CI-IAPTER XII GOSPEL, WISDOM AND MYSTERY IN THE PAULINE LETTERS It cannot be denied that there is a sapiential Christology in the Pauline letters; a fact that, from time to time, has not prevented exegetes fram discussing the background of the terms used by Paul.l But here, 1 will not study Paul's Christology and its sapiential coloration; 1 will rather question his parsimony in using the vocabulary ofwisdom and determine his reasons. Then, 1 will examine the increasing place, fram the hom%goumena to the antilegomena, given to "mystery" (Jlua1"~pLOv) and its cOlillection to wisdom in order to highlight its hermeneutical importance. '1. How DOES PAUL SPEAK OF WrsDoM AND THE WrsE?2 The Twofo/d Reference The Pauline use of the vocables is, as everyone knows, very dissimilar and is reflective of two distinct usages: Greek and biblica!. I Take for example Col 1: 15-20. The sapiential background is more than probable because it is confirmed byall the clues. This has not prevented Fossum from most recently re peating the hypothesis of an "Anthropos-Christology," and of rejecting the sapiential influence, with arguments !hat do not hold up: in the final analysis, the context, and it alone; allows coming to a decision aboutthe pertinence of hypotheses on the background of a passage. Cf. Fossum, "Colossians 1,1518 in the Light of Jewish Mysticism and Gnosticism." 2 On this point, one can consult the different dictionaries or vocabularies (TWNT, etc.). Rere is a list of some terms. The adjective sophos, applied to men, negatively (Rom 1 :22; 1 Cor 1: 19,20,26,27; 3: 18, 19, 20), positively (Rom 1:14; 16: 19; 1 Cor 3: 10; 6:5; Eph 5: 5), or to God (Rom 6:27; 1 Cor 1:25), The substantive oo