The first two chapters of Paul's first epistle to the Christians of Corinth, written in the fifth decade of the first century, have played a significant role in the history of Christian theology. Interpreting the central event in Christianity, namely the crucifixion of Jesus, Paul reflects on the wisdom and foolishness of God, which he opposes to the world's wisdom. According to Paul, the "word of the cross," which is "foolishness" to some and "scandal" to others, leads to an upheaval in one's way of thinking. For two millenia, theology has often turned to these passages in order to sustain its reflection. Many central questions emerge from Paul's text on the meaning of a crucified Messiah, on God's omnipotence, weakness, and suffering. This volume hopes to achieve two things by seeking to place exegetes, historians, philosophers, and theologians in conversation: to better understand Paul's text and its reception and also to examine the ways in which it can nourish our theological reflection today.
Christophe Chalamet is associate professor at the University of Geneva. He previously taught at Fordham University as assistant and associate professor. Hans-Christoph Askani is professor of systematic theology at the University of Geneva. He was previously professor of systematic theology at the Institut Protestant de Theologie in Paris, France.
Introduction; 1. Crucifixion as Wisdom - John M. G. Barclay; 2. The Weakness of God - John D. Caputo; 3. On a Road Not Taken - Kellen Plaxco; 4. Maximos the Confessor on the Foolishness of God and the Play of the Word - Andrew Louth; 5. Paul's Refusal of Wisdom in Aquinas's Commentary on 1 Corinthians - Adam Eitel; 6. Election and Providence in the Theology of Thomas Aquinas - Michael T. Dempsey; 7. Luther's Theologia Paradoxa - Gunter Bader; 8. The Cross of Wisdom - Anthony Feneuil; 9. The Wisdom in God's Foolishness - Andrew R. Hay; 10. The Word of the Cross in the Conflict of Interpretive Power - Philipp Stoellger; 11. On Justification and Beyond - Matthias D. Wuthrich; 12. The Foolishness and Wisdom of All God's Ways - Kathryn Tanner; 13. Witnessing to the Cross, Forgetting Human Sin - Henning Theissen; 14. The Cross of Christ and God's Power - Marc Vial; 15. God's Weakness and Power - Christophe Chalamet; 16. The Paradox of Faith - Hans-Christoph Askani; 17. "To Know Nothing Except Jesus Christ, and Him Crucified" - Edwin Chr. van Driel.
