Colloque!Judo-christianisme!!06/07/98!

tienne!Nodet!

JAMES,!THE!BROTHER!OF!JESUS,!WAS!NEVER!A!CHRISTIAN!

Rsum!
Le! terme! !chrtien!,! forg! par! les! Romains! hors! Jude,! dsignait! ! lorigine! des! rvolts! juifs! messianisants.! Il! sattacha! ensuite! aux! disciples! de! Paul.! ! Jrusalem,! Jacques! le! Juste,! qui! ne! pouvait! reconnatre! en! Jsus! le! Messie! quavec! sa! famille! il! attendait,! fut! un! personnage! considrable,! grandi! par! son! martyre! sous! le! grand! prtre! sadducen! Ann.! Il! y! a! de! bonnes! raisons! pour! lidentifier! avec! le! Matre!de!Justice,!perscut!par!le!Prtre!Impie.!

Summary!
The! word! Christian! was! coined! by! Roman! authorities! to! qualify! Jewish! messianizing! rebels! outside! Judea.! Later! it! was! stuck! to! Pauls! disciples.! In! Judea,! James! the! Righteous! could! not! recognize! Jesus! as! the! Messiah! expected! by! the! Nazoreans.! He! was! a! prominent! sectarian,! even! more! renowned! after! his! execution! by! the! high! priest! Anan,! a! Sadducee.! It! is! suggested! to! identify! him! with! the! Teacher!of!Righteousness,!killed!by!the!Wicked!Priest.!

Introduction!
The! title! of! this! paper! falls! into! two! questions!:! Who! was! James!?! What! can! be! said! of! the! name! Christian! by! the! time! of! the! first! disciples!?! The! second! question! has! been! dealt! with! elsewhere,1! so! after! a! summary! of! the! results! we! shall! focus! on! the! first,! about! which! two! books! were! published! recently,! by! P.-A.! Bernheim!and!R.!Eisenman.2!

I!!The!first!Christians!
According! to! Acts! 11:26,! some! disciples! were! called! Christians! for! the! first! time! at! Antioch.! The! WT! wording! is! instructive!:! [B!rn!b!s !nd P!"l] h!ving !rrived, d"ring !n entire ye!r they were in !git!tion3 ; then for the first time the disciples were c!lled! Christi!ns.! The! first! thing! to! note! is! that! the! name! christi!ni!
Origins of Christi!nity. #n $xplor!tion,! Collegeville! (Min.),!Liturgical!Press,!1998.! 2 .!Pierre-Antoine! BERNHEIM,! J!cq"es, frre de Js"s,! Paris,! d.! Nosis,! 1996!;! Robert! EISENMAN,! J!mes the Brother of Jes"s. The Key to %nlocking the Secrets of $!rly Christi!nity !nd the De!d Se! Scrolls,!New!York,!Viking-Penguin!Books,!1996.! 3 !Ms!D!!"#$%&'(!)#,!against!the!other!witnesses!!"#*%'(!)# (they!joined).!
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is! of! Latin,! not! Greek,! formation,! and! that! the! formulation! of! the! sentence! in! Acts! has! an! official! ring! about! it.1! The! name! may! well! be! of! popular! origin,! but! it! is! likely! that! its! use! here,! with! its! juridical! coloring,! comes! more! immediately! from! the! Roman! authority.! It! is! given! (imposed)! for! the! first! time! at! Antioch,! and! it! will! mark!its!bearers!as!criminals.!Probably!it!already!did!so!before!it!was!applied!to!the! disciples! of! Jesus.! Anyhow! it! was! not! a! self-definition! of! the! disciples! and! did! not! come! from! Jerusalem.! The! connection! of! Christian! with! Jesus,! therefore,! is! not! direct.! Pilates! title! on! Jesus! cross! mentions! Nazorean! and! King! of! the! Jews,! but!not!Christ.! The! name! Christian! appears! in! the! sequel! of! agitations,! and! this! provides! a! clue.!In!the!first!year!of!his!reign2!(41),!Claudius,!according!to!Suetonius!(Cl!"di"s,! 25),! expelled! Jews! from! Rome,! who! were! stirring! up! constant! tumults! at! the! instigation! of! Chrestus! (imp"lsore Chresto).! Among! these! Jews! was! Aquila,! before! his! meeting! with! Paul! at! Corinth! (Acts! 18:1!f.)!;! and! both! belonged! to! the! same! movement.! Nothing! suggests! that! this! Chrestus! was! Jesus.! He! was! the! Messiah! about! to! come,! and! the! tumults! were! created! by! messianizing! people.! A! good! context! in! Roman! history! is! the! overwhelming! Jewish! disturbances! provoked! by!Caligula!when!he!ordered!that!his!statue!be!erected!in!the!Jerusalem!Temple.!On! the! other! hand! Paul! was! a! zealot,! and! quite! probably! a! specialist! of! disturbances,! unlike! Barnabas,! a! disciple! of! Peter.! During! Barnabas! Antioch! mission,! when! he! felt! unable! to! keep! the! situation! under! control,! he! went! to! Tarsus! and! called! Paul! for!help.! To! sum! up,! the! name! Christian! was! ! and! remained! ! connected! with! Paul,! and! later! with! Rome,! as! shown! by! Josephus! notice! about! Jesus.! We! may! add! that! these! messianic! agitations! provided! a! good! opportunity! for! intercourse! between! Jews! and! Gentiles,! with! the! common! goal! to! escape! Roman! authority! (and! taxes).! This! was! of! course! superficial,! which! is! suggested! by! Acts! 11:23!f.,! when! Barnabas,! filled! with! Holy! Spirit! and! with! faith! urged! the! people! to! remain! profoundly! attached! to! the! Lord.! In! other! words,! he! wanted! more! than! casual! demonstrations!and!uprisings.! This! short! explanation! of! the! word! Christian! may! seem! somewhat! one-sided.! It!is!intended!to!sharpen!the!contrast!between!Paul!and!James.!

