Abstract
In this thought-provoking book, Puca argues for understanding the autobiographical passages of Gal. 1–2 as constituting a ‘paradoxical’ instance of the Greek rhetorical form, περιαυτολογία, positive discourse about oneself. The first chapter argues for using both epistolographic and rhetorical categories in studying Paul. Chapter 2 analyses the structure of Gal. 1.1–2.21. Chapter 3 is a section-by-section exegesis of 1.13–2.21. Chapter 4 is where the key moves are made, analysing Paul’s presentation of himself in relation to Judaism, Christ, the gospel and other apostles, and the Galatians. Puca concludes that Paul gives an account of his past and present life as praiseworthy, in order to highlight the divine origin of the gospel (via the power of God’s grace seen in changing him, etc.) and, particularly, to give a model of adherence to its truth.
This kind of thesis, which sees a text as fitting—but ‘paradoxically’—a certain rhetorical category, is inherently hard to prove. Puca dismisses Aletti’s rejection of Pitta’s earlier appeal to περιαυτολογία on the grounds that Aletti’s criteria for accepting the category are so steep as to exclude other rhetorical categories that are generally accepted as present in Galatians (pp. 261-62). However, whatever categorization decisions one takes, Puca undoubtedly reaches some compelling conclusions, for instance in arguing that Paul praises his own resistance to both the ‘false brothers’ (Gal. 2.3-5) and Peter (2.14) as a model for the Galatians to be resistant in faithfulness to the gospel (pp. 264-65). This is a valuable study of Gal. 1–2 and stimulates ideas for further research on other Pauline autobiographical texts.