Corinthians 7:29-31 and the Teaching of Continence in the Acts of Paul and Thecla

This study purposes to present the meaning of 1 Cor 7:29-31 in its original literary context and then to contrast that meaning with its application in The Acts of Paul and Thecla. This contrast is the basis for a critique of Dennis Ronald MacDonald's theory that The Acts of Paul preserve aspects of Pauline teaching which should be considered on a level with the Pastoral Epistles; MacDonald implies that The Acts of Paul are closer to the primitive Pauline teaching on the role of women than the Pastorals are. The supposed similarity of the teaching on marriage in 1 Cor 7:29-31 and the application of this passage in The Acts of Paul and Thecla is a crucial link in MacDonald's argument that The Acts of Paul reflect primitive Pauline teaching. This study of 1 Cor 7:29-31 proposes, however, that the teaching of The Acts of Paul and Thecla concerning marriage is closer to the doctrine of the opponents of Paul in 1 Corinthians, than it is to the teaching of Paul in 1 Cor 7:29-31.