Kosher Jesus

[guno]

I just started reading his book , highly recommended

Kosher Jesus is a book by Orthodox Rabbi Shmuley Boteach focusing on the relationship between Christianity and Judaism.

Kosher Jesus aims to present what Boteach considers the rabbinic origins of the teachings of Jesus, and holds to the belief that Jesus never claimed personal divinity or any status as the Jewish Messiah. In an interview with the magazine Publishers Weekly, Boteach stated that the book "traces the teachings of Jesus to their original sources: the Torah, the Talmud and rabbinic literature", and went on to identify an encounter with a Christian evangelist as an important event that led him to write the book


In the book, Boteach draws on past work by Hyam Maccoby, a British Jewish scholar who wrote on the topic of Judaism and Christianity, and espoused the view that Paul the Apostle was the true founder of Christianity, while Jesus was a mainstream Jewish teacher of the first century whose teachings were later distorted to form the basis of a mythic tradition.

In the introduction to Kosher Jesus, Boteach sets forth his argument, that Jesus was, "a wise and learned rabbi who despised the Romans for their cruelty, ... who fought the Romans courageously and was ultimately murdered for trying to throw off the Roman yoke of oppression ... who worked to rekindle Jewish ritual observance of every aspect of the Torah and to counter the brutal Roman occupation of his people's land.

Boteach, "wants Christians to understand Jesus was not God but a nice loyal Jewish boy.... And he wants Jews to stop thinking of him as a heretic and the founder of a religion that persecuted them for two thousand years."


Kosher Jesus is a project of more than six years research and writing. The book seeks to offer to Jews and Christians the real story of Jesus, a wholly observant, Pharisaic Rabbi who fought Roman paganism and oppression and was killed for it. While many Christians will be confused by its assertion that Jesus never claimed divinity and not only did not abrogate the Torah but observed every letter of the Law, they will find comfort in my tracing most of Jesus principal teachings back to Jewish sources, this before he was stripped of his Jewishness by later writers who sought to portray him as an enemy of his people. This is especially true of Jesus' most famous oration, the Sermon on the Mount, which is a reformulation of the Torah he studied and to which he was committed. A small sampling: Jesus: (Matt 5:5) Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. Hebrew Bible: (Psalms 37) The meek shall inherit the earth, and delight themselves in the abundance of peace. Jesus: (Matt 5:8) Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see G-d. Hebrew Bible: (Psalms 24) Who shall ascend the mount of the Lord the pure-hearted. Jesus: (Matt 5:39) But if anyone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also. Hebrew Bible: (Lamentations 3:30) Let him offer his cheek to him who smites him.... Jesus: (Matt 6:33) But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things shall be yours as well. Hebrew Bible: (Psalms 37:4) Delight yourself in the Lord, and He shall give you the desires of your heart. Jesus: (Matt 7:7) Ask, and it will be given you; search, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened for you. Hebrew Bible: (Jer 29:13) When you search for me, you will find me; if you seek me with all your heart. Jesus: (Matt 7:23) Then I will declare to them, I never knew you; go away from me, you evildoers. Hebrew Bible: (Psalms 6:9) Depart from me, all you workers of evil... The book is also for Jews who remain deeply uncomfortable with Jesus because of the Church s long history of anti-Semitism, the deification of Jesus, and the Jewish rejection of any Messiah who has not fulfilled the Messianic prophecies. We Jews will forever reject the divinity of any man, the single most emphatic prohibition of our Bible. And we can never accept the Messiahship of any personality, however noble or well-intended, who died without ushering in the age of physical redemption. But as Christians and Jews now come together to love and support the majestic and humane Jewish state, it s time that Christians rediscover the deep Jewishness and religious Jewish commitment of Jesus, while Jews reexamine a lost son who was murdered by a brutal Roman state who sought to impose Roman culture and rule upon a tiny yet stubborn nation who will never be severed from their eternal covenant with the G-d of Israel.

 

[Sunni Man]

Sounds like an excellent book for both Jews and Christians to read.

As a side note, the OP's review fits my personal belief about Jesus and his ministry.

I will be purchasing my own copy thru Amazon. ......

