JEWISHAPOSTLE PAUL

Conversion in Paul and Acts

IN THIS LECTURE:

1. Paul’s Gospel and Acts 15

2. Conversion in Antiquity

3. The Stigma of Conversion

4. The Scandal of Circumcision

Paul’s Gospel and Acts 15

Judaism attracted many pagans in Hellenism in Roman times, especially many women. There are numerous historical sources that demonstrate the success of Judaism among Gentiles and the social and political problems that this success caused.

Jesus spoke of Pharisees going great distances in seeking converts… “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because you travel around on sea and land to make one proselyte; and when he becomes one, you make him twice as much a son of hell (Gehenna) as yourselves.” (Matt 23:15)

Paul defended his gospel against “another gospel” (Gal 1:6) taught by rival teachers in his letter to Galatians. How did this gospel come about? Paul tells us that he received it from Jesus (Gal 1:11) and that other disciples of Jesus affirmed that Paul was teaching the truth.

The book of Acts tells us that Paul and Branabas had a disagreement with other Jews about what should be done with non-Jews who embraced faith in Jewish Christ.

"Some men came down from Judea and began teaching the brethren, “Unless you are circumcised according to the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved.” And when Paul and Barnabas had great dissension and debate with them, the brethren determined that Paul and Barnabas and some others of them should go up to Jerusalem to the apostles and elders concerning this issue. (Acts 15:1-2)

Peter argued that Gentiles already received the Spirit of God (Acts 15:7-11) and thus have the blessings of Israel's God within them. The manifestation of the Spirit is a prophetic sign, a fulfillment of a promise given to Israel which means they are fully accepted by God. They had to follow some rules, however…

“Therefore it is my judgment that we do not trouble those who are turning to God from among the Gentiles, but that we write to them that they abstain from things contaminated by idols and from fornication and from what is strangled and from blood.” (Acts 15:19-20)

To recap… Jewish Christ-followers went to Jerusalem to settle this disagreement. After all discussions, James (Yaakov), the leader of the Jerusalem gathering of elders voiced a decision that the non-Jews who believe in Jesus as Messiah do not have to convert and formally become Israelites through circumcision. They received some specific instructions of conduct and letter was sent to inform them about this ruling (Acts 15:19-20).

The decision of the elders was to allow the non-Jews who trusted in Messiah of Israel to remain as non-Jews, to worship the God of Israel as many God-fearers were already doing.

This decision did apply to Jews and did not exclude conversion as an option if someone wanted to go that route. The ruling merely affirmed that it was not necessary for non-Jews to become Israelites to have the full benefits of salvation through Messiah.

There were always two possible paths for non-Jews. If these followers of Yeshuawanted full acceptance within the greater Jewish community, if they wanted to be Israelites, they would have to undergo circumcision. But the apostles ruled that conversion was not necessary for the work of the Spirit within them.

Torah already had special provisions for גרים (gerim), for non-Jews who chose to live within the Jewish community. Leviticus 17-18 specifically prohibits the worship of idols, eating blood and sexual immorality to the uncircumcised non-Jews who dwell alongside of Israelites.

NO IDOLS: “They shall no longer sacrifice their sacrifices to the goat-idols with which they play the harlot… any man from the house of Israel, or from the aliens who sojourn among them, who offers a burnt offering or sacrifice, and does not bring it to the doorway of the tent of meeting to offer it to the Lord, that man also shall be cut off from his people.” (Lev 17:7-9)

NO BLOOD: “And any man from the house of Israel, or from the aliens who sojourn among them, who eats any blood, I will set My face against that person who eats blood and will cut him off from among his people” (Lev 17:10)

NO IMMORALITY: Torah forbids non-Jews who sojourn with Israelites sexual relationships between immediate relatives, those related by blood or married to others within a family. It prohibits relations with women during monthly period, forbids sex with animals and people of the same gender. And then it concludes: “…you are to keep My statutes and My judgments and shall not do any of these abominations, neither the native, nor the alien who sojourns among you.” (Lev 18:26 NASB)

