Pauline Persuasion: A Sounding in 2 Corinthians 8-9

209 Pages·2001·9.349 MB·English

by  Kieran O'Mahony

l i b r a r y o f n e w t e s t a m e n t s t u d i e s
PAULINE PERSUASION
A Sounding in 2 Corinthians 8–9
KIERAN J. O’MAHONY
JOURNAL FOR THE STUDY OF THE NEW TESTAMENT
SUPPLEMENT SERIES
199
Executive Editor
Stanley E. Porter
Editorial Board
Elizabeth A. Castelli, David Catchpole, Kathleen E. Corley,
R. Alan Culpepper, James D.G. Dunn, Craig A. Evans,
Stephen Fowl, Robert Fowler, George H. Guthrie,
Robert Jewett, Robert W. Wall
Sheffield Academic Press

Pauline Persuasion
A Sounding in 2 Corinthians 8-9
Kieran J. O'Mahony
Journal for the Study of the New Testament
Supplement Series 199
For my parents
Copyright © 2000 Sheffield Academic Press
Published by
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Typeset by Sheffield Academic Press
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available
from the British Library
EISBN 9781841271491
CONTENTS
Preface 7
Abbreviations 10
Chapter 1
INTRODUCTION AND METHODOLOGY 13
1. The Appropriateness of Rhetorical Analysis 15
2. Proposed Methodology 35
3. Conclusion 48
Chapter 2
HISTORY OF RHETORICAL READINGS OF 2 CORINTHIANS 8-9 49
1. John Chrysostom 50
2. Carl Friedrich Georg Heinrici 58
3. Hans Dieter Betz 64
4. F. Young and P. Ford 69
5. Frederick W. Danker 72
6. Ben Witherington III 74
7. Conclusion 76
Chapter 3
DELIMITATION OF 2 CORINTHIANS 8-9 78
1. Delimitation of 2 Corinthians 8-9 79
2. Delimitation of Units within 2 Corinthians 8-9 96
3. Conclusion 103
Chapter 4
RHETORICAL READING OF 2 CORINTHIANS 8-9 105
1. Elocutio of 2 Corinthians 8-9 105
2. Dispositio of 2 Corinthians 8-9 127
3. Inventio 141
4. Genus of 2 Corinthians 8-9 145
5. Conclusion 147
6 Pauline Persuasion
Chapter 5
SYNTHESIS 148
1. The Persuasion in 2 Corinthians 8-9 148
2. The Portrayal of Paul and the Corinthians 161
3. Is the Text Rhetorical in Intention 162
4. Conclusion 163
Chapter 6
CONCLUSION 164
1. Rhetorical Structures Compared 164
2. The Wider Question of Paul's Education 174
3. Conclusion 181
Appendix 182
Bibliography 184
Index of Rhetorical Terms 191
Index of Biblical References 195
Index of Modern Authors 202
PREFACE
In the Pauline corpus, Second Corinthians is both relatively neglected
and highly controverted. It is neglected in comparison with research
into First Corinthians. It is controverted as regards the integrity of the
letter. Originally, my own investigations led me to look at all of Second
Corinthians, but when the amount of work envisaged became clear, it
became likewise obvious that such an enterprise would be well beyond
the limits of a single monograph. The 'amount of work envisaged'
means the approach adopted here using detailed delimitation, identifi-
cation of all figures and rhetorical analysis, leading to a rhetorical syn-
thesis and finally an engagement of the broader discussions. During a
four-month stay in Jerusalem, it was decided to confine the study to
chapters 8 and 9 of Second Corinthians, intended as a sounding in Paul-
ine persuasion.
In recent years, scholars have turned to rhetoric to help deepen our
understanding of the world of the biblical text. Two difficulties have to
be faced by anyone employing rhetoric: the first is the general question
of the applicability of the canons of rhetoric to these texts; the second is
the particular question of a methodology.
The first Chapter of the present book discusses the applicability, use
and abuse of rhetorical categories to texts of St Paul. It takes into
account the various objections raised against rhetorical criticism and at
the end proposes a methodology. This methodology involves two steps.
The first is a delimitation of the text according to modern literary cri-
teria, against which any rhetorical division of the material is to be test-
ed. The second step involves using the stages proposed by the rhetorical
manuals for the construction of a speech in reverse order, beginning
that is with the end product, with the final artefact, and working back-
wards to see how the rhetorical analysis can lay bare the persuasive
strategies of the writer.
