This thesis explores the strongest one-God statements in Paul's undisputed writings, namely 1 Cor. 8:6, Gal. 3:20, and Rom. 3:30. The three texts in question have very different contexts and address different issues. Each chapter begins with a discussion of various scholarly approaches and then proceeds to analyse each verse within its historical, cultural, and grammatical contexts. Finally, each chapter ends with an investigation into the relationship between Christ and God in the rest of the letter to determine whether the strong one-God language affects Paul’s theology elsewhere. The introduction (chapter 1) investigates issues connected with monotheistic beliefs in first-century Judaism. Chapter 2 argues that Paul's ethical exhortation flows from his understanding of the oneness of God. The vertical dimension of loving the one God is necessarily expressed in the horizontal dimension of loving one another. Furthermore, Paul exalts Christ to the level of divinity, despite the hierarchical language which occasionally appears in the letter. Chapter 3 explores the identity of the mediator in Gal. 3:20 and concludes that Paul contrasts the mediator Moses with the mediator of the new covenant, Christ. Part of the reason the new covenant is superior is that Christ shares in the deity of God, whereas Moses does not. Chapter 4 argues that the character of the one God serves as the foundation of Paul's soteriology. Because the one God is impartial and justifies all people by the same standard, he is the God of both Jews and Gentiles. Paul’s language demonstrates that God's actions and Christ's actions define one another so that to speak of one is to speak of the other. In Chapter 5, the study concludes by emphasizing that Paul's understanding of the one-God is not static or perfunctory; rather, it is dynamic and flexible, influencing significant aspects of Paul’s Gospel message.

This thesis examines Paul's use of temple, priesthood, and (non-atonement) sacrificial metaphors from a cognitive and socio-literary perspective. The final conclusion of a number of scholars in this area of research is that Paul's cultic metaphors have the theological and rhetorical purpose of encouraging community formation and moral living. Such evaluations, however, often take place without paying sufficient attention to the complexity of Paul's cultic imagery as well as, from a methodological standpoint, what metaphors are and how they are used in thinking and communicating. Utilising the tools and insights of conceptual metaphor theory, this study seeks to approach this topic afresh by attending to how metaphors constitute a necessary platform of cognition. Thus, they have world-constructing and perception-transforming utility. In this study, we conclude that, far from being merely about ethics or ecclesiology, Paul's cultic metaphors act as vehicles for communicating his ineffable theology. Indeed, his use f such tropes illuminate such broad areas as his anthropology, pneumatology, and epistemology, as well as his understanding of holiness, purity, judgment, suffering, death, and obedience to God. By anchoring his converts' new experiences in Christ to the world of ancient cult, and its familiar set of terms and concepts, he was attempting to re-describe reality and develop a like-minded community of faith by articulating logike latreia - 'worship that makes sense' (Romans 12.1).

This dissertation aims (a) to explore the shape and nature of Paul's conception of mission explaining his understanding of the church's mission in relation to his understanding of his own mission as an apostle, and (b) to show the influence of the Jesus-tradition on the apostle's conception. The thrust of the thesis is encapsulated in the title - Heralds and Community: An Enquiry into Paul's Conception of Mission and Its Indebtedness to the Jesus-Tradition. This reflects a conviction that constructing a plausible conceptuality of mission as understood by Paul and considering influential factors, particularly the Jesus-tradition, are essential for understanding Paul's ecclesial understanding and its relationship to his self-conception. The findings and positions taken in this study are as follows: I) Scholars have exaggerated the functional continuity between the apostle and the church in terms of evangelistic mission by using exegetically unsustainable arguments; in fact, Paul's letters are silent about proactive verbal evangelism by the church qua the church. 2) Paul's silence about congregational evangelism is due to his particular two-pronged (bifurcating) conception of mission, one prong being the event of eschatological heralds, the other prong being that of eschatological community. 3) In this conception of mission Paul maintains that God's inaugurated and ongoing salvation is to be implemented by proactive proclamation of the gospel by the heralds on the one hand, and by ontological/ethical actualization of the gospel by the community of the people of God on the other hand. 4) Jewish scriptures and traditions are formative for Paul's conception of mission, but Paul shows at various points his deep indebtedness to the Jesus-tradition, particularly to the context and contents of the synoptic mission discourse (for his concept of the heralds) and the sermon on the mount (for his concept of the community).