The Acts 15 decision of apostles in Jerusalem was not a new legislation. It was decided that non-Jewish followers of Jesus do not need to convert toparticipate in the salvation that Jesus brought. They would follow the existing rules of gerim – sojourners with Israel. Rules outlined for them in a letter were common pagan practices, but they were unacceptable in Jewish context. It was understood that that these new believers would attend a synagogue, listen to Torah in order to grow in understanding of God and righteousness. This wasPaul’s Gospel to the nations.

JEWISHAPOSTLE PAUL

Conversion in Antiquity

In antiquity, a person’s status, whether someone is free or a slave, a man or a woman, a peasant or nobleman, a citizen or non-citizen, a Jew or a Gentile meant a lot. It defined a person’s identity. It outlined one’s obligations, socially, religiously, politically and economically. The status of citizenship, national belonging and birth right afforded special privileges in Rome. Foreigners were underprivileged outsiders.

Romans divided their world functionally into two main classes: ROMANI (Roman citizens) and PEREGRINI (foreigners). Full Roman citizenship afforded the rights to legal protection, land ownership, legal marriage, transfer of status through inheritance, voting in Roman assembly, exemption from certain taxes, rights to Roman courts and etc. There were several types of citizenship and some had fewer rights than others, but Roman citizenship was very valuable.

Foreigners were not as low in the class standing as slaves. They were under the common law, but still, as subjects of the Empire. They were excluded from opportunities of citizenship and had to pay special taxes the citizens did not pay.

When Apostle Paul was arrested in Jerusalem Temple he was imprisoned. He brought up his citizenship, because he had rights to formal trial prior to any punishment. The centurion immediately released him his charge telling him that he did not realize he was a citizen. (Acts 22:25-29)

Conversion is a modern idea built on the notion that “religion” is a system of beliefs and some corresponding rituals and practices. But ancient people did not possess this concept of “organized religion”.

No one could conceive of theological conversion to a set of doctrines or beliefs. Ancient cities functioned as religious institutions. And conversion was not to a set of beliefs, but to a people group and a way of life.

For ancient people conversion to any deity often meant changing their ancestral beliefs, changing their national orientation, assimilating and becoming a part of the community that historically worshiped that particular deity they were embracing. In Hellenistic societyno radical action was necessary because simultaneous worship of multiple deities was expected. Adoption of new deities was not out of the ordinary either. The God of Israel, however, demanded exclusivity. And this implied absolute rejection of all other gods and former ways of worship, thus a conversion.

Biblical Hebrew lacks terms for “conversion” or a “convert”. The formal process became organized and developed into a system only sometime during the Second Temple period. In the book of Esther, for example, after seeing Jewish victory over their enemies, some locals became Jews out of fear.

י הארץ עמ כי־נפלמתיהדיםורבים מ–עליהם׃ פחד־היהודים “And many

among the peoples of the land became Jews, for the dread of the Jews had fallen on them” (Est. 8:17) Hebrew literately says “Judaized” became Jews not converted.

People who converted to Judean way of life “abandoned the practices of their fathers. They disown their own gods, their own country and their own family.” (Tacitus, History 5:1-2).

Publius Cornelius Tacitus lived in 56-117 CE. He was a Roman senator, historian and an orator. His sentiment is clear converting to Jewish ways of life is shameful and treasonous.

Modern statue of Tacitus, Austrian Parliament

building, Vienna.

JEWISHAPOSTLE PAUL

The Stigma of Conversion

Prince Izates and Queen Helena of Adiabineboth embraced Jewish beliefs during the reign of Emperor Claudius. Even in the first century there were disagreement among the Jews about the proper procedure of conversion, especially outside of Israel.

