A Rereading of Romans: Justice Jews and Gentiles

About this book

Pauls Letter to the Romans is one of the most influential writings of Christian theology. From the time of Augustine it has been central in discussions about sin and salvation about guilt fear of God and gratitude for Gods mercy. In this groundbreaking reinterpretation Stanley Stowers argues that Christian tradition has interpreted Romans in an anachronistic fashion fundamentally different from how readers in Pauls time would have read it. He provides a new reading that places Romans within the sociocultural historical and rhetorical contexts of Pauls world. Stowers challenges the idea that salvation is the central issue of Pauls letter and that the letters addressees include Jews. In Stowerss reading Paul a Jew immersed in Hellenistic culture is addressing his letter to an audience of gentiles. Paul says that in faithfulness to his mission and Gods promises Jesus restrained his messianic powers allowing an opportunity for gentiles to be redeemed. Thus God demonstrated his justice and by raising Jesus created a new line of kinship by the Spirit that will lead gentiles to moral and psychological self-mastery. The acceptance and self-mastery that gentiles seek is not to be found in observing teachings from Jewish law. According to Stowers Romans neither offers an answer to human sinfulness nor presents Christianity as a religion of salvation. Stowers thus reinterprets the relation of Pauls Christianity to Judaism the meaning of faith and the significance of Jesus Christ.