Corpus-Paul

["Elli Elliott" <elli AT kci.net>]

Fred,

Jeff Peterson has already pointed you toward John L. White's LIGHT FROM
ANCIENT LETTERS.  Since the topic you describe will be retracing ground John
worked on in the early part of his career, you should check out his work.
His masters thesis worked on the letter openings in the papyri, and his
doctoral work was on the letter body.  There was a group of students at
Vanderbilt at the time who worked with Bob Funk on analyzing vast numbers of
papyri letters.  Some of this bibliography is in LIGHT, but the rest you
will need to ferret out.  There's also an article in the ANRW that's a sort
of
"encyclopedia" version.

John also wrote an article in a Festschrift for John Hurd in the JSNT
Supplement Series that you should check, given your interest: John L. White,
"Apostolic Mission and Apostolic Message: Congruence in Paul's Epistolary
Rhetoric, Structure and Imagery." In Origins and Method: Towards a New
Understanding of Judaism and Christianity:  Essays in Honour of John C.
Hurd, ed. Bradley H. McLean. (Sorry a tranfer of my bibliography to a new
program cut off the rest of the info.)

John directed my dissertation.  I know that he in no way considers this
topic complete.  There is still a mountain of work to be done in analyzing
the primary sources (i.e. the papyri letters).

and imh-but unsolicited-o Attention to this topic in the primary sources
would be a more useful contribution than confining yourself to the
over-plowed ground of Paul's letters and to secondary sources on ancient
letter-writing.  If you really want to know about letter-writing in the
ancient world, read the letters.  (You might find some fascinating detours
in them, too.  They're just full of information about everyday life, social
relations, family problems, etc.)

Have a good time with this!

Elli Elliott
(The Rev. Susan M. Elliott, Ph.D.)
Pastor, Zion United Church of Christ, Sterling, Colorado
Pastor, Immanuel Congregational United Church of Christ, Brush, Colorado
Ph.D., New Testament and Early Christianity, Loyola University Chicago
elli AT kci.net
(970) 522-9430


> I am currently looking into the opening sections of each of Paul's
letters,
> particularly focussing in on his use of his apostleship in them. As I have
> begun to do this, I have realised how little I know about letter writing
> conventions of the Greco-Roman world (if one can speak of such a thing). I
> have my own copy of Stanley Stowers' helpful book on the subject, but have
> little else. Does anyone have any suggestions of other recent works that I
> could consult that might give me some ideas as to what I should be looking
> out for in Paul's letters? I would also appreciate any bibliography that
> specifically relates Paul's letters to other relatively contemporary ones.
I
> did come across a very interesting reference in Witherington's commentary
on
> Philippians from the Irish Biblical Studies journal, but have had no
success
> in trying to track down a copy of it anywhere. It's only a relatively
short
> article, and so if anyone had access to it and a scanner I would be most
> appreciative. I can't put my hands on the title atm, but will send it to
the
> list a little later.
>
> Regards,
> Fred Rich.
>
> Ph.D. Student,
> Department of Biblical Studies,
> University of Sheffield,
> UK.
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