This reading, however, ignores the strong possibility that the compo-
sition of the community as reflected in the Gospel of John changed over time
and in response to historical circumstances. R.E. Brown’s theory, for exam-
ple, posits a correspondence between the order in which characters are
introduced in the Gospel narrative and the order in which particular groups
joined the community. Thus the call of the disciples (John 1:35–50) evokes
the community’s founders, the inclusion of the Samaritans an intermedi-
ate stage (4:1–54), and the influx of the Greeks (12:20) a late stage after the
expulsion from the synagogue (9:22; see R.E. Brown 1979, 166–67 and pas-
sim; also R.E. Brown 1997, 374–76; Martyn 1979, 102–107). While the
Gospel of John therefore provides strong support for Stark’s claim about the
essential role of social networks in the growth of religious movements, it
does not necessarily indicate an ongoing Jewish mission past the founda-
tional period in the community’s history.
Marginalization
A second principle is that converts to a new religious movement come pri-
marily from the inactive, discontented, and secularized segments of soci-
ety (Stark 1996, 54). For early Christianity, according to Stark, the prime
pool of potential converts was to be found among Hellenized Diaspora
Jews. These Jews were on the margins of “traditional orthodox” Judaism,
which Stark apparently identifies as the Judaism of Jerusalem (1996, 57).
Their marginality with respect to Judaism is demonstrated most vividly by
their general lack of Hebrew knowledge, which required a Greek transla-
tion of the Bible (Stark 1996, 57); and by the fact that many embraced
some elements of pagan religious thought (Stark 1996, 58). Though Stark
does not provide any examples; perhaps he has Philo in mind. At the same
time, these Jews were set apart from mainstream Greco-Roman society
by an ethnicity intrinsic to the Law, which enclosed them in a spiritual
ghetto (Stark 1996, 58). Though, again, Stark provides no definition of
ethnicity, which seems unlikely to have been merely a matter of obser-
vance of the Law.
Stark’s description of Hellenized Diaspora Judaism relies heavily on
Philo. In subordinating divine authority to reason and to symbolic or alle-
gorical interpretation, Philo accommodated faith to the exigencies of time
and place (Stark 1996, 61). Stark acknowledges that Philo is not “everyman.”
Nevertheless, the fact that Philo publicized his views through his treatises
while apparently retaining public esteem suggests to Stark that Philo rep-
resented fashionable opinion and therefore can be used as evidence for the
extensive accommodation of Hellenistic Judaism (1996, 60).
Rodney Stark and “The Mission to the Jews” 203