Question

What do scholars mean when they classify some letters of Paul as disputed and other as undisputed?

A) Disputed letters are those written by Paul himself, while undisputed letters are written by his followers.
B) Disputed letters are those whose authenticity as writings of Paul is questioned, while undisputed letters are widely accepted as Paul's genuine works.
C) Disputed letters are those that are included in the New Testament, while undisputed letters are not part of the Christian biblical canon.
D) Disputed letters are those that contain theological controversies, while undisputed letters are purely doctrinal in nature.

Answer 1

Scholars use 'disputed' and 'undisputed' to describe whether Pauline letters' authorships are questioned or widely accepted, respectively; this classification does not correlate with their New Testament inclusion or theological content.

Step-by-step explanation:

When scholars classify some letters of Paul as disputed and others as undisputed, they are referring to the authenticity of the writings being attributed to Paul. Disputed letters are those whose authorship by Paul is questioned by scholars, while undisputed letters are those that are widely accepted within the academic community as having been written by Paul himself. This classification does not necessarily refer to the inclusion in the New Testament or the nature of the theological content within the letters.