 

[Book of Jeremiah]

If the Rabbi would put down the Talmud and start reading the Written Torah / compare it with the New Testament he would see that Moses spoke of the LORD, Isaiah spoke of LORD, David spoke of LORD, Ezekiel spoke of LORD and many other servants throughout the Old Testament / Torah all knew the Lord was the Son of God - Jesus Christ. Isaiah 53 is a prophecy of Jesus Christ. Psalm 22 is another prophecy of Jesus Christ. Jesus is in all 66 books of the King James Holy Bible. If the Rabbi spent as much time studying to learn the truth as he did fabricating a lie with his book he would have learned that Jesus Christ is the Messiah.

Why does the Rabbi believe in a book of lies (Talmud) that disagrees with the written Torah (Written Word of God)? Why would any Jew take the words of men over the Written Word of God Is it not foolishness to do this?

 

[irosie91]

I do not care for Boteach-----he acts like a sunday radio preacher-----would not consider reading a book of his---unless it happened to be the only book around---HOWEVER---not only do I agree with the stuff GOOONO presented in his post (quoting
Boteach). I did read the NT and the OT----and other stuff
----like ancient writings----including stuff HILLEL wrote----
and concluded ---PRECISELY that which goono claims as
the words of Boteach (I will try to remain calm despite the
fact that I found something positive about a post from GOONO).
Jesus was a good jewish boy----absolutely no doubt about it---and---IMO---did not create Christianity----it was Paul---and
even Paul did not quite understand what sort of PANDORA's box he had opened

 

[Sunni Man]

In the book, Boteach draws on past work by Hyam Maccoby, a British Jewish scholar who wrote on the topic of Judaism and Christianity, and espoused the view that Paul the Apostle was the true founder of Christianity, while Jesus was a mainstream Jewish teacher of the first century whose teachings were later distorted to form the basis of a mythic tradition.

Thru my own study, I came to the same conclusion almost 20 years ago. ......

 

[irosie91]

If the Rabbi would put down the Talmud and start reading the Written Torah / compare it with the New Testament he would see that Moses spoke of the LORD, Isaiah spoke of LORD, David spoke of LORD, Ezekiel spoke of LORD and many other servants throughout the Old Testament / Torah all knew the Lord was the Son of God - Jesus Christ. Isaiah 53 is a prophecy of Jesus Christ. Psalm 22 is another prophecy of Jesus Christ. Jesus is in all 66 books of the King James Holy Bible. If the Rabbi spent as much time studying to learn the truth as he did fabricating a lie with his book he would have learned that Jesus Christ is the Messiah.

Why does the Rabbi believe in a book of lies (Talmud) that disagrees with the written Torah (Written Word of God)? Why would any Jew take the words of men over the Written Word of God Is it not foolishness to do this?

according to the NT----Jesus quotes the Talmud ---LEFT AND RIGHT -----if he rejected the Talmud-----he should have SAID SO. In fact----he specifically ENDORSED IT (sorry jere---but it is so)

 

[Penelope]

If the Rabbi would put down the Talmud and start reading the Written Torah / compare it with the New Testament he would see that Moses spoke of the LORD, Isaiah spoke of LORD, David spoke of LORD, Ezekiel spoke of LORD and many other servants throughout the Old Testament / Torah all knew the Lord was the Son of God - Jesus Christ. Isaiah 53 is a prophecy of Jesus Christ. Psalm 22 is another prophecy of Jesus Christ. Jesus is in all 66 books of the King James Holy Bible. If the Rabbi spent as much time studying to learn the truth as he did fabricating a lie with his book he would have learned that Jesus Christ is the Messiah.

Why does the Rabbi believe in a book of lies (Talmud) that disagrees with the written Torah (Written Word of God)? Why would any Jew take the words of men over the Written Word of God Is it not foolishness to do this?

according to the NT----Jesus quotes the Talmud ---LEFT AND RIGHT -----if he rejected the Talmud-----he should have SAID SO. In fact----he specifically ENDORSED IT (sorry jere---but it is so)

Can you give examples?

 

[HaShev]

I just started reading his book , highly recommended

Kosher Jesus is a book by Orthodox Rabbi Shmuley Boteach focusing on the relationship between Christianity and Judaism.

Kosher Jesus aims to present what Boteach considers the rabbinic origins of the teachings of Jesus, and holds to the belief that Jesus never claimed personal divinity or any status as the Jewish Messiah. In an interview with the magazine Publishers Weekly, Boteach stated that the book "traces the teachings of Jesus to their original sources: the Torah, the Talmud and rabbinic literature", and went on to identify an encounter with a Christian evangelist as an important event that led him to write the book


In the book, Boteach draws on past work by Hyam Maccoby, a British Jewish scholar who wrote on the topic of Judaism and Christianity, and espoused the view that Paul the Apostle was the true founder of Christianity, while Jesus was a mainstream Jewish teacher of the first century whose teachings were later distorted to form the basis of a mythic tradition.

