Wrestling with Rationality in Paul
Romans 1-8 in a New Perspective

A 1995 discussion combining classical logic and literary theory to put a new perspective on Paul's rationality.

John D. Moores (Author), Margaret E. Thrall (General editor)

9780521472234, Cambridge University Press

Hardback, published 16 February 1995

228 pages
21.6 x 14 x 1.7 cm, 0.44 kg

"The marvelous aspect of this book is a concise analysis of rhetorical theory, logic, and semiotics by a truly synthetic mind." Steven Boguslawski, Religious Studies Review

Spanning a variety of disciplines, this 1995 enquiry focuses on one particular Pauline characteristic: the apostle's habit of making matters of faith the object of logical appraisal. A tracing of the elliptical patterns of argument in Romans 1-8 illustrates this habit and, at the same time, displays how Paul's vigorous persistence in it seems often not to be matched by the solidity, or at any rate the lucidity, of his logic. By viewing Paul against the background of semiology, more especially the semiological theory of Umberto Eco, new light is shed on the genesis of Paul's reasoning. The discussion which ensues is marked by an interesting and productive combination of modern linguistics and classical logic. Moreover, the singular potential of today's techniques of 'fuzzy' logical analysis for measuring the intellectual muscle of Paul's argumentation is brought out dramatically by the uniqueness of his semiological situation. His rationality takes on a new face.

Acknowledgements
Introduction
1. Enthymematic semiosis in Paul
2. Varieties of enthymematic effect in Romans 1-4
3. Ways in which enthymemes arise in Romans 5-7
4. How enthymematic argument stands in Romans 8
5. Knowing what tune Paul is playing
Conclusion
Bibliography
Index of names
Index of technical terms.

Subject Areas: Biblical studies & exegesis [HRCG]