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To The Ends of the Earth Ministries

— presents —

Study Notes for

The Jewish Roots of Christianity

Lecture #2

Copyright © 1999-2002, 2012, 2015 by Jeffrey J. Harrison

Many Scripture verses have been translated or modified by the author to bring out details

of the original Greek or Hebrew text. Otherwise:

Scripture taken from the NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®,

©Copyright the Lockman Foundation 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995

Used by permission.

For more information on Landmarks of Faith Seminars, contact:

Jeff Harrison

To The Ends Of The Earth Ministries

[email protected]

www.totheends.com

LANDMARKS OF FAITH The Jewish Roots of Christianity

Lecture #2: Anti-Semites and Idol Worshippers: The Gentilization of the Faith

PAGAN ROMAN CIVILIZATION

Pagan religious rituals were a part of everyday life.

More than 20% of the population of Rome was slaves.

Prostitution and infanticide (killing unwanted children) were common.

Many sought oracles from demon-possessed priests and priestesses (and others as in Acts 16:16).

Janus (January): The two-faced Roman god of beginnings.

Mars (March): The Roman god of war.

Julius Caesar (July): First Emperor of Rome.

Augustus Caesar (August): Emperor of Rome when Jesus was born.

Roman Senate: Gives its name to senates in many countries today.

Roman Republic: Gives its name to many republics today (“republican government”).

Roman Capitol: The most important temple in Rome, dedicated to Jupiter. Gives its name to the U.S. Capitol.

Forum: Originally the ancient market of Rome, became the center of Roman government. Source of the English word

“forum” as an open discussion about a topic.

Basilica: A large, open, public building with columns used for law courts and other public activities. This type of

building was later used for churches.

Rostra: The speakers' platform in the Forum. Source of the English word "rostrum" as a place for public speaking.

Palantine Hill: Location of the palace of the Roman Emperor. Source of the English word “palace.”

Capitoline Hill: Location of the Capitol, temple of the god Jupiter.

Jupiter: Chief god of the Romans. Source of the name of the planet Jupiter. "By Jove."

Juno (June): Wife and sister of Jupiter.

Colosseum: A massive sports stadium built in the 1st cent. AD by Jewish slaves with money from the First Jewish

Revolt.

Latin: The language of the Roman Empire. About 50% of English words are based on Latin. Today, the Latin alphabet

is used for writing most of the languages of the world.

ROMAN ATTITUDES TOWARD THE JEWS

Expulsions from Rome: Jews were expelled from Rome in 139 BC, AD 18, and AD 49.

Trastevere: A district of Rome, on the other side of the Tiber river where many Jewish families lived. In New Testament

times, there were more Jews living in Rome than in Jerusalem (40-50,000).

Jewish "anti-social" behavior: They did not go to the theater, participate in sports, attend the races, or observe Roman

festivals.

Cicero (59 BC): Famous orator. Called Judaism a "barbaric superstition."

Pompeius Trogus (early 1st AD): Said the ancestors of the Jews were lepers.

Horace (late first century BC): Mocked the Jews for their enthusiasm in making converts.

“Those of Caesar’s household”: Believers in Jesus that worked in the palace of the Emperor (Phil. 4:22).

Empress Poppaea: Wife of Nero, sympathetic to the Jews.

Publius Petronius: The Roman governor of Syria, sympathetic to the Jews.

LANDMARKS OF FAITH: The Jewish Roots of Christianity Lecture #2:

The AD 18 expulsion from Rome was because of Jewish success in making converts: "As the Jews had flocked to Rome

in great numbers and were converting many of the natives to their ways, [Emperor Tiberius] banished most of

them" (Dio, Roman History 57.18.5a).

Philo: Famous Jewish philosopher, 1st cent. AD. "Who has not shown this high respect for the sacred Seventh Day by

giving rest and relaxation from labor to himself and his neighbors, freeman and slave alike" (Vita Mosis 2.20)

Josephus: "There is not any city of the Greeks nor of the barbarians, nor any nation whatsoever, where our custom of

resting on the Seventh Day has not come" (Against Apion 2.39).

