Border Lines

The Partition of Judaeo-Christianity

Nonfiction, Religion & Spirituality, Judaism, History, Christianity, Church, Church History
Cover of the book Border Lines by Daniel Boyarin, University of Pennsylvania Press, Inc.
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Daniel Boyarin ISBN: 9780812203844
Publisher: University of Pennsylvania Press, Inc. Publication: November 24, 2010
Imprint: University of Pennsylvania Press Language: English
Author: Daniel Boyarin
ISBN: 9780812203844
Publisher: University of Pennsylvania Press, Inc.
Publication: November 24, 2010
Imprint: University of Pennsylvania Press
Language: English

The historical separation between Judaism and Christianity is often figured as a clearly defined break of a single entity into two separate religions. Following this model, there would have been one religion known as Judaism before the birth of Christ, which then took on a hybrid identity. Even before its subsequent division, certain beliefs and practices of this composite would have been identifiable as Christian or Jewish.In Border Lines, however, Daniel Boyarin makes a striking case for a very different way of thinking about the historical development that is the partition of Judaeo-Christianity.

There were no characteristics or features that could be described as uniquely Jewish or Christian in late antiquity, Boyarin argues. Rather, Jesus-following Jews and Jews who did not follow Jesus lived on a cultural map in which beliefs, such as that in a second divine being, and practices, such as keeping kosher or maintaining the Sabbath, were widely and variably distributed. The ultimate distinctions between Judaism and Christianity were imposed from above by "border-makers," heresiologists anxious to construct a discrete identity for Christianity. By defining some beliefs and practices as Christian and others as Jewish or heretical, they moved ideas, behaviors, and people to one side or another of an artificial border—and, Boyarin significantly contends, invented the very notion of religion.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

The historical separation between Judaism and Christianity is often figured as a clearly defined break of a single entity into two separate religions. Following this model, there would have been one religion known as Judaism before the birth of Christ, which then took on a hybrid identity. Even before its subsequent division, certain beliefs and practices of this composite would have been identifiable as Christian or Jewish.In Border Lines, however, Daniel Boyarin makes a striking case for a very different way of thinking about the historical development that is the partition of Judaeo-Christianity.

There were no characteristics or features that could be described as uniquely Jewish or Christian in late antiquity, Boyarin argues. Rather, Jesus-following Jews and Jews who did not follow Jesus lived on a cultural map in which beliefs, such as that in a second divine being, and practices, such as keeping kosher or maintaining the Sabbath, were widely and variably distributed. The ultimate distinctions between Judaism and Christianity were imposed from above by "border-makers," heresiologists anxious to construct a discrete identity for Christianity. By defining some beliefs and practices as Christian and others as Jewish or heretical, they moved ideas, behaviors, and people to one side or another of an artificial border—and, Boyarin significantly contends, invented the very notion of religion.

More books from University of Pennsylvania Press, Inc.

Cover of the book The Steppe and the Sea by Daniel Boyarin
Cover of the book Queer Clout by Daniel Boyarin
Cover of the book The Evolution of International Human Rights by Daniel Boyarin
Cover of the book Shakespeare's Shrine by Daniel Boyarin
Cover of the book Korea's Grievous War by Daniel Boyarin
Cover of the book Medieval Theory of Authorship by Daniel Boyarin
Cover of the book Take Up Your Pen by Daniel Boyarin
Cover of the book Dangerous Minds by Daniel Boyarin
Cover of the book To Read My Heart by Daniel Boyarin
Cover of the book The International Struggle for New Human Rights by Daniel Boyarin
Cover of the book Masking Terror by Daniel Boyarin
Cover of the book Literature, American Style by Daniel Boyarin
Cover of the book History of the University of Pennsylvania, 1740-1940 by Daniel Boyarin
Cover of the book The Anatomy Murders by Daniel Boyarin
Cover of the book The Most Beautiful Man in Existence by Daniel Boyarin
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy