What is it about?

Paul's letters have few direct references to specific passages from the canonical gospels. This chapter explores the most likely references from the canonical gospels as found in Paul's letters of Romans and 1 Corinthians. It investigates 1 Corinthians 7:10–11; 9:14; 11:23–25 and Romans 12:14–21; 14:10–14; 15:3, 7 and looks for specific correspondences to the canonical gospels. It places this understanding in relation to those who see these passages revealing a broad understanding of canonical gospel material (i.e., Richard Bauckham, James Dunn, and David Wenham) and those who see a limited understanding of canonical gospel (i.e., Christine Jacobi) with Paul and the Corinthians.

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Why is it important?

This article projects from this investigation of Jesus material in Romans and 1 Corinthians what understanding the Corinthian church had about Jesus. They likely knew more about Jesus than solely his death and resurrection. The references show more correspondence to material from the Synoptic Gospels than ideas derived from Paul's own perception of Jesus. This is particularly true of his presentation of the Lord's Supper in 1 Cor 11:23–25. The implication from this chapter is that the Corinthians understood other aspects of Jesus's lifestyle and teaching that are not represented in these letters. Furthermore, it is more likely that their picture of Jesus is in agreement with other early Christian communities.

Perspectives

I hope that this article will help people think of the transmission of the life and teaching of Jesus through faithful ones to various church communities. While there are just a few references found to canonical gospel material in Romans and 1 Corinthians, it fits with a greater pattern that is illustrated by writings in the second century. The exploration of second century documents (e.g., 1 Clement, Papias, and Justin Martyr) is the subject of the following chapter in this book.

Drake Williams
Evangelische Theologische Faculteit Leuven

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This page is a summary of: Towards Determining Memories of Jesus at Corinth at the Writing of 1 Corinthians, February 2025, De Gruyter,
DOI: 10.1163/9789004715974_005.
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