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 Kinship Language
and Identity Formation in Early Christianity

Abera M. Mengestu

~PICKWICK Publications ·Eugene, Oregon

GOD AS FATHER IN PAUL
Kinship Language and Identity Formation in Early Christianity

Copyright© 2013 Abera M. Mengestu. All rights reserved. Except for brief quota-
tions in critical publications or reviews, no part of this book may be reproduced in
any manner without prior written permission from the publisher. Write: Permis-
sions, Wipf and Stock Publishers, 199 W 8th Ave., Suite 3, Eugene, OR 97401.

Pickwick Publications
An Imprint of Wipf and Stock Publishers
199 W 8th Ave., Suite 3
Eugene, OR 97401

www.wipfandstock.com

ISBN 13:978-1-62032-193-5

Cataloguing-in-Publication data:

Mengestu, Abera M.

God as father in Paul: kinship language and identity formation in early

Christianity I Abera M. Mengestu.

xx + 236 pp. ; 23 em. Includes bibliographical references.

ISBN 13:978-1-62032-193-5

Bible. Epistles of Paul Criticism, interpretation, etc. 2. Bible. Epistles of

I.

Paul Socio-rhetorical criticism. 3. God Fatherhood Biblical teaching. 4· Kin-

ship in the Bible. I. Tide.

Manufactured in the U.S.A.

 To Aster
and our daughters: Madu & Omega
 Contents

Acknowledgments I ix
List of Abbreviations I xi
Introduction I XV

1 History of Research I1
2 Kinship-Identity Approach I 24
3 God(s), Empire, and Emperors as Fathers in the Early Roman
Empire I 51
4 God as Father in the Hebrew Bible I 91
5 God as Father in Ancient Jewish Writings I 128
6 God as Father in Paul: Kinship Narrative and Identity
Formation I 159
7 Conclusion I 204

Bibliography I 209
Index of Authors I 237
 Acknowledgtnents

THIS STUDY IS A revised version of my doctoral dissertation which I de-

fended at Brite Divinity School, Texas Christian University in April 2011.
The task of writing a dissertation is both an arduous and fulfilling undertak-
ing that builds on the contributions of others and flourishes through sup-
port and encouragement from many sides. I am very grateful to Carolyn
Osiek, in whose class of Social Scientific Approach to the New Testament,
my interest to approach the self-understanding of early Christians through
the analytical category of kinship language took shape. I express my deep
gratitude to Dr. Osiek for graciously agreeing to supervise this study in her
retirement. Dr. Osiek's tranquil supervision of this work, with important
insights and direction from her rich knowledge in early Christianity, has
been invaluable for the completion of this research. I am thankful for my
readers, Warren Carter and Leo G. Perdue. Dr. Carter introduced me to the
importance of recognizing the Roman Empire as forming a foreground in
the study of early Christianity. He has also opened up for me the venture of
"mixing up" approaches to probe the issue at hand from several perspectives
in view of moving towards a fuller understanding. His incisive comments
have clarified my thoughts and always pushed me a step further in terms
of engaging the issue in depth. Dr. Perdue introduced me to postcolonial
biblical interpretation. It was in that class, through rigorous discussion of
the benefit of postcolonial theories to biblical interpretation, that, ironically,
I began to seek for approaches that go beyond oppositional categories. It is
a testimony for what kind of scholar he is in allowing his students to pursue
truth wherever it leads.
I owe many thanks to Brad and Betty Lapsley, Martha Johnston of
the Lamb Foundation, Sherrie Ross and Fred Sharpe, and Pastor Dr. Be-
dilu Yirga and the Ethiopian Evangelical Church in Dallas for believing in
my ability to pursue doctoral study and for their continued support and
encouragement. I would like also to thank Pastor John Messemann of St.
Paul Lutheran Church of Fort Worth, and Rev. Ron Heimsoth of Trinity

•
IX
Acknowledgments

Lutheran Church of Fort Worth (who has gone to his eternal home in 2009)
for their generosity when the going was rough.
Words could not express my gratitude to my wife, Aster Temesgen Ge-
bresilssie, who is my dearest friend and faithful companion, who graciously
made my multifaceted journey enjoyable for the past seventeen years. Her
unwavering support has been an anchor in the journey that at times has
been windy and turbulent. I also thank my daughters, Madu and Omega,
who have been always willing to rearrange their wants and needs to see
their daddy finish "his writing;' as they have come to call it. I owe also the
deepest gratitude to my mother, Abaynesh Demissie, and my father, Mitiku
Mengestu, who did not only initiate me to become the follower of Christ,
but also set me on the course of pursuing higher education early on. Finally,
I express the greatest of my gratitude to God, the originator and founder of
the community of Christ-followers, by whose grace I have become a con-
tributing member of this community.

