Editing Paul the Apostle (section)

==Views==
[[File:Saint-Paul.JPG|thumb|upright=1|Byzantine ivory relief, 6th{{snd}}early 7th century by [[Musée de Cluny]]]]

===Self-view===
In the opening verses of Romans 1,<ref>{{Bibleverse|Romans|1}}</ref> Paul provides a litany of his own apostolic appointment to preach among the Gentiles<ref>{{Bibleverse|Galatians|1:16}}</ref> and his post-conversion convictions about the risen Christ.{{sfn|Sanders|2019}} Paul described himself as set apart for the gospel of God and called to be an apostle and a servant of Jesus Christ. Jesus had revealed himself to Paul, just as he had appeared to Peter, to James, and to the twelve disciples after his resurrection.<ref>{{Bibleverse|1 Corinthians|9:1}}</ref> Paul experienced this as an unforeseen, sudden, startling change, due to all-powerful grace, not as the fruit of his reasoning or thoughts.<ref>{{Bibleverse|Galatians|1:12–15}}, {{Bibleverse|1 Corinthians|15:10}}</ref>

Paul also describes himself as afflicted with "a [[thorn in the flesh]]";<ref>{{Bibleverse|2 Corinthians|12:7}}</ref> the nature of this "thorn" is unknown.<ref>{{cite book|title=The New Oxford Annotated Bible: New Revised Standard Version With The Apocrypha |edition=4th |editor-last1=Coogan |editor-first1=Michael D. |editor-last2=Brettler |editor-first2=Marc Z. |editor-last3=Newsom |editor-first3=Carol A. |editor-last4=Perkins |editor-first4=Pheme |location=New York |publisher=Oxford University Press |date=2010 |chapter=The Second Letter Of Paul To The Corinthians |page=2038 |quote=[Footnote 7] Nature of the ''thorn'' is unknown.}}</ref>

There are debates as to whether Paul understood himself as commissioned to take the gospel to the gentiles at the moment of his conversion.{{sfn|Horrell|2006|p=30}} Before his conversion he believed his persecution of the church to be an indication of his zeal for his religion;<ref name="Bibleref2|Philippians|3:6">{{Bibleverse|Philippians|3:6}}</ref> after his conversion he believed Jewish hostility toward the church was sinful opposition, that would incur God's wrath.<ref>{{Bibleverse|1 Thessalonians|2:14–16}}</ref>{{sfn|Powell|2009|p=236}} Paul believed he was halted by Christ, when his fury was at its height.<ref>{{Bibleverse|Acts|9:1–2}}</ref> It was "through zeal" that he persecuted the Church,<ref name="Bibleref2|Philippians|3:6"/> and he obtained mercy because he had "acted ignorantly in unbelief".<ref>{{Bibleverse|1 Timothy|1:13}}</ref>{{refn|group=note|name="disputed"}}

=== Understanding of Jesus Christ ===
Paul's writings emphasized the [[Crucifixion of Jesus|crucifixion]], Christ's [[Resurrection of Jesus|resurrection]] and the [[Parousia]] or second coming of Christ.{{sfn|Bromiley|1979|p=689}} Paul saw Jesus as Lord ({{transliteration|grc|kyrios}}), the true messiah and the Son of God, who was promised by God beforehand, through his prophets in the Holy Scriptures. While being a biological descendant from David ("according to the flesh"),<ref>{{Bibleverse|Romans|1:3}}</ref> he was declared to be the Son of God by his resurrection from the dead.

According to [[E. P. Sanders]], Paul "preached the death, resurrection, and lordship of Jesus Christ, and he proclaimed that faith in Jesus guarantees a share in his life."{{sfn|Sanders|2019}} In Paul's view, "Jesus' death was not a defeat but was for the believers' benefit",{{sfn|Sanders|2019}} a sacrifice which substitutes for the lives of others, and frees them from the bondage of sin. Believers [[Participation in Christ|participate]] in Christ's death and resurrection by their baptism. The resurrection of Jesus was of primary importance to Paul, bringing the promise of salvation to believers. Paul taught that, when Christ returned, "those who died in Christ would be raised when he returned", while those still alive would be "caught up in the clouds together with them to meet the Lord in the air".<ref>{{Bibleverse|1 Thessalonians|4:14–18}}</ref>{{sfn|Sanders|2019}}

