What this Book is About

     This is a comprehensive study of the origins and the evolution of the Christian beliefs, from about the 20th century BCE to about the end of the 4th century CE.

This study sets aside the dogmatic approach to the scriptures in order to reach a reasonable-historical understanding. The author adheres to the historical-literary method of biblical criticism (the so-called higher criticism), which is concerned with issues such as the following: Who wrote a particular biblical book? On what sources did the writer of that book depend? How were the biblical manuscripts preserved? Was the biblical text altered during the process of making manuscript copies? Briefly, this approach asks the same questions about reliability and attestation that would be asked by anyone attempting to establish the credibility of any verbal or written assertion.

    The author explains how the Christian beliefs evolved, primarily form Judaism and secondarily from the Greek mystery religions and, to some degree, from the writings of Plato.  He explains how the Jews borrowed many of their laws and beliefs from the early Babylonians, the Phoenicians, the Canaanites, and from the Egyptians. He presents evidence, ancient quotations, which reveal the inspirational sources of the Bible. Here is a Mosaic law, which was inspired by a law from from the Eshnunna Code. (The Eshnunna Code was written centuries before the Law of Moses.) Compare:

The similarities in the above examples suggest that one writer borrowed from the other. Here are two more examples. They are comparisons between the Hammurabi Code and Exodus. (The Hammurabi Code was written centuries before the Law of Moses.)

 About fifty Mosaic laws were borrowed  from the Hammurabi Code.

   The author addresses questions,such as the following: From where did Abraham obtain his beliefs? Who wrote the Pentateuch (the first five books of the Bible)? Why didn't Moses believe that Satan exists or that God is a trinity, or that there is life after death? Who introduced the belief in life after death and how did such belief enter Judaism before the times of Jesus? Who was the first to claim that God is a trinity? Did Jesus claim to be God? Did Jesus abolish Judaism to establish Hellenistic Christianity (today's Christianity)? Exactly how was Diaspora Judaism transformed into Hellenistic Christianity? Why did the Romans crucify Jesus? Did Jesus' followers believe that Jesus is God? Did Paul and the early Church Fathers believe Jesus is God? From where did Paul obtain his beliefs?
To get a feel for the book, check out the main subject titles: Abridged Table of Contents. Also, examine its Timeline. (A Timeline of beliefs, events, persons, landmarks, and other pertinent facts, which are mentioned or discussed in this book, and relate to the development of the Judaic and Christian beliefs.)

The Importance of this Subject

    This subject is essential in understanding the world we live in. Judeo-Christianity impacts our lives, our work environment, our schools, our laws, our economy, our courts, our national politics and the international politics of the world. This study is helpful in understanding why Judeo-Christianity influences and will continue to influence politics. By the way, separation of Church and State is not possible in any country whose dominant religion is Islam, Judaism, or Christianity. Most of the world's history has been shaped by these religions, and particularly by Christianity. Therefore, understanding Christianity leads to understanding world history, politics, and the conflicts in the Middle-East, which threaten the stability of the world.

The Audience of this Book

      This book was written for those who want to know the facts about Judeo-Christianity; for those who approach this subject dispassionately and, relatively speaking, with impartiality. (At the same time, we must keep in mind that no one is totally free of bias.)

The Scholarly Approach Versus the Pastoral Approach

            There is the pastoral approach to the Bible and then, there is the scholarly approach. These approaches yield different results. For example, if you ask your pastor, priest, or rabbi, What did God create first? He will tell you: “In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.” (Genesis 1:1 KJV) But if you ask a biblical scholar the same question he or she will point to three biblical passages, which give three different answers to this question.

What did God create first?  

A scholar will explain the reason why the above verses disagree: Genesis, Proverbs, and Revelation were written in three different periods and by three different persons, who had slightly different religious beliefs in their minds.

