THE BOOK CORNER

The Reluctant Parting

by Julie Galambush

The Reluctant Parting illuminates the Jewishness of the "Christian" New Testament by pointing out that the individual book - including seemingly anti-Jewish books such as Hebrews and Matthew - were written about a Jew, by Jewish authors, for a mostly Jewish audience, in a Jewish context, and with Jewish goals. Hebrews, for instance, was "intended for Jews who had left or were tempted to leave the Jesus sect in favor of "safer" forms of Judaism. Dr. Galambush argues that the Jesus movement, which was originally a prophetic movement within Judaism, later emerged, unintentionally and unwillingly, as a different religion. Her argument clarifies why books such as Hebrews and Matthew are simultaneously Jewish and anti-Jewish. She makes insightful observations about the contexts - religious, political, social, etc. - in which the New Testament was written and discusses each book sufficiently and succinctly.

Three things set this book apart from the plethora of other books on Christian Origins: 1) While most of them accentuate the Jewishness of Jesus, this one goes further to highlight the Jewishness of the New Testament authors and their works as well, 2) This book situates the New Testament not only in light of the complexities within first century Judaism, but also in light of the complexities within the Jesus movement itself, and 3) The author consistently bases her arguments on concrete evidence rather than on mere hypothesis.

Dr. Galambush has written an insightful, lucid, engaging, and enjoyable book that is accessible to the initiated and the uninitiated alike. The scope of the book is impressive and its treatment of issues is in-depth. In short, this is page-turner that is quite enlightening.

Review by Rajnadella