How do you describe Saint Paul's teaching on Jesus' resurrection?

Answer 1

The Corinthians had understood the resurrection of Christ, not in terms of a bodily resurrection "from the dead", but in terms of translation, metamorphosis or exaltation into a purely spiritual mode of existence. Paul came up with the notion of a "spiritual body". In 1 Corinthians 15 he argues that:

• There are many kinds of bodies among animals and human beings, and the "bodies of plants are different from the 'bodies' of the seeds from which they come.
• There are earthly bodies and "heavenly bodies" (with reference to sun, moon, and stars).
• The first man, Adam, had a "physical body"; the "man from heaven" (Christ) had a "spiritual body". (1 Corinthians 15:45-47)
• The resurrection of Christ was the "first fruits" of the general resurrection of Christians which would take place at the eschaton.

At the general resurrection, the bodies of the dead would be changed into imperishable bodies just like the heavenly body of Christ.

At least in this Epistle, Paul sees the resurrction as spiritual. Elsewhere, the resurrection and the ascension to heaven appear to be the same event.

Answer 2

At 1 Corinthians 15:3-8, Paul said that Jesus died and was buried, rose again according to the scriptures, then was seen by Cephas, then the twelve, then by more than 500, most of whom were still alive, then by James and all the apostles, and finally by himself.

Not only does this account differ in several important ways from the accounts that would later form part of the gospels, but Paul implied that the appearances were all of the same nature. There is no suggestion that any of the appearances to Cephas, the twelve, James or the apostles were somehow more real than the spiritual appearance he experienced. He only deferred because he was the last to see Jesus and because he had been guilty of persecuting Christians.