In the introduction to Kosher Jesus, Boteach sets forth his argument, that Jesus was, "a wise and learned rabbi who despised the Romans for their cruelty, ... who fought the Romans courageously and was ultimately murdered for trying to throw off the Roman yoke of oppression ... who worked to rekindle Jewish ritual observance of every aspect of the Torah and to counter the brutal Roman occupation of his people's land.

Boteach, "wants Christians to understand Jesus was not God but a nice loyal Jewish boy.... And he wants Jews to stop thinking of him as a heretic and the founder of a religion that persecuted them for two thousand years."


Kosher Jesus is a project of more than six years research and writing. The book seeks to offer to Jews and Christians the real story of Jesus, a wholly observant, Pharisaic Rabbi who fought Roman paganism and oppression and was killed for it. While many Christians will be confused by its assertion that Jesus never claimed divinity and not only did not abrogate the Torah but observed every letter of the Law, they will find comfort in my tracing most of Jesus principal teachings back to Jewish sources, this before he was stripped of his Jewishness by later writers who sought to portray him as an enemy of his people. This is especially true of Jesus' most famous oration, the Sermon on the Mount, which is a reformulation of the Torah he studied and to which he was committed. A small sampling: Jesus: (Matt 5:5) Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. Hebrew Bible: (Psalms 37) The meek shall inherit the earth, and delight themselves in the abundance of peace. Jesus: (Matt 5:8) Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see G-d. Hebrew Bible: (Psalms 24) Who shall ascend the mount of the Lord the pure-hearted. Jesus: (Matt 5:39) But if anyone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also. Hebrew Bible: (Lamentations 3:30) Let him offer his cheek to him who smites him.... Jesus: (Matt 6:33) But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things shall be yours as well. Hebrew Bible: (Psalms 37:4) Delight yourself in the Lord, and He shall give you the desires of your heart. Jesus: (Matt 7:7) Ask, and it will be given you; search, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened for you. Hebrew Bible: (Jer 29:13) When you search for me, you will find me; if you seek me with all your heart. Jesus: (Matt 7:23) Then I will declare to them, I never knew you; go away from me, you evildoers. Hebrew Bible: (Psalms 6:9) Depart from me, all you workers of evil... The book is also for Jews who remain deeply uncomfortable with Jesus because of the Church s long history of anti-Semitism, the deification of Jesus, and the Jewish rejection of any Messiah who has not fulfilled the Messianic prophecies. We Jews will forever reject the divinity of any man, the single most emphatic prohibition of our Bible. And we can never accept the Messiahship of any personality, however noble or well-intended, who died without ushering in the age of physical redemption. But as Christians and Jews now come together to love and support the majestic and humane Jewish state, it s time that Christians rediscover the deep Jewishness and religious Jewish commitment of Jesus, while Jews reexamine a lost son who was murdered by a brutal Roman state who sought to impose Roman culture and rule upon a tiny yet stubborn nation who will never be severed from their eternal covenant with the G-d of Israel.

Problem is he's talking about Theudas or maybe even Yehuda, but giving creedance to the idol Jesus, thus making an image seem real and helping them missguide people and even being part of the idolization or anthropromorphication of a figure himself. Further, since we don't know which figure taught what, he might be humoring Christians while speaking about the portion of the compiled figure, one who sent John off to be killed, so he could steal his flock.

 

[HaShev]

If the Rabbi would put down the Talmud and start reading the Written Torah / compare it with the New Testament he would see that Moses spoke of the LORD, Isaiah spoke of LORD, David spoke of LORD, Ezekiel spoke of LORD and many other servants throughout the Old Testament / Torah all knew the Lord was the Son of God - Jesus Christ. Isaiah 53 is a prophecy of Jesus Christ. Psalm 22 is another prophecy of Jesus Christ. Jesus is in all 66 books of the King James Holy Bible. If the Rabbi spent as much time studying to learn the truth as he did fabricating a lie with his book he would have learned that Jesus Christ is the Messiah.

Why does the Rabbi believe in a book of lies (Talmud) that disagrees with the written Torah (Written Word of God)? Why would any Jew take the words of men over the Written Word of God Is it not foolishness to do this?