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.!See! Eric! Peterson,! Christianus,! in:! Miscell!ne! Giov!nni Merc!ti! (Studi! e! Testi,! 121),! Biblioteca! Apostolica! Vaticana,! 1946,! p.! 355-372,! who! emphasizes! that! the! form! of! the! term,! designating!partisan!of!X!(e.g.!Herodians),!suggests!a!derivation!from!a!proper!name!(real!or! supposed!by!the!authorities),!here!Christ"s/Chrest"s!(personalized!equivalent!of!Messiah).! 2 .!Dio! Cassius,! Hist.! 60.6.6,! reports! these! events! at! the! beginning! of! the! reign! of! Claudius! (41)! and! states! that! the! emperor! wished! to! expel! all! the! Jews,! but! could! not! do! so! without! risk,! and! only! forbade! assemblies.! See! Jerome! Murphy-OConnor,! St. P!"ls Corinth. Texts !nd #rch!eology! (Good! News! Studies,! 6),! Collegeville! (Minn.),! The! Liturgical! Press,! 19902,! p.! 138148.! The! date! of! 49,! adopted! by! many! commentators,! is! based! on! a! rather! uncertain! text! in! Orosius,!Hist.!7.6.15-16.!

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II!!James!and!the!Sadducee!Anan!
For! the! sake! of! clarity,! we! begin! with! Josephus! account! of! James! execution,! the!only!event!recorded!of!Anans!short!tenure,!in!62!(#nt.!20:197-203)!:! #nd now C!es!r, "pon he!ring the de!th of Fest"s, sent #lbin"s into J"de! !s proc"r!tor. B"t the king [#gripp!] deprived Joseph of the high priesthood !nd bestowed the s"ccession of th!t dignity on the son of #n!n, who w!s !lso himself c!lled #n!n. Now the report goes th!t this elder #n!n proved ! most fort"n!te m!n, for he h!d five sons, who h!d !ll performed the office of ! high priest to God, !nd he h!d himself enjoyed this dignity ! long time formerly, which h!d never h!ppened to !ny other of o"r high priests. This yo"nger #n!n who, !s we h!ve told yo" !lre!dy, took the high priesthood, w!s ! bold m!n in his temper, !nd very insolent. He w!s !lso of the sect of the S!dd"cees, who !re very rigid in j"dging offenders, !bove !ll the rest of the Jews, !s we h!ve !lre!dy observed. When, therefore, #n!n w!s of this disposition, he tho"ght he h!d now ! proper opport"nity [to exercise his !"thority]. Fest"s w!s now de!d !nd #lbin"s w!s "pon the ro!d. So he !ssembled ! S!nhedrin of j"dges, !nd bro"ght before them the brother of Jes"s, who w!s c!lled Christ, whose n!me w!s J!mes, !nd some of his comp!nions. #nd when he h!d formed !n !cc"s!tion !g!inst them !s bre!kers of the l!w, he delivered them to be stoned. B"t !s for those who seemed the most eq"it!ble of the citizens, !nd s"ch !s were the most "ne!sy !t the bre!ch of the l!ws, they disliked wh!t w!s done ; they !lso sent to the king [#gripp!], desiring him to send to #n!n th!t he sho"ld !ct so no more, for th!t wh!t he h!d !lre!dy done w!s not to j"stified. N!y, some of them went !lso to meet #lbin"s, !s he w!s "pon his jo"rney from #lex!ndri!, !nd informed him th!t it w!s not l!wf"l for #n!n to !ssemble ! S!nhedrin witho"t his consent. Where"pon #lbin"s complied with wh!t they s!id, !nd wrote in !nger to #n!n, !nd thre!tened th!t he wo"ld bring him to p"nishment for wh!t he h!d done ; on which king #gripp! took the high priesthood from him, when he h!d r"led b"t three months, !nd m!de Jes"s, the son of D!mne"s, high priest. (After!Whistons!transl.) This! passage! is! difficult,! for! two! main! reasons!:! first,! nothing! is! said! of! the! accusation! itself,! which! should! have! been! serious! enough! to! provoke! an! official! trial! with! a! Sanhedrin!;! second,! the! serious,! moderate! people! get! uneasy! about! this! trial,!but!do!not!say!it!was!just!a!disguised!murder!with!fake!accusation.!Then!Anan! is! removed! for! formal,! political! reasons,! and! not! because! there! were! no! grounds! to! condemn! James.! On! the! other! side,! Albinus! cannot! have! been! upset! if! Anan! only! put!to!death!some!marginal,!dangerous!zealots.! Now,! it! has! to! be! stressed! that! Anan! was! a! Sadducee.! The! Sadducees! are! often! defined! according! to! Acts! 5:17! as! the! milieu! of! the! high! priests!;! but! this! verse! has! a! significant! anachronism,! for! the! high! priest! who! puts! the! apostles! in! prison! is! the! same! Anan!!! Some! add,! relying! upon! Zechariah,! that! the! Sadducees! were! the! last!

