Soupçon

When I first became a Christian we were often encouraged to read the New Testament or even the whole Bible in its entirety. I then settled down to the regular Christian habit of reading a few verses each day, often the passage chosen for that following Sunday, or when following a daily study programme. With the length of the books in the Old Testament and also the gospels in the New, this I'd an advisable strategy if one isn't to spend hours reading and little time reflecting. However, recently I have taken a different approach with the epistles, reading them in their entirety at one sitting and by doing so I have found it easier to understand the purpose of the letter and and to appreciate how the writer chooses to approach his readers. For instance in 1 Corinthians one can sense the ebb amd flow of Paul's approach; cautious almost fawning in the early part of his letter before he drives home his argument in the latter chapters. It is really quite an experience as one can almost hear Paul speaking as he dictates the letter and sense the reaction as the recipients read it. But then I guess these were written as letters which are expected to be read as such. My only caveat to this would be concerning Romans, a text rich with somewhat intellectual arguments that made my head spin when I read it in one sitting, like a fine dessert or dark chocolate a soupçon is enough for one sitting.