Into
His Own is designed as a tool
for the historical study of Christian scriptures.
Since the works in the New Testament were composed in
implicit & often explicit dialog with first
century champions of Jewish tradition, the bulk of
the passages included here have been excerpted from
works written by Jewish authors, especially those
composed after the Hebrew scriptures that
can be found in any Christian "Old
Testament." But there are also selections from
non-Jewish sources that help bring the writings of
Christian authors into a clearer cultural
perspective.
The world
in which Jesus lived & out of which Christianity
emerged was not simply Jewish, but rather a complex
cultural cauldron in which the ideologies, social
standards & politics of Jews & non-Jews
interacted, often with explosive results. One cannot
properly understand the composition of the by-product
of these explosions that we call
"Christianity" in isolation from the
elements & catalysts that precipitated its
formation.
Like any
chemical reaction, however, few of the elements that
went into the creation of Christianity --- the
events, ideas & values that shaped the mindset of
early Christians & Jews --- can now be retrieved
in their pristine pre-Christian form, since they
& the world in which they were preserved were
themselves impacted by the cultural explosion that
produced Christianity. Some important Jewish texts,
such as the works of Josephus & the
Pseudepigrapha were preserved, copied---and in some
cases edited---only by later Christian scribes.
Others, such as the rabbinic Talmud & biblical
commentaries, were committed to writing only after
the composition of the Christian scriptures. So,
these passages should not be navely interpreted as
direct sources of Christian tradition. But
as records of those who did not endorse
Jesus, they offer modern interpreters of the New
Testament a historical gateway into the world with
which Jesus, his supporters & early Christian
writers interacted.
To access
the contents of this e-text click on the name
of topical file.
Red numbered pericopes indicate texts in primary language as well as
translation.
Perspective on the World of Jesus 