        Your pastor, priest, or rabbi will tell you that God gave the Law to Moses on Mount Sinai, and Moses wrote it in the Pentateuch. But scholars will point out the following facts: the Pentateuch was written in Hebrew and Moses did not know how to write Hebrew, because the Hebrew writing did not become available to the Israelites until about two centuries after Moses died. Furthermore, about fifty of the  laws of Moses (who lived in the 13th century BCE) are strikingly similar to the laws of Hammurabi (who lived during the 18th century BCE). Here are two examples:

The Mosaic Law came  hundreds of years after Hammurabi's Law and it exhibits a considerable dependence on the latter. The similarities between these laws (in fifty instances) cannot be explained away. Evidence shows that the early Israelites borrowed many of their laws from their neighbors: the early Babylonians and the Canaanites. The book explains how this transfer of ideas took place.

Who Wrote the Bible?

Scholarly rule #1: Dead men cannot write books
Scholarly rule #2: the name of a biblical book does not indicate the author of that book

 Most people are under the impression that the name of a biblical book (Daniel, Samuel, Joshua, etc.) indicates the author of such book. Did the prophet Samuel write the books titled 1 and 2 Samuel? The following verse of 1 Samuel says that Samuel died during the reign of Saul (ca. 1050-1010 BCE): “Now Samuel had died, and all Israel had mourned for him and buried him in Ramah, his own city. … Saul gathered all Israel …” (1 Samuel 28:3-4 NRSV) Now, Samuel could not have written that he died and that the Israelites mourned for him and buried him. This book also says that after Samuel died Saul went to a medium, who raised Samuel’s spirit form the dead: “Then Samuel {the spirit of Samuel} said to Saul, ‘Why have you disturbed me by bringing me up {from the dead}?’ ” (1 Samuel 28:15 NRSV) Obviously, Samuel could not have written that he was raised from the dead. Therefore, Samuel did not write 1 Samuel, even though it is titled "Samuel." Neither did he write 2 Samuel, because this book is the sequel of 1 Samuel. So one cannot determine the authorship of a biblical book by its title. The NIV Study Bible says, “Who the author was cannot be known with certainty since the book gives no indication of his identity. Some have suggested Zabud …” [1] The book gives an indication that Samuel died. One thing is certain: dead men cannot write books. This is scholarly rule number one. This rule applies also to the case of the Pentateuch (the first five books of the Bible). Most people are under the impression that Moses wrote the Pentateuch. Moses could not have written the book of Deuteronomy, because the last chapter of Deuteronomy says that Moses was buried and that people mourned for him for thirty days: “So Moses … died there in the land of Moab … And he {the LORD himself} buried him in a valley in the land of Moab, … but no man knows of his sepulcher {tomb} to this day. And Moses was a hundred and twenty years old when he died ... And the children of Israel wept for Moses in the plains of Moab thirty days: so the days of weeping and mourning for Moses were ended. ... And there arose not a prophet since {that time} in Israel like ... Moses.” (Deuteronomy 34:5-8, 10 KJV)  This rule applies also to the book of Joshua. Joshua could not have written the book titled "Joshua" because he could not have written the following: “After these things Joshua … died … They buried him in his own inheritance … Israel served the Lord all the days of Joshua, and all the days of the elders who outlived Joshua …” (Joshua 24:29-31 NRSV) Had Joshua written the book of Joshua, he would not have written it in the third person and he would not have written the following: “… Joshua … said in the sight of Israel, ‘Sun, stand still at Gibeon, and Moon, in the valley of Aijalon.’ And the sun stood still, and the moon stopped, until the nation took vengeance on their enemies. Is this not written in the Book of Jashar?” (Joshua 10:12-13, NRSV) Had Joshua seen that spectacular miracle, written shortly after it happened, he would not have written “Is this not written in the Book of Jashar?” The NIV Study Bible reads, “… we are unsure who the final author or editor was.” [2] (The NIV comment admits that the Bible was edited.)
            The book of 2 Samuel is not about Samuel, it does not mention Samuel, it was not written by Samuel, and it contains stories which took place after the times of Samuel. Why then is titled Samuel? Originally 1 and 2 Samuel were one book, until sometime before the Common Era the Septuagint translators divided it into two books. The original book was titled Samuel because towards the end of that book Samuel played an important role. Likewise, the book of Joshua is titled Joshua, because Joshua plays an important role in the stories contained in this book. To conclude, here is scholarly rule number two: just because a biblical book is titled with a name (1 Samuel, 2 Samuel, Joshua, Esther, Daniel, Job, or Ezra) and just because the person named in the title plays a role in that book, it does not mean that the book was written by the person named in the title. This rule also applies to the individual psalms, which are titled “A Psalm of David.” This rule also applies to the four Gospels: Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. The subject of who wrote the four gospels is discussed in detail in the book.