This thesis explores Paul's conception of maturity, paying special attention to the maturation process and the role of the local church in facilitating this process. Although maturity is a subject central to Paul's theology it is often overlooked in Pauline studies. The thesis is an exegetical-theological study of the seven generally accepted epistles, which makes heuristic use of three studies for the purpose of illuminating Paul's thoughts regarding maturity: a survey of modern psychology, an analysis of the writings of the community of Qumran and an analysis of Philo's presentation of the Therapeutae. We argue that Paul understood his apostolic commission to involve delivering mature believers on the day of Christ and this suggests that the concept of maturity was important to his life, work and thought. Paul's understanding of maturity reflects a tension arising from the apocalyptic and eschatological framework underlying much of his thought. Believers are to become in character what they are declared to be in status. It is suggested that the central motif of Paul's conception of maturity is believers being conformed to the image of Christ. This is a process that begins here and now whereby believers' attitudes and actions become aligned with those exhibited by Christ, who provides the defining standard of maturity for Paul. We suggest that for Paul there are five means used by the Spirit to conform believers to the image of Christ and these five means are presented and analyzed as components of the maturation process. They are: identifying with Christ, enduring suffering, experiencing the presence of God, receiving and living out wisdom from God, and imitating a godly example. The thesis concludes by arguing that Paul expected the local church to facilitate this process of maturation so that believers' participation in a local assembly would result in their being conformed to Christ. The church does this by facilitating the five components of the maturation process.

The Concept of the Pauline church unity founded on baptism is investigated from a practical theological perspective in terms of both the theoretical and practical method. After outlining the theological principles of this analogy; an actual situation of a local church is researched and the findings of this empirical analysis are used to indicate terms of a practical model of the body of Christ. An essential theological principle is that the church is to serve the Kingdom of God and to be a continuing incarnation of the word of God. The church which is full of quarrels and divisions would not be able to proclaim the word of God freely. Instead of preaching the word of God; they will concentrate on calling themselves that; I am of Paul, and I of Apollos; and I of Cephas; and I of Christ. This type of expression does not build unity among Christians. What we must do as Christians is that we should accept one another regardless of being affiliated to ZCC; Roman catholic church, Apostolic Faith Mission; Nazarene church, etc. According to Paul's views, all churches from different denominations form the body of Christ. There are also a handful of local churches whose members are trying to increase diversity within their pews. My aspiration is to see all the Christians from different races coming together; praying together and worshipping together as the children of God. My wish is to see the leaders from various denomination focusing on promoting fellowship and reconciliation amongst themselves and their church members accepting one another. The resolute determination of some whites to travel to black communities to worship or of blacks to join and participate in overwhelming white congregations; reveals the depth of some Christians desire to overcome the barriers which have been part of South African life for so long. This desire may be for more prevalent among the laity than the clergy have traditionally imagined. Christians from different races must change if they want to enter into the Kingdom of God. The disturbing factor is that without a real willingness to change there is little hope that it will be achieved in a generation still cluttered with the baggage of the past. Reconciliation and dignity of all believers in Christ needs to be encouraged by Pastors and church members, because we all from the body of Christ. / Religious Studies & Arabic / M.A. (Biblical Studies)

This study addresses the question of formative early Christian preaching and teaching. Unlike previous approaches, I eschew synthesis across a broad range and focus instead on the earliest extant Christian source: the letters of Paul. My method draws on ancient communication practices, primarily represented in ancient rhetoric, wherein communicators rely on knowledge they presume their interlocutors to possess. Passages are analyzed according to the type of appeal to Paul's initial teaching: (1) explicit reminders of previous teaching, (2) direct appeals to knowledge not explicitly linked to previous teaching, and (3) indirect appeals to knowledge about practices, beliefs, conventions, etc. The reconstruction focuses on 1 Thessalonians, 1 Corinthians and Romans. 1 Thessalonians and 1 Corinthians represent neophyte and well-established Pauline communities, respectively, while Romans is of interest because it represents non-Pauline believers. I proceed with a comparative analysis of 1 Thessalonians and 1 Corinthians. Chapter 4 lays out the rhetorical situation for these letters while chapters 5-7 investigate the three types of appeal respectively, each closing with a comparison of similar material in each letter. Chapter 8 summarizes and concludes this discussion, providing the basis for my subsequent analysis of Romans. Finally, I compare the picture from the Thessalonian and Corinthian communities with Paul's letter to the Romans (chapter 9). Topics he expects his Roman audience to know indicate points of expected congruence between Paul's own teaching and that of others. By contrast, topics that receive significant expansion in Romans suggest perceived potential for conflict. In this dissertation I identify consistent elements of early Christian instruction, ranging from Christology to apocalyptic cosmology, while also noting possible conflict. My approach places the reconstruction of early Christian teaching on firmer methodological footing than previous attempts have done and offers a rhetorically sensitive account of the teaching and how it was used.