X
 Abbreviations

AB Anchor Bible
ABD Anchor Bible Dictionary. Edited by D. N. Freedman. 6 vols.
New York, 1992.
AE American Ethnologist
AnBib Analecta Biblica
ANRW Aufstieg und Niedergang der romischen Welt: Geschichte und
Kultur Roms im Spiegel der neueren Forschung. Edited by H.
Temporini and W Hasse. Berline, 1972-
ANTC Abingdon New Testament Commentaries
ARS Annual Review of Sociology
BASOR Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research
BEC Baker Exegetical Commentary
Bib!nt Biblical Interpretation
BRev Biblical Review
BNTC Black's New Testament Commentaries
BT The Bible Translator
BTB Biblical Theological Bulletin
CBR Currents in Biblical Research
CBQ Catholic Biblical Quarterly
CJPS Canadian Journal of Political Science
CQ Classical Quarterly
EDNT Exegetical Dictionary of the New Testament. Edited by H. Balz,
G. Schneider. Grand Rapids, 1990-1993.
ExpTim Expository Times
•
XI
Abbreviations

HALOT The Hebrew and Aramaic Lexicon of the Old Testament. Edited
by L. Koehler, W Baumgartner , and J. J. Stamm. 2 vols.
Lei den: Brill, 2001.
HSM Harvard Semitic Monographs
HTR Harvard Theological Review
HTS Harvard Theological Studies
HUCA Hebrew Union College Annual
HUT Hermeneutische Untersuchungen zur Theologie
]AAR Journal of the American Academy of Religion
JBL Journal of Biblical Literature
JCSI Journal of Current Social Issues
JETS Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society
]SAH Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians
JSJ Journal for the Study of Judaism
JSNT Journal for the Study of the New Testament
JSNTS Journal for the Study of the New Testament Supplement
JSNTSup Journal for the Study of the New Testament: Supplement
Series
]SOT Journal for the Study of the Old Testament
JSOTSup Journal for the Study of the Old Testament: Supplement Series
JSPSup Journal for the Study of the Pseudepigrapha: Supplement
Series
JTS Journal of Theological Studies
LCL Loeb Classical Library
NAC New American Commentary
NCBC New Century Bible Commentary
NET New English Translation. Novum Testamentum Graece. New
Testament. Edited by Michael H. Burer, W Hall Harris III, and
Daniel Wallace. Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft: NET Bible Press,
2004.

NIGTC New International Greek Testament Commentary

NICNT New International Commentary on the New Testament

••
Xll
 Abbreviations

NRSV New Revised Standard Version

NTS New Testament Studies
RBL Review of Biblical Literature
RQ Romische Quartalschrift fur christliche Altertumskunde und
Kirchengeschichte
SBLDS Society of Biblical Literature Dissertation Series
SBLEJL Society of Biblical Literature Early Judaism and Its Literature
SBLSP Society of Biblical Literature Seminar Papers
SNTSMS Society for New Testament Studies Monograph Series
SNTIW Studies of the New Testament and Its World
TAPA Transactions of the American Philological Association
TDNT Theological Dictionary of the New Testament. Edited by G.
Kittel and G. Friedrich. Translated by G. W Bromiley. 1 o vols.
Grand Rapids, 1964-1976.
TDOT Theological Dictionary of the Old Testament. Edited by G.
Johannes Botterweck and Helmer Ringgren. Translated by
John T. Willis. Grand Rapids, 1974-1986.
TJT Toronto Journal of Theology
TynBul Tyndale Bulletin
TZT Tubinger Zeitschrift fur 1heologie
VT Vetus Testamentum
WBC Word Biblical Commentary
WUNT Wissenschaftliche Untersuchungen zum Neuen Testament
ww Word and World

•••
Xlll
 Introduction

KINSHIP LANGUAGE, A DISCOURSE of belonging, permeates the New

Testament writings. From Matthew and Luke's use of genealogical discourse
to present the identity of Jesus in relation to the founding and noteworthy
ancestors, kinship language such as addressing God as Father, Jesus as the
Son, followers of Jesus as children of God, brothers and sisters, and lan-
guage of inheritance are used by the New Testament writers to depict their
1
relationship to God, to Jesus, and to each other. A large part of such use
is found in Pauline writings: God is referred to as "Abba, Father;' "Father;'
and "our Father" twenty seven times, believers are referred to as brothers
and sisters 114 times, and they are also referred to as "children of God;' and
"heirs of God" and "heirs of Christ" repeatedly.
In ancient Mediterranean societies, kinship was the primary social in-
stitution which virtually touched almost every social relationship, institution,
and values. 2 Greco-Roman as well as wide-ranging Jewish writings attest that

