JUDAISM AND CHRISTIANITY

and the Messianic Community
between 67 and 1967 CE

The Birth of Rabbinic Judaism

The destruction of the 2nd Temple in 70 CE brought about the collapse of four sects of Judaism, The Tz’dukim (Sadducees), the Essenes and the Zealots and the Nazarene Sect. Without a Temple the people of Y’hudah both within the land and those living in the diaspora were no longer able to fulfil the Mitzvot in Sh’mot (Exodus) 23:14-17 that required all men of Isra’el to go up to Yerushalayim three times each year. Nor could the Tz’dukim go about their normal priestly duties without a Temple. The whole national structure changed overnight. Many who survived the civil rebellion and the onslaught of the Roman army, were forced into slavery. Others who managed to remain in Yerushalayim were left without a means of support with many turning to a life of servitude at the hands of Romans, who were still stationed in various parts of the territory.

During the Yovel (50-year cycle) 67-117 CE and particularly following the destruction of the Temple, the Sanhedrin as the governing body of Y’hudah, relocated firstly to the town of Yavneh (also known as Jamnia) albeit with much reduced authority. Then, it moved again under the presidency of Gamaliel II to Usha (just north of Natzeret) in 80 CE and back to Yavneh 36-years later. During that period, their primary focus was adaption of the traditions of Judaism to accommodate the new life in the absence of a central Temple. Adaptations included the development of revised Halakah (the way) of and a reformed approach to liturgy and prayer centred entirely upon the synagogue. The changes laid the foundation of Rabbinic Judaism throughout the diaspora, which has remained largely unchanged even to this day.

Coupled with the extensive removal of the people of Y’hudah from Eretz-Yisra’el, the remnant of the P’rushim (Pharisaical) sect set about rewriting and consolidating the ancient works of the Great Assembly, which was formed during the Babylonian exile. The P’rushim slowly morphed into what we know today as Rabbinic Judaism. Their primary task was the committal to rework the writings of the Great Assembly. That initial period between 10-220 CE, became known as the age of the Tannaim (teachers) who’s views of the ancient work were recorded in the Mishnah. They in turn were followed by Amoraim (interpreters) in between 200-500 CE who’s debates on the Mishnah were finally codified in the Gemara, which led to the writing of the Babylonian and Yerushalayim Talmud’s, all of which took place under the guidance of the Sanhedrin.

The Rabbinic Calendar

Throughout that same period another regular function of the Sanhedrin was to determination of the day on which each new month would begin. The day of Rosh Hodesh was announced by the Sanhedrin following the sighting of the new moon by at least two trusted witnesses. That practice continued for the dispersed people of Y’hudah until 358 CE, when Hillel II made a profound change. He devised a mathematically based calendar which was adopted by the Sanhedrin in 358 CE.(Wikipedia - Hillel II - Sub-heading Fixing the Calendar). Up until then the displaced Jewish community depended on the calendar sanctioned by the Sanhedrin stating the correct day for observing Jewish holidays.

The year 358 CE saw the end of the Scriptural (Aviv) Calendar as determined by Moshe, which was replaced with the new calculated Rabbinic Calendar, which is still in use even today.

Rejection of the Messianic Community

The Nazarenes, the title given to Messianic Jews who were recognised as a sect of Judaism were out rightly rejected by the unbelieving Jewish community in the post-Temple era.

Their rejection came about because during the three years leading to the destruction of the Temple, many members of the Messianic community fled east of the Yarden to Pella in the Decapolis region. They were the ones who had heeded the words of Yeshua as recorded in Mattityahu 24:15-22 and Luke 21:20-24, when he spoke of the calamities that were to come upon Yerushalayim. Realising the significance of the times, the faithful took cognisance of his words and escaped.

But, when they returned later in 74 CE, they were out rightly rejected by the unbelieving P’rushim as having been cowards and traitors for having escaped the slaughter and carnage visited upon those who stayed behind. The Nazarene sect as it had been known, was no longer welcome as a sect of Judaism. They were outcasts rejected by all unbelieving Jews!

Having been ejected from Yerushalayim and other towns throughout Y’hudah, the Jewish brothers went down to Antioch the only remaining post-Temple centre for the Messianic community. However, as that community was comprised of Greek-speaking Jews and God-fearing Gentiles, the Hebraic brothers were not readily welcomed. That was because following the death of all the original Jewish emissaries of Yeshua, the new Gentile leaders expressed a high degree of disdain toward those who had formerly been insistent that all Gentile believers be circumcised and become proselyte Jews. Such retaliation toward their Jewish brothers meant they were considered outcasts throughout the eastern Mediterranean Asian regions.

