…is the title of a fascinating new book by Douglas A. Campbell that I believe might interest readers of this forum.
By the way, this is my first post, so greetings (etc). I’ve become a fan of this site over the past couple of months as I’ve worked my way through most of the old posts, and I want to say "thank you" to Andrew for all the work he has put into it. Also, I’m a huge fan of N.T. Wright’s, and I think this site does a great job engaging his work.
Anyway, I stumbled upon Campbell’s work while desperately searching for a new interpretation of Romans 1:18-3:20. To make a long story short, I had become increasingly convinced that the standard interpretations didn’t really make sense of Romans or of Paul’s thought in general, especially in light of a post-Sanders understanding of Judaism. I found Campbell’s 1999 article in The Journal of Systematic Theology (vol. 1, no. 3), and it was love at first sight.
When I found out he had a new book on Paul, I ordered it immediately. It was better than I could have imagined. In my opinion, Campbell offers the most important new interpretation of Paul since Wright. I had that same feeling of intense excitement while reading it that I had when I first read Wright’s Romans commentary in the NIB. In a nutshell, Campbell makes a very precise argument for why the old "Justification by Faith" (JF) model of salvation and Wright’s "Salvation-Historical" (SH) model are insufficient. He considers the JF model a lost cause, but he thinks the best elements of the SH model can be incorporated into his own model, which he calls "Pneumatologically Participatory Martyrological Eschatology" (supercalifragilistic expialidocious!) or PPME for short.
Now I realize that he’s given his model a rather unwieldy title, but I hope it won’t keep you from giving Campbell’s book a look. Leander Keck and Francis Watson (among others) have given it glowing reviews.
If I get a chance and there’s interest on the site, I will try to post a summary of his argument, but the argument is original and controversial enough that it needs to be read in its entirety. I just wanted to give you excellent folks the heads up about it.
Grace and Peace,
Seth
Yes, a summary!
I am attempting to obtain the Cambell book you mentioned through our local library (it is an expensive text). However, I would love it if you could give some kind of summary! Thanks for the note.
Eric
It's in the works
Yes, Campbell’s book is expensive and not yet in any of the several university libraries I’ve checked. I’ll post a summary as soon as I can, hopefully by Thursday.
Seth
half.com
half.com
It is still $35 but that is less that $122. You could always ask Santa.
I got mine for under $40 . . .
on Amazon. The hardback price is outrageous (for universities who can afford it), but it’s also out in paperback for $39.95 (free shipping). There’s currently one used copy for $31.50 (+3.49 S&H).
Seth
More on Romans
I too have not read Campbell so was hesitant to get into this thread but for what it’s worth, my feeling is that there is a lot still to be learned and any new attempts to work out basic themes in the NT is very welcome. A summary as soon as you can please - where I am I will not be able to get the book through the usual channels!
I have yet to see a good rhetorical analysis of Romans (Ben Witherington aside) and while Wright and Dunn have opened a lot of doors, it still seems to me that the whole tone of Romans demands more study.
Starting with Romans 2:1, which I have always found startlingly emphatic and even combative. I wonder whether the rhetorical style that Paul is using does not involve intermingling some of the positions of his erstwile questioners in Rome in such a way that we find it hard to delineate where he is mimicking them before tearing down their positions?
Live to serve : Serve to live