Constructing Paul: The Canonical Paul by Luke Timothy Johnson

Abstract

Reviewed by: Constructing Paul: The Canonical Paul by Luke Timothy Johnson John Gillman luke timothy johnson, Constructing Paul: The Canonical Paul, vol. 1 (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2020). Pp. xiv + 385. $50. Noted biblical scholar and prodigious author Luke Timothy Johnson meticulously constructs and interprets the canonical Paul from the building blocks of his letters and with occasional references to Acts. Monographs on Paul abound. This one serves as the capstone to several perspectives on Paul that J. has vigorously defended over the years in his commentaries and The Writings of the New Testament (3rd ed.; Minneapolis: Fortress, 2010). His approach is indeed “conservative and cautious” (p. 2) as well as bold and challenging. Frequently, J. evaluates his reading of Paul as “responsible” (see, e.g., the heading “Reading Paul Responsibly” [289]). I could not help but wonder what this implies about divergent perspectives. The eleven chapters are divided into three parts: preliminary scaffolding, the materials, and the elements. In the first part, J. assesses the sources, sketches Paul’s life and ministry, provides an overview of the Pauline correspondence, and situates Paul in early Christianity. He levels a vigorous and sustained—to my mind, persuasive—broadside against the widely accepted two-category distinction between the undisputed and disputed letters with respect to authorship. He deconstructs the assembled argumentation for this position labeling it “the fallacy of false grouping,” and discards it into the bin of “bad science” (p. 38). Instead, J. argues that there is no consistent Pauline core, such as justification, that serves as a measuring rod for authenticity. As a more adequate conceptual model for categorizing the letters, J. proposes a framework of multiple clusters differentiated on the bases of “strong family resemblance” (p. 74). He identifies five such clusters: 1 and 2 Thessalonians, Galatians and Romans, 1 and 2 Corinthians, Colossians and Ephesians, and the Pastorals. He classifies Philippians and Philemon, which do not fall into any of these clusters, as outliers. I am struck by the irony, for these two letters are included among the seven authentically Pauline compositions according to a plurality of commentators. Noting the co-senders named in many of the letters, J. proposes that “something very much like a Pauline ‘school’” (p. 73) possibly played an active role in the composition of the letters. Such a model of authorship would help explain the complexity in the correspondence. The three chapters in part 2 focus on Paul’s Jewish identity and his place in the Jewish world, his use of Scripture, and his place in Greco-Roman culture. Noting parallels with the OT prophets, J. argues that Paul understands himself to be a prophetic Jew, meaning that he “considers the spirit of prophecy to be active and powerful in himself” (p. 143). That Paul is a prophet is implied in his self-designation as apostle. That may well be the case, but, if so, I am left wondering why Paul never specifically refers to himself as a prophet [End Page 148] (see 1 Thess 5:20; 1 Cor 12:28, 29; 14:37; Eph 2:20; 3:5; 4:11; cf. 1 Cor 13:2). Citing Rom 10:2, J. contrasts Paul’s own moment of “recognition” with his fellow Jews who are zealous for God. J. renders the phrase ἀλλ’ οὐ κατ’ ἐπίγνωσιν as “but not according to recognition” (p. 140). Although not as literal, the translations offered by the NRSV (“but it is not enlightened”) and Joseph A. Fitzmyer (“but it is not well informed”; see Romans: A New Translation with Introduction and Commentary [AB 33; New York: Doubleday, 1993] 581]) would seem to be clearer for the contemporary reader. In the third part, J. delves into the claims of experience—that of Paul and of believers; the convictions, myths, symbols, and metaphors employed by the apostle; Paul’s voice as it is heard in Philemon; and, finally, whether Paul is oppressor or liberator. J. explores the texture of Paul’s experience, both ordinary and extraordinary, and imagines the panoply of his readers’ experiences. The metaphors for the church range from God’s plantation to God’s house—including the Body of Christ. Considering Philemon to be “an excellent point of entry into Paul’s...