Christian history suggests that by the end of the 1st century, Antioch had become the epicentre of Gentile dominated Messianic communities and it is alleged that Kefa (Peter) led them with the title of “First Bishop of Antioch.” However, there is no scriptural evidence to suggest that Kefa ever spent an extended period in Antioch. The only reference to Kefa being in Antioch is in Galatian 2:11-16, where Sha’ul censured him for his insincere relationship between Jews and Gentiles within the community. A little-known character called “Evodius” is claimed by the Eastern Orthodox Churches as having been the second Bishop of Antioch 53-69 CE. (Wikipedia - The Patriarchs of Antioch before 518CE) Therefore, if Evodius was the second Bishop and Kefa was the first, Kefa would have needed to be “Bishop” of the Antioch community sometime prior to 53 CE. However, during the period 30-53 CE the only references to Kefa are found in the Book of Acts, where there is no suggestion that he was ever the leader in Antioch. The whole idea that Kefa was the first Bishop in Antioch and then later the first Bishop of Rome appears to a creation of the early Roman Church and has no foundation in scripture.

There is also considerable disagreement among scholars as to exactly what occurred in Antioch during the period between 70-117 CE, so quoting from Wikipedia, as an unbiased source we find the following summary of events. –

“At that time, Antioch was an opulent and cosmopolitan city where both Hellenized Jews and pagans were influenced by monotheism. It was there that the term "Christian" was coined for these Gentiles, mainly Syrian and Greek converts.

Saint Peter became the bishop of Antioch and led the church there. Evodius is said to have been one of the pagans converted to Christianity due to the apostolic work of Saint Peter. Evodius eventually succeeded Peter as bishop of Antioch when Peter left for Rome.

Saint Evodius was bishop of Antioch until 66 AD, and was succeeded by Saint Ignatius of Antioch. Catholic tradition says it is likely that Saint Evodius died of natural causes, however, the Eastern Orthodox tradition holds that he was martyred under Emperor Nero in 66 AD. As one of the first pagans to come to the new church, he is venerated as a saint in the Catholic Church as well as in the Eastern Orthodox Church and in Oriental Orthodoxy including the Assyrian Church of the East. (Wikipedia - Evodius Biography)

Whoever the Christian Bishops of Antioch were, their leadership followed on from Sha’ul and Bar-Nabba during the latter part of the 1st century after references in the Book of Acts.

The Rise of Christianity

The 2nd century Christian community in Antioch produced a wholly Hellenistic expression of the Messianic message. The Gentile influence transformed the teachings of the Hebraic emissaries Sha’ul (Paul) and Bar-Nabba (Barnabas) beginning with Ignatius in the last two decades of the 1st century. Ignatius was responsible for a number of epistles that were sent to the communities in Asia Minor. One example that stands out is addressed to the community of Magnesia. In it he called for unity and submission to the “Church” by cautioning the believers against what he called “false doctrines.” His primary focus was a stand against continued observance of Torah, with the statement in chapter 8:- "Be not deceived with strange doctrines, nor with old fables, which are unprofitable. For if we still live according to the Jewish law, we acknowledge that we have not received grace.”

Following on in chapter 9 he continued:- “Christians should observe the Lord's Day every Sunday, rather than the Jewish Sabbath on Saturdays. If, therefore, those who were brought up in the ancient order of things have come to the possession of a new hope, no longer observing the Sabbath, but living in the observance of the Lord's Day, on which also our life has sprung up again by Him and by His death... how shall we be able to live apart from Him, whose disciples the prophets themselves in the Spirit did wait for Him as their Teacher?” (Wikipedia - Ignatius to the Magnesians)

Clearly Jewish practices and beliefs became a threat to the rising Hellenistic Church. This was particularly apparent in northern parts of Asia known as Pontus and Bithynia and what became the Christian East, which later became the region of Byzantine Greek Orthodox Church. The whole region which is now part of modern Turkey, had a large concentration of Jewish communities and many of the 1st century Messianic believer had frequented synagogues and observed the Scriptural Mo’adim and kept Shabbat. That is until they were encouraged by leaders like Ignatius and later Justin Martyr. The latter was responsible for further works such as:- “The Dialogue with Trypho, along with the First and Second Apologies, is a second century apologetic text, usually agreed to be dated in between AD 155-170. It is seen as documenting the attempts by theologian Justin Martyr to show that Christianity is the new law for all men, and to prove from Scripture that Jesus is the Jewish Messiah.” (Wikipedia - Trypho)

The Rabbis and The Christians

Post 67CE the struggle between Judaism and Christianity remained antagonistic and intensified with both claiming the foundational blessing of Avraham as their own. The Jews struggled to win proselytes from many God-fearers in their Synagogues, while at the same time Christians progressively claimed that they were the way of the New Covenant of Isra’el in place of the eternal covenant partnership between God, and the Jewish people. The Christians claimed that from the death of Yeshua, whom by then they had renamed with the Greek title of “Iēsous (Jesus) that the Church was the sole repository of Scriptural revelation.

