was Paul a Follower of Jesus? | Christian forums

I lately got here across two papers via a Bible scholar that ask some very difficult questions. listed below are the abstracts:

[presented at the American Academy of Religion Meeting, Quebec City, May 2006]

Taking Paul at his WordBarrie A. Wilson, PhD

Professor, Humanities and spiritual experiences

school of Arts and Letters, Atkinson, York college

4700 Keele highway, Toronto, ON, Canada. M3J 1P3

e mail: [email protected]

AbstractPaul's "Christ circulate" within the Diaspora differs enormously from the "Jesus flow" ledby James (brother of Jesus) in Jerusalem in terms of origins, practices and beliefs. furthermore, Paul's message is extra radical than has usually been notion, contending that the time of torah is over and that no one must take a look at it, no matter if Gentile or Jew.

Paul's movement doesn't charact erize a seamless outgrowth of the circulation in Jerusalem. He certainly not met the ancient Jesus; hardly ever fees him or refers to his teachings; and by no means grounds his own message in what the Jesus of history taught and practiced. in keeping with Paul, his contacts with the Jesus movement had been minimal. His movement is finest understood as a separate non secular commercial enterprise.

The publication of Acts, written some forty-60 years later than Paul, represents an unreliable supply for information about Paul: Acts' Paul is not Paul's Paul. Acts turned into written to create a linkagebetween the Christ circulation and the Jesus flow. This synthesis, although, is suspect: it is historical revisionism and stitches the two actions collectively retroactively.

The implication of this contention is that a new mannequin of Christian origins is needed, one thatrecognizes the different origins of Paul's Christ movement and Acts' retroactive linkage. Paul's flow doesn't originate within the message of Jesus, nor does it signify an offshoot of the early Jesus circulation. It turned into, in its time, a separate religious business.

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[Presented, International Conference on the Arts & Humanities, January, 2008, Honolulu HI]

If We most effective Had Paul, What Would We be aware of of Jesus?Barrie A. Wilson, PhD

Professor, Humanities and spiritual reviews

York school, Toronto

abstract

(A) The IssuePaul had no contact with the Jesus of history. He under no circumstances met him and in no way heard him preach. in addition, Paul stresses he had minimal contact with Jesus' successors – the Jesus stream in Jerusalem. From Paul's letters we know he became shadowed all over his missionary journeys with the aid of emissaries from Jerusalem who were satisfied that Paul become spreading a deviant message. moreover, Paul infrequently costs or refers to Jesus' teachings when formulating or defending his own point of view against adversaries. In light of these concerns the question is posed: if we handiest had Paul, what would we recognize of Jesus? greater largely, what's the connection between Paul's religion and that of Jesus?

(B) The ApproachFour contexts are examined.

1. References to Jesus' life in the writings of Paul. 5 are found. Jesus was a Jewishmale, human and a descendant of King David who turned into crucified and died. No point out is manufactured from Jesus' delivery, upbringing, extended family or actions in the Galilee and Judea includingJerusalem. No mention is manufactured from the situations leading to his crucifixion..

2. Direct references to Jesus' teachings. Six passages are examined. We locate that there is just one direct reference to a usual saying of Jesus; two to unknown sayings; one to adisputed announcing; one to an unlikely teaching and one that contradicts what the gospels indicate Jesus noted. There aren't any references to Jesus' apocalyptic orientation, his parables, miracles, teachings in the Sermon on the Mount, or Lord's Prayer.

3. Allusions to Jesus' teachings in Paul. four passages are examined. Two are discovered to be doubtless allusions; one to allude to a typical supply at the back of Paul and Jesus' teachings; and one represents an not going allusion.

4. Passages where Paul may have spoke of Jesus' teachings when making his personal pronouncements on subject matters Jesus himself had addressed. Two passages are examined. In each instances, Paul is silent. He doesn't use the teachings of Jesus to bolster his personal positionor to refute his opponents even when beneath assault.

(C) The ConclusionIt is concluded that there is simply a slim connection between the teachings of Paul and those of the Jesus of historical past. both the life and teachings and teachings of the ancient Jesus had been now not of hobby to Paul or else they had been effectiv ely now not ordinary. His center of attention is on the Christ figure, the postdeath and put up-resurrected Jesus, who communicates without delay with him and thru him. This reinforces the view that Paul was the founder of a separate faith, one about the Christ, no longer one headquartered upon the teachings and mission of Jesus.