Network of Trust and the Ministry of the Spirit: Paul’s Metaphor “Community is a Letter” in 2 Cor 3:1–3 Restricted; Files Only

Abstract

This dissertation argues Paul’s description of the Corinthian congregation as his letter of recommendation in 2 Cor 3:1–3 can be interpreted as a conceptual metaphor COMMUNITY IS A LETTER using the framework of conceptual metaphor theory. I argue that this metaphor is not a rhetorical prelude to the argument of 2 Cor 3:4–18 but its conceptual foundation, providing the most concrete account of what Paul means by the “ministry of the Spirit.” Paul deploys the social logic of letter-writing practice to address the fractured relationship between himself and the Corinthians and reconstitute the community’s identity. Letters, especially recommendation letters, were primary instruments of creating and maintaining trust between parties across distance. This study argues that the metaphor evokes trust as the implicit but indispensable virtue on which the community’s existence depends. The Spirit, as the writing instrument of the letter of Christ, is the agent through whom this ministry takes concrete social form, binding Christ, Paul and the Corinthians into an inseparable unity across distance and conflict, and producing the community as the living, enduring display of the Spirit’s transforming work to “all people” in the Roman Empire. 

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

List of Tables

List of Abbreviations

CHAPTER 1. INTRODUCTION

CHAPTER 2. LETTERS UNREAD: REASSESSING 2 CORINTHIANS 3:1–3

2.1. Introduction

2.2. A Letter Born of Conflict: The Occasion and Historical Context of 2 Corinthians

2.2.1. Paul and the Interpretation of Jewish Scriptures in 2 Cor 3

2.2.2. Paul’s Use of Greco-Roman Social Practices

2.2.3. Identity Transformation and Social Memory

2.2.4. Conclusion: 2 Cor 3 and Communal Identity Formation

2.3. Methodology: Metaphor and Material

2.4. Focus of the Current Project and Chapter Outline

CHAPTER 3. “YOU ARE OUR LETTER”:  LETTERS AND NETWORKS IN THE ROMAN EMPIRE

3.1. Introduction

3.2. Letters and Social Networks in the Roman Empire

3.2.1. Letters: Communicating Presence from a Distance

3.2.2. Trust (pistis) and Letter-Writing

3.2.3. Letter Delivery and the Role of Couriers

3.2.4. Letters of Recommendation

3.2.5. Conclusion: Letter Writing and a Network of Trust

3.3. “You Are Our Letter”: Corinthians as the Recommendation Letter in 2 Cor 3:1–3

3.3.1. Conflict Between Paul and the Corinthians

3.3.2. Repairing Broken Trust Through Metaphor: COMMUNITY IS A LETTER

3.3.3. Paul, the Letter Courier of Christ

3.4. Conclusion: Corinthians as the Letter of Recommendation

CHAPTER 4. INSCRIBED ON THE TABLET OF HEARTS

4.1. Introduction

4.2. Metaphorical Creativity and Context

4.3. Human Cognitive Center as Metaphorical Tablets

4.3.1. Heart in the Hebrew Bible, Greek Literature, and the New Testament

4.3.2. Heart and Mind as Tablets: Metaphorical Universality and Variation

4.3.4. Conclusion: Universality and Variation of the Conceptual Metaphor HUMAN COGNITIVE CENTER IS A TABLET

4.4. Inscribed Letters in the Roman Empire

4.4.1. Reading “Tablets of Stone” as Roman Inscribed Letters

4.4.2. Materiality of Inscribed Letters in the Greco-Roman World

4.4.3. Conclusion: Inscribed Letters as Monuments in the Urban Center

4.5. A Letter Inscribed on Tablets of Fleshly Hearts

4.5.1. Paul’s Variation (1): Paul’s Own Heart as the Tablet

4.5.2. Paul’s Variation (2): Corinthians as Monumental Letters

4.6. Conclusion

CHAPTER 5. INSCRIBED WITH THE SPIRIT OF THE LIVING GOD

5.1. Introduction

5.2. Writing Instruments in the Roman Empire

5.3. Spirit of God and Formation of Community in Exile

5.3.1. Influence of Ezekiel 36:25–27 in Second Temple Jewish Literature

5.3.2. Spirit of God and God’s Presence in Community

5.4. Spirit of the Living God as the Writing Instrument of the Letter of Christ

5.5. Conclusion

CHAPTER 6. A LETTER TO BE KNOWN AND READ BY ALL

6.1. Introduction

6.2. The Letter Metaphor as a Bridge to a Wider Audience

6.3. The Spirit and Paul’s Mission to “All People”

6.4. Conclusion

CHAPTER 7. CONCLUSION: COMMUNITY IS A LETTER

BIBLIOGRAPHY

About this Dissertation

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School	Laney Graduate School
Department	Religion
Subfield / Discipline	New Testament
Degree	Ph.D.
Submission	Dissertation
Language	English
Research Field	Religion, Biblical Studies
Keyword	Pauline Pneumatology 2 Corinthians Ancient Letter Writing Practice Conceptual Metaphor Theory
Committee Chair / Thesis Advisor	Susan E. Hylen, Emory University
Committee Members	Anthony A. Briggman, Emory University Ryan P. Bonfiglio, Emory University Jennifer A. Quigley , Emory University Roger S. Nam, Emory University

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