God is op. Paulus, profeet van het wereldeinde

Name: God is op. Paulus, profeet van het wereldeinde
ISBN: 9789079578542

een agnostisch commentaar op zijn brieven

By Willem van Hoorn

In this provocative exploration of early religious history, historical psychologist Willem van Hoorn challenges conventional understanding of one of Christianity's most influential figures. Rather than accepting the traditional portrayal of Paul as Christianity's founder, van Hoorn places this complex figure squarely within the turbulent religious landscape of first-century Judaism.

The author reveals how Paul emerged during a period of intense Jewish sectarian conflict, when Pharisees, Sadducees, Essenes, Zealots, and Therapeutics fiercely debated scriptural interpretation and religious practice. Far from establishing a new religion, Paul created what van Hoorn terms "Paulinism" - a small Jewish movement of merely hundreds of followers scattered across Palestine, Greece, and modern-day Turkey.

Van Hoorn argues that Paul's supposed conversion to Christianity around 32 CE is historically impossible, since Christianity as a distinct religion did not yet exist. Instead, Paul sought to elevate the Hebrew God within Greek intellectual frameworks, driven by his apocalyptic expectation that the end times were imminent. As both Jewish prophet and mystic, Paul anticipated that his revered figure Jesus would descend from heaven during his lifetime to participate in divine judgment.

This first volume of a two-part agnostic commentary examines Paul's letters to the Thessalonians and Corinthians, offering biographical analysis and illuminating insights into Jewish apocalyptic thought. Van Hoorn presents a Paul freed from later Christian interpretations, revealing the authentic voice of an ancient religious innovator wrestling with cosmic questions about divine purpose and human destiny.

What You'll Discover