Analysis of Paul - In Fresh Perspective by Nicholas Thomas Wright - Book Report/Review Example

A Book Review Paul: In Fresh Perspective by N. T. Wright Introduction N. T. Wright, or Nicholas Thomas Wright, is a former Anglican minister – namely the Bishop of Durham – who is widely considered a gifted biblical scholar and prolific author in the field of Christian theology and Early Christianity, especially in regard to the Pauline texts1. Despite his reluctance, N. T. Wright is unavoidably associated with more or less a different approach to the reading of Apostle Paul, which has gained currency as “the new perspective” – a term coined by James Dunn2. While Wright regards himself as “deeply orthodox theologian”, or an evangelical with unswerving commitment to the Christian orthodoxy, some of his contemporaries see his influence in Pauline studies as “traversing denominational divides and attracting Roman Catholics, Anglicans, Methodists, Presbyterians, and Evangelicals alike”3. N. T. Wright’s book, Paul: In Fresh Perspective, is organized in two parts –Themes and Structures – each consisted of four chapters. Thus, part one – Themes – comprises the following chapters: Paul’s World, Paul’s Legacy, Creation and Covenant, Messiah and Apocalyptic, and Gospel and Empire, while in part two – Structures – are subsumed Rethinking God, Reworking God’s People, Reimagining God’s Future and the final chapter Jesus, Paul and the Task of the Church. The book is undoubtedly demonstrative of Wright’s approach to the Pauline studies. Summary In the preface, Wright outlines the argument of his book, hence his method of approaching Apostle Paul, describing the reading of Paul as “a bit like climbing a mountain”4. Thus, according to the author, “there are many routes… and those who are used only to the easy tourist path sometimes forget that the scaling of the vertical crags is not only more exciting but might sometimes get you to the top more quickly”5. So, what Wright attempts, according to his own words, is to “map various paths, each of which… leads to the summit”6. As stated by Wright, the first chapter, Paul’s World, Paul’s Legacy, is intended to serve as a general introduction7, which not only sets the scene for the following ones, but also, and perhaps more importantly, introduces his method of understanding Paul’s thought, namely the narrative study of Pauline texts. The mountain metaphor is further used by Wright in order to substantiate his claim that Paul “lived in (at least) three worlds”8, as well as to delineate these worlds; thus, the first world, “the one by which he ascended the mountain”9 is considered to be Judaism – the Second-Temple Judaism to be precise. In other words, Second-Temple Judaism appeared “the world from which Paul came, and in which he remained”, despite saying things that might be considered shocking, or even destructive for this world10. Thus, Wright agrees – to a degree or another – with Sanders’s view regarding the basic relationship between Paul and Palestinian Judaism11. The second and third worlds of Paul are considered the Hellenistic culture and the context of the Roman Empire respectively; while the Greek culture, according to Wright, permeated not only the Eastern Mediterranean but also “a good deal beyond”12, hence a significant part of the known world by then, the Roman context – as represented by the imperial ideology and “burgeoning emperor-cult”, considerably drawing on the Hellenistic “philosophical and ideological underpinnings” – actually dominated and, more importantly, integrated both the Jewish and Hellenistic backgrounds into it13. Apparently, Wright’s point is that “Paul lived, worked, thought and wrote”14 in an extremely complex – both culturally and historically – environment, which have inevitably had a powerful effect upon his thought and works. The fourth dimension, or world, envisioned by Wright, denotes the Church (ekklesia), or the assembly of Jesus, which had been defined “neither by ethnic origins nor by social class”, hence formed a world in its own right, however, “standing in a unique relation to the other three worlds”15. Wright explains the clash of these worlds, as well as Paul’s positioning vis-à-vis each of them, as follows: “to belong to the Messiah’s body, meant embracing an identity rooted in Judaism, lived out in the Hellenistic world, and placing a counter-claim against Caesar’s aspiration to world domination, while being both more and less than a simple combination of elements from within those three”16. All in all, having laid out the setting of Apostle Paul’s thought and theology, Wright introduced what he believes to be the narrative character of the salvation history – in terms of a great story, stretching out from the Creation to the advent of the Kingdom of God, with a plot where each party – most notably the God’s chosen people – has a role to play, as well as a number of events, turning points, twists, and etc. Accordingly, the event of Jesus “the Messiah” appears a qualitatively new chapter within the story, which constitutes the focal point of the Pauline theology17. As Wright points out, the next three chapters, namely Creation and Covenant, Messiah and Apocalyptic, and Gospel and Empire, examine some “major Pauline themes”, attempting an insight into “the way Paul’s mind