A New Translation of 1 Corinthians 12:27

Ὑμεῖς δέ ἐστε σῶμα Χριστοῦ καὶ μέλη ἐκ μέρους (Hymeis de este sōma Christou kai melē ek merous, 1 Cor 12:27). 

My new translation: "Now you are the Christic body and parts of each other." Indeed, I translated 1 Cor 12:12-27 again and understood the text better because of that. 

I intended the Greek noun melos to be translated as a part, not as a member so that readers would not equate it with a social member. We should not forget that the source domain of Paul's body metaphor is the human body.

Marginality and human transformation

[Photo courtesy of Inhee Lee]

We all live in a harsh world. To a different degree, we experience marginality. I believe marginality is a creative space for transformation. There are three moments or attitudes which are conducive to human transformation:

"I am no-one" is an attitude that I am nothing before God. I am the dust (ʿāpār, Gen 2:7; hebel, Eccl 1:2)! We are the dust and need the grace of God. When you confess that "I am no-one," God would say you are not no-one.

"I am some-one" is a mode that I reclaim that I am. I am more than the dust. I am given the breath of life (nišmat ḥyym, Gen 2:7). I am the spirit. Nothing or no one can bring me down. I am that I am.

"I am one-for-others" is a commitment that I have a moral duty to support others. I am a living being (nepeš, Gen 2:7) and find joy in living with them. 

A Transformative Reading of the Bible 

Sometimes "unfinished" is better than completed

When you are done 90% with the chapter you write, move on to the next chapter. Leaving it unfinished means you can come back any time and revise it better at a later time. Coming back and forth between chapters is also a good strategy. The bottom line is never hanging on to one chapter forever. Sometimes "unfinished" is better than completed. At times, something clearer may pop up out of the blue when you are away from what you do. 

[photo courtesy of Inhee Lee]

 

Slowly steadily (dragging my feet)

As I planned, I started writing a book. Today I wrote about 1,000 words. That is a good start. The more important thing is not how many words I write per day but how steadily and slowly I can progress, going back and forth, revising constantly, and envisioning my entire book.

A week later:
I have written about 6,000 words this week. I don't write for 24 hours a day. My writing routine is a couple of hours before breakfast, a couple of hours in the afternoon when I feel like writing and a couple of hours at night when I feel so lonely. I want to stay focused on this rhythm.

Another week later:

My writing of a book is on track. Dragging my feet is key to success. Time is writing! I wrote another chapter this week. So, I will move on to the next chapter.

[courtesy of Inhee Lee]

 

Whose unity?

Generally speaking, those who have power and lead the community prefer unity. They do not want diversity of thoughts because they have to maintain the status quo and do not want to be challenged. But everyday people are not really concerned about such a status of unity. They need more respect, dignity, and equality in their lives. Often unity becomes the language of control. This is true to the case of the Roman Empire. Even if diversity is allowed in the Empire, it is limited to religion and culture. That is, people cannot protest the rule of Rome. They have to speak the language of Rome and its Empire. They are forced to stay in their place of identity. They are told again and again that society is one body with an emphasis on unity. In the name of unity, the unfortunate are taken for granted and suffering is taken for granted.


Even in the church, pastors talk about the unity of the church, based on 1 Cor 12:27 ("You are the body of Christ and individually parts of it"). In their preaching, members of the church are expected to think in the same way without asking questions about church doctrine or any teachings about God. But Paul does not mean that members of the community have to be in consensus in all matters; rather, his point to the Corinthians is they have to have the same mind of Christ. In other words, they must live like Christ, being ruled by his spirit, and imitating his faith.


In a traditional frame of interpretation, scholars read "the body of Christ" as a social body with an emphasis on unity (homonoia) just like Stoics who tell members of the society to be one without asking about injustices (c.f., the fable of Menenius).


But there is an alternative reading of this body metaphor "as a way of living" (as I wrote Christ's Body in Corinth about this). That is, Paul's point is: you are a Christic body. You are to be ruled by Christ, individually and communally. This way of reading of the Greek genitive is certainly plausible as we see in Rom 6:6: "the body of sin might be destroyed." Here, "the body of sin" is construed as "sinful body" or "sin-ruled body." In this reading of the body metaphor, Paul's emphasis in 1 Cor 12:12-27 is not unity but the lack of true diversity due to the lack of Christic embodiment. Some Corinthians claim that they are wise in Christ and saved already. Others boast about their gift of the spirit: speaking in tongues, prophesying, and even their knowledge. Given these problems of the disembodiment of Christ, what Paul asks them to follow is not the mere language of the oneness of the body just like a social body (metaphorical organism) but the radical identification of their living with Christ. For example, in 1 Cor 6:12-20, the Corinthians are advised not to sleep with prostitutes because they are parts (mele) of Christ. Here, we have an image of Christ's body (as a human, not as a social body) as opposed to prostitutes' bodies. Paul's conclusion in this passage is that they have to glorify God in their body--through their living of Christ in a most faithful manner as Christ lived for God.

