The Pauline Imprint on Ignatius of Antioch’s Use of ‘Flesh’ and ‘Spirit’

ABSTRACT The article demonstrates that Ignatius of Antioch’s expression of a ‘flesh’ (σάρξ) and ‘spirit’ (πνεῦμα) polarity is, contrary to the current majority view, dependent upon Pauline usage of these terms. First, a significant weakness in many previous treatments is exposed: they compare Ignatius with Pauline letters he apparently did not know well (e.g. Romans and Galatians) instead of those he shows close familiarity with, above all 1 Corinthians, but also the disputed Ephesians and 1 and 2 Timothy. Second, a close comparison of Ignatius’ epistles (in their ‘middle recension’) with these letters reveals considerable Pauline influence on Ignatius’ σάρξ-πνεῦμα polarity: ‘Pauline’ in the historical sense that the undisputed 1 Corinthians seems to have had the greatest impact on Ignatius, and ‘Pauline’ in the sense that the literary identity ‘Paul’ shapes Ignatius’ σάρξ-πνεῦμα polarity. Controlling for the particulars of Ignatius’ knowledge of the Pauline corpus allows a better appreciation of his use of σάρξ and πνεῦμα as Pauline reception. Conversely, Ignatius’ perspective sheds new light on the Pauline evidence, complicating what it means to speak of the ‘Pauline’ sense of σάρξ and πνεῦμα as a polarity or antithesis.