The above question is taken from a blog by Prof. Bernard Starr. What he says should be thought-provoking to those who have been taught to believe that Jesus is the founder of Christianity. They base this conclusion on the verse found in the gospel of Mathew 16: 'Thou art Peter, and on this rock, I will build my church'.
Others believe that it was Apostle Paul who founded Christianity.
To understand the evolution of Christianity, one needs to go back to the two developments that took place after the death of Jesus. One was the takeover by James, the brother of Jesus, of the 'Jesus movement'. This movement, considered by Jesus as his life mission, was an attempt to bring the Jewish nation to the righteous path of Jehovah. The other was the version of Jesus' life and teachings conceived and preached to non-Jews in the Greco-Roman world by the self-proclaimed apostle Paul as revealed to him by Jesus in 'visions' and through 'disembodied voices'.
Around the year AD 36, Paul had a 'conversion' experience in which he claimed to have 'seen' Jesus in a 'vision'. He said that he had received both a revelation and a commission. The revelation was that 'Jesus was the heavenly exalted Christ'; the commission was that he, Paul, was to preach the good news of 'salvation through faith in Jesus' to the Gentiles, the non-Jews.
During the period AD 66-70, the Jews revolted against Roman rule. This was brutally put down by the Romans and in the process, they burned down and destroyed the Temple in Jerusalem. James and the followers of the 'Jesus movement' were either killed or fled the massacre and the 'movement' died a natural death. Had the temple not been destroyed, perhaps Christianity would have been a continuation of 'Jesus movement' and Paul would have been a footnote in history.
It is a fact that Paul's writings and teachings remained and continued to influence the evolution of Christianity. The present Christianity is often referred to as "Pauline Christianity".
Coming back to the question as to who officially launched Christianity as a religion, Starr answers: no one officially founded Christianity; it just happened. May I add that this was 'religious evolution' akin to Darwin's 'natural evolution'.
There is no evidence in the New Testament (NT) to show either Jesus or Paul rejected Judaism to start a new religion. Rather, it is quite evident from NT readings that they regarded their teachings as Jewish revivalism, a move to bring the Jewish people closer to God. Both Jesus and Paul were born and died as Jews. They both followed Jewish traditions and practices throughout their lives. Neither officially founded the Christian religion. Nor were they Catholics!
Others believe that it was Apostle Paul who founded Christianity.
To understand the evolution of Christianity, one needs to go back to the two developments that took place after the death of Jesus. One was the takeover by James, the brother of Jesus, of the 'Jesus movement'. This movement, considered by Jesus as his life mission, was an attempt to bring the Jewish nation to the righteous path of Jehovah. The other was the version of Jesus' life and teachings conceived and preached to non-Jews in the Greco-Roman world by the self-proclaimed apostle Paul as revealed to him by Jesus in 'visions' and through 'disembodied voices'.
Around the year AD 36, Paul had a 'conversion' experience in which he claimed to have 'seen' Jesus in a 'vision'. He said that he had received both a revelation and a commission. The revelation was that 'Jesus was the heavenly exalted Christ'; the commission was that he, Paul, was to preach the good news of 'salvation through faith in Jesus' to the Gentiles, the non-Jews.
During the period AD 66-70, the Jews revolted against Roman rule. This was brutally put down by the Romans and in the process, they burned down and destroyed the Temple in Jerusalem. James and the followers of the 'Jesus movement' were either killed or fled the massacre and the 'movement' died a natural death. Had the temple not been destroyed, perhaps Christianity would have been a continuation of 'Jesus movement' and Paul would have been a footnote in history.
It is a fact that Paul's writings and teachings remained and continued to influence the evolution of Christianity. The present Christianity is often referred to as "Pauline Christianity".
Coming back to the question as to who officially launched Christianity as a religion, Starr answers: no one officially founded Christianity; it just happened. May I add that this was 'religious evolution' akin to Darwin's 'natural evolution'.
There is no evidence in the New Testament (NT) to show either Jesus or Paul rejected Judaism to start a new religion. Rather, it is quite evident from NT readings that they regarded their teachings as Jewish revivalism, a move to bring the Jewish people closer to God. Both Jesus and Paul were born and died as Jews. They both followed Jewish traditions and practices throughout their lives. Neither officially founded the Christian religion. Nor were they Catholics!
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