in the achievement of specific psychological states and human knowledge, and more value in a believer’s allegiance to God whatever their psychological circumstances. Building up the weak has more to do with supporting their faithfulness to God in their weakness rather than transcending their psychological limitations.” (Page 31)
“Ultimately, we see that for Paul, faith is the active mode of existence by which one connects oneself in a dependent relationship with God, identifying with the cross and participating in God’s power through it.” (Page 84)
“‘Can suffering be an instrument to turn us into more ethical people?’” (Page 9)
“being a virtuous person equals being a happy person” (Page 10)
“Paul does not share Epictetus’s worry about external things affecting us. In fact, Paul believes that many external things should affect us. The plight of fellow believers, for example, should impact us deeply. Believers are bound to the well-being of other believers; they are debtors to one another: ‘Owe no one anything, except to love each other’ (Rom 13:8 ESV; cf. Rom 15:1). If one suffers, all suffer; if one rejoices all rejoice (Rom 12:15).” (Page 71)
- David E. Briones
- Jeanette Hagen Pifer
- Justin R. Allison
- Ben Dunson
- Dorothee H. Bertschmann
- Nijay K. Gupta
- Brian J. Tabb
- Joseph R. Dodson
- James P. Ware
- David E. Briones
- Timothy A. Brookins
- David E. Briones
- Timothy A. Brookins
- Pauline Nigh Hogan
- Janelle Peters
- E. Randolph Richards
- R. Dean Anderson
- Christopher L. Redmon
We all know that Paul ranks among the philosophical giants of the ancient world, but now thanks to Joey Dodson and David Briones, we can finally see why. This series of essays by world-class scholars shows how Paul fits in with the intellectual heavy weights of antiquity on topics like faith, hope, suffering, ethics, letter writing, grace, slavery, and women. We see how Paul is both similar to and different from Greco-Roman luminaries and understand how Paul’s thought meshes with and challenges norms of the ancient world. This is a terrific study of a neglected area of Pauline studies.
—Michael F. Bird, academic dean and lecturer in theology, Ridley College, Melbourne
- Title: Paul and the Giants of Philosophy: Reading the Apostle in Greco-Roman Context
- Editors: Joseph R. Dodson and David E. Briones
- Publisher: IVP
- Publication Date: 2019
- Pages: 208
- Resource Type: Collected Essays
- Topic: Pauline Studies
Joseph R. Dodson (PhD, Aberdeen) is associate professor of New Testament at Denver Seminary, author of The “Powers” of Personification, and coauthor of A Little Book for New Bible Scholars. He has served as an associate pastor at First Baptist Church in Arkadelphia, Arkansas, and as an itinerate speaker with Transform Ministries in Houston, Texas.
David E. Briones (PhD, Durham) is associate professor of New Testament at Westminster Theological Seminary (Philadelphia), author of Paul’s Financial Policy, and coeditor of Paul and Seneca in Dialogue.