Paul in Jewish Imaginations - Einzelansicht

That Jesus was a Jew of the first century is now a widely accepted insight, by both Jews and Christians. The issue is different when it comes to Paul, the apostle of the nation. The perceptions of Paul are controversial and ambiguous. He is seen as the first Christian theologian, the so-called real founder of Christendom,  the one who distorted or  the message of Jesus, or brought it to its full potential, left Judaism, or even attacked it. Such images have been dominating Christian perceptions and in many ways also Jewish views of the apostle. Nevertheless, already in the 19th century there have been views which saw him as part of Jewish tradition, as a kind of proto-rabbinic thinker. In this seminar we will discuss examplary texts of Jewish scholars who have written about Paul, from the 19th century until today in their respective contexts and the implications of these perceptions for Jewish-Christian relations.

If you are interested in this seminar - please contact me as soon as possible at

kehrensp@uni-potsdam.de

Select Bibliography

Baeck, Leo, 'The Faith of Paul',Journal of Jewish Studies 3.1952

Buber, Martin,Zwei Glaubensweisen,Zürich 1950 (engl. transl. Two Types of Faith, London 1951)

Eisenbaum, Pamela, PAul was not a Christian. The Original Message of the Misunderstood Apostle. New York 2008

Fredriksen Paula, Paul the Pagans' Apostle,New Haven CT, 2018

Montefiore, Claude, Judaism and St. Paul: Two Essays, London 1914

Nanos Mark, Reading Paul within Judaism,Eugene OR 2017

Schoeps, Hans-Joachim, Paul: the Theology of the Apostle in Light of Jewish Religious Thought.London 1961

Taubes, Jacob,The Political Theology of Paul.Stanford, CA 2004 (dt.Die politische Theologie des Paulus,München 1993.

The readings for each seminar session will be placed as a pdf on moodle.

It is expected that participants are regularly present at the seminar sessions (via zoom)

In addition each participant will present a summary of the reading for one seminar session and lead the discussion.

Alternatively a Hausarbeit on a topic to be discussed with the lecturer can be written.

MA students interested in the topic

Interested guests after personal contact with the lecturers