'If This Be from Heaven.': Jesus and the New Testament Authors in Their Relationship to Judaism

'If this be from Heaven. . .': Jesus and the New Testament Authors in their Relationship to Judaism, by Peter J. Tomson, trans. J. Dyk. BS 76. Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 2001. Pp. 455. $49.75. This book by Peter J. Tomson, professor of NT studies at the Protestant Theological Faculty in Brussels, both recommends and goes a long way toward applying a fresh "reading" of the NT in the light of two related imperatives of intense concern in recent times: the need to respond to apparent anti-Jewish statements in the NT in the light of the Holocaust, on the one hand, and the need to build upon the surge of interest in recent approaches to the NT from the perspectives of Judaism, on the other. While the former concern dominates toward the end of the book, Tomson makes a strong contribution to the second concern as well. In his attempt to respond to these imperatives Tomson offers an easy-to-read survey of the NT documents with special emphasis on the relationship of each document and its author to Judaism. This interest includes both the Jewish nature of the writing itself and its attitude toward Judaism as this can be discerned through attention to pertinent passages and phrases. As the author himself points out, the book could well be used as an introduction to the NT with its wide coverage and critically important perspective (not to mention the absence of cumbersome notes), although it is not really intended for that purpose and as a result of its concentrated focus on issues of current debate it sometimes assumes bits of knowledge that a beginning reader might not possess. Various approaches to the problem of anti-Judaism raised by this book have been ventured in the past, from the extreme of denying that the problem exists to that of discarding the entire NT as singularly hateful to Jews. Tomson avoids both pitfalls by adopting a developmental approach, which he discerns along primarily chronological lines. Anti-Jewish sentiments can be pretty much relegated to the later portions and editions of the NT. Whatever can be confidently known about the historical Jesus reveals that he acted as a unique, but nevertheless thoroughly Jewish, teacher and that he should not be held responsible for any hateful sayings against Jews. Luke's Gospel has preserved this original tone most successfully and among the Gospels best represents the attitudes of both Jesus and the apostle Paul, who also has been misunderstood to promote anti-Jewish sentiments but was in fact completely committed to Israel and to Jewish fundamentals. However, from that point forward certain developments served to lead to a degradation of this originally embracing and conciliatory point of view. To a certain degree, both Mark and especially Matthew show signs of various levels and periods of editing in which real invective is introduced under the influence of Gentile (nonJewish) churches and their leaders. John's Gospel, again with evidences of layers of editing, has taken this one step further, to the point that this Gospel can be said to contain sayings of real hatred against Jews (especially the sometimes derogatory and distanced use of the term "the Jews"). Various other Jewish-Christian writings, such as James, Jude, Revelation, and the Didache, with their conciliatory tone toward Judaism, actually stand closer to the original intentions of Jesus than the reedited Gospels. Tomson ends by recommending a reading of the NT with "differentiation," by which he means primarily that parts of the NT, especially the Gospel of John, should be read and used in the worship of the church only cautiously and critically, being alert to the presence of anti-Jewish sentiments. Tomson ought to be commended for advancing the study of NT origins in the direction of their relationship to Judaism, given that the field has been dominated by non-Jewish concerns for over a century. His is a welcome contribution to this newer and better perspective, and a consistent, strong appeal to look at the canon of the NT as a whole along these lines must be judged overdue. …