Seneca: "Meanwhile the customs of this accursed race [the Jews] have gained such influence that they are now received

throughout all the world. The vanquished have given laws to their victors" (Augustine, De Civitate Dei 6.11).

ROMAN ATTITUDES TOWARD CHRISTIANS

Acts 18:2: "And he [Paul] found a certain Jew named Aquila...having recently come from Italy with his wife Priscilla,

because Claudius had commanded all the Jews to leave Rome."

The Chrestus Expulsion (AD 49): "Because the Jews at Rome caused continuous disturbances at the instigation of

Chrestus [i.e. Christus/Christ], [Emperor Claudius] expelled them from the city" (Suetonius, Twelve Caesars,

Claudius 176).

Acts 17:6: "These men who have upset the world..."


EARLY GENTILE CHRISTIAN ART

Anchor-shaped cross and fish from the

Catacomb of Domitilla in Rome.

Early Christian writers found the cross shape

everywhere. Here a cross-shaped anchor,

like a fish hook, has caught two fish. The

fish on the left, a catfish, represents the

Gentile church. (Fish without scales were

forbidden to Jews, but permitted to

Gentiles.) The fish on the right, with

scales, represents Jewish Christians.

Orantes figures from the Catacomb of Priscilla in

Rome.

Unlike the Jewish Christians, Gentile Christians used images

of animals and people in their artwork.

Here, two figures stand in the “orantes” position for prayer

with outstretched hands. Kneeling with hands clasped

did not become popular until the Middle Ages.

Early crosses from Roman Egypt.

The top two crosses are of the “Tav-rho” type, which

may have been influenced by the ankh symbol of

Egypt. The ankh was an ancient symbol of peace

and prosperity.

The bottom two crosses are of the “Chi-rho” type,

representing the first two letters of “Christ” in

Greek.

Church of San Lorenzo in Miranda built in the ancient

Temple of Antoninus and Faustina in Rome.

In the same way this church continues the life of an ancient temple,

the Gentile church absorbed many elements of its pagan religious

background.

Copyright (c) 1997, 2012 by Jeffrey J. Harrison


Christianity was first established in Rome among the Jews long before any of the apostles got there (Paul first came eleven

years after the Chrestus expulsion, Peter came after that).

Acts 24:5: "...the sect of the Nazarenes"

Acts 24:14: "According to the Way [Christianity] which they call a sect..."

Acts 28:22: "Concerning this sect, it is known to us..."

Gallio: Governor (Proconsul) of southern Greece (Achaia) when Paul was in Corinth.

Acts 18:15: "If there are questions about words and names and your own law, look after it yourselves; I am unwilling

to be a judge of these matters."

(Legal privileges that had been granted by Julius Caesar to the Jews: Free exercise of religion, exemption from the

worship of Roman gods, the right to live under Jewish law in Israel and other areas of Jewish population, the

right to observe the Sabbath, protection of the Jewish Temple tax (Matt. 17:24), a reduction in taxes, and

exemption from military duty.)

THE PERSECUTION OF NERO

Fire of Rome (AD 64): Lasted five days. More than two-thirds of the city was burned.

Persecution of Nero (AD 64): Nero blamed the Christians for the fire. Thousands were killed.

Ishmael: The Jewish High Priest. A Sadducee. Was visiting the city of Rome at the time. A guest in the palace of

Poppea the Empress.

Yoma 9a (Babylonian Talmud): Mentions the “fists” of the “house of Ishmael.”

Hebrews 10:21,23,25,35,36: "...since we have a great priest over the house of God [Jesus].... Let us hold fast the

confession of our hope without wavering...not forsaking our own assembling together.... Therefore, do not

throw away your confidence.... For you have need of endurance."

“Mockery of every sort was added to their deaths. Covered with the skins of beasts, they were torn by dogs and perished,

or were nailed to crosses, or were doomed to the flames and burnt, to serve as a nightly illumination, when

daylight had expired. Nero offered his gardens for the spectacle, and was exhibiting a show in the circus, while

he mingled with the people in the dress of a charioteer or stood aloft on a chariot. Hence, even for criminals who

deserved extreme and exemplary punishment, there arose a feeling of compassion; for it was not, as it seemed,

for the public good, but to glut one man's cruelty, that they were being destroyed" (Tacitus, Annals 15.44).