How the Author Composed this Book

         The author love and curiosity for this subject drove him to a lifelong studying and learning. To write on this subject, the author pursued an education, which covers several biblical fields. He studied the writings of numerous acknowledged biblical scholars of various biblical fields. To get an idea of the type of books that he studied, see the Bibliography.  In addition to the books listed in the Bibliography, the author studied various Greek writings of the Classical Greek Era, the Hellenistic Era, and the Roman Era; specifically, writings which relate to Christianity. He also studied various intertestamental books, (Apocryphal and Pseudepigraphal), and various writings of the early Church Fathers. He is familiar with Classical Greek, Koine Greek (the language of the New Testament and the Greek Old Testament), and Modern Greek (he speaks and reads Greek fluently). Therefore, he carried out a first-hand research into the Greek New Testament and the Septuagint (the Greek version of the Old Testament). He used powerful computers and biblical software to conduct this research. Without such tools this research would not have been possible. He has worked on this project, almost full time, for more than 18 years.

     About the uniqueness of this book: To the knowledge of the author, there is no other book, which covers comprehensively the subject of the origins and the evolution of the Judaic and Christian beliefs. Had there been such a book, he would not have undertaken this project.

    About the documentation: The author uses more than 2,500 citations from ancient writings, from ancient inscriptions, from books of acknowledged biblical experts, and from authoritative dictionaries. He also used thousands of quotations from the Bible. His book is truly a reference book. 

    How this book relates to mainstream biblical scholarship: The author consulted the writings of hundreds of scholars. Part of his task was to examine and compare many points of view. Most of the facts that he presented in his book are in accord with the facts of the scholars who wrote The Anchor Bible Dictionary, an acknowledged scholarly biblical encyclopedia, written by over 800 article contributors (biblical scholars from around the world). {The Anchor Bible Dictionary, editor in chief David Noel Freedman, Doubleday, NY, London, 1992, 6 volumes.} Also, many of the facts that he presented in his book are taught in seminaries and universities, and, in some cases, broadcasted in scholarly television programs. For instance, the History Channel ™ (A&E Television Network) presented the  program "Who Wrote the Bible?" in which several acknowledged scholars discussed various topics, which the author presents in his book. If you have not seen this program on television and want to see it, you can purchase a copy of it from the website of the History Channel. ™

Did Moses Give Ten Commandments?

  According to the Old Testament, the Law of Moses originated with the Ten Commandments. “And he {Moses} wrote on the tablets the words of the covenant, the ten commandments.” (Exodus 34:28 NRSV) But evidence shows that the third commandment, the one forbidding the worshipping of idols, [1] was not in effect in the times of Moses. Here is the evidence. Moses himself made an idol, in the form of a serpent, which had miraculous powers: “So Moses made a serpent of bronze, and put it upon a pole; and whenever a serpent bit someone, that person would look at the serpent of bronze and live.” (Numbers 21:9 NRSV) The Israelites did not pray to God to be healed from the bites of poisonous snakes. They looked at an idol, the bronze serpent that Moses made, and they were healed. The idol functioned as a medium for those miracles. [2] The following verses indicate that the Israelites worshipped that idol until the days of King Hezekiah: “... Hezekiah son of King Ahaz of Judah ... broke in pieces the bronze serpent that Moses had made, for until those days the people of Israel had made offerings to it; it {the serpent} was called Nehushtan.” [3] (2 Kings 18:1, 4 NRSV) Hezekiah (he reigned ca. 716 to ca. 687 BCE) destroyed the idol that Moses had made and put a stop to the practice of sacrificing (making offerings) to the serpent. This suggests that the third commandment [4] was not in effect before Hezekiah destroyed the idol that Moses had made. This is just one out of many pieces of evidence which show that the story of the Ten Commandments is a legend.

