Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #171411 in Books
• Published on: 2003-11
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 488 pages

Customer Reviews

A classic becomes a magnum opus
What can I say? Westerholm's "Israel's Law and the Church's Faith" was a classic introduction to recent Pauline debates. "Perspectives Old and New on Paul" began as a revision, and turned into an opus double the size.

Beginning with overviews of historical figures who taught the so-called "Lutheran" Paul (Augustine, Luther, Calvin, Wesley), which place justification within the context of their broader theologies, this work is a welcome, clear-headed contribution to the discussion of justification in Paul. Westerholm offers some insightful consideration of numerous Pauline texts, as well as helpful correctives on numerous points regarding the NPP.

As with others, Westerholm leaves gaping holes and large questions, however. Although he is relatively evenhanded, one might suppose from reading Westerholm that certain NPP advocates were in fact a great deal more radical revisionists than is actually the case. Furthermore, Westerholm does not attempt to integrate entire classes of texts into his view of Paul, and his handling of righteousness (or in his words, "dikaiosness") comes across as rather too simplistic. On the former point, for example, Westerholm claims that Paul's problem with the law is that is makes demands to "do," but does not seriously attempt to relate this position to Pauline texts which (like Leviticus 18.5, which Paul juxtaposes to his own gospel) correlate the promise of "life" and "doing" in the Christian life (e.g. Galatians 6.8-9). With regard to the latter, Westerholm attempts to boil everything down to "ordinary" righteousness (with regard to which all without exception have failed) and "extraordinary" righteousness (i.e. the unique righteousness given as a gift to faith, based upon the work of Jesus Christ). The difficulty with this is that it sets Paul at odds against the Old Testament (which has three kinds of righteousness, including that which refers to general faithfulness apart from perfection) and against himself (Paul seems to assume this third category himself in numerous contexts).

But what can we expect, after all? We have yet to see a book that integrates all of these matters in a wholly satisfactory fashion. This remains an important, and indeed indispensable, contribution to the debates in Pauline studies.

A "must have" for the student of Pauline theology
What was Paul's problem with "Second Temple Judaism?"

a) It had been distorted into a form of hyper-legalism resulting in despair and condemnation,
b) It had erected a barrier of ethnocentrism that led to exclusivism and boasting,
c) Some of a) and b) but there is more to the story,
d) Paul's "thorn in the flesh" just made him cranky.

If you chose a) or b) this book will help you explore each of these issues and expand your horizons. If you answered c) then you will identify with the author, but you should read the book to follow his analysis and conclusions. On the other hand, if you picked d) you should write your own book and add it to the ever-growing list of new perspectives on Paul!

For a survey and objective evaluation of the many perspectives on Paul, from Augustine to Wright, this is an excellent place to start. The first section presents a comparison, contrast, and overview of the pertinent positions formulated by the so-called "Lutheran" giants--Augustine, Luther, Calvin, and Wesley. The second section provides numerous viewpoints on the newer thinking about Paul from a wide range of contributors, roughly in chronological order, and includes a few "Lutheran" responses. In the final section, the author carefully develops definitions and terminology so he can frame arguments precisely to reach conclusions that, while drawing from the combined reasoning and wisdom of all the previous contributors, ultimately submit to scripture rather than tradition or fashion--even if it means stepping on the toes of giants. Thankfully, he does it without the rancor and strident polemics that unfortunately accompany much of the material on this topic, especially in the blogosphere. In fact, if you are paying attention, you will find yourself laughing out loud along the way.

In addition to being informative and insightful, the design and presentation of this book are excellent. The overall organization is superb, and each individual section and chapter presents its information and arguments in a cogent and systematic fashion. Some of the subjects are of necessity simplified, as this is a survey, but there is more than enough here to provide not only an initial understanding, but also a foundation on which to assemble the big picture, with plenty of sources to follow for more information on subjects that pique the interest. The bibliography alone makes this book worth owning as a reference.

In his "Whimsical Introduction" Dr. Westerholm states his intent to stretch our thinking and "learn much of the history of Pauline scholarship in the process," and even "discover an insight or two into the apostolic object of all the wrangling." Mission accomplished.

Essential Reading!
Pauline studies have been an interesting and contested field for the past thirty years or so. Even the most fundamental tenets of Paul's theology have been brought into question. Central to the debate has been the question of whether the "Lutheran" reading of Paul and his gospel, which has held sway in the West since the 16th century (or the 4th if you go back to Augustine), is faithful to the essence of Paul's preaching or whether it distorts Paul's intent.

Westerholm, in this spectacular book, provides a great entry point into the debates, careful analysis of the various positions, and a clear, mature assessment of Paul and the modern debates about him. I think this book provides an ideal starting point for people who want to get the lay of the land in current study about Paul, while also interacting (mostly in the notes) with these positions. He then, with surprising humor and wit, puts forth one of the clearest statements I've ever read concerning how Paul understood "law," "righteousness," and "justification by faith." Westerholm brings in the best of the "new perspective on Paul," taking into account a fuller understanding of the Jewish backdrop of Paul's writings and a fuller account of Paul's own thinking on these matters, while also showing that the essential core of the "Lutheran" Paul, especially when augmented and corrected at points, helps present a full and accurate view of Paul's thinking.

I cannot recommend this book highly enough. It is very well written, surveys the most important historical figures in the debate, the most important current contributions, both for and against the "Lutheran" Paul (with frequent use of their own words, so that each author's own flavor and emphasis comes out), and then brings this all together with a great presentation of Paul's thought. His work on the role of the law, summed up in nine theses in chapter 19, is especially good. I hope you enjoy this book as much as I did. It has given me a grasp of all of these issues and debates, and a grasp of Paul's own thinking, that seemed almost too elusive to grasp before.