worked”18. Thus, two narratives – those of the creation and covenant – are displayed in a prominent position in Pauline theology, seemingly with the intention to stress the importance of the Old Testament, hence Jewish history or the issue of Israel’s sins, along with the twin issues of Gentiles’ oppression, and, later on, inclusion in the God’s people19. Furthermore, Wright indicates how the Jewish messianic expectations are firmly present in Paul’s view of Jesus, as well as in his use of “Christ” for Jesus, while God’s complex plan of salvation has been revealed through the events surrounding Jesus, “the Messiah”, including His death and resurrection20. In chapter Gospel and Empire, on the other hand, the author has focused his attention on the relationship between Paul’s theology – as comprised of the concepts of creation and covenant, and messianic eschatology, all being considered “a classic Jewish position, which echoes well into the Christianity” – and the Roman imperial ideology, or, more precisely, the way the latter had been subverted by the former21. Wright himself states that the first three chapters of the second part Structures draw the theological contours – though in miniature – of Paul’s thought22. Thus, chapter Rethinking God could be seen not only as an explanation of how Apostle Paul redefined God (according to Jewish monotheism) by means of, or around Jesus “the Messiah’ (or the Son23), and the Spirit24, but also as yet another confirmation of Paul’s view about the indissoluble welding between “the story of God and the story of Israel” in Christianity25. In the next chapters, Reworking God’s People and Reimagining God’s Future, Wright exhibits his understanding of Paul’s belief in justification by faith, i.e. the extension of the covenant promise to the Gentiles26, as well as of the way Paul has redefined the Jewish eschatological expectations around Jesus Christ and the Spirit27. According to Wright, Paul asserts that in a sense God’s kingdom has already happened in Jesus the Messiah, and at the same time it is still to come; while the new-exodus story – that of the children of God, who suffer with Christ and would be glorified with Him, led by the Spirit of God – denotes the fulfilment of “the Jewish expectation of the coming Messiah… not just in the Messiah himself, but, extraordinarily, in his people as well”28. The final chapter, Jesus, Paul and the Task of the Church, discusses the different purposes and unique roles of Jesus and Paul, as well as their relationship, within the overall story of salvation, which could explain, for instance, Paul’s doctrine of justification by faith29. Additionally, the chapter examines the impact of Pauline doctrine on the life of the early churches – as a single community, without ethnic or social divisions – along with the implications of Wright’s image of Paul for the task of the church nowadays. Reflection Wright’s book, Paul: In Fresh Perspective, renders a systematic account of the main contours of Pauline theology and thought, introducing them in the light of the Old Testament narratives of creation and covenant, hence certain themes within Rabbinic Judaism, and attempting a holistic approach to “God’s ways and purposes with the world”30. Thus, the narrative approach draws a picture of the salvation history as “trans-historical redemption of the world”31, which starts with the Creation, passes into Jesus the Messiah, and ends with the ultimate rule of God, where every participator has its own purpose and predestined role. Thus exhibited, the holistic approach has virtues of its own such as the historical perspective, which could partly explain the formation of both Paul’s thought and theological assumptions, as well as plausible explanations of many issues from a historical-religious point of view, like sin, righteousness, grace, justification, law, salvation, and etc., mainly in the context of the covenant narrative, so characteristic of Wright’s position. Nevertheless, Wright’s approach to Paul could be seen as suffering certain inadequacies, most notably the loss of the universal dimension of Paul’s theology – as represented by Paul’s famous vision of the ‘alternative’ community in his epistle to the Galatians32 – along with the mystical dimension of Paul’s conversion to Christ33. Bibliography Ames, Brewer. “A Critical Review of N. T. Wright’s Theology and Perspective on Justification”, The Journal of Greenville Presbyterian Theological Seminary (December 5, 2013): 1, accessed October 3, 2014, http://www.gpts.edu/resources/documents/N.T.%20Wright's%20Theology%20and%20Perspective%20on%20Justification.pdf Byassee, Jason. “Surprised by N.T, Wright”, Christianity Today 58, No 3 (April 2014): 36. Accessed October 2, 2014, http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2014/april/surprised-by-n-t-wright.html Sanders, E. P., Paul and Palestinian Judaism: A Comparison of Patterns of Religion. Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1977. Venema, Cornelis P. “The New Perspective on Paul: The Contribution of N.T. Wright”, The Outlook 53, No 1 (January 2003). Accessed October 2, 2014, http://www.reformedfellowship.net/articles/venema_perspectives_paul01_jan03_v53_n01.htm Wright, N. T., Paul: In fresh Perspective. Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press, 2005. Read More