The Apostles Jewish Faith

[jtexas]

I am curious as to if the Apostles continued the traditions of their Jewish faith after their experience with Christ, especially after having been giving "understanding"at Pentecost. Did they continue their traditions along with, or did they begin at that point the church the way we know it today?

 

[EphelDuath]

I would say a good 90% or so of Roman and Eastern Christian traditions are Christianized version of the Jewish traditions that the Apostles handed on.

The Creed replaces the Jewish confession of faith at the synagogue. Readings from Scripture was also directly transported from the Jewish services, albeit the New Testament was enrolled into the lectionary. The variable “Eighteen Blessings” from the Siddur are now the General Intercessions. There is a sermon in both synagogue and Holy Mass. The notion of praying seven times a day from the Siddur has become the Divine Office (Liturgy of the Hours). Gregorian chant, which in principle is an a capella recitation of the Propers for the day’s feast or calendar day, is fundamentally no different from the Jewish chant of the Torah.

Really, the only novelty in Christian worship is the Sacraments. We break bread every day for efficacious grace, which was only a symbolic ritual in the Jewish Passover (plus it only happened once a year in Judaism). Everything else is just a Christianized form of what the Jews had already been doing for centuries.

 

[MorEphrem]

I don’t mean to start an East v. West debate, but the West did not retain as much Judaic tradition as the East (I mean like the Orient, not the Greeks) simply because of geographic proximity. So, for instance, in the Middle East the synagogue model was repurposed (evident in things like the bema and the sanctuary veil) whereas in the West the basilica model was adapted. Likewise, there’s a much greater propensity to offering incense in the East (such as the hoosoyo in the West Syriac Churches, which is a rite centered around the offering of incense). Our offices are similarly structured to the Jewish offices, and the chant is much more similar since some of the melodies are literally just adaptations (like the melody Qom Fawlos). Our readings are supposed to normatively be like the Jewish readings (i.e. a reading from Law and then Prophets), with of course the typological reflection of that in the New Covenant (Epistle + Gospel).

That being said, it seems any Apostolic Church should have a great deal of Christianization of Jewish tradition. I just don’t understand the certain amount of romanticization that I see given to the Jewish faith, especially since modern Judaism is vastly different from the pre-Post-Temple Era Judaism of Christ. Edit: What I mean to say about the romanticization remark is that even if the Syriac Churches have retained more Jewish rituals and liturgical architecture, that doesn’t necessarily ensure a qualitative “betterness” that some people might be inclined to give it based on just that.

 

[TimothyH]

The temple was not destroyed until approximately 37 years after Pentecost. There was a clear nexus of temple Judaism and Christianity prior to the destruction of the Temple.

Acts of the Apostles tells us that the Apostles and first Jewish Christians continued to make the Temple the center of their prayer and worship life. They participated in the afternoon (ninth hour) offering of incense.

*And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they partook of food with glad and generous hearts, (Acts 2:46)

Now Peter and John were going up to the temple at the hour of prayer, the ninth hour. (Acts 3:1)*

Paul made an offering in the Temple and observed the laws of purification.

Then Paul took the men, and the next day he purified himself with them and went into the temple, to give notice when the days of purification would be fulfilled and the offering presented for every one of them. (Acts 21:26)

Paul took a Nazarite vow after his conversion, as did several others with him.

*After this Paul stayed many days longer, and then took leave of the brethren and sailed for Syria, and with him Priscilla and Aq’uila. At Cen’chre-ae he cut his hair, for he had a vow. (Act 18:18)

Do therefore what we tell you. We have four men who are under a vow; (Acts 21:23)*

Wherever Paul went, he went to the Jews first. The early Jewish Christians did not cease to be Jewish.

-Tim-