British New Testament Society

Dio Cassius records on the advent of Augustus’ marriage legislation in 18 BCE that among the “well-bornâ€_ there were “many moreâ€_ men than women. Dio’s observation raises the curious prospect that some imbalance between males and females was a factor in the patterns of marriage and non-marriage in the broader Roman world. But is there evidence to suggest that such a pattern pervaded beyond the elite classes in Rome? The present paper assesses this question from the standpoint of both the ancient literary and epigraphic sources as well as from the results of various demographic analyses of the Roman world. Most enlightening is the recently supplemented cumulative results of the Egyptian census papyri that appear to offer credible support for the likelihood that such imbalances may have been typical in the urban Roman East. Further statistical analysis of this data also gives us a window into how such imbalances may have affected respective marriage patterns. The results offer fresh insight for understanding various dynamics behind the situation in Corinth that prompted Paul’s discussion of marriage and singleness in 1 Corinthians 7.

There is little room to doubt that in 1 Corinthians 1-4 Paul’s authority is under attack. Yet, for well over a century the identification of the ideological problems of the Corinthians and the rhetorical strategy of Paul has been subject to intense debate. Two decades ago an intriguing solution to these issues appeared by L. L. Welborn in his 1987 JBL article titled ‘On the Discord in Corinth’. It was Welborn’s contention that ‘Paul’s goal in 1 Corinthians 1-4 is not the refutation of heresy but what Plutarch describes as the object of the art of politics – the prevention of στάσις. If this is so,’ argued Welborn, ‘then much light should be thrown upon Paul's admonitions by an investigation of these chapters in the context of ancient politics’ (89-90). Welborn then proceeded to analyze the linguistic parallels between select Graeco-Roman political controversies and the first four chapters of Paul’s letter, at one point suggesting that Paul envisioned himself defending his apostleship in a kind of ‘ecclesiastical court’ (108). The brevity of his analysis, however, of both ancient political trials and Paul’s judicial language cause Welborn’s treatment of the courtroom motif to fall just short of being truly illuminating for Pauline interpreters. In this paper, therefore, I will follow up on Welborn’s analysis of Paul’s hearing before the ‘ecclesiastical court’, first by examining in much greater detail than did Welborn the close linguistic and thematic parallels between Graeco-Roman trials and Paul’s judicial language in 1 Corinthians 3-4 (i.e., 3:10-15; 4:1-5), and second by demonstrating that Paul was combating in the Corinthian church, among other things, a democratic ideology of the ekklēsia that sought to restrict the judgment and accountability of its leaders to the assembly.

It has often been thought that the emphasis on Jesus of Nazareth as the anticipated Davidic messiah in the New Testament has been a product of the influence of the Old Testament moderated through the Pharisees. However, in lieu of the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls and advances in the study of the social world of the Late Second Temple period, the time has come to reassess the validity of the theory of a Pharisee-based Jewish influence on the Jesus movement. In fact, in my paper, I argue that it was the Zadokite-focus on Davidic kingship that formed a literary-social basis on which the followers of Jesus of Nazareth and New Testament writers based their concept of the Davidic messiahship of Jesus the Christ. Qumran documents, which emphasize Daividic messiahship, can be seen as efforts of the Zadokites and their leader, the Teacher of Righteousness (1QH and 1QS), to legitimize the high priesthood of the Zadokites, or the descendants of Zadok, the first in the line of legitimate high priests appointed by the Royal House of David, and to de-legitimize the Hasmonean high priesthood (“Wicked Priestâ€_), which the Zadokites portrayed as having illegally usurped the legitimate Zadokite position. Many Zadokites, who were scattered away from Jerusalem in the Hasmonian “usurpationâ€_ of the high priesthood of the Jerusalem Temple, continued their existence in a parallel temple in Leontopolis until the destruction of the Jerusalem Temple when their temple, too, was destroyed as well as in Qumran. During this time, the Zadokites perpetuated the propaganda of the legitimacy of Davidic kingship, against the legitimacy of Hasmonean kingship, and the legitimacy of the Zadokite priesthood, against the legitimacy of the Hasmonean high priesthood. Zadokite propaganda, which was highly influential, can be found even among the mainstream Jewish documents, such as the Psalms of Solomon (written by a Zadokite), which also emphasized Davidic kingship. The language used in Psalms of Solomon 17 of a future king of Davidic line being Christos Kurios (PsSol 17:36) is reminiscent of the Zadokite writings from Qumran of the Davidic messiah. It was, in fact, the Zadokites and their notion of the Davidic messiah, rather than anti-Zadokite, pro-Hasmonean supporters of the Pharisees and their emphasis on pre-Davidic Law of Moses, who impacted the New Testament world.

This paper explores how Ephesians shapes early Christian community by providing the group of non-Israelite Christ-followers with ideological resources and influencing their social orientation. I will discuss how the text shapes communal remembering, mindful of social construction and ideological filtering of the past planted in the discourse. Reputations of two contested Israelites, Jesus and Paul, are at the heart of communal ideology and formative for identity and social processes. They are celebrated as communally legitimating agents of God who fulfil his eternal plans, justifying the ideological and social positioning of the community. Firstly, remembering Christ challenges Israel’s cultural performances and reduces the significance of the law as a boundary marker for God’s people. Secondly, Paul’s reputation legitimates communal socio-ideological positionings and de-legitimates alternative views. Thirdly, Ephesians subjects its audience to mnemonic resocialisation as the discourse dismisses the value of non-Israelite cultural heritage and remembers their otherness and deficient status. The study of remembering, reputations and traditions deselected in the communal discourse highlights the negotiation of the social environs and ideology of the mnemonic community, and the way communal influencers may select and deselect mnemonic components, filter, shape and invent traditions, as well as suppress them, for the purposes of ideological and social coherence.

Todd Still (Baylor University), David Horrell (University of Exeter), Bruce Longenecker (University of St Andrews) and other contributors

After the First Urban Christians (eds. Todd Still and David Horrell, T&T Clark Intl, due for publication 2009) is being put together to mark twenty-five years since the publication of Wayne Meeks's classic study, The First Urban Christians. After an essay on use of theories and models (David Horrell), each of the six further essays (Peter Oakes, Bruce Longenecker, Edward Adams, Todd Still, Louise Lawrence, Dale Martin) reflects a chapter of Meeks’s book. Beginning by discussing the approach and arguments presented by Meeks, each will then offer a survey of ways in which the field has developed since Meeks's study, highlighting some areas of recent debate and innovation, and offering some proposals for future study. The book will also include a response by Wayne Meeks.

Introduction to the project and discussion of themes. Presentation of short papers based on selected draft chapters from the book. Opportunity for discussion of the project and, more broadly, of the legacy of Meeks’ book.