wrongdoers and ‘Nasties’, from whom the fledgling church wanted to distance
itself, even more so, since ‘the Jews’ were known all over the Empire as a rebellious
people. The Church could simply not do with a pious Pharisee Rabbi. This why she
distanced Jesus from you.
I believe that this must hurt him, since he always emphasised that he came ‘to the
lost sheep of Israel’ and shared your teaching methods all his life. Documentary
sources tell us that he used the same form of teaching dialogues as you did, only
the editors of the Gospels changed these in rather hateful quarrels. We learn from
Luke 7.36 and 14.1 that Jesus celebrated and ate with Pharisees, that he
preached in the synagogues, that he interpreted the books of Moses, even that
some of you saved his life (Luke 13,31) and most importantly: At his Passion you
Pharisees stayed at his side, together with his disciples, of whom many belonged
to your party, as did Joseph of Arimathea , who begged the body of Jesus from
Pilot and buried him in his family grave. And don’t forget the two ‘robbers’ who
were crucified with him.
As I said, robbers would have been beheaded, I would say that these men were
martyrs for Jewish freedom, who did not only lose their lives but also their
reputation, reminiscent of the French resistance fighters who were labelled
‘saboteurs’ by the Nazis. That thousands of other Pharisees were crucified by the
Romans has largely been forgotten. Those who libel them also forget that the
Rabbi Paul (Saul of Tarsus), introduces himself as a Pharisee and son of such a
one (Acts 23.6)
Dear friend, you would be horrified at the loss of Jewish blood, shed because of one
line in the Gospels: ‘His blood be on us and on our children’. Christians took this as
an excuse for robbing and killing Jews. A crowd present at the square by the
courthouse, that could not have contained more than 2000, was labelled ‘the
Jewish people’, collectively accused of the killing of Jesus, not only in Jerusalem,
but all over the world and throughout history.
Dear friend, I don’t want to open old wounds, but in writing to set the record
straight and to help the churches in their theology of love (which is also Jewish).
They don’t need a Jewish scapegoat any more, and no black Pharisee background
to contrast with Jesus’ teachings.
Those who take him seriously should be able to tell the truth: that Jesus of
Nazareth was a great Jewish teacher and Pharisee, who became the Saviour for
those who believe in him.
Source: Süddeutsche Zeitung
Translated by
Brigitte Williams
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