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  • From: "cfjacks" <cfjacks AT attbi.com>
  • To: "Corpus-paul" <corpus-paul AT franklin.oit.unc.edu>
  • Subject: Re:Why were Gentiles attracted to Christianity?
  • Date: Thu, 6 Jun 2002 12:26:54 -0400


John,

I am most surprised by your comments to my statement since I thought I was
making the very points which you elaborate here. So perhaps I was unclear
about my presentation, and if so my apologies. But in re-reading my
original posting (from which Hindley excerpted a snippet) I find myself
confused as to why anyone would find my needing the clarifications you
propose,
since I have already made them ... haven't I? Which then leads to my
wondering whether or not you are responding to my posting or just to
Hindley's excerpt. If only the excerpt, then I would invite you to read the
whole posting on June 2. But if you have already read it, then I would
appreciate your sharing with me where you find yourself adding points or
information which I left out, since the intended thrust of my posting seems
at least to me to be saying the same thing, the necessity of seeing just
such "god-fearing gentiles" (or whatever they might have in fact been
called) as the ones prepared to hear and to accept Paul's kerygma and thus
constituting the kind of gentiles we find in Paul's congregations, at least
at first. Looking forward to hearing from you,

Clive


----- Original Message -----
From: John Dickson <dicksonj AT bigpond.net.au>
To: Corpus-paul <corpus-paul AT franklin.oit.unc.edu>
Sent: Thursday, June 06, 2002 12:20 AM
Subject: [corpus-paul] Re:Why were Gentiles attracted to Christianity?


> Clive Jacks states and asks:
>
> > After all, one of the problems I have long discerned was
> > just why an "off the street" gentile would react positively
> > to any proclamation that "the time of waiting is over," that
> > "the kingdom of God is at hand," because the long-awaited
> > Messiah prophesied in the Scriptures has come. Just how
> > much of that would be even intelligible much less agreeable
> > to any gentiles not previously exposed to such Jewish
> > concerns and categories
>
> Clive, one must approach this question cognizant of the fact (perhaps
'high
> probability' is better) that many non-Jewish 'converts' to the gospel had
> attachments already to the Diaspora Synagogues. They were thus attracted
to
> Judaism first.
> There is good evidence (outside the NT) that in Rome, Antioch and
Alexandria
> at least, Judaism enjoyed some popularity among non-Jews. The NT only
> enhances and extends that picture.
> I would suggest that the simplicity of monotheism, the well-developed
social
> ethic of the Torah and the intelligibility of public synagogue worship
must
> all be candidates for explaining the attractive power of Jewish life - our
> evidence does not allow us to be precise here, however.
> Hence, Paul's mission in a sense 'traded' on the success of Judaism. Those
> attracted to Jewish worship found in Paul's 'Jewish' sounding gospel full
> membership status and full assurance of eschatological salvation without
the
> (what seemed) difficult step of circumcision and the (what seemed)
socially
> restrictive demands of Jewish food laws.
> In addition, I would make two more brief comments. First, Gentile converts
> who had previously been attached in some way to the synagogues would be
well
> placed, through their existing social networks, to introduce other
Gentiles
> (not previously attracted to Judaism) to the teachings of the gospel.
> Secondly, even Gentiles not greatly attracted to Judaism prior to hearing
> Paul's gospel would still have known something of the Jewish traditions,
> since Judaism in many cities of the Empire was a socially integrated and
> public 'walk of life'.
> Much more could be said but I throw these out for your consideration.
> Kind regards,
> John Dickson
> Sydney, Australia
>
>
>
>
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