Judaism and the Origins of Christianity

Judaism and the Origins of Christianity
Author: David Flusser
Publisher: Hebrew University Magnes Press
Total Pages: 770
Release: 1988
Genre: Religion
ISBN:

For more than three decades, Professor David Flusser of the Hebrew University in Jerusalem has pioneered new understandings of the Jewish background of early Christianity. Many have been fascinated by his unique monograph on Jesus, translated into several languages. Most of his scholarly articles in English, including some new contributions as well as many published in not easily accessible journals, have been collected in this one volume. A must for New Testament scholars, and students of early Judaism, it will also be welcomed by the many lay persons for whom Professor Flusser has provided illumination on the origins of Christian faith.

Ancient Judaism and Christian Origins

Ancient Judaism and Christian Origins
Author: George W. E. Nickelsburg
Publisher: Fortress Press
Total Pages: 288
Release: 2003
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 9781451408485

In the nineteenth and first half of the twentieth century, Christian scholars portrayed Judaism as the dark religious backdrop to the liberating events of Jesus' life and the rise of the early church. Since the 1950s, however, a dramatic shift has occurred in the study of Judaism, driven by new manuscript and archaeological discoveries and new methods and tools for analyzing sources. George Nickelsburg here provides a broad and synthesizing picture of the results of the past fifty years of scholarship on early Judaism and Christianity. He organizes his discussion around a number of traditional topics: scripture and tradition, Torah and the righteous life, God's activity on humanity's behalf, agents of God's activity, eschatology, historical circumstances, and social settings. Each of the chapters discusses the findings of contemporary research on early Judaism, and then sketches the implications of this research for a possible reinter-pretation of Christianity. Still, in the author's view, there remains a major Jewish-Christian agenda yet to be developed and implemented.

The Origins of Judaism, Christianity and Islam

The Origins of Judaism, Christianity and Islam
Author: John Pickard
Publisher: Pen and Sword History
Total Pages: 702
Release: 2021-12-22
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 1399006770

There has never been a more important time for a study of the social, economic and political origins of Judaism, Christianity and Islam, three important world religions which share a common root. This book takes as its starting point the idea that gods, angels, miracles and other supernatural phenomena do not exist in the real world and therefore cannot explain the origins of these faiths. It looks instead at the material conditions at appropriate periods in antiquity and the social and economic forces at work, and it examines the historicity of key figures like Moses, Jesus and Mohammed. This is a unique book which draws on the research, knowledge and expertise of hundreds of historians, archaeologists and scholars, to create a synthesis that is completely coherent and at the same time is based on real-world social conditions. It is a book by a non-believer for other non-believers, and it will be a revelatory read, even to those already of an atheist, agnostic or secularist persuasion.

Christian Origins and Hellenistic Judaism

Christian Origins and Hellenistic Judaism
Author: Stanley E. Porter
Publisher: BRILL
Total Pages: 631
Release: 2012-10-23
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 9004236392

In Christian Origins and Hellenistic Judaism, Stanley E. Porter and Andrew W. Pitts assemble an international team of scholars whose work has focused on reconstructing the social matrix for earliest Christianity through reference to Hellenistic Judaism and its literary forms. Each essay moves forward the current understanding of how primitive Christianity situated itself in relation to evolving Greco-Roman Jewish culture. Some essays focus on configuring the social context for the origins of the Jesus movement and beyond, while others assess the literary relation between early Christian and Hellenistic Jewish texts.

