Hunter Brown: Paul, Divestment, and Salvific Almsgiving, Kartoniert / Broschiert

Klappentext

Hunter Brown answers two questions about Paul's economic theology: (i) To what extent did Paul believe Christ-followers should divest their possessions on behalf of the poor? (ii) What role, if any, did Paul believe almsgiving could play in the attainment of salvation? Methodologically and structurally, the heart of the work is a close exegetical reading of 1 Corinthians 11: 17-34, 2 Corinthians 8-9, Galatians 6: 6-10, Philippians 4: 10-20, and 1 Timothy 6: 6-19, which he reads with sensitivity to Jewish and early Christian traditions of thought about righteous economic action and its efficacy. On the basis of this reading, Brown argues that: (i) In accord with the pattern of Jesus who became poor for others when he was rich, Paul believes that Christ-followers should divest themselves of (essentially) all their surplus possessions in order to meet the needs of the poor. (ii) Paul believes that almsgiving can play an instrumental role in a Christ-follower's attainment of salvation after their initial faith in Christ. These findings sharpen our understanding of Paul's ethics and soteriology. The concluding chapter of the monograph reflects on the implications of the work for comparative assessments of the wealth ethics of Paul and Jesus; conceptions of the pattern of Pauline soteriology; and the task of contemporary Christian wealth ethics.