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Nearing thirty-five years ago, E. P. Sanders famously stated that the center of thought within Paul's theology is participatory in nature - which, of course, caused no small debate within broad strands of Pauline scholarship. Sanders also suggested that we have no modern conception of what this thought might mean for us today. These two axioms of Sanders loosely organize the essays in this volume which seek to explore the complex notions of union and participation within Pauline theology through exegesis, highlights in reception history, and theological reflection. This collection of essays aims at teasing out the complex web of meaning conveyed through Paul's theological vision of union and participation - both in their relationship and in their distinction with one another. Taken as a whole, this edited volume constitutes a multi-disciplinary reflection and exploration of Paul's theological vision of participation and union. But it is precisely as a multi-disciplinary exploration that this volume hopes to chart new ground and make new connections within Pauline thought with the hope that further research might contest and/or clarify its findings.

In pursuit of the oneness of scripture's scope, Brevard Childs (1923-2007) ranged across the Christian Bible, writing Introductions to the Old and New Testaments before attempting a landmark Biblical Theology of the same. For him the canon is a christological rule of faith, though perceiving the'family resemblance'in its historic formation and impress in the life of the church as well as, mysteriously, the synagogue, is always a great struggle. Yet Childs'argument for final form exegesis rose out of his form-critical training: Hermann Gunkel is a crucial antecedent. Childs'work has been much discussed, and in the wake of James Barr's criticism much misunderstood. Driver gives its total profile for the first time, from its background and controversy to its later development, analyzing all published titles and filling out this record with a number of previously unseen letters and papers.