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representatives!of!the!Sadocide!high!priests!who!ruled!till!the!Maccabean!crisis,!but! this! view! cannot! be! reconciled! with! the! books! of! 1-2!Maccabees! (and! Daniel).! But! lets! focus! upon! the! Sadducees.! If! we! follow! Josephus! the! picture! looks! quite! different.! To! put! it! shortly,! they! appeared! seemingly! toward! the! end! of! the! 2nd! c.! BC,! so! after! the! Pharisees,! whose! oral! traditions! were! connected! with! Babylonia.! They! can! be! called! reformers,! for! they! wanted! to! rely! upon! the! authority! of! the! Bible!exclusively,!and!discussed!harshly!with!their!teachers!to!make!sure!that!every! law! be! connected! with! Scripture.! In! this! context,! the! very! fact! that! a! Sadducee! became! a! high! priest! was! really! unusual.! A! tentative! explanation! could! be! that! Agrippa! tried! to! get! control! of! the! pretensions! of! the! zealots,! who! were! very! religious!people,!by!promoting!a!very!religious!high!priest,!admittedly!not!from!the! most! popular! school.! Incidentally,! we! may! note! that! for! the! moderate! people! opposing! Anans! deed! Josephus! wording! corresponds! to! his! definition! of! the! Pharisees! (#nt! 18:19),! where! he! says! that! no! Sadducee! could! ever! rule! against! Pharisaic! views.! Though! he! does! not! elaborate! on! Anans! case,! one! may! imagine! that! it! was! in! his! mind! when! he! wrote! his! definitions.! Anyway,! Josephus! changed! his! mind! about! him,! for! in! the! W!r,! Anan! is! no! less! than! his! model! (W!r! 4:162-192).! He! mentions! him! as! a! high! priest,! in! the! broad! sense! of! belonging! to! a! family! which! had! several! high! priests,! but! he! does! not! allude! to! his! effective! tenure! in! 62! nor! to! the! events! connected! to! the! Galilee! war.! Thus! Anan! was! actually! a! prominent! personality,! and! if! Josephus! changed! his! views! about! him,! this! was! because! of! his! new!goals!when!he!wrote!the!#ntiq"ities and Life.! With! this! background! we! can! consider! Jamess! trial! itself,! and! may! surmise! it! was! performed! according! to! strictly! biblical! laws.! Now! in! the! Pentateuch! we! find! only! two! specific! accusations! which! lead! to! stoning!:! the! stubborn! and! rebellious! son! accused! by! his! parents! (Deut! 21:18-21),! and! blasphemy! (Lev! 24:15-17).! The! former! case! cannot! fit,! for! James! and! his! companions! were! most! probably! adult! people,! but! the! latter! can,! and! is! quite! interesting,! for! the! reference! verse! is! ambiguous!:! Whoever! distinctly "tters! the! name! of! God! shall! be! put! to! death.! The! Greek! tradition! (Philo,! LXX! +#,-.#)! as! well! as! the! M!n"!l of Discipline! (1 QS!6:27!s.)!understand!in!any!circumstances,!but!the!Hebrew!word!(awep)!and! biblical! context! suggest! more! specifically! a! definite! blasphemy,! as! understood! by! Josephus!(#nt.!4:202)!and!rabbinic!tradition.!It!may!not!be!exaggerated!to!conclude! that! James! official! trial! was! not! the! outcome! of! casual! coarse! speech,! but! the! consequence! of! an! utterance! of! the! name! of! God! deemed! to! be! a! serious,! public! blasphemy.!Incidentally,!it!is!to!be!noted!that!Josephus,!when!he!expounds!the!Law,! begins! with! the! commandment! to! build! up! a! shrine! in! the! holy! city.! This! is! obviously! connected! with! the! commandment! of! pilgrimages! three! times! a! year,! for! in!Josephus!view!the!goal!of!the!whole!Law!is!to!organize!the!people!(politei!).!In! fact,! the! next! positive! precepts! he! mentions! are! these! pilgrimages,! but! immediately! before!them!he!speaks!of!blasphemy!and!its!punishment!(4:201-203).!Thus!for!him! a! serious! blasphemy,! which! may! cause! scandals! and! uprisings! ! and! endanger! the!

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people! ,! seems! to! be! connected! with! the! Temple! and! the! crowded! pilgrimages.! This! makes! a! good! sense,! for! he! indicates! often! that! the! main! opportunities! for! disturbances! were! these! huge! festal! gatherings,! which! all! the! rulers! were! afraid! of,! Romans!as!well!as!Jews.! As! for! James! trial,! Josephus! backs! the! side! of! the! moderate! people,! but! he! was! hardly! fond! of! James! himself! during! his! life.! The! same! way! he! speaks! of! John! the! Baptist!:! the! marginal! preacher! was! of! no! interest! for! him! but! after! his! death! Johns! reputation! grew! up! significantly! among! people! who! never! were! close! to! him.! The! same! can! be! said! of! James!:! he! became! more! renowned! as! a! martyr.! In! other! words,! James! may! have! been! dangerous! for! Anan,! but! to! have! him! put! to! death! eventually! proved! to! be! a! mistake.! According! to! John! 11:59! the! high! priest! made!the!same!mistake!with!Jesus!:!he!underestimated!the!power!of!martyrdom.! The! main! conclusions! we! can! extract! from! Josephus! story! are! first! that! James! could! be! deemed! a! serious! opponent! to! the! high! priest! Anan,! and! second! that! neither! he! nor! his! companions! are! called! Christians,! though! James! was! the! brother! of! Jesus,! called! Christ.! In! other! words,! they! seem! unrelated! to! the! messianizing! events! at! Rome! and! Antioch.! To! learn! more! about! him,! we! have! to! gather!information!from!other!sources!

