Paul and Jesus

How the Apostle Transformed Christianity

By: James D. Tabor

Narrated by: Robertson Dean

Historians know virtually nothing about the two decades following the crucifixion of Jesus, when his followers regrouped and began to spread his message. During this time the man we know as the apostle Paul joined the movement and began to preach to the gentiles.

Using the oldest Christian documents that we have - the letters of Paul - as well as other early Christian sources, historian and scholar James Tabor reconstructs the origins of Christianity. Tabor reveals that the familiar figures of James, Peter, and Paul sometimes disagreed fiercely over everything from the meaning of Jesus' message to the question of whether converts must first become Jews. Tabor shows how Paul separated himself from Peter and James and introduced his own version of Christianity, which would continue to develop independently of the gospel message that Jesus, James, and Peter preached.

Paul and Jesus gives us a new and deeper understanding of Paul as it illuminates the fascinating period of history when Christianity was born out of Judaism and became the religion we recognize today.

©2012 James D. Tabor (P)2012 Tantor

Critic reviews

"Highly recommended to all interested in the historic roots of Christianity, whether or not they are believers. After Tabor, you will never read the NT in quite the same way." ( Library Journal Starred Review)

IT IS WHAT IT IS …

This is what I must convey and I say it often of this culture of over doing and over thinking everything… “The complexity of the human mind suppresses the RAW simplicity of the divinely created soul.” There is NOTHING new under the sun…

A thing is established on the witness of 2 or more

Not quite the same Paul I was taught growing up! Thought provoking, to say the least.

An Honest Look At Saul of Tarsus

I think the author for doing such a fine and thorough job I’ve dissecting the Pauline gospels and how their interwoven into modern Christianity. It is interesting to see the Western Christian movement reject anyone who opposes the teachings of Paul and the pastorals. It forces them to face their dogma, to admit the teachings of Jesus of Nazareth are insufficient to their religions; to question whether the father of their religion was more a cult leader than a disciple of the Christ?

Christianity before Paul

I have long been uncomfortable with the institution of the church while being inexplicably drawn to Jesus. Dr. Tabor work has given me insight into the origins of my discomfort for which I am grateful

Brilliant Reconsteuction of the Historical Paul

Dr. Tabor imagines what a pre-Pauline Christianity might've looked like using the three existent sources that seem to lack Pauline influence: the epistle of James, the Q-Source, and the Didache. Tabor treats this "Jerusalem Sect" as a foil to his image of the historical Paul, which he reconstructs from the authentic/undisputed letters of Paul. One way these sects of early Christianity seemed to differ is how James wanted people to do as Jesus taught, whereas Paul shifted the focus slightly to believing in the Christ himself. This emphasis in Paul is understandable, as he himself never met, followed, or heard the historical Jesus — except in his own alleged visionary experiences with the spiritually-embodied Christ "who we no longer know according to the flesh".

At multiple times, Tabor strikes me as overstating his case. For example, there are multiple viable interpretations of the person Paul knows who "was caught up into the third heavens", but Tabor theorizes that this is an autobiographical account of Paul's own visionary experiences. Then he restates that assertion many times throughout the book without reference to other possible scholarly interpretations. There are other examples of this, but they will likely jump out to a reader with any level of familiarity with Pauline studies.

Although I didn't agree with every interpretation Dr. Tabor made of Pauline sources, I think this book presents a very important investigation into the person of the historical Paul.

For further reading: Google James Dunn's review of the book AND James Tabor's online response to Dr. Dunn — another Pauline scholar who disagrees with this book's claims significantly more than I do.