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  • From: "J.E.Harding" <BSP97JEH AT sheffield.ac.uk>
  • To: corpus-paul AT franklin.oit.unc.edu
  • Subject: Re: Chronological order of the Pauline Letters
  • Date: Wed, 31 Mar 1999 22:45:14 +0100


The possibilities outlined below by Chris Cutler have I think been
suggested before, and fairly univerally dismissed. It would be
difficult to maintain that Damascus was a standard cognomen for
Qumran, since it is only characteristic of the D corpus of material
(the only complete copy of CD is MS A from the Cairo Genizah in any
case). Even if Damascus was a cognomen for Qumran, Paul would only
have been aware of it if he was linked with either Qumran or a
non-Qumran D community (a 'camp'), which makes the argument that Paul
spent time at Qumran circular-if he did not know CD, he could not
have linked Damascus and Qumran, but he could only have made this
link if he was linked with the community in the first place (IMO).
Furthermore, how could Paul have spent time at Qumran after his
conversion, as I think is being suggested? We are heading in the
direction of B. Thiering's 'Jesus the Man', whose argument is
extremely tenuous and depends on an inappropriate reading of Qumran
and NT texts.

James Edward Harding
University of Sheffield
>bsp97jeh AT sheffield.ac.uk<

In the interests of stimulating debate, may I suggest the following:

Paul's conversion was "on the road to Damascus" when he was
pursuing/persecuting Christians.

The town of Damascus was outside his juristiction, Qumran was much closer
to Jerusalem, and certainly was not.

If, as has been suggested elsewhere, (sorry, can't remember where I read
it) Damascus was a cognomen for Qumran, the Journey to Damascus would make
more sense.

Could then if his early years 34-37 in Damascus really mean that he spent 3
years in the Qumran monastery?

Just a thought :-)

Chris

Chris & Ariane Cutler

What liberates is the knowledge of who we were, what we became; where we
were, whereinto we have been thrown; whereto we speed, wherefrom we are
redeemmed; what birth is, and what rebirth." (Exc. Theod. 78.2)


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