III!!Who!was!James!?!
In! the! NT,! James! position! is! difficult! to! assess.! On! one! side,! he! belongs! to! Jesus! family,! and! more! generally! to! the! Nazorean! milieu,! who! opposed! his! mission.!This!mission,!Jesus!public!life,!began!with!the!baptism!of!John.!This!step! was! Jesus! personal! decision,! unconnected! with! any! family! tradition,! but! a! reminder! of! his! origin! appears! on! Pilates! title.! Nothing! is! known! of! the! historical! relationship! between! James! and! John,! but! some! signs! of! rivalry! between! their! followers! are! discernible,! as! we! shall! see.! But! on! the! other! side,! the! book! of! Acts! shows! James! unmistakable! authority! after! Jesus! disappeared,! though! he! was! never! his! disciple! and! nothing! is! said! of! his! promotion! as! a! ruler.! As! for! his! views! (Acts! 15),! he! expects! the! end! of! the! world! ! and! the! Messiah! ! to! come! soon,! and! has! some! precepts! for! the! Gentiles! who! look! for! God,! but! his! keyword! remains! no! confusion! between! Jews! and! Gentiles.! Moreover,! he! does! not! prompt! the! gentile! God-fearers! to! become! Jews,! hence! no! circumcision.! It! is! to! be! stressed! that! he! never! speaks! of! Jesus,! for! he! cannot! have! been! the! expected! Messiah.! All! this! has! nothing! to! do! with! the! story! of! the! first! Pentecost! (Acts! 2),! but! seems! closer! to! the! mind!of!the!disciples!by!the!time!of!the!Ascension.!In!other!words,!Jesus!for!James! cannot! be! recognized! as! Messiah! unless! he! comes! back! and! wins! (restore! the! kingdom!to!Israel),!which!may!imply!the!judgment!of!the!wicked.! In! the! NT! nothing! is! said! of! James! after! the! Jerusalem! meeting! of! Acts! 21,! but! Eusebius! gives! an! account! of! his! life! and! death! according! to! Hegesippus! (H$! 2.23.3-4).!James!was!a!permanent!n!zir!from!birth!like!Samuel!or!John!the!Baptist,! but! unlike! the! latter! he! never! took! baths,! nor! got! anointed.! So! he! was! unconnected!

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to! Johns! movement,! and! he! had! no! messianic! symbols,! for! messiah! means! anointed.! Nazir! and! Nazorean! are! similar! in! Greek,! with! a! possible! word! play! or! pun.! But! for! some! unknown! reason! he! was! entitled! to! get! into! the! Temple,! and! had! received! linen! garments! to! this! effect.! There! he! was! praying! God! to! forgive! the! people! for! their! sins.! This! is! meaningful! in! the! context! given! by! Josephus,! for! around! 62! violence! was! growing! in! Judaea,! and! especially! religious! violence! with! the! zealots! and! sic!rii.! Anyhow! James! priestly! activity,! where! no! sacrifice! is! mentioned,! may! suggest! the! Day! of! Atonement.! This! is! not! quite! clear,! but!Josephus!account,!which!implies!a!formal!blasphemy,!provides!a!clue,!if!James! did!utter!publicly!the!name!of!God,!praying!for!atonement.! Hegesippus! adds! interesting! details.! One! day! of! Passover,! there! was! an! uproar! among! the! Jews,! for! many! people! were! believing! in! Jesus.! They! came! to! James,! whose! righteousness! was! famous,! and! urged! him! to! tell! the! people! that! Jesus! was! not! the! Messiah.! They! put! him! on! top! of! the! Temple,! so! that! everyone! could! hear! his! statement,! but! he! declared!:! I! see! the! heavens! opened! and! the! son! of! man! standing!at!the!right!hand!of!God.!So!he!sees!the!impending!final!judgment,!which! can! be! deemed! messianic,! but! interestingly! enough! he! does! not! speak! of! Jesus! or! messianizing! activities.! Then! the! Jews! said!:! Even! the! righteous! one! went! astray.! And! they! climbed! up! to! the! roof! and! threw! him! down.! But! he! was! still! alive,! and! they!wanted!to!stone!him.!Before!dying!he!prayed!:!Forgive!them,!Father,!for!they! do!not!know!what!they!are!doing.! This!story!looks!awkward,!but!if!we!remove!the!question!about!Jesus,!which!can! be! termed! Christian! editing! (in! the! footsteps! of! the! Acts! narratives),! the! general! outline! becomes! clear!:! James! was! stoned! for! he! was! proclaiming! the! end! of! the! world! and! praying! at! the! Temple! in! a! way! the! ruling! Jews! could! not! accept.! This! has! nothing! to! do! with! Jesus! or! Christianity.! About! the! stoning,! there! is! a! duplication!:! throwing! down! is! the! legal! stoning! witnessed! by! rabbinic! tradition! (m.S!nhedrin! 6:4).! We! may! conclude! that! some! formal! blasphemy! lies! behind! Hegesippus!story.! To! go! a! step! further,! we! may! tentatively! follow! Eisenmans! theory,! which! rely! upon! some! Qumran! documents.! In! a! lengthy,! polemical! book,! he! strives! to! prove! that! James! was! simply! the! Teacher! of! Righteousness! (wcv dxen).! Here! is! an! outline! of! his! reasoning!:! 1.!the! accepted! paleographical! datings! of! the! DSS! are! not! beyond! doubts,! and! it! is! necessary! to! improve! them! by! considering! their! content!;! 2.!in! this! respect,! some! documents! are! obviously! ancient,! for! many! copies! were! found! but! others! should! have! been! written! later,! for! only! one! copy! was! extent,! and! there! is! no! ground! to! surmise! that! literary! activity! stopped! before! the! site! of! Qumran! was! abandoned,! around! 70!;! 3.!in! spite! of! a! noticeable! chronological! extension,! all! the! documents! betray! the! same! marginal! Jewish! culture!;! 4.! now,! all! the! pesher! documents,! which! are! actualizing! interpretations! of! Scripture,! belong! to! the! second! category,! thus! they! should! be! dated! around! the! end!;! 5.!this! fits! their! content,! for! some! of! them! allude! to! the! last! priests! of! Jerusalem,! to! invading!

