Early Jewish and Christian Monotheism (2004 Stuckenbruck/North), edited volume

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Early Jewish and Christian Monotheism (2004) is a volume edited by Loren T. Stuckenbruck and Wendy E. Sproston North.

Abstract

In this edited volume each of the contributing authors examines how the ostensibly exclusive Jewish belief in 'one god' could be reconciled with early Christian claims about Jesus. The editors organize the work into three primary sections: Part I investigates monotheism and the religious world of the New Testament; part II explores monotheism and the New Testament; and part III raises questions about whether our contemporary scholarly investigations are helped or hindered by the 19th century introduction of terms such as 'monotheism' and 'henotheism'. Though all contributors espouse a view that monotheism constituted a key aspect of religious belief within Second Temple Period Judaism, they disagree on how flexible or rigid the boundaries of that monotheism was as well as the extent to which early Christians conceived of Jesus as divine. Hornbury, Stuckenbruck, and Fletcher-Louis, for instance, underscore the complexity of Jewish monotheism from this time period by emphasizing how many Jewish texts nearly parallel Greco-Roman belief where a supreme god is surrounded by other divine beings (Hornbury), or depict the worship of angelic beings on par with God (Stuckenbruck), or venerate a human being who is the emissary of God (Fletcher-Louis). By employing evidence from Paul and the letter to the Hebrews respectively, Capes and Bauckham both suggest that a 'high' Christology arose quickly and early within Christian circles, whereby Christians thought of Jesus as divine while retaining their belief in Jewish monotheism. In contrast, Dunn, Hayward, and North suggest this is a later development and focus their exegetical attention more on the Gospel of John. Finally, North employs evidence from the broader historical context surrounding the NT to suggest that it was sacrifice, not worship, which defined whether or not someone was conceived of as divine within the Jewish worldview. As can be seen, the contributors differ in their perspectives to a great extent, yet each strongly maintains that Jewish belief throughout the Second Temple Period was complex, yet dynamically monotheistic. ~Deborah Forger

Editions and translations

Published in London [England] and New York, NY: T&T Clark International, 2004.

Table of contents

External links

  • [ Google Books]
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