In this episode, we move out of the discussion on New Testament writings and into the writings of the Apostolic Fathers (or to borrow Fr Yuri's turn of phrase, "The Bible: The Next Generation"). How are they speaking to their communities about Jesus-following Jews continuing to follow Torah, and also gentiles coming in to the church who find this practice attractive? We've already seen how for Paul, gentiles do not need to become Jewish, because in and through Jesus, we are now in the eschatological moment when the nations come together alongside the Jews to worship the one true God of Israel. This is a beautiful theology! However, the practicalities of that on the ground is what these authors are now dealing with, and some of the rhetoric can be very harsh indeed.
Of course, this is not just happening on one side! Fr Geoffrey and Fr Yuri also discuss how the compilation of the Mishnah by the end of the second century draws its own line in the sand as well. On the early Christian side, the focus is more on belief (the right way of thinking about who Jesus is), and on the other side, who can be considered to be part of the Jewish family.
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