The Rise of the Jesus Movement: Paul Tarsus to the Fall of Jerusalem (hour 21)
Paul's Arrival and the Corinthian Context
Arrival in Corinth: In the year CE, Paul of Tarsus arrived at the Greek city of Corinth, located on the shores of the Aegean Sea.
The Urban Environment:
Paul likely walked up the main street of Corinth, passing through a monumental Roman archway into the forum.
The forum served as the city's nerve center for business, public life, and political activities.
Surrounding the forum were shops and the offices of the city magistrates.
The city was dominated by the literal shadow of the great Temple of Apollo.
The Religious Landscape of Greco-Roman Paganism
The Olympian Pantheon: Apollo, the sun god, was the protector of Corinth. He belonged to the family of Olympian gods, which included Zeus, Hera, Artemis, and Athena.
Nature of Paganism:
Paganism is the modern designation for the practices of more than of the population in the Mediterranean.
It provided a rich array of deities tailored to meeting various individual needs.
The religious environment is described as a "supermarket" where individuals could "shop for a god" depending on their stage of life or functional needs.
Sacred Sites: Pilgrims had worshiped for centuries at local shrines, such as the sacred Spring of the Perem.
Competing Worldviews:
Jews were a visible minority within this vast pagan universe.
To a cosmopolitan Greek in Corinth, Paul’s message of a Jewish Messiah intended to save all of mankind—both Jew and Gentile—seemed outlandish.
The Apostle Paul: Significance and Teachings
Historical Profile: Paul is considered the most intriguing figure of first-century Christianity, second only to Jesus. He is far better known historically because he authored numerous letters.
Early Christian Language: Paul’s letters to fledgling congregations in the Greek East constitute the beginning of the New Testament. These writings established the hallmark language of the later Christian tradition.
Verbatim Teachings and Themes:
"For as long as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes."
"Wait for his son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead."
"Whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things."
The Central Message: Paul verbally communicated two primary pillars:
Christology: The vital importance of the death and resurrection of Jesus.
Apocalypticism: The immediacy of the end time. Paul believed the end of the world was "just around the corner."
Ethics: Moral living was framed as preparation for the imminent end time.
The Origins and Evolution of the Jesus Movement
Pre-Pauline Traditions: The story of Jesus' death and resurrection originated with the first followers in Jerusalem.
Joseph reportedly took the body, wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, and laid it in his own new tomb hewn in the rock.
The Post-Execution Panic:
The Roman execution of Jesus was intended to terrify his followers.
Before the Easter proclamation, there was an "Easter panic" where followers hid, knowing they were accomplices of an executed criminal.
Theological Reinterpretation:
Followers had to reconcile the shameful death of their leader with their expectations.
They turned to Hebrew Scriptures to determine if the Elect One or Messiah was meant to be oppressed and executed.
They concluded that suffering and execution were part of the "job description" of God’s righteous one.
They claimed God vindicated Jesus’ status as king of the Jews by raising him from the dead.
Resurrection Narratives:
An angel of the Lord rolled back the stone from the tomb.
The gospels emphasize two points: Jesus was biologically dead, and the disciples were absolutely convinced they saw him afterward.
The raised Jesus was not a ghost; he emphasized his physical nature (flesh and bones) and ate a piece of fish to prove he was not a spirit.
The Diversity of Early Christianity
The Acts Account vs. Historical Reality:
Pentecost: The Book of Acts places the start of Christianity at a single moment: days after Jesus' death (Pentecost). It describes a violent wind from heaven and divided tongues of fire resting on each person.
Variability: Historically, the movement likely began in many different centers simultaneously. It was a "wildly variegated" phenomenon.
Groups and Styles:
Wandering Charismatics: Preachers with no ordinary occupation who relied on the hospitality of others for food and housing.
Settled Groups: Small communities in little towns.
Radical Groups: Those who abandoned family life and ordinary occupations.
Internal Debates: Early arguments focused on how Jewish or Greek the movement should be, how to adapt to culture, and whether the sayings of Jesus were more important than his death and resurrection.
Terminology: Scholars prefer the term "Jesus movement" for this stage because the group did not yet see itself as a separate institutional religion (Christianity). They saw themselves as a Jewish sect expecting a Jewish Messiah to return to Earth.