Discovery: A first century AD cemetery under St. Peter’s basilica at the Vatican with Christian burials. One of these may

be the burial of the apostle Peter.

DETERIORATING RELATIONSHIP OF ROMANS WITH JEWS AND CHRISTIANS

Petronius (66 AD): Mocked the Jews for worshipping a "pig-god."

Martial (88 AD): Mocked the odor of the breath of women fasting on the Sabbath.

Quintilian (94 AD): Called the Jews "a race which is a curse to others..."

Damocritus (1st cent. AD): Accused the Jews of worshipping the golden head of an ass, and of human sacrifice.

Plutarch (early 2nd cent): considered the Sabbath a time of drunkenness.

Tacitus (early 2nd cent.): Said the Jews were descended from lepers expelled from Egypt. "All their customs are perverse

and disgusting."

Jewish Tax (fiscus Judaicus): Also collected from Gentile Christians.


"Domitian's agents collected the tax on Jews with a peculiar lack of mercy; and took proceedings not only against those

who kept their Jewish origins a secret in order to avoid the tax, but against those who lived as Jews without

professing Judaism" (Suetonius, Twelve Caesars, Domitian 12)

Persecution of Domitian: For “atheism and Jewish ways.” Included Clemens and Domitilla (Domitian’s cousin and

niece).

Discovery: One of the oldest Christian cemeteries in Rome—one of the underground catacombs—was located on

Domitilla’s family property. It has Christian tombs that date back to the 2nd

century AD.

Patmos: Prison island where John had the visions recorded in the book of Revelation.

1 John 3:13: "Do not marvel, brethren, if the world hates you."

1 John 3:16: "He laid down his life for us; and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren."

2 John 1:1: "The elder to the chosen lady and her children."

3 John 1:14: "The friends greet you."

Christianity was first identified as legally separate from Judaism in the time of Trajan, which meant it had no legal rights.

Some Jews participated in the persecution of Christians, which made them “enemies of the gospel” (Rom. 11:28).

Jewish revolts broke out in Mesopotamia, Cyrene, Egypt, and Cyprus in 115 AD. There were also anti-Jewish riots in

Alexandria, Caesarea, and Antioch. In Cyrene 220,000 were killed. In Cyprus 240,000 were killed.

Epistle of Barnabbas (end of 1st/early 2nd cent.): Claims that the Law was never intended by God to be taken literally.

Sacrifices, new moons, and sabbaths had never been intended by God (II.5,6)

The land of milk and honey was never intended to refer to the physical land of Israel, but to the Christian life.

Circumcision was never intended in the flesh, but the Jews were misled by an "evil angel" to take this literally.

The food restrictions were never intended literally, but spiritually (X.9).

The Sabbath is not intended to be observed now, he says, but when Christ comes in the millennium (XV.8).

The Jews erred when they built the Temple in Jerusalem, etc.

Hadrian (130's AD): Roman Emperor. Made Judaism illegal. Also opposed Christianity and the Samaritan religion.

Planned to rebuild Jerusalem as a pagan city.

Aphrodite: Roman goddess. Hadrian built a temple to her over the tomb of Christ in Jerusalem.

Tammuz: Hadrian planted a grove of trees to this pagan god over the birth cave of Jesus in Bethlehem.

Mt. Gerizim: The holy mountain of the Samaritans. Hadrian built a pagan temple here to Jupiter.

Second Revolt of the Jews (Bar Kochba Revolt; 132-135).

Aelia Capitolina: Hadrian's name for Jerusalem, from which all Jews were expelled.

ATTITUDE OF GENTILE CHRISTIANS TOWARDS THE JEWS

Apologists: Early Christian writers who defended Christianity to their fellow Romans. Wrote in the style of Roman

philosophers. Based their arguments on pagan philosophy and religion, combined with ideas from the New

Testament. For them, Christianity is a Greek-style mystery or philosophy revealed by Jesus.

