Paul: Profile of a 1st Century Jew

Catalog description

The apostle Paul is often regarded as the father of millennia of anti-Judaism, but this caricature fails to do justice to the complexity of his life and writings. This course will consider Paul's relationship to Jews and Judaism and ask: was it possible to become a devoted believer in the messiahship of Jesus of Nazareth while also maintaining ones Jewish identity? Was Paul in fact anti-Jewish or did he have a different understanding of Jewish destiny once he came to believe in Jesus' resurrection? We will explore Paul's writings as a case study in the complexities of Jewish identity in antiquity.