Paul's use of creation narratives in 1 Corinthians: Indications for a Pauline theology of creation

Historically, Pauline theologians have excluded creation from their formulations, even while acknowledging the importance of God the Creator for Paul and the influence of assumptions about creation on theology. This dissertation approaches creation in Pauline theology by considering texts where Paul uses the Genesis creation narrative and by defining carefully the task of Pauline theology. The study focuses on three passages in 1 Corinthians, each of which makes reference to Genesis (6:12-20, 11:2-16 and 15:1-58). After an introductory chapter, which reviews creation in Pauline theologies, and a chapter on method, which highlights Paul's use of scripture, three chapters are devoted to the selected passages. These chapters analyze the literary relationship between 1 Corinthians and Genesis and present a close reading of the passages attending to primary exegetical problems and distinguishing the surface narrative from Paul's theological substructure to assess the function of the Genesis material. Based on this analysis, a sixth chapter claims that Paul had a coherent understanding of the creation narrative, even though he used that narrative selectively, and that the primary function of the Genesis text supports rather than generates Paul's pastoral directives. It also tests the fruitfulness of these findings for reading other 1 Corinthian passages.;Building on these investigations, chapter seven concludes that, unless the task of formulating a Pauline theology is restricted to redescription of the Pauline letters, creation makes important contributions to that theology. If Pauline theology includes the substructure that informs Paul's argument, then a focus on creation presses that theology to do justice to Paul's thinking that begins and ends with God, Creator and Redeemer of the creation. Attending to creation also enables due weight to be given to Paul's treatment of the complexities of life for individuals, the church and the whole cosmos while the world waits for the further action of God. Finally, if Pauline theology is defined as the process by which Paul reasoned theologically, then the creation texts demonstrate that Paul's use of those narratives reinscribes his understanding of the world, an understanding that is beginning to be reformulated to include the new revelation of God in Jesus Christ.