Degree Name

Department

Ancient Near Eastern Studies

College

David M. Kennedy Center for International Studies

Defense Date

2026-03-02

Publication Date

2026-03-07

First Faculty Advisor

Lincoln Blumell

Second Faculty Advisor

Matthew Grey

First Faculty Reader

Mark Ellison

Second Faculty Reader

Joshua Matson

Honors Coordinator

Matthew Grey

Keywords

Pauline Studies, Pauline Ethics, Paul, Porneia, Prostitution, Sexual Ethics

Abstract

This thesis thoroughly examines the Apostle Paul’s use of the Greek term πορνεία within the Pauline corpus to challenge the normative translation of sexual immorality and the accompanying assumptions connected to this broad phrase. Modern scholarship continually isolates individual occurrences of πορνεία leading to inconsistent and reductionistic interpretations. Rather, through sustained philological analysis of πορνεία and its cognates, this thesis aims to situate Paul’s πορνεία within its contemporary cultural, historical, and lexical milieu with the objective of making Paul’s πορνεία distinct. With this background, it is posited that πορνεία functions as a communal boundary marker used to differentiate between the insider community and the others. This boundary marker is established through a shared sexual ethic which, when broken, constitutes πορνεία and results in communal consequences of defilement.