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corpus-paul - Re: Jewish origins of apostle

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  • From: <Stephen.Finlan AT durham.ac.uk>
  • To: "Corpus-paul" <corpus-paul AT franklin.oit.unc.edu>
  • Subject: Re: Jewish origins of apostle
  • Date: Tue, 11 Dec 2001 17:06:48 +0000


> local patrons derived honor and status from a special
> relationship to the emperor.... I would suggest that
> this kind of relationship can shed a great deal of light on
> Paul's language about his relationship to God and Christ as an
"apostle" and the formation of his missionary project to win citizens
of an alternative empire.


Yes, I think it is at THIS level, at the level of the CONCEPTUAL
model, that there is some comparison between emperor cult and
gospel. In other words, Paul's Lord is a metaphorical "emperor,"
a different "Savior" and "Son of God," and in this sense (a
rhetorical sense) is a rival to Caesar, but only on this
metaphorical, rhetorical, and values level. There are no
actual political favors to be granted, no statues to be built,
and the mechanics of setting up the two cults have no similarity.

Paul's method of promulgating the gospel bears more similarly
to two other models, namely the role of a Hebrew prophet, and
the role of a philosopher teaching in public places, like
a Stoic teacher.

My point is that the rhetorical similarities (rivalries)
between gospel and emperor cult do not translate into
similarity in method of proclamation. There is hardly any
"proclamation" in the emperor cult, is there? It's just
patronage, writ large.

Finlan
Durham




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