Jew. In his book The Origin of the Christian Faith, Jeffrey Seif says, "Though He indeed was bodily
resurrected some two thousand years ago, it may be said that His Jewish heritage was executed, buried,
and has yet to fully arise‖. (Seif, p. 15).
The record of disagreement is recognised in the New Covenant by the Judaiser's concerns over what level of
Judaic requirements were needed to be included in the lives of new adherents to their Jewish sect. The
account in the Acts of the Apostles shows how truly Jewish they were. Their concerns were intended to
ensure acceptance among their Jewish associates. They were not trying to protect their families. They were
not trying to protect their jobs. They were not trying to ensure their safety. The Jerusalem Council was
concerned about losing their credibility among the practicing Jews of Jerusalem. The truth of the Gospel was
never compromised; but the Torah was upheld for law, order, ethnical reasons and hygienic purposes. They
were conscious of the fact that their words, actions, attitudes, teachings, and doctrines were under constant
scrutiny by the Orthodox Jewish leaders; as well as the Jewish people who watched the emerging Church
developing in their midst. They did not want Jewish Christianity to be devalued in the eyes of their fellowmen
due to the Gentiles‘ lack of understanding their Hebraic roots.
In fact, so exclusively Jewish was the early Church, that when the first non-Jewish converts were won
through Peter and Paul's missionary endeavours among the non-Jews, the Church's Jewish leadership met
in council in Jerusalem specifically to discuss whether or not it was necessary to impose circumcision and a
Jewish life style upon these Gentile believers. This was their answer:
(23) ―They wrote this letter by them: The apostles, the elders, and the brethren, to the brethren who are of
the Gentiles in Antioch, Syria, and Cilicia: Greetings.
(24) Since we have heard that some who went out from us have troubled you with words, unsettling your
souls, saying, ‖You must be circumcised and keep the law‖; to whom we gave no such
commandment;
(25) it seemed good to us, being assembled with one accord, to send chosen men to you with our
beloved Barnabas and Paul,
(26) men who have risked their lives for the name of our Lord Y‘shua the Messiah.
(27) We have therefore sent Judas and Silas, who will also report the same things by word of mouth.
(28) For it seemed good to the Holy Spirit, and to us, to lay upon you no greater burden than these
necessary things;
(29) That ye abstain from meats offered to idols, and from blood, and from things strangled, and from
sexual immorality. If you keep yourselves from these, you will do well. Farewell‖. (Acts 15:23-29)IS CHRISTIANITY A ―JEWISH‖ RELIGION?
Unfortunately, the Jewishness of the early Church is often forgotten and may even today be offensive for
some Christians. If the Gentile Church had a better recollection of its own beginnings, the darkness of
Christian anti-Semitism would be forced into the light and broadly questioned. The historical authenticity of
the original Jewish nature of Christianity is genuine and well-documented.
The body of compelling evidence to support this idea includes the various Gospel accounts and New
Covenant depictions of life in the early Church. These historically valuable writings often revolve around
Jewish festivals, customs, and Temple or synagogue worship. It is important to note that there was only one
Temple, which was in Jerusalem; whereas, there were many synagogues. The holy site for all of the
sacrificial and ceremonial rites for observant Jews took place exclusively at the Jerusalem Temple.
Synagogues were a later development, which grew out of the necessity for a place to worship during the
Babylonian exile of the Jewish people from Judah and Israel. Those Jews, who chose to live in the Diaspora
after the exile ended, maintained the use of synagogues within their later practices. The Temple remained as
the only approved site for much of the religious requirements of the Jewish people. Outside of Jerusalem, the
people worshipped and gathered in synagogues. This evidence is overwhelming in the Gospels and New
Covenant.
The Jewish nature of Christianity is unquestionable, and the Jewish nature of the earliest Christian writings is
profound.
Also, the only source of Scripture that was read by the early Church came from teachings within their Jewish
heritage. Truth was sought in the sacred writings of Judaism. The Torah that was studied in synagogues was
also revered as the sacred writings studied by men of the early Church. Even Jewish texts that were not
included in the Jewish Bible were read and valued by the early Church Fathers. Examples of this important
category of revered ancient Jewish writings include the Apocrypha and Pseudepigrapha. Though not
included in the accepted Jewish or Protestant canons of Scripture, they were extremely relevant to the early
Church.