  | Book Details Title: Pauline Dogmatics: The Triumph of God’s Love |
Book DescriptionReview Chris Tilling — St. Mellitus College “Pauline Dogmatics is quite simply the most enjoyable biblical or theology related book I have ever read, and I consider it to be the best book on Pauline theology ever written. A superlative endorsement like this would make me cynical too, but I mean it. This is theology written not simply about Paul, but with Paul, under Paul, illuminating Paul, which reaches beyond the cerebral assault into my own life and practices with unnerving immediacy. And its penny-drop-moment-o-meter is off the scale! This is a dazzling Pauline dogmatics, animated by what matters most: the reality of God in Christ. As such it yields astonishing results. Prepare to have your minds scrambled, your interpretive tables overturned, your exegetical hair ruffled, and your theological horizons blown apart. With unique insight, Campbell slam-dunks the most important thing to get right when reading Paul, and he then pushes this through in what can only be called joyful directions. Utterly. Brilliant.”Susan Eastman — author of Paul and the Person: Reframing Paul’s Anthropology “With stunning breadth and his trademark brio, Campbell passionately argues for the heart of Paul’s gospel and its transforming effects: the Lordship of Christ, the love of God, and the power of the Spirit unleashed in the world. A must-read for scholars and preachers alike.” Read more About the Author Douglas A. Campbell is professor of NewTestament at Duke Divinity School. His other books includeThe Quest for Paul’s Gospel: A Suggested Strategy. Read more Customers Review:I’ve been reading theology books for many years and few have made me think as much as this one. In this four-part book—resurrection, formation, mission, and navigation—Campbell, a professor at Duke Divinity School, engages Paul’s thinking primarily with the help of Karl Barth “because Barth was in many respects a faithful interpreter of Paul” (130 Kindle). How so? Barth held fast to the revelation of God in Christ. Campbell writes, “Everything else now needs to be measured against this truth criterion, and it is clearly an extraordinary one. The center of all truth is a crucified Jew who was resurrected on the third day, and all God-talk, and really everything else besides, has to be measured against it, which is really to say, brought in subjection to it” (777). The book is rooted in this apocalyptic (God’s in-breaking revelation) reading of Paul.From this revelation we learn that we come from a triune God who now embraces us, and calls us into his fellowship forever. So the foundation from which we should think and act is a revelation about a relational God. And “It follows, then, that if we are heading for a good communion, we get there by pursuing a good communion here and now” (3965). This is theology that lives and breathes in our everyday world.After identifying the foundation, Campbell devotes much of the book to refuting other foundations, other human attempts to reach truth, which he calls foundationalism, because they undermine God’s revelation. Obviously, these other foundations include ancient and modern philosophies, but surprisingly, they even include common Christian thinking. For example, if we begin the salvation story with the creation account in Genesis, we are building on a different foundation. Everything before and after Christ must be seen through Christ because he is the definitive revelation of God. So for Christians, the story should begin with Jesus not Genesis.What about God’s covenant with Israel? Campbell asserts that God was in Israel’s history, but we can only see that clearly when we look back with the light of Christ. According to Paul, Christ was the rock that accompanied Israel in the wilderness (1 Corinthians 10:4) so he has always been with Israel even though unrecognized.Campbell also brings this revelation to bear on all of Paul’s thinking because he believes it is the heart or substance of his teaching. As a result, he argues that some of Paul’s teachings are not firmly grounded in “Trinitarian and Christocentric claims.” (This book affirms a ten-letter canon for Paul, but 1 and 2 Timothy and Titus are discussed in the final chapter.) These areas include Paul’s thinking about the final destruction of the wicked, and his advice to slaves, husbands and wives. Of course, this takes Campbell into controversial territory, which he boldly engages.In addition, this book does not leave Paul’s thought in the first century. Paul’s ideas are linked to an array of modern insights and fields of learning, such as Einstein’s theory of relativity connected to the resurrection of the dead and Christian mission analyzed through the lens of sociology and the history of colonialism. This is a far-reaching multidisciplinary book.Finally, practical aspects are highlighted: Paul’s work and travel, friendship evangelism, love, joy, and even the author’s experience of working in prisons. Moreover, Campbell emphasizes the importance of managing the process of change in the right way, a way that respects our relational nature.Here’s what I especially liked:• The focus on God’s revelation in Christ• The practical emphasis and incorporating personal experience• Engaging Paul’s thinking with modern insights and questions• Using a variety of metaphors—we tend to rely on spatial metaphors but helpful auditory analogies are used• Key points (or Theses) and Further Reading at the end of each chapter• Made me think about things in a different way. For example, time, a created element, is part of the space-time field, and therefore all of it is like “a great beach ball” to God. When God touches one part of it, the entire ball is affected.Here’s what I wanted to hear more about:• How does the apocalyptic reading of Paul relate to other readings of Paul? In other words, what is the current state of New Testament scholarship on interpreting Paul?• How does Paul’s thinking correspond with other parts of the New Testament? This is not a fault of the book because the obvious focus is Paul’s writings, but I couldn’t help but wonder how the author thinks certain assertions fit with other parts of Scripture.• Prayer—Paul frequently mentions prayer and even articulates prayers in his letters. While Campbell comments on prayer, I would have liked to have read an entire chapter or a sustained reflection on this topic.How you rate a book depends on where you are coming from and what you are looking for. I appreciate authors who make me think of things in new ways, are not overly repetitive, challenge me on a practical level, support their views, and convey enthusiasm for their topic. This book made me wish I could sit down with Campbell and pester him with questions. If you are like me, this is a book you will really enjoy. And if you are standing on another foundation, this book could be foundation-breaking. | |
3 reviews