A Jewish Scholar Wrestling with Paul: A Conversation with Sarah Emanuel

Send a text

In recent years, a growing number of Jewish scholars have begun engaging the Apostle Paul as a first-century Jew writing within the diversity of Jewish life and thought. But these scholars do not all reach the same conclusions—especially when it comes to Paul’s relationship to Jews and Judaism.

In this episode of the Bridge Builders Forum Podcast, Ryan Lambert sits down with Dr. Sarah Emanuel, associate professor of theological studies at Loyola Marymount University and author of Wrestling with Paul. Together, they explore Paul’s Jewish identity, the complexity of his writings, and the real dangers involved in how Paul has been interpreted and used in Christian history.

This is an honest conversation that wrestles with hard questions—about Paul, about Jewish-Christian relations, and about how our assumptions shape the way we read Scripture.

Topics include:

The idea of Paul as a “particularistic, ethnocentric Jew”

Paul as an “average Jew” within first-century Jewish discourse

Attempts to “make Paul good” after the Holocaust

The relationship between theological anti-Judaism and antisemitism

Why even responsible readings of Paul can carry real risks

Dr. Emanuel's Wrestling with Paul can be purchased at https://a.co/d/0gQKoAlY

Bridge Builders Forum
An educational entity dedicated to helping Jews and Christians understand their faith, the Bible, and each other.

Bridge Builders Forum Email News and Updates

Download the free PDF "Recovering the Jewish Paul: Three Keys to Understanding the Apostle and Building Bridges Between Jews and Christians"

The Weird Apostle
Ryan's book places the Apostle Paul in his Jewish and Greco-Roman context.

Make a tax deductible donation to the Bridge Builders Forum