Plurality and conflicts of interpretation in the Pauline tradition towards the end of the first Century CE

Plurality permeates early Christianity at virtually every level. The mere existence of the New Testament canon is an example of (limited) plurality. The same is true for the multiple ways key figures of the first “Christian” generation are portrayed in the New Testament. The present article focuses on Paul and later receptions of Paul within the Pauline letter corpus. Plurality starts already during the lifetime of Paul, since his theology should be understood as a highly contextual, evolutionary and “subjective” one. Plurality, then, is perceptible in the various – and sometimes conflicting – ways the heritage of Paul has been reinterpreted and adapted in new historical contexts. Such a plurality shouldn’t be disqualified, but on the contrary understood as the continual effort of interpreting the Christ-event, knowing that this event is never acquired or understood once and for all