Paul taught all four things listed in the Jerusalem Decree, so the level of mutual agreement between the parties seems to be very low. Timothy was circumcised under pressure but Titus wasn't. The Jerusalem Decree doesn't mention circumcision at all, but there was clearly an issue of whether mixed Jewish families needed to obey Torah by circumcising their sons.
As we all recall, the basic gospel plot outline starts with Jewish royals not observing Torah, which it turned out was fine after the brand new Jewish meaning of resurrection was created. The only people with a motive to create that new meaning were Jews interfacing peacefully with other nations, for example by intermarriage. The disciples remained Torah observant, but many Jews then clearly were not (as is also the case today).
So I'm curious about Paul's motives. Everybody has a reason for wanting acceptance. Money, fame, self-indulgence, notoriety? Did he just hate the strictures of the Jewish faith of Christ? Paul seems like a man possessed by a demon of his own making. I look forward to your and others' thoughts on this.
So Christianity, like Islam, was deeply divided nearly from its start. As soon as the founder was dead and gone, a schism began.
Paul taught all four things listed in the Jerusalem Decree, so the level of mutual agreement between the parties seems to be very low. Timothy was circumcised under pressure but Titus wasn't. The Jerusalem Decree doesn't mention circumcision at all, but there was clearly an issue of whether mixed Jewish families needed to obey Torah by circumcising their sons.
As we all recall, the basic gospel plot outline starts with Jewish royals not observing Torah, which it turned out was fine after the brand new Jewish meaning of resurrection was created. The only people with a motive to create that new meaning were Jews interfacing peacefully with other nations, for example by intermarriage. The disciples remained Torah observant, but many Jews then clearly were not (as is also the case today).
So I'm curious about Paul's motives. Everybody has a reason for wanting acceptance. Money, fame, self-indulgence, notoriety? Did he just hate the strictures of the Jewish faith of Christ? Paul seems like a man possessed by a demon of his own making. I look forward to your and others' thoughts on this.