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troops! who! worship! their! insign!,! to! Roman! taxes,! to! the! plundering! of! the! Temple,!etc.! According! to! the! more! ancient! texts,! the! leader! of! the! group! (xwan,! ciwt)! is! also! called! Teacher! of! Righteousness,! and! the! priests! sons! of! Sadoq! will! rise! at! the! end! of! times! to! judge! everyone!:! to! justify! the! righteous! and! condemn! the! wicked! (1 QS! 5:2.9).! Some! statements! are! more! specific!:! according! to! CD! 6:5,! these! priests! are! the! opponents! of! the! priests! functioning! at! Jerusalem!;! 1 QpH!b! mentions!an!argument!between!the!Teacher!of!Righteousness!(termed!high!priest!in! 4 QpPs 37! 3:13-17)! and! the! Preacher! of! Deceit! who! rejects! the! Torah! in! the! congregation! as! well! as! the! Wicked! Priest.! Then! the! struggle! becomes! more! serious!:! according! to! 1 QpH!b! 11:4-8,! the! Wicked! Priest! chased! the! teacher! of! righteousness! to! swallow! him,! in! his! venomous! wrath,! in! his! house! of! exile!;! at! the! end! of! the! rest! feast! of! the! day! of! atonement,! [the! wicked! priest]! appeared! to! them! to!swallow!them!up,!throwing them down!on!the!fast!day,!the!Sabbath!of!their!rest.! From!the!Temple!point!of!view,!this!Teacher!of!Righteousness,!a!would-be!high! priest,! came! on! one! Day! of! Atonement! with! some! companions,! and! aroused! a! violent! opposition! from! the! Temple! authorities,! who! threw! them! down,! that! is! to! say! had! them! legally! stoned.! In! this! respect,! the! Wicked! Priest! of! the! Pesher! rejected! the! Torah! in! the! congregation! (officially).! Thus! there! was! a! formal! blasphemy,! which! is! now! clear!:! the! Teacher! of! Righteousness! wanted! to! act! as! high!priest!on!that!day,!and!uttered!the!name!of!God.!As!for!this!Yom!Kippur!itself,! it! was! probably! computed! after! the! J"bilee! calendar,! different! from! the! Jerusalem! official! calendar,! so! that! the! arrest! and! judgment! could! take! place! that! very! day,! which!may!well!have!been!close!to!Passover.! If! Eisenman! system! of! datings! can! be! accepted,! the! identification! of! James! the! Righteous! and! the! (last)! Teacher! of! Righteousness! is! almost! perfect! and! quite! striking,! and! Josephus! and! the! pesh!rim! help! understanding! one! another.! At! any! rate! James! is! thus! connected! to! a! milieu,! and! one! may! discern! how! he! may! have! been! dangerous! for! Anan,! here! in! the! position! of! the! Wicked! Priest,! and! how! he! became!even!more!dangerous!as!a!martyr.!He!never!was!a!zealot!or!a!messianizing! brigand!(/0!1*2).!

IV!!The!importance!of!James!
Lets! begin! with! a! word! about! James! posterity.! The! sources! are! scanty,! but! Eusebius! indicates! twice! that! the! Jerusalem! Christians! (read! Nazoreans)! till! 135! were! circumcised,! observant! Jews! (H$! 3.35!;! 4.5.2).! They! were! sometimes! persecutions! against! their! leaders! (bishops),! who! were! supposed! to! be! possible! davidide!messiahs.!Hegesippus,!quoted!by!Eusebius,!gives!a!list!of!these!bishops,! called! despos"noi,! i. e. from! Jesus! family.! But! Eusebius! has! obviously! a! Christian! bias,! derived! from! Acts,! where! it! is! suggested! that! Pauls! disciples! (the! Christians)! are! the! true! Nazoreans.! In! fact,! nothing! indicates! that! Jesus! was! the! first! Nazorean!:! Josephs! whole! family! was! Nazorean,! and! probably! too! the! whole!

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village! of! Nazareth,! which! never! accepted! Jesus! mission.! Later,! these! Nazoreans,! and! other! similar! groups! (Ebionites),! disappeared.! To! put! it! otherwise,! James! posterity!never!had!his!calibre.! James!was!killed!by!a!religious!high!priest!in!the!name!of!the!Torah,!but!he!was! interceding!for!the!whole!people!in!the!name!of!the!same!Torah.!This!way!he!could! be! viewed! as! a! true! martyr,! and! even! as! the! suffering! servant! of! Isaiah! 53,! rejected! by! the! ones! he! wanted! to! save! (He! was! wounded! for! our! transgressions,! bruised! for!our!iniquities...).!This!outstanding!position!had!some!interesting!consequences,! for! Pauls! Christianity! was! the! enemy! of! James! supporters,! as! the! PseudoClementine! literature! makes! clear.! In! the! NT,! which! is! quite! Pauline,! James! martyrdom! is! not! directly! mentioned,! for! he! could! not! be! accepted! as! the! Suffering! Servant,!but!it!appears!as!a!hidden!pattern.! This! pattern! can! be! seen! in! the! stoning! of! Stephen.! At! the! first! glance! some! problems! are! conspicuous!:! several! repetitions,! a! trial! for! an! undefined! blasphemy! and! a! lynching! by! the! crowd.! We! follow! here! Boismards! analysis1,! slightly! edited,! which! shows! that! the! trial! is! a! secondary! feature! (Doc!P! is! the! source,! Act!I,! II,! III! are!three!redactional!stages)!:! !!
Doc P Act I! Act II!

