This book offers a whole new perspective regarding the origin of the Christian faith by focusing on James, the brother of Jesus, and the community which he oversaw in Jerusalem which the author refers to as the "Jakobusgemeinde" but which I will refer to as the Nazarenes for the sake of simplicity. Some modern scholars claim that Paul was an arch-nemesis of this community while others claim that Paul, who was completely out of touch with the historical Jesus created his own gospel which was out of sync with the original and more authentic Jewish Christian gospel. This book effectively blows away both of these bogus theories.
The author covers all the credible sources we have concerning the Nazarene community but gives primacy to the authentic epistles of the Apostle Paul which are the oldest and only eyewitness accounts we have. The author gleans information from these epistles to formulate his theories which gives us a whole new perspective of James and the Nazarenes. It is from these epistles that we hear the echoes of the earliest creeds and doctrines of the Christian faith which emanate not from Paul, but from the Nazarenes.
The author proposes that the Nazarene community was established in Jerusalem as a Jewish restoration movement inspired by John the Baptist prior to Jesus' crucifixion. It is highly unlikely that this community could have been established so quickly in Jerusalem by Jesus' Galilean disciples after the crucifixion with Simon Peter as its leader only to be permanently replaced by James. In addition, it appears that Jesus had close contacts there to set up arrangements for the Last Supper. The author has an interesting theory regarding the parable of the Prodigal Son by suggesting that Jesus, after his father, Joseph died, left his family to start his Galilean ministry, leaving his brothers tasked with supporting the family. The economic conditions in rural Galilee may have forced the family to seek work in Jerusalem. If carpentry was the family trade, they could have found plenty of work on Herod's Temple project. Hegesippus' description of James constant presence in the Temple with calloused knees may indicate that he was involved in this project. James established his reputation in Jerusalem as "James the Righteous" from learning that he could not have received if he had remained in rural Galilee.
Inspired by the apocalyptic proclamations of John the Baptist, a community from Nazareth may have settled together in that city known as Nazarenes. The community was structured along the lines of the Qumran community with a symbolic twelve elders and a priestly triumvirate with James as the overseer or "mebaqqer". The author suggests that Cephas mentioned by Paul may not necessarily refer to Simon Peter but to one of the community pillars from the very beginning. In Galatians 2:7-9, Paul refers to Cephas and Peter in the same sentence which would be unlikely if they were the same person. Some versions have Paul staying with Cephas rather than Peter when he first met the community in Jerusalem. In addition "the twelve" witnesses of the resurrected Jesus in 1 Corinthians 15:5 may refer to the Nazarene elders rather than the twelve Galilean disciples.
Paul's seeming lack of knowledge of Jesus' Galilean ministry which the author describes as a "black hole" in our understanding of Christian origins can be explained by the fact that Paul's contacts among the Nazarenes had little knowledge about that as well and did not consider it of primary importance. The epistles of James, Jude and Hebrews, which the author considers Nazarene inspired writings make no mention of this either.
The author uses 1 Corinthians 15:3-11 to demonstrate that Paul received his gospel from the Nazarenes and that he was preaching nothing different from what they were preaching in regard to the death and resurrection of Jesus. This event must have had a profound effect on this community which marked the beginning of the end time prophecies of John the Baptist. In 1 Corinthians 15:3-4 we have the original Christological proclamation of the Nazarene community, that Christ died for our sins and was resurrected on the third day according to the scriptures. In addition, Jesus being raised up to Heaven as the Son of God who would return to act as judge and savior of the world was also part of their belief system. Here we have the foundational doctrines of Christianity emanating not from Paul or the early church fathers, but from James and the Nazarenes.
However, to Paul, the death and resurrection of Jesus was interpreted as a new life in the Spirit or living an angelic life in the present world. For the Nazarenes, it meant a renewed zeal for the Law in anticipation of the parousia. The only real bone of contention between Paul and the Nazarenes was how gentiles should be brought into the community. Paul attempted to strengthen the bonds between the gentile communities and the Nazarenes by taking up a collection which would also demonstrate the fulfillment of the end time prophecies of the gentile nations bringing gifts to Zion. Increasing Jewish nationalist sentiment in Jerusalem may have prevented the Nazarenes from accepting Paul's gift. In addition, James did not have the authority to act on Paul's behalf. James himself became a victim of the Jerusalem priesthood.
Over time, the gentile communities became alienated from the Nazarenes which may be reflected in the secondary status given to James in the Book of Acts. The author of Acts could not completely remove James from the picture, but eventually, Peter and Paul became the leading figures of early Christianity.
The author gleans from Paul's writings liturgical proclamations which could only have come from those he knew in the Nazarene community. It is here that we find the echoes of the earliest creeds and doctrines of the Christian faith which emanated from the Nazarenes.
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