1. See Hanson and Oakman, Palestine, 20; Hanson, ''Kinship;' 62-79; Malina, The
New Testament World, 82-83, 134-60; deSilva, Honor, Patronage, Kinship and Purity;
and Hellerman, The Ancient Church as Family. Banks, Paul's Idea of Community, 53-54,
describes family language as a "key image;' and the "most significant metaphorical us-
age" that compares the Christian community with a "family"; Minear, Images of the
Church, 165-72; 253-52, explains the family "image cluster" as depicting the "fellow-
ship in faith"; Meeks, The First Urban Christians, compares the use of the language of
belonging in Paul with similar contemporary entities such as households, voluntary
association, synagogue, and philosophical and rhetorical schools. See also Petersen,
Rediscovering Paul; Osiek and Balch, Families in the New Testament World; Moxnes,
Constructing Early Christian Families; Brady, "Brotherly Love"; Fiorenza, In Memory of
Her, 107-10.
2. See Saller, "Roman Kinship"; Bettini, Anthropology and Roman Culture; Dixon,
The Roman Family, chapter 1; Nathan, The Family in Late Antiquity; Hall, Ethnic Iden-
tity in Greek Antiquity; and idem, Hellenicity, who argues for the centrality of the con-
cept of kinship in defining and establishing what he calls "intrahellenic" and Hellenic
identities; for the importance of kinship to create diplomatic relationship see Jones,
Kinship Diplomacy; for kinship in Bible and biblical times see Hanson and Oakman,
Palestine, 20; Hanson, "Kinship;' 62-79; Malina, The New Testament World, 82-83,

XV
Introduction

kinship discourse is used to produce a shared understanding that reflects

shared identity. 3 As a central organizing principle that defines a person's iden-
tity in ancient Mediterranean society, the use of kinship language serves as
evidence of both self-understanding and understanding of others.
On the importance of looking for identity signifiers and representa-
tion in studying identity in the Roman world, Janet Huskinson explains that
"representation and self-representation are important sources for studying
identity in the Roman world:' 4 This is because representations "deal with
perceptions of self and others;' "show the values claimed by a particular
cultural identity;' and "show how an identity is (sometimes literally) con-
structed from a selection of particular features:' 5 Self-representation as well
as representation of others played a central role both in the process of Ro-
manization, the process by which Roman culture spread and diverse people
"either incorporated or aligned themselves with the Roman empire;' and
6
in the process of local cultures presenting themselves and others. Such a
process of creating, disseminating, maintaining, and contesting culture and
7
identity is carried out through written, visual, and oral communication.
One of the key features used in this process of self-representation and
representation of others in the Greco-Roman world is kinship language. As
such, the use of family language by early Christians, which constitutes part of
"common modes of formulating and communicating identity or belonging"
in ancient Mediterranean society, serves to signal the self-understanding of
8
early Christians and their understanding of others.

134-60; see also Joubert, "Managing the Household;' 75-95; Osiek and Balch, Families
in the New Testament World, 36, 41; for family in ancient Israel and early Judaism see
Perdue, Families in Ancient Israel.
3· For Greco-Roman writings see n1 above. For the significance ofkinship in biblical
covenants see Kalluveettil, Declaration and Covenant; idem, "Covenant and Commu-
nity;' 94-104; McCarthy, Treaty and Covenant, 254-73; Cross, ''Kinship and Covenant;"
idem, From Epic to Canon, 3-21; Steinmetz, From Father to Son; Wright, God's People in
God's Land; Miller, Biblical Faith and Fathering; Oden, "Jacob as Father, Husband, and
Nephew;' 189-205; Donaldson, "Kinship Theory in the Patriarchal Narratives;' 77-87;
Boer, Fatherhood and Motherhood; Andersen, "Israelite Kinship;' 29-39; Hahn, Kinship
by Covenant; van Henten and Brenner, Families and Family Relations.
4· Huskinson, "Looking for Culture, Identity and Power;' 16-17.
5· Ibid.
6. Ibid., 20; Woolf, "Becoming Roman, Staying Greek;' 116-43.
7· Miles, "Communicating Culture, Identity and Power;' 29-62.
8. Harland, Dynamics of Identity, 61; see also Jones, Kinship Diplomacy, 132, who
compares the role of kinship in the rise of the Roman Empire and Christianity as
follows: "Diplomatic appeals to kinship . . . existed through most antiquity, and the
permutations of such kinship diplomacy can serve as a platform from which to view
political changes in the Greco-Roman world. Of these the most salient is the rise of

