Preface

In the twentieth century, the Apostle Paul stirred the minds no less than in the first. Then, from time to time, he was stoned to death, but now words are preferred. Some stubbornly consider Pavel to be an annoying and dangerous eccentric. Others, no less stubbornly, continue to see in him the greatest teacher of faith after Christ. This entire spectrum of opinions can be observed not only in the mass consciousness, but also in theological literature.

Anglicans, for the most part, treated the Apostle Paul rather coolly. We did not want to get too carried away with it in order to avoid accusations of excessive Protestantism, but we did not want to refute it either: it would have been completely Catholic. We didn't want to take his every word too seriously, so as not to sound too conservative, but we didn't want to dismiss him altogether so as not to be known as liberals. Typically, we have a few favorite passages, a few "texts for all times" (e.g., the thirteenth chapter of 1 Corinthians, which is as popular as the eleventh chapter of the same epistle is unpopular), a few favorite topics (e.g., "life in Christ," a topic so all-encompassing that it works for almost every theological scheme), and a favorite epistle (most likely to the Philippians, because it is short, understandable, and life-affirming, in contrast to the long, mournful, and confused Second Epistle to the Corinthians, which is suitable only for preparation for Lent, which, however, was taken into account by the compilers of the lectionary, and in which, moreover, two whole chapters are devoted to money, which was completely confusing).

For about twenty years now, I have had to deal with the texts of the Apostle Paul more or less constantly, and during this time I have finally become convinced of the complete inconsistency of such approaches. Even after defending my doctoral dissertation on Romans, preparing commentaries on Colossians and Philemon, and a monograph on Paul's concept of Christ and the law (this is not counting a few articles on various fragments and themes of his epistles), I still feel that I am somewhere halfway to the top: there is so much to explore, understand and see. Often, reading the works of my colleagues on the Apostle Paul, I feel as if I am looking into a misty abyss, and not at the top of a mountain, although I understand perfectly well that I myself still have to go to it.

Thus, the book that we present to the reader is something like unfinished travel notes. A longer work, in which I try to talk about Paul in much the same way as I did about Jesus in Jesus and Victory of God (SPCK and Fortress, 1996),1 is still in the works. But in the last few years I have lectured in various places on various aspects of Pauline theology, and several of my listeners have persuaded me to share my thoughts with a wider audience. I am very grateful for all the opportunities I have been given—invitations to lecture at Lichfield Cathedral, to give an annual series of lectures at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky, to present my research at the University of Exeter, and to give several public lectures at Asbury Seminary in Kentucky and at Canadian Theological Seminary in Regina, Saskatchewan. Everywhere the hosts who received me were incredibly hospitable, the listeners were attentive, and the "questioners" were inquisitive and meticulous, for which I am sincerely grateful to everyone.

As I try to piece together the disparate lectures, I am nevertheless well aware that vast layers of the Apostle Paul's thought still remain intact. In other words, the present book in no way claims to be a comprehensive study of his works. It does not even pretend to analyze any one of the "sides". All I wanted to do was to trace the revelation of some of the key, though not always superficial, themes of Paul's preaching, and thus to clarify at least some of what the apostle Paul was really saying about the most pressing subjects.

Now a few general remarks. For many years now, there has been endless debate about whether or not the author of Paul's epistles resembles the Paul depicted in the Acts of the Apostles. In this work, I deliberately avoid these disputes, although in speaking about how the most important topics for Paul are revealed in his epistles, I can unwittingly touch on this topic. Or take, for example, the protracted debate over whether Paul really wrote all the letters attributed to him with his own hand. In my reasoning, I rely for the most part on texts whose authorship is beyond doubt, that is, the Epistle to the Romans, both Epistles to the Corinthians, as well as the Epistles to the Galatians and Philippians. In addition, I include the Epistle to the Colossians among the undoubtedly Pauline texts. As for the Epistle to the Ephesians, it was also, in my opinion, most likely written by Paul himself, and not by one of the imitators. However, in this work, I do not defend one position or another.

Apart from a few of the most necessary references, I almost never refer to the work of my colleagues who study the Pavlov Corpus. The detailed substantiation of the ideas presented here is contained mainly in my own previously published research. These and other works that may be useful in further study of the subject are indicated in the bibliography. I hope that my learned colleagues will understand that this book in no way claims to be considered a monograph, and readers who are not burdened with scientific studies will forgive me for not being able to do without digressions and philosophizing.

As work on this book was nearing completion, I came across the layout of a new work by the English journalist, novelist, and author of popular biographies, E. N. Wilson. He tries to revive the old theory that the Apostle Paul was the true founder of Christianity who took the place of Christ, and he proposes his own theological system, at the center of which is a certain "figure of Christ" who has nothing to do with the historical Jesus. Since this theory takes on different guises from time to time, and since the considerations set forth here can in one way or another serve as a basis for its refutation (which, in my opinion, is necessary), I thought it appropriate in the last chapter to discuss both the problem in general and Wilson's book in particular. This topic is discussed in detail in many works, and I, of course, did not want to repeat what has already been said.

Many of the ideas in this book were first presented to the audience during the Salwyn Lectures, which I was invited to deliver by the Bishop of Litchfield, His Grace Keith Sutton. Thanks to his support and friendly disposition, I was able, despite all my busy work in the cathedral, to continue working on the book. By his own example of Christian ministry, by his ability to rejoice in the inevitable sorrows that it entails, he showed many of us the way to the reality that the Apostle Paul lived and wrote about. As a testament to the appreciation and love that our entire family has for him, I dedicate this book to him.

Tom Wright