CHRISTIAN QUESTION, Gerard Israel

Why did Jews not convert to Christianity? Why did they refuse to see Jesus of Nazareth as a Messenger of God? Why this "two-handed rejection"? For centuries, adherents of Jewish tradition refrained from answering these questions. It is true that from the conversion of the Roman emperor to the religion of Jesus until the mid-19th century, political power and Christianity were closely intertwined. Consequently, any critical thought about the dominant religion could have worsened persecution and oppression. The Rabbis therefore chose silence and concealment... while secretly keeping an eye on the developments of Christianity. For their part, despite the separation initiated by Saint Paul, Christian theologians never wanted to break the primordial link that bound them to Judaism. Thus, they focused their teaching on the necessity of opening the eyes of recalcitrant Jews and, later, faced with the failure of their attempts, on the obligation to combat their obstinacy theologically (and otherwise). Today, relations between the two religions have found a dimension that borders on the extraordinary: can Christianity and Judaism combine their efforts to try to resolve the theological difficulties that equally affect them? On the eve of the third millennium, the author attempts here, in a spirit of mutual understanding, an inaugural reflection.