I am currently working on an essay about "Paul's Judaism" (partly inspired by a Mark Nanos stirring paper). I hope to one day return to the subject of Paul as a missionary among the Gentiles and not just too them (see Rom. 1.5 and 1 Cor. 9.20). That I think opens up the possiblity of Paul seeing himself as having some kind of role as an evangelist to Diaspora communities as well even if only in a limited sense with his main role oriented towards non-Jews. But the subject of Jewish evangelism is often rejected in favour of a Sonderweg (special way) of salvation for Jews under the Torah and Mosaic covenant. It's also argued that Israel's "misstep" was its refusal to accept that, with the resurrection of Jesus, God had now opened up a way for Gentiles to enter the Abrahamic family through faith in Christ. The biggest problem I have is that apart from not making sense of Romans 9-11 it implies that the existence of Jewish Christianity was simply a necessary transitional phase or, even worse, a grave mistake. On Jewish evangelism in relation to Romans (esp. 10.14-21!) note the following quotations from Richard Bell and N.T. Wright:
Richard H. Bell (Provoked to Jealousy: The Origin and Purpose of the Jealousy Motif in Romans 9–11 [WUNT 2.63; Tübingen: Mohr/Siebeck, 1994], 354-55): ‘Paul’s theology demands a mission to the Jewish people. Provoking Israel to jealousy is no replacement for mission. It is just one possible precursor for mission. The gospel must be preached for it is only the gospel, God’s reconciling word, which can make someone a Christian (Rom. 10.17) … I would maintain that evangelism to Jews is not antisemitism; rather to renounce preaching the liberating gospel to Jewish people is antisemitism’.
N.T. Wright (‘Romans,’ in NIB, ed. Leander E. Keck [12 vols.; Nashville: Abingdon, 2002], 10.697): ‘to imagine that Jews can no longer be welcomed into the family of the Messiah … [that] for Paul, would be the very height of anti-Judaism’.
See further The Berlin Declaration on the Uniqueness of Christ and Jewish Evangelism in Europe Today and the book To the Jew First: The Case for Jewish Evangelism in Scripture and History edited by Darrell Bock and Mitch Glaser.
3 comments:
Hey Mike,
Make sure you include a comment on Rom 11:13-14. Paul deliberately magnified his preaching ministry to the Gentiles in order to promote Jewish evangelism by provoking them to jealousy in accordance with Deut 32:21. Paul effectively understood Deut 32 as a prophecy about salvation history--how Israel's covenant rebellion would lead to the calling of the Gentiles, which would in turn be used in the purposes of God to bring Israel back to covenant faithfulness through the Messiah. It's amazing how Paul actually put himself in the target line of his "orthodox" Jewish brothers (by magnifying his work among the Gentiles) in order that they might re-assess the truth about Messiah Jesus. He was deliberately provocative for the sake of Christ with a view to the salvation of his Jewish brothers.
I'm reviewing Larry Wills's Not God's People who prefers the sonderweg of Judaism's relation to Israel's God. One of the problems with such thinking, I think (and this problem is well encapsulated in the very language of sonderweg!), is the assumption of a qualitative distinction between Judaism and Christianity already in the ministry of Paul.
I posted on this just yesterday (available here), and the paper I proposed for New Orleans takes up exactly this issue.
'It's also argued that Israel's "misstep" was its refusal to accept that, with the resurrection of Jesus, God had now opened up a way for Gentiles to enter the Abrahamic family through faith in Christ. The biggest problem I have is that apart from not making sense of Romans 9-11'
Is there anything in Romans 9-11 about Israel refusing to accept the resurrection?
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