Studies in Exegesis: Christian Critiques of Jewish Law and Rabbinic Responses 70-300 CE

The author examines debates between Christians and Jews in the process and aftermath of the Christian break from Judaism. After the Christian-Jewish schism Church writers recast dialogues of law and lore into polemical descriptions of bitter controversies between Jesus and Pharisees to reflect the strife then current between Christians and Jews. Jews justified their ill-will towards Christians who undermined their doctrines. By closely examining the exegetical underpinnings of the controversies between Jews and Christians, the author discovers the Jewish side to a debate which has not received adequate scholarly treatment. He also speculates on the history of some late Jewish texts, which are close to early Christian ones. Finally the methods used in this book are examined for their cogency.