Who Made Early Christianity? T H E JEWISH LIVES OF THE APOSTLE PAUL JOHN G. GAGER Who Made Early Christianity? American Lectures on the History of Religions his volume is the eighteenth to be published in the series of Ameri- can Lectures on the History of Religions for which the American TCouncil of Learned Societies, through its Committee on the His- tory of Religions, assumed responsibility in 1936, and for which the Ameri- can Academy of Religion assumed responsibility in 1995. Under the program the Committee from time to time enlists the services of scholars to lecture in colleges, universities, and seminaries on topics in need of expert elucida- tion. Subsequently, when possible and appropriate, the Committee arranges for the publication of the lectures. Other volumes in the series are Martin P. Nilsson, Greek Popular Religion (1940); Henri Frankfort, Ancient Egyptian Religion (1948); Wing-tsit Chan, Religious Trends in Modern China (1953); Joachim Wach, Te Comparative Study of Religions, Christianity (1959); Rob- ert Lawson Slater, World Religions and World Community (1963); Joseph M. Kitagawa, Religion in Japanese History (1966); Joseph L. Blau, Modern Vari- eties of Judaism (1966); Morton Smith, Palestinian Parties and Politics Tat Shaped the Old Testament (1971); Philip H. Ashby, Modern Trends in Hindu- ism (1974); Victor Turner and Edith Turner, Image and Pilgrimage in Chris- tian Culture (1978); Annemarie Schimmel, As Trough a Veil: Mystical Poetry in Islam (1982); Peter Brown, Te Body and Society: Men, Women, and Sexual Renunciation in Early Christianity (1988); W. H. McLeod, Te Sikhs: History, Religion, and Society (1989); Caroline Walker Bynum, Te Resurrection of the Body in Western Christianity, 200–1336 (1995); Wendy Doniger, Te Implied Spider (1998); and Bruce B. Lawrence, New Faiths, Old Fears: Muslims and Other Asian Immigrants in American Religious Life (2002). Who Made Early Christianity? T H E J EWI S H L I V E S OF T H E A P O S T L E PAU L d JOHN G. G AGE R Columbia University Press New York Columbia University Press Publishers Since 1893 New York Chichester, West Sussex cup.columbia.edu Copyright © 2015 Columbia University Press All rights reserved Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Gager, John G. Who made early Christianity? : the Jewish lives of the Apostle Paul / John G. Gager. pages cm. — (American lectures on the history of religions ; 18) Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978-0-231-17404-6 (cloth : alk. paper) — ISBN 978-0-231-53937-1 (e-book) 1. Paul, the Apostle, Saint—Relations with Jews. 2. Identifcation (Religion) 3. Christianity and other religions—Judaism. 4. Judaism—Relations—Christianity. 5. Christianity—Origin. I. Title. BS2506.3.G34 2015 225.9⬘2—dc23 2014044886 Columbia University Press books are printed on permanent and durable acid-free paper. Tis book is printed on paper with recycled content. Printed in the United States of America c 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 p 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Cover Design: Jordan Wannemacher Cover Image: Torah shrine. Courtesy of Yale University Art Gallery, Dura Europos Collection. References to websites (URLs) were accurate at the time of writing. Neither the author nor Columbia University Press is responsible for URLs that may have expired or changed since the manuscript was prepared. C O N T E N T S d Acknowledgments vii Introduction 1 1. Was the Apostle to the Gentiles the Father of Christian Anti-Judaism? 17 2. The Apostle Paul in Jewish Eyes: Heretic or Hero? 37 3. Let’s Meet Downtown in the Synagogue: Four Case Studies 53 4. Two Stories of How Early Christianity Came to Be 87 5. Turning the World Upside Down: An Ancient Jewish Life of Jesus 117 6. Epilogue 139 Notes 147 Index 185 A C K N O W L E D G M E N T S d hese chapters grew out of a series of lectures delivered in At- lanta, Georgia, in April of 2013. Sponsored by the American T Academy of Religion (AAR), the lectures form part of the series, Te American Lectures in the History of Religions. My lectures were de- livered at Agnes Scott College, Georgia State University, Spelman College, Morehouse College, and Emory University. My hosts for these lectures were Jack Fitzmier, Executive Director of the AAR, and Lou Ruprecht of Georgia State University. Without their friendship and constant support, these lectures and chapters would not have happened. I am deeply grateful to them. Teir eforts went well beyond what was necessary. I must also express my gratitude to the students from the various institutions who at- tended my lectures and raised important questions in our discussions. Te work refected in these chapters reaches back over many years and is indebted to many friends and colleagues in the Department of Religion at Princeton. Martha Himmelfarb and Leora Batnitzky have shown en- couragement at every stage of my work. Simi Chavel, Naphtali Meshel, and Azzan Yadin-Israel (Rutgers) demonstrated outstanding patience and knowledge as we worked through various versions of the Toledot Yeshu. Peter Schäfer, my distinguished colleague for many years, served as both mentor and helpful critic. He shared generously from his enormous knowl- edge of ancient Judaism. Michael Meerson has proved to be a reliable resource at many points. Jefrey Stout has been a constant companion. Un- dergraduate students, reaching back to 1968 at Princeton and elsewhere, have provided a constant source of inspiration. Tis is also the place to recognize the work of my graduate students, who have become my teachers in this prolonged project. In the world of the academy, there can be no greater joy than seeing one’s students fourish as distinguished scholars and teachers. Two deceased scholars—Krister Stendahl and Lloyd Gaston—have ex- ercised an enormous impact on my understanding of the apostle Paul. It is impossible to overstate what their work and friendship has meant to me over many years. I must also recognize the work of two Jewish scholars, neither of whom was known to me personally, whose work on Paul de- serves far more attention than it has received—Jacob Taubes and Michael Wyschogrod. I would be remiss not to acknowledge the support I have received from various Israeli colleagues, to whom I am grateful—David Satran, Guy Stroumsa, Israel Yuval, Hillel Newman, Maren Niehof, Yair Furstenberg, and Yaacov Deutsch. I must also acknowledge the two anonymous reviewers of my manu- script. Tey read it with great care and understanding. Teir criticisms and suggestions aimed at making this a better book, not a diferent one. I can only hope that I have not disappointed them in following their proposals. Some of the material in these chapters has appeared in earlier publica- tions. Portions of chapter 1 appeared in my book Reinventing Paul (New York: Oxford University Press, 2000). Much of chapter 4 appeared in my essay “Te Rehabilitation of Paul in Jewish Tradition,” in “Te One Who Sews Bountifully”: Essays in Honor of Stanley K. Stowers, ed. C. Hodge, S. Olyan, D. Ullicci, and E. Wasserman (Providence: Brown University Press, 2013), 29–41. It is used here by permission. Portions of chapter 5 have appeared in various earlier publications, as indicated in the endnotes. Finally, I dedicate this book to my beloved children—Kristin, Peter, and Andrea. Tey make living and working worthwhile. viii ack n owl ed g m en ts Who Made Early Christianity?