Flavius Josephus tells the story of Prince Izates. One Jew in his court who taught him Jewish ways offered him circumcision but did not insist on in. Another Jew came to the king and learning of this chastised him for neglecting one of the most important commandments. And Izates called his physician and was immediately circumcised.

"Now, during the time Izates... a certain Jewish merchant, whose name was Ananias, got among the women that belonged to the king, and taught them to worship God according to the Jewish religion. He, moreover, by their means became known to Izates: and persuaded him, in like manner, to embrace that religion... it also happened that Helena, about the same time, was instructed by a certain other Jew, and went over to them.” (Josephus, Antiquities 20.3)

“… he (Izates) supposed that he could not be thoroughly a Jew unless he were circumcised... But when his mother understood... she endeavored to hinder him from doing it, and said to him that this thing would bring him into danger… when they (his subjects) would understand that he was so fond of rites that were to them strange and foreign; and that they would never bear to be ruled over by a Jew. (Josephus, Antiquities 20.4)

Ananias agreed that circumcision, if it was become publicly known, can be indeed dangerous for the young king and for Ananias himself, so he decided not to circumcise Izates. "he (Ananias) said, that he (Izates) might worship God without being circumcised, even though he did resolve to follow the Jewish law entirely; which worship of God was of a superior nature to circumcision. He (Ananias) added, that God would forgive him (Izates), though he did not perform the operation, while it was omitted out of necessity…” (Josephus, Antiquities 20.4)

"a certain other Jew that came out of Galilee, whose name was Eleazer, and who was esteemed very skillful in the learning of his country... for as he entered into his palace to salute him, and found him reading the law of Moses, he said to him, “Thou dost not consider, O king! that thou unjustly breakest the principal of those laws… thou oughtest not only to read them, but chiefly to practice what they enjoin thee... When the king had heard what he said, he delayed the thing no longer, but retired to another room… and did what he was commanded to do. (Josephus, Antiquities 20.4)

Our Rabbis taught: If a proselyte was circumcised but had not performed the prescribed ritual water washing, R. Eliezer said, Behold he is a proper proselyte; for so we find that our forefathers were circumcised and had not performed ritual water washing. If he performed the prescribed water washing but had not been circumcised, R. Joshua said, Behold he is a proper proselyte; for so we find that the mothers had performed ritual water washing but had not been circumcised. (Babylonian Talmud, Yevamot 46b)

"They do not press him too hard, and they do not impose too many details on him. If he accepted all this, they circumcise him immediately… Once he has healed, they immerse him right away. And two disciples of sages supervise the process and inform him about some of the lesser religious duties and some of the weightier religious duties. He immerses and comes up, and lo, he is an Israelite for all purposes." (Jerusalem Talmud, Yevamot 47b)

JEWISHAPOSTLE PAUL

The Scandal of Circumcision

In Jewish tradition, Abraham was a wandering Aramean. God called him and made an exclusive covenant with him. Abraham became circumcised to show his relationship to the covenant (Gen 17:10-14). Since then, all his sons, all outsiders who joined the clan, and everyone who wanted to inherit the promises given to Abraham received this mark.

Jews were not the only nation that circumcised their males. It is well attested that Egyptians practiced male circumcision as well.

Greeks and Romans, however, considered the practice of circumcision uncivilized, barbaric and superstitious. They viewed it as a deformity, as mutilation of something divinely perfect. For Hellenistic nations, circumcision was foreign. It was a mark of membership in a foreign ethnos (nation), namely Israel. People’s national belonging, loyalty and status could be identified and sometimes verified by the presence of circumcision or by its absence.

“…the poll-tax on the Jews was levied with extreme rigor, both on those who lived after the manner of Jews in the city, without publicly professing themselves to be such, and on those who, by concealing their origin, avoided paying the tribute imposed upon that people. I remember, when I was a youth, to have been present, when an old man, ninety years of age, had his person exposed to view in a very crowded court, in order that, on inspection, the procurator might satisfy himself whether he was circumcised.” (Suetonius, Lives of Twelve Caesars, Domitianus, 12)

From Greco-Roman perspective, circumcision meant conversion, which changed a person’s social status and transferred one’s national loyalty. Gods were national, hereditary and territorial in the minds of many peoples in the Mediterranean.

