Author(s): Levi H. Orr

Presentation: oral

Christianity and Judaism are two fundamental world religions with a common background. This paper focuses on the vast schism that occurred between Judaism and Christianity in the first two centuries of the Common Era, investigating why they became two distinct religions rather than two different sects within the same religion as with Catholics and Protestants within Christianity. The paper draws on historical primary sources such as New Testament Biblical evidence and works by Jewish historian and General Josephus; these sources illuminate the complexity of both the interactions between Jews and proto-Christians and their religious divide. Beyond obvious theological differences centered around the figure of Jesus Christ as proclaimed messiah, this paper explores underlying social and historical circumstances that further affected the Jewish-Christian schism: geographic diversity, identity formation, internal dynamics within Jewish sects, and political-economic factors within the Roman Empire.

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