Sanders concludes that Paul's writings reveal what he calls the essence of the Christian message: "(1) God sent his Son; (2) the Son was crucified and resurrected for the benefit of humanity; (3) the Son would soon return; and (4) those who belonged to the Son would live with him forever. Paul's gospel, like those of others, also included (5) the admonition to live by the highest moral standard: "May your spirit and soul and body be kept sound and blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ"."<ref>{{Bibleverse|1 Thessalonians|5:23}}</ref>{{sfn|Sanders|2019}}

In Paul's writings, the public, corporate devotional patterns towards Jesus in the early Christian community are reflective of Paul's perspective on the divine status of Jesus in what scholars have termed a "binitarian" pattern of devotion. For Paul, Jesus receives prayer,<ref>{{bibleverse|1 Corinthians|1:2}}</ref><ref>{{bibleverse|2 Corinthians|12:8–9}}</ref><ref>{{bibleverse|1 Thessalonians|3:11}}</ref> the presence of Jesus is confessionally invoked by believers,<ref>{{bibleverse|1 Corinthians|16:22}}</ref><ref>{{bibleverse|Romans|10:9–13}}</ref><ref>{{bibleverse|Philippians|2:10–11}}</ref> people are baptized in Jesus' name,<ref>{{bibleverse|1 Corinthians|6:11}}</ref><ref>{{bibleverse|Romans|6:3}}</ref> Jesus is the reference in Christian fellowship for a religious ritual meal (the [[Eucharist|Lord's Supper]];<ref>{{bibleverse|1 Corinthians|11:17–34}}</ref> in pagan cults, the reference for ritual meals is always to a deity), and Jesus is the source of continuing prophetic oracles to believers.<ref>{{bibleverse|1 Thessalonians|4:15–17}}</ref>{{sfn|Hurtado|2005|pp=134–52}}

=== Atonement ===
{{Main|Atonement in Christianity}}
Paul taught that Christians are redeemed from sin by Jesus' death and resurrection. His death was an expiation as well as a [[propitiation]], and by Christ's blood peace is made between God and man.{{sfn|Cross|Livingstone|2005|loc=Atonement}} By grace, through faith,<ref>{{bibleverse|Ephesians|2:8–9|9}}</ref> a Christian shares in Jesus' death and in his victory over death, gaining as a free gift a new, justified status of sonship.<ref>{{bibleverse|Galatians|4:4–7|9}}</ref>

According to [[Krister Stendahl]], the main concern of Paul's writings on Jesus' role, and salvation by faith, is not the individual conscience of human sinners, and their doubts about being chosen by God or not, but the problem of the inclusion of gentile (Greek) Torah observers into God's covenant.{{sfn|Stendahl|1963}}{{sfn|Dunn|1982|p=n.49}}{{sfn|Finlan|2004|p=2}}{{sfn|Westerholm|2015|pp=4–15}}{{refn|group=note|{{harvnb|Dunn|1982|p=n.49}} quotes {{harvnb|Stendahl|1976|p=2}} "... a doctrine of faith was hammered out by Paul for the very specific and limited purpose of defending the rights of Gentile converts to be full and genuine heirs to the promise of God to Israel"

{{harvnb|Westerholm|2015|pp=4–15}}: "For Paul, the question that 'justification by faith' was intended to answer was, 'On what terms can Gentiles gain entrance to the people of God?" Bent on denying any suggestion that Gentiles must become Jews and keep the Jewish law, he answered, 'By faith—and not by works of ''the (Jewish) law''.'" Westerholm refers to: {{harvnb|Stendahl|1963}}

Westerholm quotes Sanders: "Sanders noted that 'the salvation of the Gentiles is essential to Paul's preaching; and with it falls the law; for, as Paul says simply, Gentiles cannot live by the law'.<ref>{{bibleverse|Gal| 2.14}}</ref> (496). On a similar note, Sanders suggested that the only Jewish 'boasting' to which Paul objected was that which exulted over the divine privileges granted to Israel and failed to acknowledge that God, in Christ, had opened the door of salvation to Gentiles."}} "Dying for our sins" refers to the problem of gentile Torah-observers, who, despite their faithfulness, cannot fully observe commandments, including circumcision, and are therefore 'sinners', excluded from God's covenant.{{sfn|Mack|1997|pp=88–89, 92}} Jesus' death and resurrection solved this problem of the exclusion of the gentiles from God's covenant, as indicated by Romans 3:21–26.{{sfn|Mack|1997|pp=91–92}}