Before putting this methodology into practice, it will be necessary
necessary to review the history of rhetorical readings of 2 Corinthians
8 Pauline Persuasion
8-9. The writers in question are John Chrysostom, C.G. Heinrici, H.D.
Betz, F. Young and D. Ford (joint authors), F.W. Danker and Ben
Witherington III. H.D. Betz is the most influential of these writers and a
full comparison of his work with this research is postponed until the
final Chapter. Chapter 2 concludes with a schematic outline of the
rhetorical dispositiones according to the authors discussed.
Chapter 3 undertakes the task of delimitation, and at the end of the
Chapter, units of discourse are suggested, subject to confirmation from
a rhetorical point of view. This chapter, however, discusses not just
delimitation, but also takes into account the cultural background of the
vocabulary (especially that of benefaction) which is so significant for
what Paul wishes to achieve in chapters 8 and 9.
The rhetorical analysis proper is undertaken in Chapters 4 and 5.
Chapter 4 employs the three stages for the construction of a speech in
reverse order, that is, firstly, examining the surface of the text for
figures of speech and figures of thought (elocutio or style). Following
on the elocutio, the next step is to examine the dispositio (structure)
and, only then, the inventio (the arguments discovered). Chapter 5 fol-
lows through directly from Chapter 4 and is a rhetorical exposition of
2 Corinthians 8-9, in an attempt to relate the various observations
touching style, structure and content. The commentary is intended as a
close reading of the text, with a view to laying bare the persuasion and
strategy of Paul.
Chapter 6 takes this close rhetorical reading back into the wider
world of Pauline scholarship. The first part offers a comparison between
the results of this thesis and the rhetorical analysis of H.D. Betz. The
second part comments on Paul's education and holds that—if his skill
in rhetoric is a sound indicator—he enjoyed a solid, relatively exten-
sive, Hellenistic education.
This study grew from an interest in rhetoric first awakened by Pro-
fessor Jean-Noel Aletti SJ of the Pontifical Biblical Institute, Rome. To
him a debt of gratitude is owed for his help and patience in guiding my
first stumbling steps in rhetorical analysis, made in 1990. In 1995, some
time was spent at the Ecole Biblique in Jerusalem. There I took part in a
seminar on classical rhetoric conducted by Professor Paolo Garuti OP.
Without his rich insight into rhetoric, both classical and modern, shared
during the weekly seminar in the autumn and winter of 1995, this book
would have been a far poorer affair. My thanks in particular go to my
confrere Fr J.F.M. Smit OSA, from Utrecht in The Netherlands, who
Preface 9
read the work with great care and precision and made many useful sug-
gestions and observations. It was very beneficial to hear the comments
of such an expert in Pauline rhetoric. This study is the adapted version
of a thesis submitted to the University of Dublin under the supervision
of Professor Sean Freyne.
It is a pleasure to acknowledge the generous support of my friends
and colleagues and in particular that of Sean Goan LSS and Dr Carmel
McCarthy, who kindly and thoroughly proofread the manuscript. Like-
wise, I thank most sincerely Tina D. Nilsen of the Milltown Institute of
Theology and Philosophy, who painstakingly checked all the Scripture
references and greatly improved the accuracy of the text. All the
remaining inaccuracies are my own responsibility.
The members of the Augustinian Order in Ireland, especially the
leadership, have supported me unstintingly during my research. I am
happy to acknowledge the active encouragement our former Provincial,
Fr John Byrne OSA who freed me from my duties as province secretary
to spend that semester in Jerusalem. Jerusalem was indeed a 'city of
peace' for me and I have the happiest memories of my time there, espe-
cially of the warm hospitality of the academic community of the Ecole
Biblique.
I dedicate this book to my parents.
Kieran J. O'Mahony OSA