Paul and Rhetoric contains essays that have been presented in a seminar called "Paul and Rhetoric" in the annual meetings of the Studiorum Novi Testamenti Societas, the leading international forum for New Testament and Christian Origin scholars. Translated into English, these essays, by leaders in the field and in the topic, engage and represent modern scholarship on Paul and rhetorical studies.The foundational essays are listed under the heading "State of the Discussion", attempting to take the major rhetorical categories of the time contemporary with Paul (types of rhetoric, invention and arrangement, and figures and tropes) and, first, lays out where the discussion is now. They then note the problems and highlights where continued discussion and deliberation would be helpful. The "Broad Questions" section asks what can be learned about reading Paul's letters to congregations in light of ancient epistolography, how theology and rhetoric are related (because the two are often treated as if they are alien to one another), and how ancient rhetoric and ancient psychology are associated with one another. All in all a volume that illustrates, examines and assesses where we are now in the study of rhetorical traditions in Pauline scholarship, and in some instances suggests the direction of future studies.

PrefaceForeword: Ruminations Occasioned by the Publication of These Essays and the End of the Seminar, by J. Paul SampleySetting the Stage Chapter 1 Peter Lampe, Rhetorical Analysis of Pauline Texts-Quo Vadit? Methodological ReflectionsThe State of the Art Chapter 2 Duane Watson, The Three Species of Rhetoric and the Study of the Pauline Epistles Chapter 3 Troy W. Martin, Invention and Arrangement in Recent Pauline Rhetorical Studies: A Survey of the Practices and the Problems Chapter 4 Duane Watson, The Role of Style in the Pauline Epistles: From Ornamentation to Argumentative StrategiesRelation of Rhetoric to other Disciplines Chapter 5 Christopher Forbes, Ancient Rhetoric and Ancient Letters: Models for Reading Paul, and Their Limits Chapter 6 Johan Vos, Rhetoric and Theology in the Letters of Paul Chapter 7 Peter Lampe, Quintilian's Psychological Insights in his Institutio OratoriaStudies of Specific Pauline texts Chapter 8 Michael Winger, Paul as Poet: Death and Life as Metaphors Chapter 9 Peter Lampe, Can Words be Violent or Do They Only Sound That Way? Second Corinthians: Verbal Warfare From Afar as a Complement to a Placid Personal Presence