•
XVI
 Introduction

In biblical studies, it is noted that repetitive use of kinship language

in reference to groups and their members "plays a role in the process of re-
socialization by which an individual's identity is revised and knit together
with the identity of the group .. :' 9 Sandnes writes, "The social matrix
of early Christianity was oikos and kinship. From the very beginning the
movement was marked by kinship logic and precepts:' 10 However, while
the use of kinship language serves as evidence of self-understanding, it
began to be used as analytical category in studying the development of
the self-understanding of early Christians only recently. As recently as the
last decade, J. H. Neyrey lamented that issues of "family and (fictive) kin-
ship remain underdeveloped in [biblical] scholarship:' 11 In a similar tone
Trevor J. Burke writes, "This neglect not only relates to the gospels but to
the Pauline letters as well, which is surprising, given the fact that Paul's
theology was inextricably related to social reality:' 12
This neglect is true in regard to studying the use of God as Father as
well as in approaching the formation of early Christianity. While "father"
is a kinship term which was also employed to refer to the Greco-Roman
god(s) and to refer to the Roman Empire and emperor, only the contribu-
tion of "philosophical theologies and the development of Christo logy have
13
received some recognition'' in its interpretation. The study into the forma-
tion of early Christianity for its part was predominantly pursued in terms

Rome to the status of a world power. Second only in importance is perhaps the rise of
Christianity, with its competing vision of kinship within the church:'
9· Meeks, The First Urban Christians, 86; see also Stegemann, ((The Emergence of
God's New People;' 23-40, 37, who writes, ((Unlike the many other ancient peoples, the
Christianoi as God's people shared no common genealogical descent from a common
ancestor. Instead, they were connected through fictive kinship, which means that they
belonged to the household of God (familia dei) and ultimately traced their birth to and
from God (baptism as symbolic (re-) birth)"; Stark, The Rise of Christianity, who, ap-
plying his findings on modern new religious movements, argues that social ties played
as significant a role as ideology in the rise of Christianity; and White, Social Networks,
34, who writes ((perhaps the most readily discernible network structures from the Ro-
man world are the familial organization of the extended household and the operation
of patronage. Indeed, patronage may be seen both as a kind of 'friendship' structure, as
Aristotle conceived it, or as a kind of quasi-kinship structure:'
1 o. Sandnes, ((Equality within Patriarchal Structures;' 15 3.
11. Neyrey, ((Loss of Wealth, Loss of Family and Loss of Honor;' 139-58, 57·
12. Burke, Family Matters, 3.
13. D'Angelo, ((Abba and 'Father~' 623, further notes that in the Roman Empire that
((loomed largest on the horizons of ancient Christianity and Judaism;' while the use of
the kinship term ((father" was ((a major step in the emergence and solidification of the
new world order;' it received no attention. Balla, The Child-Parent Relationship, 190,
points out that a monograph can be written on the use of God as the Father in the NT.

••
xvn
Introduction

of crisis-focused oppositional hermeneutics that centers on controversy

and stereotypes a multifaceted reality into two opposite types leaving aside
a range of interaction and negotiation. 14 As the history of research chap-
ter of this study will show, early Christianity is predominantly prejudged
as emerging in opposition to external world and in conflict and crisis in
terms of its internal makeup. 15 Not only is early Christianity seen as stand-
ing against Judaism and Hellenism, but Judaism and Hellenism are also
portrayed as existing independent of each other. It is becoming, however,
evident that such presuppositions are not only inaccurate reflections of the
process of the formation of early Christianity but also are impediments to
understanding its multifaceted and dynamic nature.
This book will focus on the use of one specific kinship language, God
as Father in Paul, and its relation to familial expressions that Paul uses to de-
pict Christ-followers (children of God, brothers and sisters). I will examine
how Paul's use of this kinship term to refer to God and its relation to other
familial language shaped the self-understanding of the emergent communi-
ty. Since such use of kinship is not unique to Paul but it is a shared/common
way of constructing identity in Jewish as well as the larger Greco-Roman
socio-religious contexts, this study will not focus on particular controversies
within the emerging community or polarities with the outside world, there-
by limiting self-understanding to crisis and oppositional situation. Instead,
this study will locate the use of the kinship term "Father" to refer to God
and the related familial terms that are applied to Christ-followers in Pauline
writings within the broader socio-religious context and examine how such
use shaped the self-understanding of early Christians both in crisis as well
as stable situations. 16 In so doing, it puts the study of God as Father in Paul
in relation to the study of identity formation in early Christianity, and it also
relates the study of kinship in the Bible with the study of identity formation
in the Bible. The thesis of this study is that by using kinship language that
categorizes and identifies (i.e., creates social identity) through a network of
relationships, Paul constructs a self-understanding by developing a narra-

