How Jesus Became Christian
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In How Jesus Became Christian, Barrie Wilson Ph.D. confronts one of the simplest—yet undiscovered—questions of religious history: How did a young, well-respected rabbi become the head of a cult that bore his name, espoused a philosophy he wouldn't wholly understand, and possessed a clear streak of anti-Semitism that has sparked hatred against the generations of Jews who followed him? Vividly recreating the Hellenistic world into which Jesus was born, Wilson looks at the rivalry of the "Jesus movement", informed by Matthew and adhering to Torah worship, and the "Christ movement," headed by Paul which shunned Torah. Suggesting that Paul's movement was not rooted in the teachings of historical Jesus, but a mystical vision of Christ, he further proposes Paul founded the new religion through anti-semitic propaganda, crushing the Jesus Movement. Sure to be controversial, this is an exciting, well-written popular religious history that cuts to the heart of the differences between Christianity and Judaism. How Jesus Became Christian looks at how one of the world's great religions prospered and grew at the cost of another and focuses on one of the fundamental questions that goes to the heart of way millions worship daily: Who was Jesus Christ —a Jew or a Christian? Library Journal In this provocative work, Wilson (religious studies, York Univ., Toronto) investigates the increasingly popular hypothesis that Christianity's origins are rooted in a colossal cover-up, asserting that the "original" Jesus movement developed into the Ebionites, an early Jewish Christian sect. Wilson indirectly presents modern Judaism's understanding of its own development in relation to that of Christianity, and in this respect, his work may be useful. However, several factors preempt any such benefit. First, he displays an uncritical bias in choosing the Ebionites as the "original" Christians solely on the basis of their relative "Jewishness." Additionally, he reiterates unproven hypotheses concerning James (Jesus's brother) and Paul, mistakenly considering them new. Wilson's view of Christians throughout is typified by hostile language and quick accusations. In effect, these pages serve to magnify the rifts and injuries between Jews and Christians. For a balanced perspective, consider instead N.T. Wright's Jesus and the Victory of God or James D.G. Dunn's Jesus Remembered . Not recommended.-Dann Wigner, Wayland Baptist Univ. Lib., Plainview, TX Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.
Acknowledgments ixPrologue: A Personal Note xi1 The Cover-Up 12 Cultures in Conflict 73 Being Jewish in a Cosmopolitan World 314 The Secrets of History 485 The Challenge of Jesus 636 The Promises of Jesus 857 Jesus's Earliest Followers: The Jesus Movement 958 What Happened to Jesus? 1039 The Trouble with Paul 10910 The Big Switch: Christ for Jesus 13111 The Jesus Movement Fades Away 15012 Paul The Radical 16813 Demonizing Jewish Leadership and The Jewish People 18214 Confiscating Judaism's Heritage 19515 Attacking the Jewish Concept of God 21116 Anti-Semitism 23017 The Cover-Up Revealed 237Epilogue: The Way Forward 254Timelines 267Terminology 275Notes 285Bibliography 300Index 307