Jeremiah put down your coloring book and your NT and try reading the Tanakh and get educated in what it says not what your NT says it says. Psalms says at his hands and feet not pierced, you know ths yet you still like to lie to people.
Furthermore using your standard jesus being placed anywhere it says pierced, he must be the DRAGON pierced in later portions of Isaiah(49 or 59).
Stop bringing up Isaiah 53 you and your pastors are embarassing yourselves and may I REMIND YOU who is in the text is not Jesus. Jesus mentioned 0 times by name, not in the Bible not in Torah portions not in the temple nor city, nor God's name, all prerequisites. Therefore the first fallen imposter Jesus has to be that Dragon.

 

[guno]

 

[guno]

Maybe we should refer to christians are paulites

 

[guno]

If the Rabbi would put down the Talmud and start reading the Written Torah / compare it with the New Testament he would see that Moses spoke of the LORD, Isaiah spoke of LORD, David spoke of LORD, Ezekiel spoke of LORD and many other servants throughout the Old Testament / Torah all knew the Lord was the Son of God - Jesus Christ. Isaiah 53 is a prophecy of Jesus Christ. Psalm 22 is another prophecy of Jesus Christ. Jesus is in all 66 books of the King James Holy Bible. If the Rabbi spent as much time studying to learn the truth as he did fabricating a lie with his book he would have learned that Jesus Christ is the Messiah.

Why does the Rabbi believe in a book of lies (Talmud) that disagrees with the written Torah (Written Word of God)? Why would any Jew take the words of men over the Written Word of God Is it not foolishness to do this?

Jeremiah put down your coloring book and your NT and try reading the Tanakh and get educated in what it says not what your NT says it says. Psalms says at his hands and feet not pierced, you know ths yet you still like to lie to people.
Furthermore using your standard jesus being placed anywhere it says pierced, he must be the DRAGON pierced in later portions of Isaiah(49 or 59).
Stop bringing up Isaiah 53 you and your pastors are embarassing yourselves and may I REMIND YOU who is in the text is not Jesus. Jesus mentioned 0 times by name, not in the Bible not in Torah portions not in the temple nor city, nor God's name, all prerequisites. Therefore the first fallen imposter Jesus has to be that Dragon.

First, one must read the entire book of Isaiah in context and from an accurate Jewish translation (such as an Artscroll/ Mesorah Publication Bible). It was written by Isaiah who was a prophet from 619-533 B.C.E. In the original text there were no chapters and breaks. The book was written in fluid format and therefore, must be read as a whole. When doing so, you will note that this chapter, which is known as the “Fourth Servant Song” actually begins in chapter 52 verse 13.

When reading Isaiah and other text, God often calls Israel and Jacob (another reference to Israel), His “servant” in both the singular and plural. Some examples:

Isaiah 41:8-9 “But you, O Israel, My servant, Jacob, you whom I have chosen, offspring of Abraham who loved Me…and to whom I shall say: ‘You are my servant’ – I have chosen you and not rejected you.”1
Isaiah 44:1 “But hear now Jacob, My servant, and Israel whom I have chosen!”2
Isaiah 44: 21 “Remember these things, Jacob and Israel, for you are My servant: I fashioned you to be My servant: Israel do not forget Me!”
Isaiah 45:4 “..for the sake of My servant Jacob and Israel, My chosen one: I have proclaimed you by name…”
Isaiah 48:20 “…say, ‘Hashem (God) has redeemed His servant Jacob.”
Isaiah 49:3 “…You are my servant, Israel, in whom I take glory.”
Jeremiah 30: 10 “But as for you, do not fear My servant Jacob, the word of Hashem (G-d) and do not be afraid, Israel…”
Psalms Chapter 136:22 “A heritage for Israel, His (God’s) servant, for His kindness endures forever.”3
Isaiah 53 Explained - Jews For Judaism

 

[guno]

If the Rabbi would put down the Talmud and start reading the Written Torah / compare it with the New Testament he would see that Moses spoke of the LORD, Isaiah spoke of LORD, David spoke of LORD, Ezekiel spoke of LORD and many other servants throughout the Old Testament / Torah all knew the Lord was the Son of God - Jesus Christ. Isaiah 53 is a prophecy of Jesus Christ. Psalm 22 is another prophecy of Jesus Christ. Jesus is in all 66 books of the King James Holy Bible. If the Rabbi spent as much time studying to learn the truth as he did fabricating a lie with his book he would have learned that Jesus Christ is the Messiah.

