5 - General conclusion

Summary

The preceding study of the Pauline communities has been conducted to illustrate that norms, ministry structures, ritual forms and beliefs are shaped by the realities experienced by a sect in the early stages of institutionalization. It is through the process of institutionalization that the symbolic universe is constructed. The symbolic universe may be envisioned as interacting across a dialectic with the lives it embraces. Throughout community-building institutionalization, the universe is in the process of solidifying. At this stage, much ambiguity surrounds the question of how members of the community should act and how beliefs should be interpreted. Institutionalization is relatively free to proceed in different directions. We can expect that as the body of tradition grows larger, institutionalization will become set along a more definite course. As problems of management increase, more firmly established guidelines for living will be required. When deviance becomes a problem, the universe must be maintained and further legitimation is required. In the following study of Colossians and Ephesians, we will investigate how problems of management affect development. We will trace the continued solidification and alteration of the symbolic universe in communities that appealed to the authority of the Apostle in his absence.