Within Judaism? Interpretive Trajectories in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam from the First to the Twenty-First Century

by Karin Hedner Zetterholm (Editor), Anders Runesson University of Oslo; autho (Editor), Mohammed Ibraheem Ahmed (Contribution by), William S. Campbell (Contribution by), Wally V. Cirafesi Lund University (Contribution by)

Overview

This book charts the shifting boundaries of Judaism from antiquity to the modern period in order to bring clarity to what scholars mean when they claim that ancient texts or groups are “within Judaism,” as well as exploring how rabbinic Jews, Christians, and Muslims have negotiated and renegotiated what Judaism is and is not in order to form their own identities. Belief in Jesus as the Messiah was seen as part of first-century Judaism, but by the fourth or fifth century, the boundaries had shifted and adherence to Jesus came to be seen as outside of Judaism. Resituating New Testament texts within first- or second-century Judaism is an historical exercise that may broaden our view of what Judaism looked like in the early centuries CE, but normatively these texts remain within Christianity because of their reception history. The historical “within Judaism” perspective, however, has the potential to challenge and reshape the theology of contemporary Christianity while at the same time the long-held consensus that belief in Jesus cannot belong within Judaism is again challenged by the modern Messianic Jewish movement.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781978715073
Publisher:	Lexington Books
Publication date:	11/27/2023
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	432
File size:	987 KB

About the Author

Karin Hedner Zetterholm is associate professor of Jewish Studies at Lund University.

Anders Runesson is professor of New Testament at the University of Oslo.

Table of Contents

Part I. The “Within Judaism” Perspective: What’s at Stake?

1. The “Within Judaism” Perspective: Why Does It Matter?

Magnus Zetterholm

2. What Does “Within Judaism” Mean? Some Thoughts on Method, History, and Theology

Anders Runesson

3. What’s in a Label? “Jews,” “Judaism,” and “Jewish” in the Study of Antiquity

Adele Reinhartz

4. What’s in a Translation?

Mark D. Nanos

5. Gender, Judaism, and the Jesus Movement: What Change Does “Within” Bring?

Kathy Ehrensperger

6. Attending to Power: “Within Judaism” Scholarship and the Erasure of History

Neil Elliott

Part II. The First and Second Centuries: Reading New Testament Texts Within Judaism

7. Paul Within Judaism

Paula Fredriksen

8. Mark Within Judaism

John Van Maaren

9. Matthew Within Judaism

Matthias Konradt

10. Luke Within Judaism

Joshua Paul Smith and Matthew Thiessen

11. Acts Within Judaism

Isaac W. Oliver

12. John Within Judaism

Wally V. Cirafesi

13. Revelation Within Judaism

Ralph J. Korner

14. James Within Judaism

Karl-Wilhelm Niebuhr

Part III. From the Third Century to the Rise of Islam: New Boundaries Emerge

15. Jesus Within Third- and Fourth-Century Judaism: The Pseudo-Clementine Recognitions 1.27–71 and the Homilies

Karin Hedner Zetterholm

16. 2 Enoch Within Judaism? Erudite Eclecticism in Late Antiquity

Grant Macaskill

17. Augustine on Jesus and Paul Within Judaism

Paula Fredriksen

18. John Chrysostom Draws a Line

Michele Murray

19. Within Israel: A Rabbinic Perspective

Adiel Schremer

20. What Falls Within Judaism According to the Quran? Q5 Sūrat al-Māʾida 44–47 as Critique of Mishnah Avot 1:1

Holger Zellentin

21. Judaism Within Islam? Jews and Judaism in Early Islamic Sources

Mohammed Ahmed

Part IV. Present-Day Judaism and Christianity

22. “Within Judaism” in Contemporary Jewish Life

Elliot N. Dorff

23. Can Jesus as Messiah Find a Place Within Twenty-First Century Judaism? The Messianic Jewish Challenge

Mark S. Kinzer and Jennifer M. Rosner

24. What Does “Within Judaism” Mean for Catholic Christians Today?

Philip A. Cunningham

25. What Does the “Within Judaism” Perspective Mean for Protestant Christians Today?

William S. Campbell and Kathy Ehrensperger

Editorial Reviews

The value of this book lies in the fact that it gathers together a diverse array of perspectives from "within Judaism." This movement has drawn traction over the past 25 years. Viewing Jewish, Christian, and Islamic traditions from previously overlooked perspectives can provide insightful conceptual and historical information that readers unfamiliar with "within Judaism" approaches may find useful. Additionally, readers who are already familiar with some topics can benefit from seeing how related analyses are applied to other topics. This is a book that you will return to again and time again.

BibleScholar

This collection is valuable for bringing together in one place a wide range of different approaches to "within Judaism." Readers already familiar with certain topics can benefit from seeing how related analyses are applied to other topics, and those new to "within Judaism" approaches can encounter the fruitful conceptual and historical insights that can come from looking at Jewish, Christian, and Islamic traditions from previously-neglected perspectives.

Daniel H. Weiss

This is a really remarkable book. Even as debates over situating New Testament texts “within Judaism” continue to roil biblical studies, Hedner Zetterholm, Runesson, and their outstanding contributors pause to theorize the question itself, to explore what is at stake, and for whom, and to point to promising ways forward. The authors of the twenty-five chapters are expert guides to a difficult but extremely important field of research. This will be a book to come back to again and again.

Matthew V. Novenson