1 Corinthians: A Community in Dissent: An Introduction and Study Guide

1 Corinthians: A Community in Dissentapproaches Paul’s letter not simply as a monologue from an authoritative apostle but as part of an ongoing, dynamic conversation within a diverse and complex early Christian community. Rather than assuming that Paul’s voice is the only word, this study pays close attention to the voices of the Corinthians, which often emerge through rhetorical clues, reported speech, and implied dialogue. By shifting the focus toward the community’s concerns and responses, the book encourages readers to see 1 Corinthians as a text shaped by negotiation, disagreement, and mutual engagement.

Ekaputra Tupamahu offers a reading that resists portraying the Corinthians as passive recipients of correction or moral failure. Instead, he explores how their resistance and questions reflect meaningful engagement with issues of authority, identity, and communal life in the Roman imperial world. Without romanticizing either Paul or the Corinthians, the book opens space to consider the complexities of early Christian formation within settings of cultural hybridity and social inequality. In doing so, A Community in Dissent invites readers, especially students and scholars of the New Testament, to engage 1 Corinthians with historical sensitivity and interpretive humility.

Ekaputra Tupamahu is Assistant Professor of New Testament at Portland Seminary, George Fox University, USA.