Did alot of Jews convert to Christianity after Jesus's death?

[Timi_Celcer]

And if no, why not?

 

[Jaysuitical]

A great many contradictory reports were circulating in the year of Jesus’ death and after, and those that would’ve supported the claim that St. Peter & the apostles were making did not receive support from the religious teachers. The followers of Jesus would have appeared, to most, to be innovators with an interpretation about the Messiah that even his followers had not understood during his lifetime. Even the accurate reports would have been extremely difficult for any Jew to give credence to, since, as St. Paul said, he was preaching Christ crucified, to the Greeks (philosophers, intellectuals) foolishness and to the Jewish people, a rock for stumbling – and since placing a stumbling block in the path of a blind person is considered a sin in Jewish law, it would also be problematic: why would the Messiah, who ought to be unambiguously fulfilling the words of Moses and the prophets, claim at one time that the law of God would not pass away, and that to break the least of commandments would make one the least in heaven, and then, at other times, appear to view himself as authorized to obey a commandment or not.

As ever, faith would have required, not just demonstration, but also supernatural aid.

 

[Dorothy]

Timi, read the book of Acts. You will see that some Jews did convert,and some did not.

 

[Louishacker]

I agree with Jaysuitical. I would like to add thar acccording to the Acts of the Apostles in response to Peter’s preaching on the day of Pentecost that three thousand prople accepted the teaching and were baptized that day (Acts 2:41). Thar sounds like alot to me.

 

[Ron_in_minden]

It is written that at one time 3000 did convert. That’s a pretty good number.

 

[JerryZ]

Because Jesus came to earth to redeem all of humanity not only the Israelites, after His resurrection any that followed him were called Christians.

Many Jews were converted AND Jews WERE the teachers of this new/old faith.

Old faith of Abraham, Moses and David. New covenant with God trough Jesus’s sacrifice.

Many Jews keep converting even today.
Frankly I don’t see why we must obsess over this. In Jesus there are no more Jews and Gentiles we are all brothers in Christ.

 

[JimG]

Sorry I can’t recall the name of the book I read about the growth of Christianity, but there was a part in which the author did conclude that many, perhaps, most Jews, did convert to Christianity in the early decades. He was basing it upon demographic counts of Jews before and after the dispersion, and concluded that the early Church was not unsuccessful in its earliest evangelization efforts–which were to the Jews. Remember that even the Apostles and early converts continued to attend synagogue and the Temple for some time, until they were forbidden to do so by synagogue authorities.