"what Tom Wright does is explicate Paul's understanding of justification, salvation and the "bigger picture" with greater clarity, and  far more comprehensively, than do most.."

Thanks for the recommendation Ian, sounds great - will buy it next time I'm in the city. 

Urch

Just one question Brother Ian,

What is/are your view(s) on "New Perspective on Paul" ??? Please feel free to email me if you already have a written paper on hand that you might feel incline to share. I am just trying to put my bearings on the debate. 

Also heard a bit of air being disturbed by another work by Tom Wright: "Surprised by Hope" which I believe has eschatological issues so tomorrow, my day off, I'll take the drive over to Springwood and cash in my $10 voucher and get both works..

blessings

Big E

To Brother Ian,

Koorong's write up on "Surprised by Hope" by Tom Wright.

Description

Lively and accessible, this book will surprise and excite all who are interested in the meaning of life not only after death but before it.

• What do Christians hope for?
• To leave this wicked world and go to 'heaven'?
• For the 'kingdom of God' to grow gradually on earth?
• What do we mean by the 'resurrection of the body', and how does that fit with the popular image of sitting on clouds playing harps?
• And how does all this affect the way we live in the here and now?

Tom Wright, one of our leading theologians, addresses these questions in this provocative and wide-ranging new book. He outlines the present confusion about future hope in both church and world. Then, having explained why Christians believe in the bodily resurrection of Jesus himself, he explores the biblical hope for 'new heavens and new earth', and shows how the 'second coming' of Jesus, and the eventual resurrection, belong within that larger picture, together with the intermediate hope for 'heaven'. For many, including many Christians, all this will come as a great surprise.

Wright convincingly argues that what we believe about life after death directly affects what we believe about life before death. For if God intends to renew the whole creation - and if this has already begun in Jesus' resurrection - the church cannot stop at 'saving souls', but must anticipate the eventual renewal by working for God's kingdom in the wider world, bringing healing and hope in the present life.
-Publisher.

Author Bio

Wright Tom
N.T.(Tom) Wright (D.Phil, Oxon is Bishop of Durham was recently named by Christianity Today as one of the top five theologians in the world. He was formerly Canon Theologian of Westminster Abbey and dean of Lichfield Cathedral. He taught New Testament studies for twenty years at Cambridge, McGill and Oxford Universities.

Wright's full-scale works The New Testament and the People of God, Jesus and the Victory of God, and The Resurrection of the Son of God are part of a projected six-volume series entitled Christian Origins and the Question of God.

Among his many other published works are The Original Jesus, What Saint Paul Really Said, The Climax of the Covenant and most recently Surprised by Hope. He is also co-author with Marcus Borg of The Meaning of Jesus: Two Visions

His commentaries include the 12 volume For Everyone series, Colossians and Philemon (Tyndale New Testament Commentary series), Malachi (Bible Speaks Today) Galatians (The Horizons Theological Commentary) and The Letter to the Philippians (International Critical Commentary).
Koorong -Editorial Review.

I'll drop over to Springwood (15 - 20 minutes away) tomorrow..

Big E.

Good morning, Eric.

Well, the so-called New Perspective on Paul (NPP) is something of a misnomer, given that "perspective" ought to be in the plural rather than the singular! To be honest, certain aspects of the NPP have been extraordinarily helpful, rehabilitating much of our inherited thinking on the subjects of justification, the corporate aspects to "salvation" and such forth. However, there have also been aspects which I believe have been far from helpful, and which have been little more than misreadings of Paul in an effort to be novel.

As you know, I stand firmly within the Reformed tradition. However, I do believe I can learn from NPP scholars the likes of Tom Wright, Krister Stendhal and Jimmie Dunn (to name but a few). It's simply that, as with any other scholar, they need to be read critically.

Blessings,

Ian