Act III (Ac!6-7)! ! ! ! (6,8)! And! Stephen,! full! of! grace! and! power,! ! did! great! wonders! and! signs! among! the! peo! ple.! (9)! Then! some! of! those! of! the! synagogue! ! ! Freedmen,! !nd of the Cyreni!ns, !nd of of!the!Freedmen![]! the #lex!ndri!ns, !nd of those from Cilici! arose! and! disputed! with! Stephen.! (10)! But! ! nd #si!,!arose!and! they! could! not! withstand! the! wisdom! and! the! ! Spirit!with!which!he!spoke.!! ! (10bis!!WT)!%n!ble to f!ce the tr"th,! ! ! ! (11)! they! secretly! instigated! men,! who! said!:! We! have! heard! him! speak! blasphemous! words!against!Moses!and!God.! (12a)! And! they! stirred! up! the! people! and! the! ! ! ! elders!and!the!scribes.! ! (12b)! And! they! came! upon! him! and! seized! ! ! him!and!brought!him!before!the!sanhedrin.! (13)! And! they! set! up! false! witnesses! who! ! ! ! said!:! This! man! never! ceases! to! speak! words! against!this!place!and!the!Law.! ! ! (14)! For! we! have! heard! him! say! that! this! ! Jesus! of! Nazareth! will! destroy! this! place! and! will! change! the! customs! which! Moses! delivered!to!us.! ! (15)! And! gazing! at! him,! all! who! sat! in! the! ! ! sanhedrin! saw! that! his! face! was! like! the! face! of! an! angel.! (7,1)! And! the! high! priest! said!:! Is!this!so!?! #ctes des de"x #ptres I, II, III! (EB,! NS! 12-14),!Paris,!Gabalda,!3!Vol.!1990,!III:104-109.!They!use!some!features!of!the!Western!Text.!
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ! 1 .!Marie-mile! BOISMARD! &! Arnaud! LAMOUILLE,! Les

EN! ! !

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9! ! !

! The! passage! is! complicated,! but! the! distinction! between! a! spontaneous! lynching! by! the! crowd! ! the! primitive! story! ! and! a! formal! trial! for! blasphemy! puts! some! order.! The! trial,! which! is! almost! complete,! with! the! unanimous! judgment,! is! concluded! with! the! execution! by! the! witnesses.! The! most! striking! difference! between! the! lynching! and! the! trial! lies! in! the! accusations!:! the! first! mentions! some! statements! against! the! Temple! and! the! Law,! which! has! nothing! to! do! with! a! blasphemy! against! Moses! and! God.! But! if! we! focus! upon! the! trial! itself! with! the! high! priest! and! a! Sanhedrin! (putting! together! the! three! stages! Act!I-III),! which! includes! Stephens! speech! against! the! shrine,! the! formal! blasphemy! remains! unclear,!for!it!would!imply!definite!utterances.! We! may! note! some! observations!:! first,! that! with! the! trial! are! added! many! people! (v.! 9),! which! suggest! a! pilgrimage.! Second,! the! final! prayer! of! Stephen! is! interesting! (v.! 60a)! if! we! remove! the! Christian! interpretation,! it! looks! like! the! intercession! of! the! high! priest! for! the! people! on! the! Day! of! Atonement,! possibly!

(2-53)![Stephens speech Act!I, then two f"rther st!ges!Act!II-III].! (54)! Now! when! they! heard! these! things! they! ! ! were! enraged,! and! they! ground! their! teeth! against! him.! (55)! But! he,! full! of! the! Holy! Spirit,! gazed! into! heaven! and! saw! the! glory! of!God,!and!Jesus!standing!at!the!right!had!of! God.! (56)! And! he! said!:! Behold,! I! see! the! heavens! opened,! and! the! Son! of! man! standing!at!the!right!hand!of!God.! (57)! But! the people,! upon! hearing! this! (WT),! ! ! (57)!But!they(AT),! sho"ted !lo"d!and!!ll!rushed!upon! ! stopped their e!rs! and! rushed! together! upon! him,!(58a)!then!they!cast!him!out!of!the!city! ! him,!(58a)!and!cast!him!out!of!the!city.! and!stoned!him.! ! ! ! (58b)! And! the! witnesses! laid! down! their! garments!at!the!feet!of!a!young!man!named!Saul,! (59a)!and!they!were!stoning!Stephen.! (59b)! He! was! praying! and! saying!:! Lord! ! ! ! Jesus,!receive!my!spirit.! ! ! (60a)! And! he! knelt! down! and! cried! with! a! ! loud! voice!:! Lord,! do! not! hold! this! sin! against!them.! ! (60b)!And!when!he!had!said!this!he!fell!asleep.! ! ! ! ! ! ! (8,1a)!And!Saul!was!consenting!to!his!death.! (8,1b)! And! on! that! day! a! great! persecution! ! ! ! arose!against!the!chrch!of!Jerusalem,!and!they! were! all! scattered! throughout! the! region! of! Judea! and! Samaria,! except! the! apostles.! (2)! Devout! men! buried! Stephen,! and! made! great! lamentation!over!him.!! (3a)!But!Saul!laid!waste!the!church.! ! ! ! ! ! ! (3b)! Entering! house! after! house,! he! dragged! off! men! and! women,! and! committed! them! to! prison.!

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with! the! name! of! God.! So! there! is! a! hint! at! a! formal! blasphemy,! which! has! nothing! to! do! with! false! witnesses.! This! indicates! that! the! editor! of! this! stage! did! use! a! source,! but! without! understanding! the! legal! point.! A! third! observation! is! that! the! high!priest!in!charge!mentioned!in!the!context!is!Anan!(4:6,!at!the!trial!of!Peter!and! John),!which!is!an!anachronism,!for!the!only!high!priest!Anan!before!James!was!the! father! of! our! Sadducee,! who! was! removed! in! 15! (#nt.! 18:26-34).! So! it! appears! that! this! trial! of! Stephen! is! really! similar! to! James! with! Anan.! But! it! was! added! to! a! first! story! of! stoning.! We! may! definitely! conclude,! therefore,! that! Stephens! trial! is! actually! a! projection! of! James.! Smaller! details! confirm! this!:! the! name! of! Stephen! does! not! appear! in! the! trial!;! Stephens! burial! by! pious! men! and! not! by! disciples! hardly! fits! Stephens! time,! but! concords! with! James! burial! as! mentioned! by! Hegesippus.! This! way! Stephen! becomes,! instead! of! James,! a! prominent! figure! of! the!suffering!servant.!

