Synopses & Reviews
This fascinating examination of the earliest years of Christianity reveals sharply competing ideas about the significance of Jesus and his teachings and shows how the man we call St. Paul shaped Christianity as we know it today. andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;Historians know almost nothing about the two decades following the crucifixion of Jesus, when his followers regrouped and began to spread his message. During this time the apostle Paul joined the movement and began to preach to the gentiles. andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;Using the oldest Christian documents that we haveand#8212;the letters of Pauland#8212;as well as other early Christian sources, historian and scholar James Tabor reconstructs the origins of Christianity. Tabor reveals that the familiar figures of James, Peter, and Paul sometimes disagreed fiercely over everything from the meaning of Jesusand#8217; message to the question of whether converts must first become Jews. Tabor shows how Paul separated himself from Peter and James to introduce his own version of Christianity, which would continue to develop independently of the message that Jesus, James, and Peter preached. andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Iandgt;Paul and Jesus andlt;/Iandgt;gives us a new and deeper understanding of Paul as it illuminates the fascinating period of history when Christianity was born out of Judaism and became the religion we recognize today.
Review
"Tabor does a particularly fine job of explaining Paul's unique view of Jesus. . . . The crisp, clear writing gives readers much to considerand#8212;especially the fact that it is a Pauline Christianity that most Christians practice today. . . . The depth of his scholarship shows, but he also makes this an enjoyable read for those who want to know more about one of history's great mysteries."
Review
“James Tabor is a meticulous historian who carefully and convincingly lays out the actual Jewish theology of earliest Christianity which lies shrouded in the New Testament. . . . Tabor’s thorough yet succinct writing style brings a welcome new clarity to our understanding of the development of Christianity.” The Rev. Jeffrey J. B & uuml;tz, S.T.M., adjunct professor of Religious Studies, Penn State University, and author of The Brother of Jesus and the Lost Teachings of Christianity
Review
"A fresh, imaginative and insightful treatment of the original years of the Christian faith. It is not as we have been taught through the centuries. It is infinitely more complex and infinitely more exciting. James Tabor makes this clear.and#8221;
Review
and#8220;This superb, well written book carefully shows just how different Pauland#8217;s religion was from that of Jesus and his first followers. . . .A fascinating book, packed with illuminating insights. Highly recommended.and#8221;
Review
“In this compulsively readable exploration of the tangled world of Christian origins, Tabor vividly recreates the frenetic and fraught attempts by the earliest followers of Jesus to maintain his teachings and keep his memory alive. . . . Although Paul has long been acknowledged as the founder of Christianity, Tabor weaves a fascinating story out of close readings of Paul’s letters and the book of Acts, which contains an idealized history of the early movement as well as Paul’s earliest activities on behalf of his teachings, and compellingly illustrates the ways that Christianity is Paul and Paul is Christianity.” < -="" i="" -=""> - Publishers Weekly - < -="" -="">
Review
“Paul and Jesus is overdue, and stands as one of the few books willing to push back assumptions…Digging beneath the acceptable, scholars like Tabor…break through assumptions — even the sacred ones — and give rise to new perspectives and stories.” Huffington Post
Synopsis
The story of how Paul broke with the followers of Jesus in Jerusalem to create his own unique message that became Christianity as we know it.
Synopsis
• A new reconstruction of the origins of Christianity: James Tabor draws on documents known only to scholars as well as a close reading of the letters of St. Paul to open up the world of early Christianity. He shows how Paul differed with the closest followers of Jesus, especially his brother James and the apostle Peter..
• A dramatic history: The true story of the origins of Christianity shows familiar figures such as Peter, James, and Paul in violent disagreement over everything from the meaning of Jesus’ message to the question of whether converts must first become Jews..
• The “lost years” of Christianity: We know virtually nothing about the two decades following the crucifixion of Jesus, and much of what we know about the following decades reflects the viewpoint of Paul and his followers. Tabor helps to reconstruct these lost years and to represent a broader spectrum of early teachings..
Synopsis
This fascinating examination of the earliest years of Christianity reveals sharply competing ideas about the significance of Jesus and his teachings and shows how the man we call St. Paul shaped Christianity as we know it today.
Historians know almost nothing about the two decades following the crucifixion of Jesus, when his followers regrouped and began to spread his message. During this time the apostle Paul joined the movement and began to preach to the gentiles.
Using the oldest Christian documents that we have—the letters of Paul—as well as other early Christian sources, historian and scholar James Tabor reconstructs the origins of Christianity. Tabor reveals that the familiar figures of James, Peter, and Paul sometimes disagreed fiercely over everything from the meaning of Jesus message to the question of whether converts must first become Jews. Tabor shows how Paul separated himself from Peter and James to introduce his own version of Christianity, which would continue to develop independently of the message that Jesus, James, and Peter preached.
Paul and Jesus gives us a new and deeper understanding of Paul as it illuminates the fascinating period of history when Christianity was born out of Judaism and became the religion we recognize today.
About the Author
James D. Tabor is Chair of the Department of Religious Studies at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, where he has taught since 1989. He has previously held positions at the University of Notre Dame and the College of William and Mary. He is the author of several previous books, including
The Jesus Dynasty. His first book was a study of the mysticism of the apostle Paul titled
Things Unutterable (1986), based on his University of Chicago dissertation. The prestigious
Journal of Religion named it one of the ten best scholarly studies on Paul of the 1980s.
Dr. Tabor's current research involves the newly released Dead Sea Scrolls; a recent excavation in which he participated (2000-01) at a newly discovered cave outside Jerusalem, which yielded primitive Jewish-Christian art related to St. John the Baptist -- a discovery that drew international attention, including a cover story in Newsweek. In addition, Dr. Tabor is often consulted by the national media, and has appeared of has been quoted in Time, Newsweek, The New York Times, Los Angeles Times, ABC, CBS, and PBS "Frontline," among other outlets. He has also been featured in programs on A&E, The History Channel, Discovery Channel, and PBS.
He lives in Charlotte, NC.