Was Paul of Tarsus the real Founder of Christianity?
By Tom Wright
Lion Publishing plc. 192 pages. £4.99
ISBN 0 7459 3797 7
We Christians are as guilty as anyone of thinking that big books are deep, and that small ones are shallow. It would be therefore easy to overlook this small and modestly priced book. Do so to your own impoverishment!
Briefly, but clearly, Tom Wright shows us the landmarks in the study of Paul over the last century, and then provides his own contribution of setting the Apostle firmly in his first century context.
There is an excellent potted version of Wright's reading of Judaism of Paul's day, and then we see from that Paul's understanding of God and Jesus, and his message and mission, for the world then and now. Throughout we are taken to Paul's letters, and from there Wright interacts confidently with modern and older readings of Paul. The sections on righteousness and justification are insightful and provocative.
In the last chapter Wright turns to engage with A.N. Wilson's book on Paul (Paul: the mind of the Apostle pub. Sinclair Stephenson 1997), outlining Wilson's reconstruction of Paul's conversion and theology, and showing the eccentricity of this preoccupied columnist. By now though, we are convinced that Wilson is a nearly insignificant fly on the windscreen as Wright is driving at far bigger targets. This is an excellent buy for anyone who wants to take Paul seriously, and who wants to be stretched, challenged and excited. Don't be deceived - this is a deep book, to be bought, read and read again.
