The new monograph by Ruben Zimmermann “Die Logik der Liebe. Die ‘implizite Ethik’ der Paulusbriefe am Beispiel des 1. Korintherbriefs/ The Logic of Love. The ‘Implicit Ethics’ of the Pauline Epistles (in particular 1 Corinthians)” (BThS 162, Neukirchen-Vluyn 2016) has recently been published.
The treatise introduces a new method of analyzing biblical texts ethically. After a comprehensive explanation of the so-called ‘organon’, including eight perspectives on ethics in biblical texts, the new methodical tools are demonstrated on the example of 1 Corinthians. Zimmermann concludes his survey with some general insights to Pauline Ethics (such as pluralistic ethics, ethics of relinquishing, ethics of the body). In correspondence with the terminology and theoretical standards of the current ethical discourse the author attempts to elevate biblical ethics to a status more compatible with theological ethics and moral philosophy.