The Long Dark Tunnel

Having considered how Rabbinic Judaism and Christianity, both developed during the 50-year Yovel cycle following the Temple era, when they became like two train tracks which for the next 1900-years or 38 Yovels, were kept apart because of their strong religious differences. Their differences were like sleepers under train tracks preventing any unity or engagement. Their separation seemed to be terminal, but YHVH in his wisdom oversaw all that did occur.

As we considered earlier, the destruction of the 2nd Temple occurred just three years after the prophesy of Dani’el 9:24 expired. The 490-year period that Gavri’el revealed to Dani’el, allowed Y’hudah time to make T’shuvah by turning again to YHVH and by accepting Yeshua as their promised Mashiach. Instead the period of G-d’s favour ended without being fulfilled. The destruction of the Temple also saw the fulfilment the prophesy of Ezeki’el 4:6-8 which marked out a forty-year period between the death and resurrection of Yeshua and the destruction of the 2nd Temple. That history changing catastrophe occurred exactly as Yeshua had predicted. He also spoke about the time that would elapse until sovereignty would be returned to Y’hudah, which was recorded by Luke in 21:24:-

Some will fall by the edge of the sword, others will be carried into all the countries of the Goyim, and Yerushalayim will be trampled down by the Goyim until the age of the Goyim has run its course.

The two train tracks that entered the long tunnel of darkness that lasted 38 Yovels and ended when Yeshua’s words were fulfilled. But, when did the age of the Goyim end?

Unlike Gavri’el’s message to Dani’el, Yeshua did not give an exact time frame. So, how can we know when the period of Scriptural darkness would end? Again, we need to return to Dani’el, this time in 8:13-14 where we are told:- Then I heard a holy one speaking, and another holy one said to the speaker, “How long will the events of the vision last, this vision concerning the regular offering and the transgression which is so appalling, that allows the sanctuary and the army to be trampled underfoot?” The first said to me, “Two thousand three hundred evenings and mornings, after which the sanctuary will be restored to its rightful state.”

That vision was in relation to the conquest of Media-Persia by Alexander the Great in the year 333 BCE. As he was the first Gentile (Hellenist) to impact Y’hudah. We see from the wording of the vision that Dani’el was being given a long-range prophesy. Amazingly, by adding 2,300 years to 333 BCE we arrive at 1967 CE. This was the year in which the Six-day War removed the remaining Hellenist domination from Yerushalayim, just as Yeshua had also prophesied in Luke 21:24.

Clearly, YHVH did not allow the separation between Judaism and Christianity to go ahead into the long dark tunnel of time, without a marker pointing to where the tunnel would end. Just as the picture at the front of this panel shows, the grass had grown long, and the tracks had no trains passing through the tunnel for that very long time. The outreach of the message that had been given to the eleven emissaries at Shavuot 30 CE had been on hold for 1900-years.

Another interesting aspect of that time period is that the Messianic community, which had developed through the 1st century remained suppressed by those two strongly opposed religious forces during the full 1900-years, which was a direct reflection of the time spent by Isra’el in the wilderness after they had failed to trust YHVH. Moshe sent the spies to reconnoitre the Land and ten went back with bad reports, which resulted in that whole generation dying in the wilderness. The period from the reconnoitre until the next generation enter Kena’an was 38 years. The time Judaism and Christianity were in the dark tunnel was 38 Yovels (38x50=1900-years). Is that a coincidence or the hand of YHVH?

One final question to be considered is why did the IDF and modern Isra’el hand back control of the Temple Mount immediately following the Six-day War of 1967? Why did they leave that vital piece of real estate to the previous occupiers and why has life continued with little change for yet another full Yovel (50-years) and more?

"This essay was written by Graeme Purdie – Founder of Talmidei Yeshua Messianic Ministry of NZ and may only be shared in full and must include this citation at all times. All scriptural references, unless stated otherwise, have been taken from the Complete Jewish Bible by David H Stern. Copyright © 1998. All rights reserved. Used by permission of Messianic Jewish Publishers, 6120 Day Long Lane, Clarksville, MD 21029 www.messianicjewish.net."