Why does the Rabbi believe in a book of lies (Talmud) that disagrees with the written Torah (Written Word of God)? Why would any Jew take the words of men over the Written Word of God Is it not foolishness to do this?

Isaiah 53: The Suffering Servant

 

[guno]

'For all the undeniable good Christianity has done, even its most passionate adherents would admit it has also been directly and indirectly responsible for a great deal of suffering. Until the modern era, Christian history is rife with physical violence and discrimination. Awful acts of hatred and intolerance were committed in Jesus’ name. And for far too long, the received picture of Jesus has obscured a simple and powerful truth: Jesus would never stand as an enemy against his own people, nor would he tolerate his followers doing so.


From the very beginning, as Christianity branched away from Judaism to develop its own identity, Jesus was intentionally shorn of his Jewishness like Samson deprived of his strength. Christians obfuscated the idea of Jesus the Jew – preferring to see him as an innovator, who at once transcended Judaism and brought it to a conclusion. This deception deeply alienated Jesus from the Jewish people and led to considerable torment and distress. This is not to suggest that the chilly relationship between Christians and Jews was one-sided. Jews have long avoided any connection to Jesus. Over the centuries, as he was slowly turned into a deity and violence perpetrated in his name against the Jews increased, they came to see him as a source of unrelenting persecution, the supreme example of heresy. They wanted no association with the patron saint of zealots who demeaned, attacked, and murdered them, and taught sacrilege in his name. But times are changing. Christianity has opened its heart to the Jews.





Kosher Jesus

 

[Penelope]

I guess Jesus knew more than the Pharisees of his day. The man from Galilee. The Pharisees were suppose to be the teachers of the law, weren't they?

 

[Penelope]

'For all the undeniable good Christianity has done, even its most passionate adherents would admit it has also been directly and indirectly responsible for a great deal of suffering. Until the modern era, Christian history is rife with physical violence and discrimination. Awful acts of hatred and intolerance were committed in Jesus’ name. And for far too long, the received picture of Jesus has obscured a simple and powerful truth: Jesus would never stand as an enemy against his own people, nor would he tolerate his followers doing so.


From the very beginning, as Christianity branched away from Judaism to develop its own identity, Jesus was intentionally shorn of his Jewishness like Samson deprived of his strength. Christians obfuscated the idea of Jesus the Jew – preferring to see him as an innovator, who at once transcended Judaism and brought it to a conclusion. This deception deeply alienated Jesus from the Jewish people and led to considerable torment and distress. This is not to suggest that the chilly relationship between Christians and Jews was one-sided. Jews have long avoided any connection to Jesus. Over the centuries, as he was slowly turned into a deity and violence perpetrated in his name against the Jews increased, they came to see him as a source of unrelenting persecution, the supreme example of heresy. They wanted no association with the patron saint of zealots who demeaned, attacked, and murdered them, and taught sacrilege in his name. But times are changing. Christianity has opened its heart to the Jews.





Kosher Jesus

I guess you forget your OT history, and the Romans would of never destoryed Judea and if not for the continuous civil wars in the Judea and Israel among different sects of jews and Samaritans. Emperors Titus main general was a jew from Alexandria, an Alexander.

You have also forgot your Russian history and well Christians are fighting to protect Israel now,

so not only have Christians opened their hearts to the jews (some), they have given their life for Israel and they have

opened their pocketbooks, and yet you jews continue to blast Christians.

Smuley books was not well received by orthodox jews nor fundamental Christians.

 

[HaShev]

Another note on Isaiah context;
1)he mentions Michael as the liberator "redeemer" (HaSheva) the commentary for this is in the scrolls.
2)one day does not a sufferer make, try suffering the pride and predjudices and racism for ages upon ages then tell Israel your suffering matters more then a nation.
3)Jesus is served by humanity while Moshiach serves humanity according to elsewhere in Isaiah.
4)so popular served Jesus can't be the suffering servant and of course since the chapter is not messianic itcs all a mute point anyway.