Understanding the Jewish Roots of Christianity

Understanding the Jewish Roots of Christianity
Author: Gerald McDermott
Publisher: Lexham Press
Total Pages: 214
Release: 2021-03-17
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 1683594622

How Jewish is Christianity? The question of how Jesus' followers relate to Judaism has been a matter of debate since Jesus first sparred with the Pharisees. The controversy has not abated, taking many forms over the centuries. In the decades following the Holocaust, scholars and theologians reconsidered the Jewish origins and character of Christianity, finding points of continuity. Understanding the Jewish Roots of Christianity advances this discussion by freshly reassessing the issues. Did Jesus intend to form a new religion? Did Paul abrogate the Jewish law? Does the New Testament condemn Judaism? How and when did Christianity split from Judaism? How should Jewish believers in Jesus relate to a largely gentile church? What meaning do the Jewish origins of Christianity have for theology and practice today? In this volume, a variety of leading scholars and theologians explore the relationship of Judaism and Christianity through biblical, historical, theological, and ecclesiological angles. This cutting-edge scholarship will enrich readers' understanding of this centuries-old debate.

Jewish-Christianity and the History of Judaism

Jewish-Christianity and the History of Judaism
Author: Annette Yoshiko Reed
Publisher: Mohr Siebeck
Total Pages: 535
Release: 2018-07-12
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 3161544765

"Jewish-Christianity" is a contested category in current research. But for precisely this reason, it may offer a powerful lens through which to rethink the history of Jewish/Christian relations. Traditionally, Jewish-Christianity has been studied as part of the origins and early diversity of Christianity. Collecting revised versions of previously published articles together with new materials, Annette Yoshiko Reed reconsiders Jewish-Christianity in the context of Late Antiquity and in conversation with Jewish studies. She brings further attention to understudied texts and traditions from Late Antiquity that do not fit neatly into present day notions of Christianity as distinct from Judaism. In the process, she uses these materials to probe the power and limits of our modern assumptions about religion and identity.

A Portable God

A Portable God
Author: Risa Levitt Kohn
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
Total Pages: 228
Release: 2007
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 9780742544659

Many Christians and Jews believe that their faiths developed independently from each other, and that their religions are distinct, even antagonistic towards each other. A Portable God dramatically departs from the idea that the birth of Judaism and Christianity are two separate, unrelated events. Judaism and Christianity's origins are not seen as following a linear, chronological process that places the Israelites in the beginning, followed by the Jews, and finally the Christians. On the contrary, A Portable God shows that both Judaism and Christianity emerge from the same religious tradition--that of ancient Israel--at the same time. By telling the common story of Jewish and Christian origins, A Portable God shows Jews and Christians as siblings, rather than as parent and child, showing that the similarities between Judaism and Christianity far outweigh their differences, ultimately fostering appreciation for the shared heritage of Judaism and Christianity.

Christians and the Holy Places

Christians and the Holy Places
Author: Joan E. Taylor
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Total Pages: 414
Release: 1993
Genre: History
ISBN: 9780198147855

This book is a detailed examination of the literature and archaeology pertaining to specific sites (in Palestine, Jerusalem, Bethlehem, Memre, Nazareth, Capernaum, and elsewhere) and the region in general. Taylor contends that the origins of these holy places and the phenomenon of Christian pilgrimage can be traced to the emperor Constantine, who ruled over the eastern Empire from 324. He contends that few places were actually genuine; the most important authentic site being the cave (not Garden) of Gethsemane, where Christ was probably arrested. Extensively illustrated, this lively new look at a topic previously shrouded in obscurity should interest students in scholars in a range of disciplines.

Explaining Christian Origins and Early Judaism

Explaining Christian Origins and Early Judaism
Author: Petri Luomanen
Publisher: BRILL
Total Pages: 336
Release: 2007-11-30
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 9047431960

Cognitive science of religion is a radically new paradigm in the study of religion. Apart from psychology and anthropology of religion, also historians of religion have shown increasing interest in this approach. This volume is groundbreaking in combining cognitive analysis with historical and social-scientific approaches to biblical materials, Christian origins, and early Judaism. The book is in four parts: an introduction to cognitive and social-scientific approaches, applications of cognitive science, applications of conceptual blending theory, and applications of socio-cognitive analyses. The book will be of interest for historians of religion, biblical scholars, and those working in the cognitive science of religion.