Richards - Paul and first-century letter writing

Randolph Richards - Paul and first-century letter writing: secretaries, composition, and collection InterVarsity Press, 2004. - 252 pp.
Paul has always been my hero. He told us to imitate him (1 Cor 4:16). Aside from Christ himself, perhaps no one else has impacted the world like Paul. 1 fear that many of us place Paul on such a high pedestal (just a few inches below Jesus) that we believe it impossible to imitate him. This motivates me to study the details of Paul’s life, particularly those details that provide a more realistic picture of the flesh-and-blood Paul. My hope and prayer is that, after reading this book, you will see Paul more clearly and thus be encouraged to imitate him.
 
When we read Paul’s letters without any thought as to how they came to be, we are at risk of reading our culture, customs, values and ideas back onto Paul. Once, as I stood in the ruins of a workshop on a dusty side street in Pompeii, 1 wondered if such things had any relevance for Paul. Then 1 noticed that the windows were fairly small and 1 thought, “Those wouldn’t give enough light to write a letter.” In much the same way this book is designed to help us see Paul in the real world and in his world. I have not written this for my fellow scholars, although I think they will find some of the ideas interesting. Rather, 1 have written to the serious reader of the New Testament. I have tried to avoid technical jargon—as much as is possible when talking about Greco-Roman letter writing.
 
This project has consumed much of my free time for the last three years, and 1 was not the only one who sacrificed. I want to thank my wife, Stacia, and our two sons, Josh and Jacob, who in times past have followed me around the United States, through the jungles of Indonesia, and now to rural Arkansas. They are my greatest treasures and my biggest fans. While in Italy recently, they wanted to see the Vatican but instead followed behind me as I rummaged through the ruins of some apartments in Ostia. That’s true love. I am also privileged to teach with some outstanding colleagues and scholars; “iron sharpens iron,” and they have motivated me by their words and by setting the standards high. Several must be singled out for a special word of thanks: Scott Duvall, Danny Hays, Preben Vang and Marvin Pate. The university’s administration encourages us to publish by providing resources, and yet it never pressures us. I remain thankful to those who were my teachers on Paul almost twenty years ago: Earle Ellis, W. D. Davies, Bruce Corley and Robert Sloan. My students over the years also have shaped my thinking on Paul in the crucible of the classroom. My student assistant, Brandon O’Brien, a man whose mind and wit are equally sharp, prepared the indexes, caught mistakes, and brought humor and perspective on many a long afternoon. I am indebted to him. Dan Reid at InterVarsity has been a gentleman-scholar. His kind encouragement and keen insights have made this a better manuscript. With so many helpful friends, there should be no mistakes left in the book, but 1 managed to sneak in a few.
 

E. Randolph Richards - Paul and first-century letter writing: secretaries, composition, and collection

InterVarsity Press, 2004. - 252 pp.
ISBN 0-8308-2788-9
 

E. Randolph Richards - Paul and first-century letter writing: secretaries, composition, and collection - Contents

Preface
Abbreviations
Introduction
Ancients and Their Letters
Sources of Information
Paul Loved to Write Letters
Other Books on Paul and Letter Writing
Why Read This Book?
1. A Modern, Western Paul
  • Modem Models of Paul the Letter Writer
  • Underlying Assumptions in Both Modern Models
  • Problems with Modern Models
  • Conclusions for Paul as a Letter Writer
2. Paul as a First-Century Letter Writer
  • Paul as the Leader of a Mission Team
  • Paul and His Coauthors
  • The Letter Writer’s Office
  • Conclusions for Paul as a Letter Writer
3. The Tools of a Letter Writer
  • Writing Materials
  • Desks
  • Notes and Notebooks
  • Conclusions for Paul as a Letter Writer
4. Secretaries in the First-Century World
  • How Common Were Secretaries?
  • How Did Secretaries Work?
  • Conclusions for Paul as a Letter Writer
5. Paul’s Use of a Secretary
  • Describing Paul’s Secretary
  • Identifying Paul’s Secretary
  • Conclusions for Paul as a Letter Writer
6. Identifying Inserted Material
  • Modem Concepts of Plagiarism and Copyright
  • Preformed Material
  • Interpolations
  • Conclusions for Paul as a Letter Writer
7. Weaving Together a Letter
  • Weaving Inserted Material into a Letter
  • The “Author” and Inserted Material
  • Conclusions for Paul as a Letter Writer
8. Classifying Paul’s Letters
  • Public or Private: Classifying Greco-Roman Letters
  • Paul’s Letter as a Greco-Roman Letter
  • Conclusions for Paul as a Letter Writer
9. Analyzing Paul’s Writing Style
  • The Writing Style of Paul
  • Stylistic Differences Because Paul Used a Secretary
  • Conclusions for Paul as a Letter Writer
10. Preparing a Letter for Dispatch
  • Making a Copy
  • Preparing the Dispatched Copy
  • Estimating Paul’s Cost to Write a Letter
  • Conclusions for Paul as a Letter Writer
11. Dispatching the Letter
  • Signing the Letter
  • Folding and Sealing the Letter
  • Carrying the Letter
  • Conclusions for Paul as a Letter Writer
12. Paul’s Letter Carriers
  • Identifying Paul’s Carriers
  • The Logistics of Carrying Paul’s Letters
  • Conclusions for Paul as a Letter Writer
13. Paul’s Use of His Letter Carriers
  • Additional Tasks of a Letter Carrier
  • The Availability of a Carrier
  • Paul’s Developing Use of Letter Carriers
  • Conclusions for Paul as a Letter Writer
14. Collecting Paul’s Letters
  • Formation of the Pauline Corpus
  • Retaining Personal Copies
  • Copies and the Codex
  • Collections from Retained Copies
  • The Collection of Paul’s Letters
  • Conclusions for Paul as a Letter Writer
15. Inspiration and First-century Letter Writing
  • Letter Writing and Inspiration
  • Conclusions for Paul as a Letter Writer
Conclusion
Bibliography
Modem Authors Index
Subject Index
Scripture Index
 

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