Samples of reviews:

                  Abridged Table of Contents   (Return to continue reading the description of the book)

 I. The Origins of the Old Testament 

            1. The Development of the Early Text
            2. The Importance of Dating the Old Testament Books
            3. The Origins and Development of the Law of Moses
            4.  Literary Sources of the Old Testament
            5. The Miracles of Exodus Explained

            6. The Links between the Greeks and the Israelites

            7. Greek Stories and Their Parallels in the Old Testament

            8. The Jewish Calendar from Adam to Moses

II. The History of God

            9. The History of God From Abraham to Moses
            10. The History of God from Moses to 586 BCE

            11. Similarities between God and Other Ancient Near Eastern Gods

            12. The Body of God, according to the Old Testament

            13. The Mind of God, according to the Old Testament

III. The Development of the Judeo-Christian Doctrines after 586 BCE

            14. Zoroaster: The Man who Changed the Course of Judeo-Christianity
            15. The Origins of Satan and Predestination
            16. The Origins of the Belief in Eternal Life
            17. How Zoroaster Influenced the Greeks and the Essenes

IV. The Melting Pot that Brewed Christianity

            18.The Cultural Background of Christianity
            19. Alexandrian Judaism: the Precursor of Christianity

            20. How the Intertestamental Books Influenced the New Testament Writers
            21.  Zoroaster's Influence on the New Testament Writers

            22. The Essene Influence on the New Testament Writers

            23. Plato's Influence on the New Testament Writers

            24. The Greek Mystery Religions and Their Influence on Christianity
            25. How Philo Laid the Foundations of Christianity
            26. How Philo Fashioned the Word of God
            27. Pre-Christian Stories that Molded the Story of Jesus

V. The Birth of Christianity

            28. The Jewish Christians: the Original Followers of Jesus

            29. Dissension between the Jewish and Hellenist Christians
            30. How the Hellenist Christians Separated from the Jewish Christians
            31. How the Hellenist Christians Misquoted the Old Testament
            32. How the Hellenist Christians Evolved into Gentile Christians

VI. Concerning the Historical Jesus

    Jesus' Teachings Compared to Those of His Contemporary Jewish Rabbis

            35. What Kind of Messiah Did Jesus Claim to Be?

                35.1 What Did “Son of God” Mean in Those Days?
                               King of the Jews = Son of God.
                35.2 Why Did the Romans Crucify Jesus?

            36. While Jesus Was Alive, Did His Family and His Disciples Believe He Was God?

            37. After Jesus Died, Did His Disciples Believe He Was God?

            38. Did Mark Believe Jesus Was God?

            39. How Jesus' Beliefs Reveal His Nature

VII. How Jesus Was Turned into God

            40. How Men Were Turned into Gods
            41. How the Image of Jesus Evolved in the Synoptic Gospels
            42. The Jesus of Paul
             43. The Jesus of John
            44. How the Early Church Fathers Viewed Jesus

            45. The Origins of the Trinity Doctrine
            46. How the 4th Century Church Fathers Declared Jesus Equal to God

VIII. An Inquiry in the Testimony for Jesus
IX. Various Biblical Discrepancies
X. The Unfulfilled Prophecies

                                                     (Return to continue reading the description of the book)

    To see the complete Table of Contents click here:  Table of Contents. 

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