Christ's Body in Corinth: The Politics of a Metaphor (Paul in Critical Contexts)
Yung Suk Kim takes up the language of "body" that infuses 1 Corinthians,  Paul's most complicated letter, and the letter that provides us the  most information, and poses the sharpest questions, about social  realities in the early church. Kim argues against the view that in  speaking of the church as Christ's body Paul seeks to emphasize unity  and the social boundary. Against the conventional rhetoric of the "body  politic" in Greco-Roman philosophy, Kim argues that Paul seeks rather to  nourish the vitality of a diverse community and to criticize the  ideology of a powerful in-group in Corinth, a message of particular  importance for contemporary global Christianity.I highly recommend this work to all who take seriously Paul's metaphor  of 'the body of Christ.' Kim interprets the metaphor as an alternative  vision of vital reconciling community, over against conceptions that  emphasize boundary markers to establish social groups. What is at stake  in the interpretation of 1 Corinthians, he argues, is not just the ways  first-century Christians constructed and lived out social unity but the  consequences of our choices for the way we live out our own  responsibilities today. -- David Odell-Scott, Professor of Philosophy,  Kent State University"Although much has been written on the Pauline notion of the "body of  Christ," this contribution by Presbyterian scholar Kim offers a  thoughtful and provocative insight worth considering" -- The Bible Today"Kim's thesis must be taken seriously as a basis for current church life. As indicated in his description of the apocalyptic body, we are moving toward a universal faith community that will incorporate diversities in the Christic body."-- Brethren Life and Thought