Paul's conversion fundamentally changed his basic beliefs regarding God's covenant and the inclusion of Gentiles into this covenant. Paul believed Jesus' death was a voluntary sacrifice, that reconciled sinners with God.<ref>{{Bibleverse|Romans|5:6–10}}, {{Bibleverse|Philippians|2:8}}</ref> The law only reveals the extent of people's enslavement to the power of sin—a power that must be broken by Christ.<ref>{{Bibleverse|Romans|3:20b}}, {{Bibleverse|Romans|7:7–12}}</ref> Before his conversion Paul believed Gentiles were outside the covenant that God made with Israel; after his conversion, he believed Gentiles and Jews were united as the people of God in Christ.<ref>{{Bibleverse|Galatians|3:28}}</ref> Before his conversion he believed circumcision was the rite through which males became part of Israel, an exclusive community of God's chosen people;<ref>{{Bibleverse|Philippians|3:3–5}}</ref> after his conversion he believed that neither circumcision nor uncircumcision means anything, but that the new creation is what counts in the sight of God,<ref>{{Bibleverse|Galatians|6:15}}</ref> and that this new creation is a work of Christ in the life of believers, making them part of the church, an inclusive community of Jews and Gentiles reconciled with God through faith.<ref>{{Bibleverse|Romans|6:4}}</ref>

According to [[E. P. Sanders]], who initiated the [[New Perspective on Paul]] with his 1977 publication ''Paul and Palestinian Judaism'', Paul saw the faithful redeemed by participation in Jesus' death and rising. Though "Jesus' death substituted for that of others and thereby freed believers from sin and guilt", a metaphor derived from "ancient [[Korban|sacrificial]] theology,"{{sfn|Sanders|2019}}{{refn|group=note|name="sacrifice"|According to the Jewish Encyclopedia (1906), "The Mishnah says that sins are expiated (1) by sacrifice, (2) by repentance at death or on Yom Kippur, (3) in the case of the lighter transgressions of the positive or negative precepts, by repentance at any time{{nbsp}}[...] The graver sins, according to Rabbi, are apostasy, heretical interpretation of the Torah, and non-circumcision (Yoma 86a). The atonement for sins between a man and his neighbor is an ample apology (Yoma 85b)."<ref name="JE.SIN">Jewish Encyclopedia, [http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/13761-sin ''SIN'']</ref>

''[[The Jewish Encyclopedia]]'' states, "Most efficacious seemed to be the atoning power of suffering experienced by the righteous during the Exile. This is the idea underlying the description of the suffering servant of God in {{abbr|Isa.|Isaiah}} liii. 4, 12, {{abbr|Hebr.|Hebrews}}{{nbsp}}[...] of greater atoning power than all the Temple sacrifices was the suffering of the elect ones who were to be servants and witnesses of the Lord ({{abbr|Isa.|Isaiah}} xlii. 1–4, xlix. 1–7, l. 6). This idea of the atoning power of the suffering and death of the righteous finds expression also in IV {{abbr|Macc.|Maccabees}} vi. 27, xvii. 21–23; M. Ḳ. 28a; Pesiḳ. xxvii. 174b; {{abbr|Lev.|Leviticus}} R. xx.; and formed the basis of Paul's doctrine of the atoning blood of Christ ({{abbr|Rom.|Romans}} iii. 25)."<ref name="JE.ATONEMENT">Jewish Encyclopedia (1906), [http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/2092-atonement ''ATONEMENT'']</ref>}} the essence of Paul's writing is not in the "legal terms" regarding the expiation of sin, but the act of "participation in Christ through [[Eucharist|dying and rising with him]]."{{citation needed|date=May 2022}} According to Sanders, "those who are baptized into Christ are baptized into his death, and thus they escape the power of sin{{nbsp}}[...] he died so that the believers may die with him and consequently live with him."{{sfn|Sanders|2019}} By this participation in Christ's death and rising, "one receives forgiveness for past offences, is liberated from the powers of sin, and receives the Spirit."

=== Relationship with Judaism ===
{{Main|Paul the Apostle and Judaism|New Perspective on Paul}}
Some scholars see Paul as completely in line with 1st-century Judaism (a Pharisee and student of Gamaliel as [[Historical reliability of the Acts of the Apostles|presented by Acts]]),{{sfn|Orr|1915|p=2276}} others see him as opposed to 1st-century Judaism (see [[Marcionism]]), while the majority see him as somewhere in between these two extremes, opposed to insistence on keeping the "Ritual Laws" (for example the [[circumcision controversy in early Christianity]]) as necessary for entrance into God's New Covenant,{{sfn|Sanders|1977}}{{sfn|Dunn|1982}} but in full agreement on "[[Divine Law]]". These views of Paul are paralleled by the views of [[Biblical law in Christianity]].

