The ‘New Perspective on Paul’ cleared the Judaism of Paul’s day of the accusation that it was a religion based solely on works of righteousness. Reactions to the New Perspective, both positive and critical, and sometimes even strongly negative, reflect a more fundamental problem in the reception of this paradigm: the question of continuity and discontinuity between Judaism and Christianity and its assumed implications for Jewish-Christian dialogue. A second key problem revolves around Paul’s understanding of salvation as exclusive, inclusive, or pluralist. The contributions in the present volume represent at least six approaches that can be plotted along this axis, considering Paul’s theology in its Jewish context. William S. Campbell and Thomas R. Blanton consider Paul’s Covenantal Theology, Michael Bachman provides an exegetical study of Paul, Israel, and the Gentiles, and Mark D. Nanos considers Paul and Torah. Chapters by Philip A. Cunningham, John T. Pawlikowski, Hans-Joachim Sander, and Hans-Herman Henrix give particular weight to questions of Jewish-Christian dialogue. The book finishes with an epilogue by pioneer of the New Perspective, James D. G. Dunn.
“The issue can better be expressed as the continuity/discontinuity of both rabbinic Judaism and early Christianity with Second Temple Judaism.” (Page 209)
“It was by being grafted into the same olive tree that both gentile and unbelieving Jewish branches would be saved.” (Page 213)
“as the corollary to the new covenant law written on the heart” (Page 215)