Ep 132: Was the Apostle Paul Really Anti-Imperial? with Najeeb Haddad

Ep 132: Was the Apostle Paul Really Anti-Imperial? with Najeeb Haddad

In this episode I talk with New Testament scholar Dr. Najeeb Haddad, who has written two very compelling books critiquing the popular perspective in Biblical studies that the apostle Paul was actively opposed to the Roman empire. We discuss the history of the Paul and empire debate and explore some of the key scholars and interpretive methods that have been used to justify the belief that Paul was anti-imperial, and Najeeb demonstrates that many of these methods are not supported by historical evidence. He explains how Paul understands the Roman empire to be a part of the Old Creation and is more focused on spreading the Gospel of the New Creation to all who will listen. He then explains why a lot of anti-imperial scholarship ignores the dignity of human beings by focusing only on systems, how scholars easily bring their own political biases into their work, and the nuanced anti-imperial reading of Paul offered by Christoph Heilig. This conversation provides a lot of historical nuance that everyone interested in the relationship between Christianity and politics ought to know.

Additional Resources

• Najeeb Haddad on Twitter: NTHaddad
• Najeeb Haddad on Academia: https://ndm.academia.edu/NajeebTHaddad
• Paul, Politics, and Empire: https://a.co/d/8WMaZxg
• Paul and Empire Criticism: https://a.co/d/8WMaZxg
• Interview with Christoph Heilig: https://libertarianchristians.com/episode/the-apostle-and-the-empire-dr-christoph-heilig/
• Interview with Clint Burnett: https://libertarianchristians.com/episode/ep-125-paul-imperial-divine-honors-and-the-roman-empire-with-clint-burnett/