{{Quote box
 |quote = Paul redefined the people of Israel, those he calls the "true Israel" and the "true circumcision" as those who had faith in the heavenly Christ, thus excluding those he called "Israel after the flesh" from his new covenant.<ref>{{bibleverse|Galatians|6:16}}</ref><ref>{{bibleverse|Philippians|3:3}}</ref> He also held the view that the Torah given to Moses was valid "until Christ came," so that even Jews are no longer "under the Torah," nor obligated to follow the commandments or [[Mitzvah|mitzvot]] as given to Moses.<ref>{{bibleverse|Galatians|3–4}}</ref>
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Paul is critical both theologically and empirically of claims of moral or lineal superiority<ref>{{Bibleverse|Romans|2:16–26}}</ref> of Jews while conversely strongly sustaining the notion of a special place for the [[Israelites|Children of Israel]].<ref>{{Bibleverse|Romans|9–11}}</ref> Paul's theology of the gospel accelerated the separation of the messianic sect of Christians from Judaism, a development contrary to Paul's own intent. He wrote that faith in Christ was alone decisive in salvation for Jews and Gentiles alike, making the schism between the followers of Christ and mainstream Jews inevitable and permanent. He argued that Gentile converts did not need to [[Judaize|become Jews]], get circumcised, follow Jewish dietary restrictions, or otherwise observe Mosaic laws to be saved.{{sfn|Cross|Livingstone|2005|loc=St Paul}}
 	
According to [[Paula Fredriksen]], Paul's opposition to male circumcision for Gentiles is in line with Old Testament predictions that "in the last days the gentile nations would come to the God of Israel, as gentiles (e.g., Zechariah 8:20–23),<ref>{{bibleverse|Zechariah|8:20–23}}</ref> not as proselytes to Israel."<ref name="Hurtado.Fredriksen.2018">Larry Hurtado (4 December 2018 ), [https://larryhurtado.wordpress.com/2018/12/04/when-christians-were-jews-paula-fredriksen-on-the-first-generation/ ''"When Christians were Jews": Paula Fredriksen on "The First Generation"'']</ref> For Paul, Gentile male circumcision was therefore an affront to God's intentions.<ref name="Hurtado.Fredriksen.2018"/> According to Hurtado, "Paul saw himself as what Munck called a salvation-historical figure in his own right," who was "personally and singularly deputized by God to bring about the predicted ingathering (the "fullness") of the nations."<ref>{{bibleverse|Romans|11:25}}</ref><ref name="Hurtado.Fredriksen.2018"/>

According to Sanders, Paul insists that salvation is received by the grace of God; according to Sanders, this insistence is in line with Judaism of {{c.|200 BC}} until 200 AD, which saw God's covenant with Israel as an act of grace of God. Observance of the Law is needed to maintain the covenant, but the covenant is not earned by observing the Law, but by the grace of God.<ref>Jordan Cooper, [https://www.patheos.com/blogs/justandsinner/krister-stendahl-and-the-new-perspective-on-paul/ ''E.P. Sanders and the New Perspective on Paul'']</ref>

Sanders' publications{{sfn|Sanders|1977}}{{sfn|Sanders|1983}} have since been taken up by Professor [[James Dunn (theologian)|James Dunn]] who coined the phrase "The New Perspective on Paul".{{sfn|Dunn|1982|pp=95–122}} [[N.T. Wright]],<ref name="WrightNP">{{cite web |url=http://www.ntwrightpage.com/Wright_New_Perspectives.htm |title=New Perspectives on Paul |publisher=Ntwrightpage.com |date=28 August 2003 |access-date=19 November 2010 |archive-date=13 September 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160913214047/http://www.ntwrightpage.com/Wright_New_Perspectives.htm |url-status=dead }}</ref> the Anglican Bishop of Durham, notes a difference in emphasis between Galatians and Romans, the latter being much more positive about the [[Covenant (biblical)#Mosaic covenant|continuing covenant between God and his ancient people]] than the former. Wright also contends that performing Christian works is not insignificant but rather proof of having attained the redemption of Jesus Christ by grace (free gift received by faith).<ref>{{Bibleverse|Romans|2:13ff}}</ref> He concludes that Paul distinguishes between performing Christian works which are signs of ethnic identity and others which are a sign of obedience to Christ.<ref name="WrightNP" />