The Concept of the Pauline church unity founded on baptism is investigated from a practical theological perspective in terms of both the theoretical and practical method. After outlining the theological principles of this analogy; an actual situation of a local church is researched and the findings of this empirical analysis are used to indicate terms of a practical model of the body of Christ. An essential theological principle is that the church is to serve the Kingdom of God and to be a continuing incarnation of the word of God. The church which is full of quarrels and divisions would not be able to proclaim the word of God freely. Instead of preaching the word of God; they will concentrate on calling themselves that; I am of Paul, and I of Apollos; and I of Cephas; and I of Christ. This type of expression does not build unity among Christians. What we must do as Christians is that we should accept one another regardless of being affiliated to ZCC; Roman catholic church, Apostolic Faith Mission; Nazarene church, etc. According to Paul's views, all churches from different denominations form the body of Christ. There are also a handful of local churches whose members are trying to increase diversity within their pews. My aspiration is to see all the Christians from different races coming together; praying together and worshipping together as the children of God. My wish is to see the leaders from various denomination focusing on promoting fellowship and reconciliation amongst themselves and their church members accepting one another. The resolute determination of some whites to travel to black communities to worship or of blacks to join and participate in overwhelming white congregations; reveals the depth of some Christians desire to overcome the barriers which have been part of South African life for so long. This desire may be for more prevalent among the laity than the clergy have traditionally imagined. Christians from different races must change if they want to enter into the Kingdom of God. The disturbing factor is that without a real willingness to change there is little hope that it will be achieved in a generation still cluttered with the baggage of the past. Reconciliation and dignity of all believers in Christ needs to be encouraged by Pastors and church members, because we all from the body of Christ. / Religious Studies and Arabic / M.A. (Biblical Studies)

This dissertation is a nuanced study of ‘compassion’ in the context of the Pauline Letters. The Letters are considered within the socio/political context of imperial Rome. ‘Compassion’ is a complex emotion, therefore it has been necessary to include, in my analysis, cognate sentiments such as patience, kindness, gentleness, perseverance. As this is a semantic study the Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament based on Semantic Domains, compiled by Louw and Nida (L-N), is used extensively. A dictionary provides a potential meaning, but it is the context of the sentence, the sentence within a larger unit of the text as a whole, considered within the prevailing social conditions, that influence meaning. This method reveals that Paul envisages ‘compassion’ as the means to establish communities, not enslaved by the values of ‘the world’, nor grasping things for themselves at the expense of others. In Paul, ‘compassion’ is expansive and inclusive, where the good of the whole community is valued. His paradigm is the sacrifice of Christ. / Religious Studies and Arabic / M. A. (Ancient Languages and Cultures)

This research conducted according to the phenomenological method investigated the Pauline concept of suffering. It traces the historical development in Paul's thinking on suffering. The two lines of Paul's suffering are his personal suffering - his struggle with the thorn in the flesh; and his suffering through persecution for Christ's sake. It is through his personal suffering that Paul endears himself to his readers. 2 Cor.12:1-10 reveals the function of the thorn - it brings vindication. Paul's personal suffering merges with his suffering for Christ, and the note of joy, hope, glory and vindication is emphasized. Just as Paul shares in Christ's suffering, he will share in the victory and glory too. Paul sees his suffering in the light of Christ's suffering and the suffering of his readers in the light of his suffering. / Religious Studies and Arabic / M.A. (Religious Studies)

This dissertation is a nuanced study of ‘compassion’ in the context of the Pauline Letters. The Letters are considered within the socio/political context of imperial Rome. ‘Compassion’ is a complex emotion, therefore it has been necessary to include, in my analysis, cognate sentiments such as patience, kindness, gentleness, perseverance. As this is a semantic study the Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament based on Semantic Domains, compiled by Louw and Nida (L-N), is used extensively. A dictionary provides a potential meaning, but it is the context of the sentence, the sentence within a larger unit of the text as a whole, considered within the prevailing social conditions, that influence meaning. This method reveals that Paul envisages ‘compassion’ as the means to establish communities, not enslaved by the values of ‘the world’, nor grasping things for themselves at the expense of others. In Paul, ‘compassion’ is expansive and inclusive, where the good of the whole community is valued. His paradigm is the sacrifice of Christ. / Religious Studies and Arabic / M. A. (Ancient Languages and Cultures)