Expansion and the Roman World
Mobility: The Roman Empire offered unprecedented freedom of movement, comparable to the era after the invention of the steamship.
The Road Network: Major roads like the Via Ignacio carried commercial products, philosophers, and missionaries. The network established for the Roman army ironically became the primary tool for spreading Christianity.
Diaspora Judaism:
By the first century, more Jews lived outside Israel than within it.
Concentrations existed in Babylon and major Mediterranean cities.
This established network allowed the Jesus movement to spread as a "new and constantly improvising form of Judaism."
Paul’s Mission in Antioch and the Synagogues
Antioch Demographic: The capital of Roman Syria had one of the largest Jewish communities, estimated at people.
The Synagogue Role: In the diaspora, synapses functioned more as community centers than formal ritual houses (the latter came later in the century).
Gentile Attraction:
Gentiles were drawn to synagogues because there was no pagan equivalent to the communal experience.
They were attracted by the antiquity and prestige of the Jewish Bible and claims of salvation/regeneration.
Ritual Developments:
Baptism: An initiation ceremony (literally meaning "dunking").
Common Meal: A dining fellowship held in homes as a memorial of the Last Supper.
The Struggle Over Mosaic Law and Identity
Identity Markers: Conversion to Judaism traditionally required dietary laws (distinguishing clean/unclean animals) and male circumcision.
Circumcision as a Barrier: This was a significant "hurdle" in the Greek world, where nudity in gymnasiums made the distinction obvious.
Paul’s Breakthrough: Paul argued that baptism could replace circumcision. He proposed a "new map of the world" where old distinctions were obliterated: "There is no longer Jew or Greek… slave or free… male and female, for all of you are one in Christ Jesus."
Jerusalem Conference:
Paul met with "the pillars" in Jerusalem: Peter and James (identified as the brother of the Lord).
Agreement: Paul could convert Gentiles without forcing circumcision, provided he collected money for the Jerusalem church.
The Antioch Showdown:
Late after the conference, Peter visited Antioch and ate with Gentiles.
When a group from James arrived, Peter withdrew from the Gentile tables.
Paul publicly confronted Peter, calling him a hypocrite. Paul's silence on the aftermath suggests he may not have won this argument that day.
The Cities and Social Makeup of the Movement
Urban Focus: 50-60 CE, Paul focused on the Aegean Basin, specifically Ephesus (a cultural crossroads).
Jesus’ parables = Rural/Agriculture/Peasants.
Paul’s letters = Urban/Philosophers/Orators.
Social Class Diversity: Contrary to Marxist views of a "proletariat" movement, the groups included a variety of social levels:
Erastus: City treasurer of Corinth.
Gaius: Wealthy host whose home could fit the entire Corinthian church.
Lydia: Seller of luxury purple goods in Philippi.
Prisca and Aquila: Influential couple (Prisca often mentioned first).
The groups lacked the top aristocracy and the bottom agricultural slaves, consisting instead of "upwardly mobile" people with "mixed status."
Women's Roles: Women often owned the house churches. While not a "golden age of egalitarianism," the unformed nature of the movement allowed fluidity for women to act as evangelists, teachers, and patrons.
The First Jewish Revolt and the Destruction of Jerusalem
Growing Tension: The mid-s saw abusive Roman governors, banditry, and the rise of the Zealot insurgency.
The End of the First Generation:
Paul went to Jerusalem in CE, was arrested, and taken to Rome to stand trial.
Peter and Paul both died around CE.
James (brother of Jesus) was killed in Jerusalem around the same time.
The Revolt (- CE):
Resistance broke into open conflict in CE.
Essenes viewed the war as an apocalyptic event (The Battle of the Angelic Host) and were annihilated.
The Siege of Jerusalem:
Josephus, a defector and historian, witnessed the siege.
For two years, the city suffered starvation, disease, and internal murder.
In August CE, Romans broke through. They massacred residents, clogged alleys with corpses, and drowned the city in blood.
The Aftermath:
The Temple was set on fire and sacked; sacred symbols were carried off.
The destruction of the Temple (the center of Jewish identity) forced both Jews and the Jesus movement to rethink their traditions, marking the true beginning of the split between the two groups.