Diognetus (2nd cent. AD): Condemns Jewish practices, but does not explain why, if they are wrong, they are commanded

in the Old Testament.

Tertullian: Famous Christian writer of North Africa. Taught that the Law of Moses was abolished, that it was only

temporary, and that it was carnal.

Justin Martyr (100-165): Established a Greek-style Christian school in Rome at which Christianity was taught as the

"true philosophy." Called circumcision and the Sabbath marks of shame.


Clement of Alexandria (185 AD): Taught that Christianity was the greatest philosophy, for which ancient Greek

philosophy had prepared the way. Taught that Jesus couldn’t experience pleasure or pain, and didn’t eat food.

Taught transmigration and a form of universalism (all will be saved in the end).

Sibylline Oracles: The recorded prophecies of pagan priestesses known as "Sibyls." Sibylline-style prophecies written

by Christians began to appear in the 2nd

century AD. Quoted hundreds of times in the Church Fathers. Had a

greater affect on Christian endtime thinking than the Book of Revelation! Sibyls can still be seen on the ceiling

of the Sistine Chapel at the Vatican.

(PART 2B)

(ANTI-JUDAISM IN PROPHECY

While the original endtimes expectation of Christianity was the conversion of the Jewish people, an essentially pro-Jewish

vision, it soon became anti-Jewish. The Antichrist was identified as a Jew who would attract the Jewish people,

who were assured only of damnation.)

THE SABBATH

Rom. 14:5: “One man regards one day above another, another regards every day alike.” (Compare Gal. 4:10.)

Seventh Day Christian Groups: Seventh Day Adventists, Seventh Day Baptists, many Messianic groups.

The Perpetual Sabbath: The belief by many early Christians that belief in Christ brings us into a continual Sabbath, not

just one day a week, but every day.

Heb. 4:10: “For the one who has entered his [Sabbath] rest has himself also rested from his works, as God did from his

[after the Creation, i.e. permanently]”

Sunday worship: At first, Sunday was simply a convenient day for worship because it had become the pagan day of rest

in the Roman Empire (the day of worship of the pagan sun god). Also, observing the Jewish Sabbath had

become illegal.

Victorinus of Pettau (304): Christians worshipped on Sunday to avoid “appearing to observe the Sabbath with the Jews,

of which the Lord of the Sabbath himself…says by his prophets that his soul hateth.”

Sylvester of Rome (314-335): Sunday worship is “in execration of the Jews.”

THE PASSOVER / PASCHA

The Passover of the Lord (or the Feast of the Savior’s Passover): Was originally celebrated as a single evening meal

similar to the Jewish Seder. The idea of a “Holy Week” (Palm Sunday, Good Friday, Easter, etc.) did not

become popular until the 4th century.

1 Cor. 5:7-8: “For Christ our Passover [Lamb] has been sacrificed. Let us therefore celebrate the feast.”

Passover Controversy: A disagreement over when and how to celebrate the Passover/Pascha. The Quartodecimians

(“Fourteeners”) continued to celebrate on the Jewish date. Rome and the West began to celebrate every year on

the following Saturday evening, then added an all night vigil with a focus on baptism at dawn on Sunday.

Victor of Rome (c. 190 AD): Wrote a letter demanding that eastern churches accept Easter Sunday. When they refused,

he excommunicated them.

The Council of Nicea (325 AD) forbid the celebration of Passover at the same time as the Jews because: it is best not to

follow “the detestable company of the Jews” since they are “the murderers of our Lord” and “we should have

nothing in common with” them.


MARCION

Established a church that broke away from the rest of the Church (i.e. a cult).

Rejected the Old Testament (along with parts of the New Testament) and any connection with Judaism.

Claimed the God of the Old Testament and the God of the New Testament are two different Gods.

Taught that Jesus came to destroy the Law and the Prophets.

Taught that Jesus came not as a baby, but as an adult (he rejected the birth stories of the New Testament).

