Dr. Mark Given
"The earliest books in the New Testament are the seven undisputed letters of Paul, and no letters have more profoundly influenced human history."
— Calvin Roetzel
Welcome to the online home of REL 321, Paul. Click here for Requirements and here for Calendar.
The purpose of this course is to deepen your knowledge of Paul and the Pauline trajectory in the early Church through primary and secondary sources. You will become acquainted with many of the historical, literary, hermeneutical, and ideological issues currently under investigation in Pauline scholarship. It’s a great time to be alive and to be a Paul scholar! But why should this particular figure receive so much attention? For better or worse, Paul is often identified as the true founder of Christianity. Paul is the church's first great theologian--many would say the greatest. And yet, just as passages in Paul's letters pertaining to morality and ethics have become more controversial within the church and society in recent decades, even passages in his most "theological" of writings have come under scrutiny. At the same time, however, aspects of his thought have continued to inspire even readers outside Christianity, including several leading contemporary secular intellectuals.
The purpose of this course is not to convert you to any particular confessional or non-confessional position. In a 1963 decision, the supreme court encouraged the study of religion in an academic environment. This is consistent with a goal common to most universities of studying all significant aspects of human experience in a sympathetic and responsible, yet thoughtful and critical, manner. Religion is a very significant aspect of human experience and Paul’s influence on Christianity and western culture more generally, both past and present, may overshadow that of Jesus himself. One can easily see that Paul is a highly appropriate subject for study in a state university.
This course emphasizes literary-historical and socio-rhetorical methods. The former method concentrates on interpreting the literature of the early church in its original historical context. It includes investigation of the very complex literary problems encountered in biblical texts. The latter method focuses on the social structures and conflicts of the early churches. It includes investigation of the types of arguments employed by early believers and their opponents.
A literary-historical religion course is an excellent place to begin to develop the sort of critical thinking skills that will serve you well in your university career and beyond. It takes acquired skills and diligent efforts to reconstruct the past and understand how and what people were thinking and feeling two millennia ago in a world more different than like our own. I encourage you to think critically about current issues of interpretation and learn to support your ideas with reasoned and evidence-based arguments.
A socio-rhetorical religion course is an excellent place to contemplate an important issue addressed by the Public Affairs mission of Missouri State. The early church, like the Judaism from which it sprung, was a religious movement of great diversity. Already within the pages of the New Testament we see religious and political rhetoric in action as competing ideologically and ethnically defined groups assert their particular visions/versions of "the good news" and struggle with the problem of maintaining unity in diversity. Examining their experience with such issues may encourage reflection upon our own situation.
Office Hours
My office is Strong Hall 266 and my office hours are posted on the Blackboard site. Appointments are also possible. My email addresses are available on the campus web and on the Blackboard site. I encourage you to email me with questions, comments, etc., if you cannot come by during office hours.