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What Difference Does Paul Make?: Rhetorical Constructions of Identity and Community Boundaries in Philippians
Joe Marchal (Graduate Theological Union)
In his letter to the Philippians, Paul makes extensive use of unity rhetorics in addressing the community at Philippi. This kind of argumentation has distinct connections to Paul’s vision for the right kind of community. Paul constructs a singular idea of communal identity in Philippians, arguing across and against certain differences. Seeking a particular adherence to his version of “one-ness,” then, the situation is constituted in terms of “thinking the one” as opposed to “thinking the other” (3:15). The argumentation is characterized by an interplay between the erasure of difference and a reaffirmation of certain differences, with the character of Paul at the heart of this interplay. After charting the dynamics of these rhetorics, this paper repositions these rhetorics in terms of the potential audience at Philippi. Here I will consider not only how these arguments would evoke and evaluate the possible responses in terms of adherence to Paul’s vision, but also how they reflect upon situations of difference in the community. This paper rethinks what matters about the differences between these community members and Paul, especially in terms of gender, place, and ethnicity. This might be specifically useful for assessing the roles of Paul, Euodia, and Syntyche in ancient Philippi as well as the roles of such biblical rhetorics in contemporary discourses on identity.
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