While the locus classicus for early Christian arguments
concerning resurrection of the flesh is Paul’s first letter to the
Corinthians, Paul does not clarify what elements make up the resurrected
body. Moreover, his statement in 15.50 that ‘flesh and blood cannot
inherit the kingdom of God’ further complicates early Christian
understandings of resurrection and its form. Given the ambiguities of
Paul’s language and conflicting interpretations of this Corinthian
passage within the early Church, this paper will examine how early
Christians needed to engage other scriptural texts in order to develop
and firmly argue for the resurrection of the flesh. In order to do this,
early Christian writers such as Irenaeus, Tertullian, and later
Augustine, turned to gospel stories of healing and resurrection. In
particular, the raising of Lazarus in the Gospel of John is used within
their writings to argue for the integrity and salvation of the flesh and
an assurance of bodily resurrection. Focusing primarily on the writings
of Irenaeus and Tertullian, this paper argues for the crucial role
played by Lazarus and John 11 to support these writers’ understanding of
1 Corinthians 15 and the developing doctrine of bodily resurrection. In
this way, the story of Lazarus allows each writer to grapple with the
ambiguous nature of scriptural interpretation and the theological issues
that such interpretation raises.
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