Ep 166: Paul and the Introspective Conscience of the West by Krister Stendhal

Ep 166: Paul and the Introspective Conscience of the West by Krister Stendhal

In this bonus Thanksgiving episode I read an article entitled The Apostle Paul and the Introspective Conscience of the West by legendary New Testament scholar Krister Stendhal. Originally published in Swedish in 1960 (published in English as a chapter in his book Paul Among Jews and Gentiles), Stendhal argues that the west has missed the historical context in which Paul was writing. The western tradition, starting with Augustine and reaching its height with Luther, has assumed that Paul was extremely introspective and found relief from the guilt of his sin through the grace of Jesus. Stendhal argues that this isn’t the case; based on several claims in Paul’s letters that he was a devout, faithful, and upright Jew, there is little indication that Paul had a guilty conscience. The real historical context of Paul is the relationship between Jews and gentiles, and the extremely important 1st century issue of gentile believers in Jesus and law obedience. This article had a massive impact on New Testament studies, anticipating both the New Perspective and the Paul Within Judaism school, and I find his article extremely convincing and compelling. I hope you enjoy it!

Additional Resources

• Article PDF: https://static1.squarespace.com/static/569543b4bfe87360795306d6/t/5a4d41fa085229a032376713/1515012617149/01Stendahl.pdf
• Paul Among Jews and Gentiles: https://a.co/d/bdACCuW
• Henry Cadbury Episode: https://libertarianchristians.com/episode/henry-cadbury-anti-war-biblical-scholar-warned-against-modernizing-jesus/
• Woodrow Wilson and Medieval Scholarship: https://libertarianchristians.com/episode/ep-91-how-woodrow-wilson-invaded-medieval-europe/
• NT Review Podcast on Stendhal: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ury30mLfcLU