ABSTRACT
Getting a coherent grip on Paul's attitude toward differentiation and to understand σάρξ in terms of collective identity can be a challenge. This introduction attempts to trace the debate back to the origins of modern biblical scholarship when translators and scholars were operating within paradigms of nationalism and sexism. Paul's thinking was assumed to be either Jewish or Hellenistic. Similarly, mind or spirit could be associated with men (and citizens), while body could be associated with women (and enslaved persons) without much further ado. The term σάρξ—which was translated into flesh—was thus readily associated with the other (who was assumed to be inferior). As individualism then became the dominant paradigm, the practices associated with transformed relations—such as loving one's neighbor—were replaced by an intense focus on the salvation of the individual and on the individual's belief (cf. Stendahl). The collective, in-group aspects in σάρξ were simply neglected. Paul's emphasis on increased diversity as the “truth of the Gospel” was similarly ignored. This study ventures to reopen the debate on the meaning of σάρξ and proposes a more monosemous and collectively oriented approach to the term.