V!!P!"sis!
It!is!generally!taken!for!granted!that!Stephens!trial!and!death!depend!on!Jesus.! The! next! step! would! be! to! test! the! reverse! hypothesis.! In! the! Synoptics! Jesus! trial! is! difficult! to! assess!:! 1.!it! takes! place! on! a! Passover! night!;! 2.!the! blasphemy! is! not! apparent!;!3.!the!result!is!not!a!stoning,!but!a!crucifixion!which!looks!very!Roman!;! 4.!John!does!not!know!of!it.!

EBAF!!06/07/98!

James!!Handouts!
Act II!

tienne!Nodet!

I!!Stephens!trial!:!
Act III (Ac!6-7)! (6,8)!Or!tienne,!plein!de!grce!et!de!puissan- ! ! ! ! ce,!faisait!des!signes!et!des!prodiges!devant!le! ! peuple.!(9)!Or,!se!levrent!certains!de!la!syna! ! Affranchis,! des Cyrnens, des #lex!ngogue!des!dits!Affranchis![]! drins et d!"tres de Silicie et d#sie,! pour! pour!discuter!avec!tienne.!(10)!Et!ils!ne!poudiscuter ! vaient! pas! sopposer! ! la! sagesse! et! ! lEsprit! ! qui!le!faisaient!parler.!! ! (10bis! ! TO)! Ne! pouvant! affronter! la! vrit,! ! ! (11)! ils! soudoyrent! des! hommes! pour! dire!:! !Nous! lavons! entendu! dire! des! paroles! de! blasphme!contre!Mose!et!contre!Dieu.!! (12a)! Ils! ameutrent! le! peuple! et! les! anciens! ! ! ! et!les!scribes.! ! (12b)!Et,!survenant,!ils!semparrent!de!lui!et! ! ! lamenrent!au!sanhdrin.! (13)! De! faux! tmoins! se! dressrent,! disant!:! ! ! ! !Cet! homme! ne! cesse! de! parler! contre! ce! saint!lieu!et!contre!la!Loi.!! ! ! (14)! Nous! lavons! entendu! dire! que! Jsus,! ! ce!nazoren,!dtruirait!ce!lieu-ci!et!changerait!les!usages!que!Mose!nous!a!lgus.! ! (15)! Et! tous! ceux! qui! taient! dans! le! sanh- ! ! drin,! layant! regard! fixement,! virent! son! visage! comme! le! visage! de! lange! de! Dieu! debout! au! milieu! deux.! (7,1)! Le! grand! prtre! demanda!:!!En!est-il!bien!ainsi!?!! ! (2-53)![Disco"rs dtienne Act!I, p"is de"x ph!ses de rem!niements!Act!II-III].! ! (54)! En! entendant! cela,! ils! taient! furieux! ! ! dans! leur! cur! et! ils! grinaient! des! dents! contre! lui.! (55)! Mais! lui,! se! trouvant! dans! lEsprit,! ayant! regard! fixement! vers! le! ciel,! vit!la!gloire!de!Dieu!et!Jsus!!sa!droite.!(56)! Et! il! dit!:! !Voici! que! je! vois! les! cieux! ouverts,!et!le!Fils!de!lHomme!debout!!la!droite!de!Dieu.!! (57)! Mais! le pe"ple,! ayant! entendu! cela! (TO),! ! ! (57)!Mais!e"x!(TA),! cri! pleine voix!et!ils!se!prcipitrent! se bo"chrent les oreilles! et! se! prcipitrent! to"s! sur! lui,! (58a)! et! lentranant! hors! de! la! "n!nimes!sur!lui,!lentranant!hors!de!la!ville! ville,!ils le l!pid!ient.! ! ! ! (58b)! Les! tmoins! avaient! dpos! leurs! vtements! aux! pieds! dun! jeune! homme! appel! Saul,!(59a)!et!ils!lapidait!tienne,! (59b)! lui! priant! et! disant!:! !Seigneur! Jsus,! ! ! ! reois!mon!esprit.!! ! ! (60a)! Puis! il! flchit! le! genou! et! dit! dans! un! ! grand! cri!:! !Seigneur,! ne! leur! impute! pas! ce! pch.!! ! (60b)!Et,!ayant!dit!cela,!il!sendormit.! ! ! ! ! ! ! (8,1a)!Saul,!lui,!approuvait!ce!meurtre.! Doc P Act I!

! !

! J#M$S! 12! (8,1b)! En! ce! jour-l,! une! violente! perscution! ! ! ! se! dchana! contre! lglise! de! Jrusalem.! ! lexception! des! aptres,! tous! se! dispersrent! dans! les! campagnes! de! Jude! et! de! Samarie.! (2)! Cependant,! des! hommes! pieux! ensevelirent!tienne,!et!firent!sur!lui!un!grand!deuil.!! (3a)!Quant!!Saul,!il!ravageait!lglise.! ! ! ! ! ! ! (3b)! Allant! de! maison! en! maison,! il! en! arrachait!hommes!et!femmes!et!les!jetait!en!prison.! ! Doc P Act I! Act II!

