What Does It Mean to Read New Testament Texts ‘within Judaism’?

What is it about?

For centuries, Christians have understood some of the texts included in the New Testament as ‘Jewish,’ in the sense of them being written by (converted) Jews for other Jews. From a historical perspective, a new development in the academy suggests that such approaches do not do justice to the nature of these texts. Indeed, even more recent attempts at understanding the New Testament against the background of Judaism are also found wanting. Instead, placing these texts within the broader context of the diverse ways of embodying Jewish ancestral customs in the pre-rabbinic Second Temple period, this interpretive trajectory, involving scholars from a wide array of backgrounds, insists that Paul, Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, Revelation etc., should be understood as expressions of Judaism. This article highlights key issues involved in such re-readings of New Testament texts, including ways in which they may or may not relate to normative-theological positions among Christians and Jews today. First, the study looks at how the question is asked in our contemporary setting. Then, moving down historical layers, issues related to history and categorisation are addressed before we, finally, return to the present to consider possible implications of our findings.

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Photo by Mathias Reding on Unsplash

Photo by Mathias Reding on Unsplash

Why is it important?

Christianity is the world's largest religion, with more than a billion adherents. The impact of Christianity on how people view the world and their relationships with people of different religious identities cannot be overestimated. Understanding how this religion emerged in antiquity, from having been a form of Judaism to becoming a related but separate institution is key if we want to understand how the modern world is configured and functions, socially and politically as well as ideologically and theologically. This article takes on a crucial period in the life of both Judaism and Christianity, aiming also to draw conclusions about how history may or may not impact the present.