Setting

     You are an early Christian who was raised and baptized in Galatia. From there you went to Corinth to preach about Jesus. You have been teaching what you learned from Paul: that those who are baptized "have put on Christ [in whom] there is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female; for all are one in Christ Jesus."
     Now the church at Corinth has received a letter from Paul which teaches that "the head of a woman is her husband" (I Cor 11:3) and that "woman is the glory of man" (I Cor 11:7). It also reminds you that "by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body---Jews or Greeks, slaves or free---and all were made to drink of one Spirit" (I Cor 12:13), but it omits the unity and equality of "male and female" that you were taught in Galatia.
     Based on this information, write a letter detailing your response (agreement/disagreement) to this apparent shift in Paul's teaching. Beware the anachronism. Remember to support your stance by using as much direct reference to the primary sources as possible, but restrict yourself to whatever would have been available to the audience at that time.

Options

    You have been trying to decide how to respond to this situation, and have discovered four main alternatives:

1. Paul has really not changed his mind; the ecclesia had misunderstood his teaching before this, and 1 Cor 11:3 clarifies what Paul meant.
2. Paul has changed his mind; the ecclesia must follow along with this change so the gospel will be heard and respected.
3. Paul was the author of this text and has not changed his mind; some are misunderstanding what Paul was trying to say in this passage.
4. Paul did not write this passage in 1 Cor 11, rather, someone has tampered with Paul's letter to insert this text and make his ideas conform more closely to the normative social structures of the day (what Paul calls "this present evil age").

Assignment

1. First introduce your character, giving a brief description of your social location (sex, class, ethnic origin, clan, etc.)
2. Then, speaking as that person, respond to the following questions:
   1. Which of these explanations do you think best accounts for the existence of this text?
   2. Given your knowledge of the teachings and actions of Jesus and Paul, how will you interpret this text for your Jesus-ecclesia and what will you encourage them to do with respect to this teaching? Remember, they are coming to you for advice, so you cannot "cop out" by saying they have to make up their own minds. Besides, how they act will have consequences for you because you are known as members of the same worshipping community.
3. Where are at least five specific examples of sayings or actions of Jesus or Paul that support your responses to these questions? (Give the Biblical citations in parentheses in your text.) Remember that these examples must come from sources or texts that antedate the time when you are living. You can assume that your character knows only the earliest of Paul's authentic letters (1 Thess, Gal, 1 Cor), but the others have not yet been written.
4. In a post-script, reflect on your character and her/his response to the situation. How does it compare to the way Paul lived and the gospel he preached? In what ways do you agree or disagree with Paul?
5. To prepare to present your paper in class, outline your responses to the following questions (on a separate sheet of paper):
   1. What was your experience writing this paper?
   2. How did this process affect your view/understanding of the Pauline materials?
   3. What issue(s) did the process raise that you would like to explore further?
   4. What is the most important thing you learned by doing this exercise?

Questions for Class Discussion

Sample paper (but beware the plagiarism demon; DO NOT PRINT OUT THESE FILES):

Ed Cardin, 29 March 1993
Laura Willig, 26 February 1993

to see the Grading Protocol for these assignments