Theology

There are still disputes about what should be considered the semantic center of Pauline theology. Most German scholars and some in conservative American circles continue to insist that the teaching of the cross and justification is at the heart of the Apostle Paul's theology, but their views are constantly challenged; and besides, many of the leading scholars of the last decades of the twentieth century are more concerned about how we can know where the core of someone's thought is, and whether it is legitimate to ask such a question at all. As the key to Paul's theology, the currently fashionable categories of "plot" and "narrative" ("narrative") are proposed, but it is still unclear how to use them and what can come of it. The separation of biblical studies from theology, so common in the scientific and educational centers of North America (where, by the way, most modern biblical studies is concentrated), has led to the fact that Paul's texts are often studied by people who have neither philosophical nor theological training and, moreover, have little idea of why this is necessary. Many New Testament scholars, seeking to break free from the shackles of ponderous conservatism, gravitate toward detailed exegesis, and take any hint of the all-encompassing nature of Pauline theology as an attempt to revive the very system they would be glad to get rid of. It's like other academic circles using historical studies to "free themselves from the torments of the past" – a very attractive, although, according to some, rather ineffective type of therapy.

Exegesis

In this area, fragments and details of individual epistles are actively studied, much more both Jewish and pagan primary sources are involved, containing possible parallels to Paul's images and ideas. At the same time, we have been flooded with a flood of very different quality auxiliary literature, and now every conscientious researcher faces the difficult task of shoveling through a multitude of special publications and, if possible, speaking fairly about each of them. Therefore, the current commentaries contain a lengthy history of the issue rather than fundamental theological statements. This, perhaps, is not a bad thing, if, of course, we understand that in this way the ground is prepared for future theological research and fertilizes it, I dare to hope, with the best of all that is so attractive in its accessibility in our days.

Meaning

The question of the significance of the Apostle Paul for the present day is still acute. Some, as before, prefer to play on the downside: they say, let's place the Holy Apostle in his historical context and leave him there, but, in fact, under the guise of a modern approach to interpretation, it is proposed to exclude Paul's ideas from our worldview and theological constructions. Others continue to use Paul's name to justify the old-fashioned "preaching of the gospel," according to which our only "problem" is human sinfulness and pride, and the only "way out" is the cross of Christ. Finally, there are those who, while not denying this aspect of Paul's thought, nevertheless try to operate with broader concepts and to pose more general questions, which, in their opinion, form an integral part of Paul's teaching as a whole. In this category, as I hope it will become clear from this work, I include myself. In such an approach there are excellent opportunities to address the specific problems of the late 20th and early 21st centuries and thus discover the meaning of those Pauline texts that were previously considered to be "dark places." Thus, for example, when confronted with a completely self-sufficient modern Western neo-paganism, in which violent materialism, on the one hand, is combined with New Age philosophizing on the other, it would be well to remind ourselves (and we will do so in a later chapter) that the main addressee of Paul's preaching was not Jews, but pagans, and he has something to say to their modern co-religionists. But more on that later.