It is in Paul that the most profound and clearly developed understanding of community is found. Indeed, what the apostle had to say about community is relevant to far more than just the way people get together in churches. In this timely study, Robert Banks examines and clarifies Paul's idea of community, placing it in its historical context (comparing Paul with the Stoic and Epicurean and Cynical philosophers, the Hellenistic mystery cults, and first-century Judaism), and drawing out its significance both sociologically and theologically.
According to Banks, the essence of Paul's idea of community is freedom. The freedom that Christ brings to a person means not only independence (from selfish desires and from the law) but also dependence (for the freedom is given by Christ, not earned) and interdependence (it must be lived out in the community). Of the several images Paul uses to describe the community, Banks focuses on two: body (depicting the goal of development or growth) and family (depicting the goal of harmony). He goes on to discuss the various aspects of the community: the physical expressions of community; "spiritual gifts" and their role in the community; the role of women and racial minorities in the community; and the relationship of Paul himself and his apostolic endeavors to the community.