I. The issue and main scriptural passages

What is the source of the Apostle Paul's theology? Where did he receive knowledge to such an extent that he could describe in vivid detail the "coming of the Lord"?

"For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and the trump of God, and the dead in Christ shall rise first. Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord (I Thessalonians 4:16-17)."

Jesus clearly states the source of his doctrine. In his discussions in the upper room, Jesus says in different ways "and the word which ye hear is not mine, but the Father's which sent me (John 14:24) ." The source of Jesus' theology is his Father. Luke says that he did a thorough investigation in order to write the Gospel of Luke and Acts of the Apostles (Luke 1:1-3). John in his first epistle says that he heard, saw, and handled Christ (I John 1:1). This first hand acquaintance with Jesus was the source of his theology. But where did Paul get his doctrine? How did he arrive at such a wonderful Christology as found in Colossians 1:14-20?

II. Proposals by Scholars

I read parts of seven books to find some answers as to the sources of Paul's theology. I found no single book that dwelt exclusively with this source issue. Five books were written around the major themes of his theology: Paul an Outline of His Theology, Paul, In Christ, The Key Concepts of Paul, and The Church in the Theology of St. Paul. Two books were written around his epistles: St. Paul and his Epistles and The Living Thought of Saint Paul. Most useful information was found in the introductions to these books.

As I read through the books, several authors speculated about the sources of Paul's theological ideas. I have placed 15 possible sources into five clusters.

A. Jewish tradition and culture
1. The Old Testament
2. Talmud and other Jewish writings contemporary with Paul
3. Jewish teaching as learned from Gamaliel

B. Greek tradition and culture
4. Hellenistic philosophers, writers, and milieu
5. Pre-Gnostic influence
6. Influence of Oriental mystery religions

C. Gospel tradition
7. Conversations with Peter, other disciples, and Luke
8. Early hymns and creeds
9. Private instruction and investigation

D. Special Revelation
10. Through Christ's appearance on the road to Damascus
11. Through visions as his visit to "third heaven"
12. Through the guidance of the Holy Spirit

E. Personal Insight
13. An extrapolation from traditional sources - Hebrew, Greek, and Gospel.
14. A synthesis of traditional sources with special revelation.
15. Paul's own creative genius - he invented his "own gospel".

III. Evaluation and Conclusion

I will comment on each of these five clusters of sources.

A. Jewish tradition and culture - Certainly Saul was raised as a Jew. In his own words he was a Pharisee of Pharisees. He spoke fluent Aramaic. Some of his theology does seem to flow directly from the Old Testament. Pharisees were champions of the resurrection from the dead. His idea of church appears related to ideas current in Jewish thought. His theology is rooted in Jewish tradition

B. Greek tradition and culture - Saul was also a product of Greek culture. Many point to his sharp distinction of spirit and flesh as a pre-Gnostic (or at least a Greek) teaching. He quotes three pagan authors of popular sayings. Some see in his resurrection theology echoes of oriental cultic beliefs. As a Roman citizen, raised outside of Palestine, Paul was well suited to be an apostle to the Gentiles.

C. Gospel tradition - Paul spent about twelve interlude years in Jerusalem, Tarsus, and the neighboring desert. He met with Peter and the other disciples. He became familiar with the earliest Christian hymns and creeds. Paul learned enough about the Christian tradition to expound it and to expand upon it without contradicting it. He also spent many days in close quarters with Luke, a collector and expositor of early Christian documents.

D. Special Revelation - Paul claims to be an Apostle chosen directly by Christ. Did he receive direct revelation from Jesus on the road to Damascus or while meditating in the desert? Paul speaks of a "Word of Knowledge". Did he personally have this gift? If all scripture is inspired, then certainly the Holy Spirit was with Paul as he wrote his epistles. It is a difficult question to answer how much of Paul's theology came directly from God.

E. Personal Insight - A lot of what Paul teaches seems to be a synthesis of Hebrew, Greek, and gospel teaching. How much of the tradition is Paul just passing along and how much is he weaving himself? Critics might say that Paul invented portions of his theology from whole cloth. I can accept the first 14 source possibilities, but I reject the last one because it suggests that Paul is a co-founder of the Christian religion.

I thought that Francois Amiot provided the most satisfying explanation of the development of Paul's theology. He says in The Key Concepts of Paul:

"It seems then that, right from his conversion, Paul was aware of the most important elements of what was to prove his 'gospel'. But this was a general and intuitive acquaintance and the various parts, at first dimly seen, were to be brought out more clearly later… But the most elaborate expositions, such as those recurring in the epistles written during the captivity, had been preceded in the earlier epistles by brief statements and allusions, containing the doctrines concerned in embryo. There had been some progress in the form of expression, but no change in the sense of an introduction of fresh elements. Paul's theology continued to follow the same line and, as it grew more complete, the elements existing in it from the beginning became more explicit (page 31) ."

The source of Paul's theology is more illusive than Christ's or the other New Testament writers. I can understand Paul's receiving his theology in three parts. The first part was his pre-Christ years, when God was preparing him in both Greek and Hebrew culture. These were not wasted years. Paul had exactly the right pedigree to become the great Apostle to the Gentiles. The second part was his conversion and wilderness years, when Paul didn't talk but just listened and learned. Christ himself called Paul on the road to Damascus and the disciples of Christ started him on the right theological path. The seeds of truth were now planted in the prepared soil. The third part was his missionary and epistle years. Paul's theology grew from his Hebrew and Greek upbringing, as well as his Gospel grounding in Jerusalem. During his twenty years of missionary work, Paul himself combined traditions and synthesized theology. With guidance from the Holy Spirit, he expanded but never strayed far from his Apostolic roots in Jerusalem.

IV. Bibliography

1. Amiot, Francois. The Key Concepts of Paul, NY: Herder and Herder, 1963.
2. Bornkamm, Gunther (translated by D.M.G. Stalker). Paul, NY: Harper & Row, 1969.
3. Cerfaux, L. (translated by Geoffrey Webb and Adrian Walker). The Church in the Theology of Paul, NY: Herder and Herder, 1959.
4. Grossouw, William (translated by Martin W. Schoenberg). In Christ: A Sketch of the Theology of St. Paul. Westminster, MD: the Newman Press, 1952.
5. Montague, George T. The Living Thought of Saint Paul, Beverly Hill, CA: Benziger, 1976.
6. Ridderbos, Herman N. (translated by John Richard De Witt). Paul: An Outline of His Theology, Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1975.
7. Richards, Hubert. St. Paul and his Epistles, London: Darton, Longman and Todd, 1979.