Besides that, Jews were considered by some Romans as inferior. They were a subjugated and conquered people. This made formal conversion to Jewish God scandalous and undesirable. Add mutilation to this and it becomes very unattractive.

Circumcision was seen as genital mutilation by Greeks and Romans, as a disfigurement of otherwise perfect human body. Hellenistic culture saw a nude human body as truly beautiful.

Most of Hellenistic aft reflects this idea and constantly depicts people in the nude. For Greek and Romans circumcision ruined the body which otherwise was perfect.

The overwhelmingly negative pagan view of circumcision stood in contrast to how this practice was viewed by ancient Jews. In reading the New Testament (and Paul) one has to remember that it was a Jewish document, written from Jewish theological perspective.

To transfer the negative Hellenistic view of circumcision (and later identical patristic attitude) to its pages is a mistake. Unfortunately, Paul’s letter to Galatians has been read with this negative view for centuries and as a result many generations of Christians have to re-read this letter to make sense of what Paul was truly teaching the Galatians.

There are several seemingly conflicting statements about circumcision in NT. They have to be read and understood in light of Jewish theology of salvation, covenant status, identity, and Apostle Paul’s unique theology of the nations.

1 It was for freedom that Christ set us free; therefore keep standing firm and do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery. 2 Behold I, Paul, say to you that if you receive circumcision, Christ will be of no benefit to you. (Gal 5:1-2)

Apostle Paul by Rembrandt,

c 17th century

Apostle Paul by Rembrandt, c 17th century

Was Paul against circumcision? Paul was against circumcising of non-Jews who believed in Jesus and changing their status. In his apocalyptic Jewish view, the Gentiles turning to Jewish Messiah were the eschatological fulfillment of promises made to Abraham that in him “all the families of the earth will be blessed” (Gen 12:3)

What slavery were Galatians bound by before they encountered Paul and Jesus? To what, are they in danger of becoming slaves once again? Some try to explain this as Torah (Law), but the Galatians did not know Torah nor did they try to keep it before Paul introduced them to God.

“…when you did not know God, you were slaves to those which by nature are no gods. But now that you have come to know God, or rather to be known by God, how is it that you turn back again to the weak and worthless elemental things, to which you desire to be enslaved all over again?” (Gal 4:8-9).

“Behold I, Paul, say to you that if you receive circumcision, Christ will be of no benefit to you.” (Gal 5:2)

Why no benefit? Because Galatians received full pardon through their trust and faith in Jesus as the Messiah of Israel. But if they become Israelites (Jews through conversion) they will have to answer to Torah’s standard of righteousness, which will undoubtedly bring them under condemnation of sin once again.

This could be described as going back. Christ did not need to liberate Galatians from Torah. He freed them from the condemnation of sin. But placing themselves under requirements of Torah, Galatians would return to being condemned by sin, thus the language of “returning to former things”.

Apostle Paul by Rembrandt, c 17th century

2 Beware of the dogs, beware of the evil workers, beware of the false circumcision (mutilation); 3 for we are the true circumcision, who worship in the Spirit of God and glory in Christ Jesus and put no confidence in the flesh, 4 although I myself might have confidence even in the flesh… (Phil 3:2-4)

In a letter to his disciples in Philippi, Paul cautions them against circumcision for the same reason he warned the Galatians. Circumcision will not bring them closer to God. Once again he refers to his opponents using a word that means “mutilation or cutting off”. Why would he do this? Why such rhetoric? This is derogatory and culturally symbolic language connected to pagan worship of Cybele.

JEWISHAPOSTLE PAUL