Book Review: Neither Jew Nor Greek: A Contested Identity. Christianity in the Making: Volume 3

This is the third and final volume of Dunn’s monumental trilogy, Christianity in the Making. Volume 1, Jesus Remembered, covering Jesus’ ministry (27–30 CE) and volume 2, Beginning from Jerusalem, covering the first generation of the Jesus movement (30–70 CE) were published in 2003 and 2009, respectively. This third volume seeks to trace the emergence of Christianity from 70 CE through most of the second century, ending with Irenaeus. Special attention is given to the principal figures of the early church, Peter, James, Paul, and John, and how traditions associated with them are received and developed in the first four generations of Christianity. This volume consciously builds upon the results of the earlier volumes in a sequential way to limit the risk of retrospectively reading later features of church life and organization into the story of Christianity’s long and gradual emergence.

The first of five parts of this third volume (part 10 of the trilogy) reviews and critiques the major traditional axes of scholarly discussion on Christian origins. The emergence of Christianity and Rabbinic Judaism becomes only gradually perceptible given the persistence of multiple forms of Second Temple Judaism (STJ). Furthermore, Christianity and Rabbinic Judaism as twin daughters of STJ gradually seek to identify themselves not only from each other, but from other divergent streams within the broader STJ and those more closely associated with their respective currents. The picture is very complex indeed, and there is much overlap in belief and practice, especially in Jewish Christianity. Hellenism and the emerging Gnostic movements further complicate the situation and set other lines of self definition for Christians. The tracing of the story is dependent upon the source documents that have survived and care is taken in their use. Readers familiar with Dunn will recognize a prolongation and deepening of many of the themes raised in his Jews and Christians: The Partings of the Ways AD 70 to 135. The latter two chapters (§§ 39–40) of the first part seek to identify the author, approximate date, and provenance for a wide variety of sources, many of which are rarely employed in discussions of Christianity’s beginnings, that are included in the later discussion (see p. 183 for summary table). This section makes for tedious reading but situates well the sources in their contexts.

The second part (§§ 41–44) examines the impact of Jesus and the Jesus tradition in the development of Christianity. There is a strong emphasis on the continuing importance of the oral tradition, and how it is remembered and transmitted. While the oral tradition culminates in the written account or Gospel, it also persists alongside the written Gospels for a further generation at the least. The core gospel is that of Paul, the death and resurrection, or as Dunn terms it the ‘Gospel’s distinctive DNA’ (p. 504), which becomes the climax of the written Gospels containing the life and ministry of Jesus and is the central criterion of authenticity of a Gospel. The Jesus tradition as transmitted in the Synoptic Gospels demonstrates remarkable consistency and coherence, which is reflected upon and developed by the Gospel of John. A careful contrast and comparison between the Gospels of John and Thomas reveals two different hermeneutical strategies, with John developing Jesus’ teachings and actions from within the Jesus tradition, while Thomas’s development is from without. The Jesus tradition as transmitted orally and then in written form in the Gospels is central to the shaping of earliest Christianity.

The third part (§§ 45–46) explores how Christianity only gradually lost the strong Jewish identity it had at its beginnings. The role of James, the first Christian community at Jerusalem, the Jewish writings of the New Testament (NT), and early Fathers are all examined. The continuing Jewishness of Christianity and also the importance of James, who is an acknowledged authority by a wide selection of second-century Christian authors, are recognized. Christianity’s roots in Jerusalem, the Jewishness of much of the NT and the writings of the early fathers, and the indebtedness of Christianity to its STJ inheritance are affirmed. Although the Jewish revolts undoubtedly sharpened distinctions within Palestine, Jews and Christians in the Diaspora were not yet conscious of clear boundaries in the first two centuries.

The fourth part (§§ 47–48) examines the continuing influence of Paul and Peter in the second century. A brief survey of the NT writings demonstrates the significant impact of Paul, but this dominance is nuanced for much of the second century. As might be expected, Paul is absent from the more Jewish Christian writings (Didache, Shepherd of Hermas). In contrast, he is employed in many apostolic writings and already in 2 Peter, but also by Gnostics and especially Marcion. Crucially, Irenaeus employs Paul in his theological expositions and rebuttal of Gnostics and lays the foundation for his use by the later Church Fathers. Peter, although of great prestige as the leader of the Apostles, fades from view in the latter part of Acts, and in the later apostolic writings. Nevertheless, Peter is remembered as a bridge figure, between Jesus and the fledgling Christian community at Jerusalem and also between the Jewish and Gentile elements within the community, already in the NT writings and into the apostolic writings.

The final part (§ 49) traces the development of the Johannine tradition, John’s Gospel, the Johannine epistles, and Revelation. The continuing influence of two broad theological developments are discussed: the Christology and Pneumatology of John. Jesus is both the Logos and the Logos who became flesh, the Son sent and the Son of Man descended, the Revealer of God the Father and the self-expression (Logos) of the Father. The Logos’s revelation of the invisible Father ran the risk of being employed by Gnostics, but they were unable to overcome the challenge of the incarnation, so clearly defended in both the Gospel and Johannine epistles. The understanding of the Spirit’s role as recalling the tradition and leading into truth envisaged a more open Christianity of the Spirit. The concluding chapter (§ 50), ‘A Contested Identity,’ draws together the central Jesus tradition and the emanating diverse strands of emerging Christianity. The conclusion to the work of both this volume and the trilogy proffers the image of a wheel with Jesus at the centre determining the diverging spokes (representing diverse traditions) and the circumference to portray both the unity and diversity within early Christianity.

Those familiar with Dunn will recognize his emphasis on oral tradition, and also view this volume and the wider trilogy as a conclusion to a significant proportion of his monumental contribution to scholarship, in particular to the understanding of early Christianity.

Despite its size, the volume engages readers. The divisions and subdivisions allow for more specific strands to be examined discretely, and then compared with other strands. NT Scholars will appreciate the inclusion of infrequently consulted but important sources in the various debates, while theologians will value the attention to the much discussed extracanonical gospels and in particular the objective criteria employed to assess the fidelity of these Gospels to the Jesus tradition. Much has been done to examine overlooked or underexploited sources and to uncover previously submerged strands and currents of this complex story. All readers will, therefore, become more aware of the multiple undulating and diverse strands of emerging Christianity spun into a complex web of relations in the first generations.