Beschreibung:
<jats:p> In 1 Cor. 12.12-30, Paul addresses factionalism in Corinth by rhetorically reworking the famed fable of the Members and the Belly. Whereas historiographical narratives typically depict Menenius Agrippa using this fable about talking body parts to restore the status quo of plebeian submission, Paul uses certain elements of the fable to make his disruptive case for unity among the Corinthians. Paul’s subversive embellishment of the fable excises the belly, which plays a central role in the older tale. Other Pauline discussions of the ancient belly help to make sense of this surprising surgical move, one of Paul’s many rhetorical maneuvers that are aligned with the prescriptions found in ancient handbooks of preliminary exercises, or προγυμνάσματα. </jats:p>