*Note: Most recently, I wrote "Reimagining the Body of Christ in Paul's Letters." This book deals with the body of Christ extensively in view of Paul's gospel.

Understanding the New Testament

How can we read the New Testament? What is NT theology if any? 

Pistis Christou is a bone of contention

Pistis Christou or Pistis Iesou is a Greek genitive phrase. How to understand it is a bone of contention. In Paul's authentic letters, he uses this similar phrase at important junctures: Rom 3:21-22, 26; Gal 2:16, 20; Phil 3:9. I argue that Paul means by the subjective genitive, that is, Christ's faithfulness. Watch my video. While we may compare various English translations of these texts, I will pick the following English translations for comparison: NRSV, NIV, KJV, and CEB.

Rom 3:21-22	Rom 3:26	Gal 2:16	Gal 2:20	Phil 3:9
-NRSV: "faith in Jesus" -NIV: "faith in Jesus" -KJV: "by the faith of Jesus" -CEB: "through the faithfulness of Jesus"	-NRSV: "faith in Jesus" -NIV: "faith in Jesus" -KJV: "of him which believeth in Jesus" -CEB: "faith in Jesus"	-NRSV: "faith in Jesus" -NIV: "faith in Jesus" -KJV: "by the faith of Jesus" -CEB: "through the faithfulness of Jesus"	-NRSV: "by faith in the Son of God" -NIV: "by faith in the Son of God" -KJV: "by the faith of the Son of God" -CEB: "by the faithfulness of God's Son"	-NRSV: "through faith in Christ" -NIV: "through faith in Christ" -KJV: "through the faith of Christ" -CEB: "from the faithfulness of Christ"

*No English translations, as far as I know, rendered the pistis christou phrase in Rom 3:26 as a subjective genitive. I argue that even this genitive phrase must be the subjective genitive ("faith of Jesus"). So, "God justifies the one who has the faith of Jesus."

NOW there is the updated edition of the NRSV, called NRSVue, which translates all the above phrases as the subjective genitive except for Phil 3:9. That is a big improvement.

For more about pistis christou, see my book: How to Read Paul: A Brief Introduction to Paul's Theology, Writings and World.

"The Story of Hannah From a Perspective of Han"

One reader matters! I received this message via email from an unknown person:

Good morning Professor Kim,
I just wanted to let you know that I came across your article "The Story of Hannah From a Perspective of Han" while preparing for a short devotional on Hannah’s prayer and honestly I was blown away! I had never either encountered your work or been introduced to this idea of thinking about theological concepts with anthropological embedded ideas and diversity frameworks (Korean-cultural lens). It was beautiful, inspiring, a breath of fresh air, and so exciting. I spent over four hours just reflecting on a couple of your thoughts and can’t wait to spend many more continuing to build on your ideas. I’m writing to say, from one follower of Jesus to another, THANK YOU! I was so blessed by your thinking and writing. May God continue to bless your work and your ministry is my prayer. Blessings on all this week will bring your way.

Faith, Western Christianity, and the New Testament

New article in the Encounter Journal

I forgot that this article of mine was published: “The Politics of Identity in Paul’s Gospel: In the Case of the Antioch Incident (Gal 2:11-14).” Encounter: A Journal of Theological Scholarship 80 (2020): 1-10.

Abstract:
This article seeks to explore the politics of identity in Paul’s gospel with a focus on the Antioch Incident (Gal 2:11-14). While Paul as a diaspora Jew is committed to spreading the gospel to the gentiles, Peter as a Jew based in Jerusalem is dedicated to spreading the gospel to Jews at home and abroad. When Peter visited Antioch, he was not consistent with his fellowship meal with the gentiles. Paul’s argument about proper Christian identity is to affirm both diversity and solidarity. While the former allows for different cultural identities, the latter demands a global identity seeking solidarity with other people, so that the truth of the gospel may reach all people.