=== World to come ===
{{See also|Christian eschatology|Second Coming|World to come}}
According to [[Bart Ehrman]], Paul believed that Jesus would return within his lifetime.{{sfn|Ehrman|2006}} [[N.T. Wright]] argues that Paul's eschatology did not remain static however, developing in his later epistles the idea that he would probably not see the Second Coming in his lifetime. Wright also argues that this shift was due to perspective and not belief.<ref>[[N.T. Wright]] (2018), ''Hope Deferred? Against the Dogma of Delay,'' page 58, University of St. Andrews</ref> Paul expected that Christians who had died in the meantime would be [[Resurrection of the Dead|resurrected]] to share in [[Kingdom of God|God's kingdom]], and he believed that the saved would be transformed, assuming heavenly, imperishable bodies.<ref>{{Bibleverse|1 Corinthians|15:51–53}}</ref>

Paul's teaching about the end of the world is expressed most clearly in his [[First Epistle to the Thessalonians|first]] and [[Second Epistle to the Thessalonians|second]] letters to the Christian community of [[Thessalonica]]. He assures them that [[Resurrection of the dead|the dead will rise first]] and be followed by those left alive.<ref>{{Bibleverse|1 Thessalonians|4:16ff}}</ref> This suggests an imminent end but he is unspecific about times and seasons and encourages his hearers to expect a delay.{{sfn|Rowland|1985|p=113}} The form of the end will be a battle between Jesus and the [[Man of Sin|man of lawlessness]]<ref>{{Bibleverse|2 Thessalonians|2:3}}</ref> whose conclusion is the triumph of Christ.

Before his conversion he believed God's messiah would put an end to the old age of evil, and initiate a new age of righteousness; after his conversion, he believed this would happen in stages that had begun with the resurrection of Jesus, but the old age would continue until Jesus returns.<ref>{{Bibleverse|Romans|16:25}}, {{Bibleverse|1 Corinthians|10:11}}, {{Bibleverse|Galatians|1:4}}</ref>{{sfn|Powell|2009|p=236}}

=== Role of women ===
{{Main|Paul the Apostle and women}}
{{See also|1 Timothy 2:12 ("I suffer not a woman")}}
[[File:Attributed to Lucas van Leyden 001.jpg|thumb|upright=1|A 16th century portrait of Paul the Apostle attributed to [[Lucas van Leyden]]]]
The second chapter of the first letter to Timothy—one of the six disputed letters—is used by many churches to deny women a vote in church affairs, reject women from serving as teachers of adult Bible classes, prevent them from serving as missionaries, and generally disenfranchise women from the duties and privileges of church leadership.{{sfn|Kroeger|Kroeger|1998}}

{{poemquote|
{{sup|9}}In like manner also, that women adorn themselves in modest apparel, with shamefacedness and sobriety; not with broided hair, or gold, or pearls, or costly array;
{{sup|10}}But (which becometh women professing godliness) with good works.
{{sup|11}}Let the woman learn in silence with all subjection.
{{sup|12}}But I suffer not a woman to teach, nor to usurp authority over the man, but to be in silence.
{{sup|13}}For Adam was first formed, then Eve.
{{sup|14}}And Adam was not deceived, but the woman being deceived was in the transgression.
{{sup|15}}Notwithstanding she shall be saved in childbearing, if they continue in faith and charity and holiness with sobriety.|1 Timothy 2:9–15<ref>{{bibleverse|1 Timothy|2:9–15|KJV}}</ref>}}

The [[King James Bible]] (Authorised Version) translation of this passage taken literally says that women in the churches are to have no leadership roles vis-à-vis men.{{sfn|Wright|2006|pp=5–10}}