Sources:In "Isaiah Commentary": (IQSb,v 20-29) is a Blessing of the Prince of the Congregation (Archangel Michael), referring to the Triumphant Davidic Messiah as the same. Also regarding Michael as liberator:
"He’ll Proclaim liberty to the captives" (Isaiah lxi,I)


Ezra 1 and Isaiah 44-45 the redeemer is the one who battles with the Persian prince and King Cyrus' heart to do the right thing in gathering the Jews and rebuilding the Temple and Dan 10 tells you who that redeemer is by first & last name.
Jeremiah 23:5-6, Isaiah 51:9, Isaiah 59;19, Is.11:4, Isaiah 25:8
The Nations will end up recognizing the wrongs they did Israel(Is.52:13-53:12 combined with Dan 12:1-4)

 

[hobelim]

If the Rabbi would put down the Talmud and start reading the Written Torah / compare it with the New Testament he would see that Moses spoke of the LORD, Isaiah spoke of LORD, David spoke of LORD, Ezekiel spoke of LORD and many other servants throughout the Old Testament / Torah all knew the Lord was the Son of God - Jesus Christ. Isaiah 53 is a prophecy of Jesus Christ. Psalm 22 is another prophecy of Jesus Christ. Jesus is in all 66 books of the King James Holy Bible. If the Rabbi spent as much time studying to learn the truth as he did fabricating a lie with his book he would have learned that Jesus Christ is the Messiah.

Why does the Rabbi believe in a book of lies (Talmud) that disagrees with the written Torah (Written Word of God)? Why would any Jew take the words of men over the Written Word of God Is it not foolishness to do this?

according to the NT----Jesus quotes the Talmud ---LEFT AND RIGHT -----if he rejected the Talmud-----he should have SAID SO. In fact----he specifically ENDORSED IT (sorry jere---but it is so)

Jesus did say so in no uncertain terms, that he rejected the Talmud, every time he upbraided the pharisees for maintaining the "traditions of men" while neglecting the deeper implications of the written law rendering it null and void.

"you strain at a gnat but swallow a camel" 'Why worry about what you eat or what you wear", "What goes into the mouth cannot defile you", etc.

Not quite the typical rabbi.

 

[irosie91]

If the Rabbi would put down the Talmud and start reading the Written Torah / compare it with the New Testament he would see that Moses spoke of the LORD, Isaiah spoke of LORD, David spoke of LORD, Ezekiel spoke of LORD and many other servants throughout the Old Testament / Torah all knew the Lord was the Son of God - Jesus Christ. Isaiah 53 is a prophecy of Jesus Christ. Psalm 22 is another prophecy of Jesus Christ. Jesus is in all 66 books of the King James Holy Bible. If the Rabbi spent as much time studying to learn the truth as he did fabricating a lie with his book he would have learned that Jesus Christ is the Messiah.

Why does the Rabbi believe in a book of lies (Talmud) that disagrees with the written Torah (Written Word of God)? Why would any Jew take the words of men over the Written Word of God Is it not foolishness to do this?

according to the NT----Jesus quotes the Talmud ---LEFT AND RIGHT -----if he rejected the Talmud-----he should have SAID SO. In fact----he specifically ENDORSED IT (sorry jere---but it is so)

Jesus did say so in no uncertain terms, that he rejected the Talmud, every time he upbraided the pharisees for maintaining the "traditions of men" while neglecting the deeper implications of the written law rendering it null and void.

"you strain at a gnat but swallow a camel" 'Why worry about what you eat or what you wear", "What goes into the mouth cannot defile you", etc.

Not quite the typical rabbi.

in order to interpret the words spoken by Jesus---2000 years ago you have to 1) ---be fairly sure that he spoke them
2) know the vernacular in which he spoke. ---believe it or not------there are actually ordinary type people in the world today--
who have no interest in anything written in the New Testament who actually do KNOW the Aramaic which Jesus spoke---
That fact amazes even me. I have run into fairly young men who do Aramaic. They are the best source for knowing
what Jesus said ----in Aramaic----if the NT writing is available
in Aramaic. As to the refusal to wash his hands-----I have
NEVER believed that the event happened in the manner it is
reported in the NT. NO ONE at that time and place would refuse to wash his hands before eating. Something LIKE
it might have happened----sorta. But NOT----"nope ---I ain't
washing my hands" It would be something like blowing ones nose with the tablecloth.

 

[Penelope]

Lets remember all the Greek and Roman Philosphers of the time, and along with Philo of Alexandria (a jew follower of Plato and one who wanted to merge Judaism with Greek philiosphy, not everything was Judaism, and when we talk of Judaism at that time there were many sects.