'Apostle on the Edge': A letter from Paul that's more apology than epistle

August 2, 2016 at 7:09PM
(Tim Campbell/The Minnesota Star Tribune)

James Hanson proposes that through a wrinkle in time, the apostle Paul comes to us on his last day of life to set the record straight: he is not anti-woman, anti-gay or anti-semitic. He can't understand how letters intended for early congregations became part of holy scripture and he laments how his words have been used for centuries of antisemitism. He was, after all, a Jew himself. Hanson, an associate professor of New Testament at St. Olaf, portrays the apostle as a stammering, frenzied man (drawing evidence from Paul's own writing) desperate to redeem his reputation. An interest in Christian theology helps, but Hanson brings a welcome passion that makes this a good piece of theater on its own. (5:30 p.m. Mon., 10 p.m. Tue., 8:30 p.m. Sat.; Ritz Studio, 345 13th Av. NE.)

Graydon Royce

about the writer

about the writer

More from No Section

See More
FILE -- A rent deposit slot at an apartment complex in Tucker, Ga., on July 21, 2020. As an eviction crisis has seemed increasingly likely this summer, everyone in the housing market has made the same plea to Washington: Send money — lots of it — that would keep renters in their homes and landlords afloat. (Melissa Golden/The New York Times) ORG XMIT: XNYT58
Melissa Golden/The New York Times

It’s too soon to tell how much the immigration crackdown is to blame.