[[Fuller Theological Seminary|Fuller Seminary]] theologian J. R. Daniel Kirk<ref name="Kirk">{{cite web|url=http://www.fuller.edu/academics/faculty/daniel-kirk.aspx|last=Kirk|first=J. R. Daniel|title=Faculty |work=fuller.edu|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120424185441/http://fuller.edu/academics/faculty/daniel-kirk.aspx|archive-date=24 April 2012}}</ref> finds evidence in Paul's letters of a much more inclusive view of women. He writes that Romans 16 is a tremendously important witness to the important role of women in the early church. Paul praises [[Phoebe (Bible)|Phoebe]] for her work as a [[deaconess]] and [[Junia (New Testament person)|Junia]] who is described by Paul in Scripture as being respected among the Apostles.<ref name="Bibleref2|Romans|16:7">{{Bibleverse|Romans|16:7}}</ref> It is Kirk's observation that recent studies suggest that the passage in 1 Corinthians 14 ordering women to "be silent" during worship<ref>{{Bibleverse|1 Corinthians|14|TNIV}}</ref> was a later addition, apparently by a different author, and not part of Paul's original letter to the Corinthians.{{citation needed|date=January 2023}}

Other scholars, such as Giancarlo Biguzzi, believe that Paul's restriction on women speaking in 1 Corinthians 14 is genuine to Paul but applies to a particular case where there were local problems of women, who were not allowed in that culture to become educated, asking questions or chatting during worship services. He does not believe it to be a general prohibition on any woman speaking in worship settings since in 1 Corinthians Paul affirms the right (responsibility) of women to [[Prophesy#Christianity|prophesy]].<ref>{{bibleverse|1 Corinthians|11}}</ref>{{sfn|Giguzzi|2004|pp=95–107}}

{{Blockquote|Biblical prophecy is more than "fore-telling": two-thirds of its inscripturated form involves "forth-telling", that is, setting the truth, justice, mercy, and righteousness of God against the backdrop of every form of denial of the same. Thus, to speak prophetically was to speak boldly against every form of moral, ethical, political, economic, and religious disenfranchisement observed in a culture that was intent on building its own pyramid of values vis-a-vis God's established system of truth and ethics.|''Baker's Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology''<ref name="Baker">"Prophet, Prophetess, Prophecy". ''Baker's Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology''.</ref>}}

There were women prophets in the highly patriarchal times throughout the Old Testament.<ref name="Baker" /> The most common term for ''prophet'' in the Old Testament is {{transliteration|hbo|nabi}} in the masculine form, and {{transliteration|hbo|nebiah}} in the Hebrew feminine form, is used six times of women who performed the same task of receiving and proclaiming the message given by God. These women include Miriam, Aaron and Moses' sister,<ref>{{Bibleverse|Exodus|15:20}}</ref> Deborah,<ref>{{Bibleverse|Judges|4:4}}</ref> the prophet Isaiah's wife,<ref>{{Bibleverse|Isaiah|8:3}}</ref> and Huldah, the one who interpreted the Book of the Law discovered in the temple during the days of Josiah.<ref>{{Bibleverse|2 Kings|22:14}}, {{Bibleverse|2 Chronicles|34:22}}</ref> There were false prophetesses just as there were false prophets. The prophetess Noadiah was among those who tried to intimidate Nehemiah.<ref>{{Bibleverse|Nehemiah|6:14}}</ref> Apparently, they held equal rank in prophesying right along with Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, Elisha, Aaron, and Samuel.<ref name="Baker" />

Kirk's third example of a more inclusive view is Galatians 3:28:
{{Blockquote|There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.|Galatians 3:28<ref>{{Bibleverse|Galatians|3:28|NIV}}</ref>}}

In pronouncing an end within the church to the divisions which are common in the world around it, he concludes by highlighting the fact that "there were New Testament women who taught and had authority in the early churches, that this teaching and authority was sanctioned by Paul, and that Paul himself offers a theological paradigm within which overcoming the subjugation of women is an anticipated outcome".{{sfn|Kirk|2012}}

Classicist [[Evelyn Stagg]] and theologian [[Frank Stagg (theologian)|Frank Stagg]] believe that Paul was attempting to "Christianize" the societal household or domestic codes that significantly oppressed women and empowered men as the head of the household. The Staggs present a serious study of what has been termed the [[New Testament domestic code]], also known as the ''Haustafel''.{{sfn|Stagg|Stagg|1978}} The two main passages that explain these "household duties" are Paul's letters to the Ephesians<ref>{{Bibleverse|Ephesians|5:22–6:5}}</ref> and to the Colossians.<ref>{{Bibleverse|Colossians|3:18–4:1}}</ref> An underlying Household Code is also reflected in four additional Pauline letters and 1 Peter: 1 Timothy 2:1ff, 8ff; 3:1ff, 8ff; 5:17ff; 6:1f; Titus 2:1–10<ref>{{Bibleverse|Titus|2:1–10}}</ref> and 1 Peter.<ref>{{Bibleverse|1 Peter|3:1–9}}</ref> Biblical scholars have typically treated the ''Haustafel'' in Ephesians as a resource in the debate over the role of women in ministry and in the home.{{sfn|Gombis|2005|pp=317–30}} Margaret MacDonald argues that the ''Haustafel'', particularly as it appears in Ephesians, was aimed at "reducing the tension between community members and outsiders".{{sfn|MacDonald|2004|p=109}}

