Paul the Apostle

Rating:
Summary: Interesting and good
Review: Those of you who want a Pauline theology book that goes straight to the meaning of Paul's writings without dogmatic interpretations of the text should read this book. Beker does an excellent job laying out Paul's theological convictions in an easy to read and scholarly manner. Beker's thesis is that Paul's theological center is the apocalyptic triumph of God through Christ. He develops his thesis with an interesting proposal on Pauline hermeneutics--the coherent center working alongside contingent particularities. Though Beker may not get much support from the more orthodox and traditionalist crowds regarding methodology, one cannot but respect Beker's attempt to stay true to Paul's writings. Though some of Beker's views may turn-off conservative Christians (he denies Pauline authorship to Ephesians), he generally presents a view that sticks to the mainline Christian tradition. Overall, a good book to read on Pauline theology. I would balance this book out with a more evangelical and conservative Pauline theology book like F. F. Bruce's "Paul, Apostle of the Heart Set Free" or Thomas Schreiner's "Paul, Apostle of God's Glory in Christ".