The Rupture of an Association: Social Conflict and Its Management in the Thessalonian Christ Assembly
The Christ group in Thessalonica was established when members of an association abandoned their deity and adopted Christ devotion. This interpretation has been advanced by others. While adopting this interpretation in general, I suggest modifications to it. In particular, I propose that the associat...
| Main Author: | |
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| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | Drawer...
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| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
Scholar's Press
2024
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| In: |
Journal of Biblical literature
Year: 2024, Volume: 143, Issue: 1, Pages: 143-162 |
| Standardized Subjects / Keyword chains: | B
Bible. Thessalonicherbrief 1.
/ Bible. Thessalonicherbrief 1. 5,15
/ Association
/ Community
/ Persecution
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| IxTheo Classification: | HC New Testament KAB Church history 30-500; early Christianity TB Antiquity ZB Sociology |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) |
| Summary: | The Christ group in Thessalonica was established when members of an association abandoned their deity and adopted Christ devotion. This interpretation has been advanced by others. While adopting this interpretation in general, I suggest modifications to it. In particular, I propose that the association experienced a split in its membership, with some members staying with the parent association and others breaking off to form a new assembly with a new deity. This scenario offers us a context for understanding the "persecution" experienced by the Thessalonian Christ group, as social conflict was played out in the public arena between the parent association and the Christ assembly. The authors of 1 Thessalonians sought to reduce the social conflict while still maintaining the distinctive identity of the Christ assembly and its theological commitments. This article (1) suggests several ways in which the new Christ assembly underwent adjustments in its associational character, (2) offers comparanda from the database of Greco-Roman associations, and (3) proposes that the authors’ comments in 5:15 are best interpreted in relation to this situation of social conflict between the parent association and its deviant offspring assembly. |
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| ISSN: | 1934-3876 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: Journal of Biblical literature
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.15699/jbl.1431.2024.8 |