Rejected the Millennium.

Mild forms of his views continue:

The Old Testament is bad while the New Testament is good.

Paul is anti-Jewish.

Christianity is completely separate from Judaism.

GNOSTICISM

An attempt to explain the truths of the gospel from the pagan religious world view of Roman society and culture (Middle

Platonism and Neo-Platonism).

Neo-Platonism: An updated philosophical paganism, which rejected the gods, and replaced them with the abstract god of

the philosophers (of Plato), a distant, unknowable God.

The Gnostics taught that:

The spiritual world is good but the material world was evil.

The God of Creation is a lesser god, different than God the Father.

The “Fall” of man is a parable of man’s fall from the spiritual to the material world.

Salvation is liberation back into the pure realm of spirit.

What is the eternal destiny of the human soul?

Rev. 6:10: “How long, holy and true master, will you not judge and avenge our blood on those dwelling on the earth?”

Galileo: 17th cent. Italian astronomer whose discoveries of physical imperfections in the heavens scandalized Europe.

CELIBACY

Vestal Virgins: Celibate priestesses of the Roman goddess Vesta.

Some Gnostics taught that marriage and procreation were from Satan, and that the fall of man in the Garden of Eden was

from sexual sin.

(The Protoevangelium of James (2nd

cent.): An apocryphal writing which is the source of much legendary material about

Mary. It falsely claims she was dedicated as a virgin to the Jewish Temple.)

(Traditional Judaism considers the physical act of marriage (sex) a necessary part of marriage (a “duty,” 1 Cor. 7:3),

intended to give pleasure to the wife (Gen. 18:12, Deut. 24:5). Withholding these rights was forbidden by the

rabbis and the New Testament (1 Cor. 7:5).

THE BEATIFIC VISION vs. THE MILLENNIUM

The spiritual “face-to-face” vision of God considered to be the eternal condition of the saints in heaven. This replaced the

original Christian hope for resurrection in an earthly Millennium followed by life in a new heaven and new earth.


Some at Rome (the Alogoi) rejected the book of Revelation because of its Millennium teaching. The Eastern Church

rejected it for 500 years. The Millennium was finally interpreted to be now, with Christ reigning through the

Church. Belief in a literal future Millennium was considered the heresy of chiliasm.

(Contemplative Movement (Monasticism): Sought the Beatific Vision in this life.

Indulgences (Penitential System): A weakening of the original moral focus of Christianity.

Sacraments: Contact with God sought through rituals rather than obedience to God.

THE SAINTS

Originally referred to all believers. Later came to mean certain special individuals chosen by the Church.

Acts 10:25: “Stand up; I too am just a man”

Pagan cult meals with the dead: Were the custom in Rome at certain festivals and the anniversary of the person’s death.

Canonization: The process of elevating a person to sainthood, similar to the old Roman process of apotheosis.

(WORSHIP SERVICES

Early Christian worship was very plain and simple. Meetings were in people’s homes. The communion (or eucharist,

“giving thanks”) was part of a meal (the agape meal).

Later, the communion was removed from the meal and moved into the morning worship.

The table used for the meal was called an altar, and moved away from the people.

Elements were added from pagan (and Temple) worship: processions, candles, incense, bells, stamped bread.

The role of the worshipper became more and more passive.

Ceremonies were read from books.

The communion came to be seen as a “mystery” (transubstantiation).

(ANGELS AND IDOLS

Others tried to fit Christianity into pagan art forms. The first Christian images appeared among the Gnostics.

They used pagan artistic conventions to depict Biblical individuals or stories.

Angels were shown are fat babies or ladies with wings, which are pre-Christian pagan symbols.

Halos also originated in pagan art.

(CHURCH LEADERSHIP

Churches were originally independent congregations led by a group of elders, just like the synagogues.

Beginning in the 2nd

cent., individual bishops (originally a role like that of a head pastor) became the head of the local

church (the monarchical bishop pattern of church organization).

But then these bishops became more and more powerful, ruling over many churches in large regions. This led to many

abuses by a growing hierarchy.

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