6. Rethinking_Christian_Origins.mp4
6. Jewish_Monotheism_Mutated_Instantly.m4a
The author offers several concluding reflections on the study of Christian origins, emphasizing the need for historical analysis to be carefully controlled by the constraints of the data. First, the writer argues that the chronological indications in early sources, like Paul's letters, strongly suggest that the cultic veneration of Jesus originated quickly among Jewish Aramaic-speaking believers, rather than emerging slowly later under pagan influence. Second, the text urges scholars to let evidence of actual religious practice govern conclusions about ancient religions, cautioning against assumptions that led to misinterpretations of postexilic Judaism's monotheism and its interest in figures like angels. Finally, the author stresses that the creative role of the religious experiences of founders and founding groups must be acknowledged as the generative force behind early Christianity's rapid and innovative development, which resulted in a binitarian devotional tradition that fundamentally reshaped monotheistic practice.
We often assume that major religious movements develop slowly. We picture a gradual evolution over generations, with core ideas solidifying in clear, linear stages. For the origins of Christianity, however, this common assumption may be wrong. A close look at the earliest historical evidence reveals a much faster, more dynamic, and surprising story.
This article explores three key insights from a scholar's reflections that challenge long-held views about how Christianity began. These findings suggest a movement that was not a slow-burn evolution, but a rapid and powerful explosion of belief and practice, rooted in the world of ancient Judaism.
The idea that Jesus was venerated as a divine figure was not a late development influenced by pagan culture. On the contrary, this devotional practice did not unfold in a "slow process that can easily be charted in linear stages," but rather "blossomed quite quickly" in the very earliest years of the Christian movement.
The evidence for this rapid development comes from our earliest Christian documents: the undisputed letters of the Apostle Paul. These texts show that the practice of worshipping the risen Christ originated among the first generation of believers, including Aramaic-speaking Jews.
This is significant because it overturns the older scholarly theory of a slow evolution from a "pure" Jewish monotheism to a later, Hellenized faith. The evidence indicates that the core of Christian devotion—the worship of Christ alongside God—was present at the very beginning, not added on as an afterthought. As the source text notes, clinging to the older theory in the face of this data reveals a critical flaw in method.
This is a sad example of a supposedly rigorous historical enterprise, though not the only case of a triumph of preconceptions over evidence.