E. P. Sanders has labeled Paul's remark in 1 Corinthians<ref>{{Bibleverse|1 Corinthians|14:34–36}}</ref> about women not making any sound during worship as "Paul's intemperate outburst that women should be silent in the churches".{{sfn|Sanders|1977}}{{sfn|Sanders|1983}} Women, in fact, played a very significant part in Paul's missionary endeavors:
* He became a partner in ministry with the couple [[Priscilla and Aquila]] who are specifically named seven times in the New Testament—always by their couple name and never individually. Of the seven times they are named in the New Testament, Priscilla's name appears first in five of those instances, suggesting to some scholars that she was the head of the family unit.{{sfn|Achtemeier|1985|p=882}} They lived, worked, and traveled with the Apostle Paul, becoming his honored, much-loved friends and coworkers in Jesus.{{sfn|Keller|2010}} In Romans 16:3–4,<ref>{{Bibleverse|Romans|16:3–4}}</ref> thought to have been written in 56 or 57, Paul sends his greetings to Priscilla and Aquila and proclaims that both of them "risked their necks" to save Paul's life.
* Chloe was an important member of the church in Corinth.<ref>{{Bibleverse|1 Corinthians|1:11}}</ref>
* Phoebe was a "deacon" and a "benefactor" of Paul and others.<ref>{{Bibleverse|Romans|16:1–2}}</ref>
* Romans 16<ref>{{Bibleverse|Romans|16}}</ref> names eight other women active in the Christian movement, including Junia ("prominent among the apostles"), Mary ("who has worked very hard among you"), and Julia.
* Women were frequently among the major supporters of the new Christian movement.{{sfn|Sanders|2019}}

[[Beth Allison Barr]] believes that Paul's beliefs on women were progressive for the time period. Barr notes that medieval theologians rarely quoted him to support their patriarchal views and that [[Pope John Paul II]] believed that using these passages to support the inferiority of women would be akin to justifying slavery, due to the historical context of the household codes. Wives, like slaves, were considered to be under male authority in Roman law. Barr believes that Paul's intended message was to counter these ideals: he addresses women first and places Jesus as the ultimate authority that everyone was meant to submit to. She also notes that Paul did not believe that women were "deformed men" like his Roman contemporaries and used maternal language most frequently, often using such metaphors to describe himself as a woman. Barr believes that Roman authorities thought that early Christians were "gender deviants" precisely because they did not enforce the household codes as intended. She also believes that Paul was quoting [[Cicero]] when saying that women should be silent, before going on to counter this reasoning, and that this is more obvious when the verses are read aloud.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Allison Barr |first1=Beth |title=[[The Making of Biblical Womanhood]]|date=2021 |publisher=Brazos Press |isbn=9781587434709 |pages=44–62}}</ref>

=== Views on homosexuality ===
{{See also|Homosexuality in the New Testament}}
Most Christian traditions<ref name="vatican.va"/><ref name="coptic.net"/><ref name="carm.org"/> say Paul clearly portrays homosexuality as sinful in two specific locations: Romans 1:26–27,<ref>{{Bibleverse|Romans|1:26–27}}</ref> and 1 Corinthians 6:9-10.<ref>{{Bibleverse|1 Corinthians|6:9–10}}</ref> Another passage, 1 Timothy 1:8–11, addresses the topic more obliquely.<ref>{{Bibleverse|1 Timothy|1:8–11}}</ref> Since the 19th century, however, most scholars have concluded that [[First Epistle to Timothy|1 Timothy]] (along with [[2 Timothy]] and [[Epistle to Titus|Titus]]) is not original to Paul, but rather an unknown Christian writing in Paul's name some time in the late-1st to mid-2nd century.{{sfn|Ehrman|2000|p=393}}{{sfn|Collins|2002|p=4}}