14. Gerdmar, Rethinking the Judaism-Hellenism Dichotomy, 19.

15. Ibid. For studies that address approaches that dichotomize Judaism and Hel-
lenism in Pauline studies see articles in Engberg-Pedersen, Paul Beyond the Judaism/
Hellenism Divide; for argument against limiting the formation of early Christianity to
crisis and conflict situation see Harland, Dynamics of Identity, 1-22, 25-26, 63-66; for
more discussion see chapter 2 of this book.
16. For similar approach see Riches, Conflicting Mythologies, 8, who, instead of fo-
cusing on particular debate within the church to study identity, focuses on kinship and
geography. For the argument that early Christianity's self-understanding should not be
studied only in terms of crisis situation but also in terms of stable situation see Meyer,
Early Christians, 30 .

•••
XVIll
 Introduction

tive that images the community of Christ-followers as a family that belongs

to God, who, together with "the Lord Jesus Christ;' bestows on them "grace
and peace" and inheritance. The narrative so constructed forms the founda-
tion for the members to be referred to as children of God as well as brothers
and sisters. The self-understanding ensuing from such a narrative aims at
shaping the whole life of the community of the followers of Christ.
To expound this thesis, I will use what I will call Kinship-Identity Ap-
proach (KIA) which begins with a recognition that in ancient Mediterranean
society kinship played a significant role in constructing self-understanding
and understanding of others. As will be explained below, the approach com-
hines theoretical foundations on kinship construction and identity forma-
tion with narrative and imperial critical approaches to Paul.
Chapter one will focus on the history of research on God as Father
as well as on identity formation in early Christianity. The discussion will
show what has been done, what is lacking, and the contribution of this
study. Chapter two will focus on the Kinship-Identity Approach, outlining
its various aspects and how these are combined to pursue the study of God
as Father in Paul and its role in the identity formation of early Christians.
The kinship aspect of the Kinship-Identity Approach will be located within
the anthropological theory of kinship as well as within the use of kinship in
ancient Mediterranean society.
Chapters three, four, and five will focus on the contexts of Paul in
which his use of "Father" to refer to God and related familial expressions
are understood by his audiences. In chapter three, I will examine the use of
"father" to portray the Greco-Roman god(s), the Roman Empire and em-
peror, and the contribution of such use for constructing identities.
In chapter four, the depiction of God as Father and related familial ex-
pressions in the Hebrew Bible will be studied within the framework of the role
kinship plays in the process of being and becoming. Sources from the Hebrew
Bible are examined in relation to the overall objective of identifying the iden-
tity formation contribution of the use of the kinship language "Father" to refer
to God and related familial language. Similarly, chapter five will focus on the
use of God as Father and its related familial language. I will examine how such
use contributed to the self-understanding of the Jewish people.
In chapter six, Paul's use of the term "Father" to refer to God and its
relation to the familial terms to refer to Christ-followers are studied within
the framework of the role kinship plays in the process of identity creation.
The findings from the preceding chapters will form multiple contexts in
relation to which Paul's use of God as Father and its relation to associated
familial language are analyzed in view of understanding its contribution for
the self-understanding of early Christianity. My argument is that Paul uses
•
XIX
Introduction

the kinship term "father" to refer to God and related familial expressions to
refer to the Christ-followers to image the emerging community as a family
that belongs to God.
Finally, in chapter seven, I will draw conclusions regarding the impor-
tance of Paul's use of "Father" to refer to God and related familial expres-
sions for the self-understanding of the early Christians in terms of their
relation to God, to each other, and to the outside world. I will also reflect on
the importance of using kinship as an analytical concept to study the forma-
tion of early Christianity and on the importance of not limiting studying
early Christians to a crisis situation and oppositional hermeneutics.

XX
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