and Jewish Christians. Paul implies that these two groups are divided over whether believers need to obey certain provisions of the Mosaic law. (See comments on this section in the commentary.) A popular theory about the letter’s purpose today, then, is that Paul writes Romans to help heal this division. Romans 14:1–15:13 represents the heart of the letter; the theology of the earlier chapters simply prepares the way for this climactic appeal.13 The very presence of this section in the letter makes