Читать книгу Judaism I - Группа авторов - Страница 88

At some point in the first century, a movement of Jews, then increasingly of gentiles, found themselves attracted to the teachings of a Judean Jew named Jesus of Nazareth and his followers. Jesus emerged from the theological and political cauldron of the first century, and his reformist thought, such that it can be reconstructed, is run through with apocalyptic ideas with a political bent, much like other charismatic religio-political figures depicted (and derided) by Josephus (see section on Zealots and Jewish extremism above). The history of early Christianity has no shortage of chroniclers.⁴⁷ Though the movement collected Jewish followers, at some point around the turn of the second century, its rapid growth shifted to gentile populations, as is chronicled in Acts of the Apostles, for example, as well as the letters of Paul.⁴⁸ Despite this evolution, outside of polemical literature there was no hard and fast line separating »Christianity« from »Judaism« until rather late.⁴⁹ Indeed Christian texts that vociferously proclaim the distinction (such as Justin Martyr in the second century, church fathers Tertullian, third c., and fourth c. John Chrysostom) offer evidence that their audiences were not yet clear on the lines dividing Jew from Christian. Though they share cities and towns with the growing Christian movement in the Galilee and elsewhere, 2nd–3rd century rabbis are virtually silent on the topic of Christianity.⁵⁰