Act III (Ac!6-7)! ! ! ! (6,8)!And!Stephe,!full!of!grace!and!power,!did! ! great! wonders! and! signs! among! the! people.! ! (9)! Then! some! of! those! of! the! synagogue! of! ! ! Freedmen,! !nd of the Cyreni!ns, !nd of the!Freedmen![]! the #lex!ndri!ns, !nd of those from Cilici! arose! and! disputed! with! Stephen.! (10)! But! ! nd #si!,!arose!and! they! could! not! withstand! the! wisdom! and! the! ! Spirit!with!which!he!spoke.!! ! (10bis!!WT)!Unable!to!face!the!truth,! ! ! ! (11)! they! secretly! instigated! men,! who! said!:! We! have! heard! him! speak! blasphemous! words!against!Moses!and!God.! (12a)! IAnd! they! stirred! up! the! people! and! the! ! ! ! eldres!and!the!scribes.! ! (12b)! And! they! came! upon! him! and! seized! ! ! him!and!brought!him!before!the!sanhedrin.! (13)! And! they! set! up! false! witnesses! who! ! ! ! said!:! This! man! never! ceases! to! speak! words! against!this!place!and!the!Law.! ! ! (14)! For! we! have! heard! him! say! that! this! ! Jesus! of! Nazareth! will! destroy! this! place! and! will! change! the! customs! which! Moses! delivered!to!us.! ! (15)! And! gazing! at! him,! all! who! sat! in! the! ! ! sanhedrin! saw! that! his! face! was! like! the! face! of! an! angel.! (7,1)! And! the! high! priest! said!:! Is!this!so!?! ! (2-53)![Stephens speech Act!I, then two f"rther st!ges!Act!II-III].! ! (54)! Now! when! they! heard! these! things! they! ! ! were! enraged,! and! they! ground! their! teeth! against! him.! (55)! But! he,! full! of! the! Holy! Spirit,! gazed! into! heaven! and! saw! the! glory! of!God,!and!Jesus!standing!at!the!right!had!of! God.! (56)! And! he! said!:! Behold,! I! see! the! heavens! opened,! and! the! Son! of! man! standing!at!the!right!hand!of!God.! (57)! But! the people,! upon! hearing! this! (WT),! ! ! (57)!But!they(AT),! sho"ted !lo"d!and!!ll!rushed!upon! ! stopped their e!rs! and! rushed! together! upon! him,!(58a)!then!they!cast!him!out!of!the!city! ! him,!(58a)!and!cast!him!out!of!the!city.! and!stoned!him.! ! ! ! (58b)! And! the! witnesses! laid! down! their! garments! at! the! feet! of! a! young! mannamed! Saul,!(59a)!and!they!were!stoning!Stephen.!

! !

! ! ! II! ! In! #nt.! 20:197-203! Josephus! gives! an! account! of! Anans! short! tenure,! in! 62!:! ! #nd now C!es!r, "pon he!ring the de!th of Fest"s, sent #lbin"s into J"de! !s proc"r!tor. B"t the king [#gripp!] deprived Joseph of the high priesthood !nd bestowed the s"ccession of th!t dignity on the son of #n!n, who w!s !lso himself c!lled #n!n. Now the report goes th!t this elder #n!n proved ! most fort"n!te m!n, for he h!d five sons, who h!d !ll performed the office of ! high priest to God, !nd he h!d himself enjoyed this dignity ! long time formerly, which h!d never h!ppened to !ny other of o"r high priests. This yo"nger #n!n who, !s we h!ve told yo" !lre!dy, took the high priesthood, w!s ! bold m!n in his temper, !nd very insolent. He w!s !lso of the sect of the S!dd"cees, who !re very rigid in j"dging offenders, !bove !ll the rest of the Jews, !s we h!ve !lre!dy observed. When, therefore, #n!n w!s of this disposition, he tho"ght he h!d now ! proper opport"nity [to exercise his !"thority]. Fest"s w!s now de!d !nd #lbin"s w!s "pon the ro!d. So he !ssembled ! s!nhedrin of j"dges, !nd bro"ght before them the brother of Jes"s, who w!s c!lled Christ, whose n!me w!s J!mes, !nd some of his comp!nions. #nd when he h!d formed !n !cc"s!tion !g!inst them !s bre!kers of the l!w, he delivered them to be stoned. B"t !s for those who seemed the most eq"it!ble of the citizens, !nd s"ch !s were the most "ne!sy !t the bre!ch of the l!ws, they disliked wh!t w!s done ; they !lso sent to the king [#gripp!], disiring him to send to #n!n th!t he sho"ld !ct so no more, for th!t wh!t he h!d !lre!dy done w!s not to j"stified. N!y, some of them went !lso to meet #lbin"s, !s he w!s "pon his jo"ney from #lex!ndri!, !nd informed him th!t it w!s not l!wf"l for #non to !ssemble ! s!nhedrin witho"t his consent. Where"pon #lbin"s complied with

! J#M$S! 13! (59b)! He! was! praying! and! saying!:! Lord! ! ! ! Jesus,!receive!my!spirit.! ! ! (60a)! And! he! knelt! down! and! cried! with! a! ! loud! voice!:! Lord,! do! not! hold! this! sin! against!them.! ! (60b)!And!when!he!had!said!this!he!fell!asleep.! ! ! ! ! ! ! (8,1a)!And!Saul!was!consenting!to!his!death.! (8,1b)! And! on! that! day! a! great! persecution! ! ! ! arose!against!the!chrch!of!Jerusalem,!and!they! were! all! scattered! throughout! the! region! of! Judea! and! Samaria,! except! the! apostles.! (2)! Devout! men! buried! Stephen,! and! made! great! lamentation!over!him.!! (3a)!But!Saul!laid!waste!the!church.! ! ! ! ! ! ! (3b)! Entering! house! after! house,! he! dragged! off! men! and! women,! and! committed! them! to! prison.!

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wh!t they s!id, !nd wrote in !nger to #n!n, !nd thre!tened th!t he wo"ld bring him to p"nishment for wh!t he h!d done ; on which king #gripp! took the high priesthood from him, when he h!d r"led b"t three months, !nd m!de Jes"s, the son of D!mne"s, high priest. (After!Whistons!transl.) !