| dc.description.abstract |
The nature and character of the Epistle of James, as well as its place in the development of early Christianity, have been matters of some debate in past New Testament scholarship. This thesis attempts to place some of these issues in a new perspective through an analysis of the framework of James with a view to understanding the epistle as a whole. The first chapter of the thesis deals with four areas which, in the past, have affected the dating and interpretation of the letter. Attention is given to the language of James, to its supposed anti-Paulinism, to the issue over the placing of the epistle on Hellenistic vs. Palestinian soil, and to the problem regarding the combination of wisdom and eschatological motifs in the letter. The conclusions are that for too long the character, nature, and date of the epistle have been decided upon a priori grounds, and that the common designation of James as a Hellenistic wisdom document must be re-examined. |
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