The Judaizers were a faction of the

Jewish Christians Jewish Christians ( he, יהודים נוצרים, yehudim notzrim) were the followers of a Jewish religious sect that emerged in Judea during the late Second Temple period (first century AD). The Nazarene Jews integrated the belief of Jesus a ...

, both of

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

and

non-Jewish Gentile () is a word that usually means "someone who is not a Jew". Other groups that claim Israelite heritage, notably Mormons, sometimes use the term ''gentile'' to describe outsiders. More rarely, the term is generally used as a synonym for ...

origins, who regarded the Levitical laws of the

Old Testament The Old Testament (often abbreviated OT) is the first division of the Christian biblical canon, which is based primarily upon the 24 books of the Hebrew Bible or Tanakh, a collection of ancient religious Hebrew writings by the Israelites. The ...

as still binding on all Christians. They tried to enforce Jewish circumcision upon the Gentile converts to

early Christianity Early Christianity (up to the First Council of Nicaea in 325) spread from the Levant, across the Roman Empire, and beyond. Originally, this progression was closely connected to already established Jewish centers in the Holy Land and the Je ...

and were strenuously opposed and criticized for their behavior by the

Apostle Paul Paul; grc, Παῦλος, translit=Paulos; cop, ⲡⲁⲩⲗⲟⲥ; hbo, פאולוס השליח (previously called Saul of Tarsus;; ar, بولس الطرسوسي; grc, Σαῦλος Ταρσεύς, Saũlos Tarseús; tr, Tarsuslu Pavlus; ...

, who employed many of his epistles to refute their doctrinal positions. The term is derived from the

Koine Greek Koine Greek (; Koine el, ἡ κοινὴ διάλεκτος, hē koinè diálektos, the common dialect; ), also known as Hellenistic Greek, common Attic, the Alexandrian dialect, Biblical Greek or New Testament Greek, was the common supra-reg ...

word Ἰουδαΐζειν (''Ioudaizein''), used once in the Greek New Testament (), when Paul the Apostle publicly challenged the

Apostle Peter An apostle (), in its literal sense, is an emissary, from Ancient Greek ἀπόστολος (''apóstolos''), literally "one who is sent off", from the verb ἀποστέλλειν (''apostéllein''), "to send off". The purpose of such sending ...

for compelling Gentile converts to early Christianity to "judaize". This episode is known as the incident at Antioch. Most Christians believe that much of the

Old Covenant The Mosaic covenant (named after Moses), also known as the Sinaitic covenant (after the biblical Mount Sinai), refers to a covenant between God and the Israelites, including their proselytes, not limited to the ten commandments, nor the event ...

has been superseded, and many believe it has been completely abrogated and replaced by the Law of Christ. The Christian debate over Judaizing began in the lifetime of the apostles, notably at the Council of Jerusalem and the incident at Antioch. It has been carried on parallel to continuing debates about Paul the Apostle and Judaism, Protestant views of the Ten Commandments, and Christian ethics.

Origin

The meaning of the verb ''Judaize'', from which the noun ''Judaizer'' is derived, can only be derived from its various historical uses. Its biblical meaning must also be inferred and is not clearly defined beyond its obvious relationship to the word " Jew." The '' Anchor Bible Dictionary,'' for example, says: "The clear implication is that gentiles are being compelled to live according to Jewish customs." The word ''Judaizer'' comes from ''Judaize'', which is seldom used in English Bible translations (an exception is the Young's Literal Translation for

Galatians Galatians may refer to: * Galatians (people) * Epistle to the Galatians, a book of the New Testament * English translation of the Greek ''Galatai'' or Latin ''Galatae'', ''Galli,'' or ''Gallograeci'' to refer to either the Galatians or the Gaul ...

2:14).

In the Early Church

The Council of Jerusalem is generally dated to 48 AD, roughly 15 to 25 years after the

crucifixion of Jesus The crucifixion and death of Jesus occurred in 1st-century Judea, most likely in AD 30 or AD 33. It is described in the four canonical gospels, referred to in the New Testament epistles, attested to by other ancient sources, and conside ...

, between 26 and 36 AD.

Acts The Acts of the Apostles ( grc-koi, Πράξεις Ἀποστόλων, ''Práxeis Apostólōn''; la, Actūs Apostolōrum) is the fifth book of the New Testament; it tells of the founding of the Christian Church and the spread of its message ...

and

both suggest that the meeting was called to debate whether or not male Gentiles who were converting to become followers of Jesus were required to become circumcised; the rite of circumcision was considered execrable and repulsive during the period of

Hellenization Hellenization (other British spelling Hellenisation) or Hellenism is the adoption of Greek culture, religion, language and identity by non-Greeks. In the ancient period, colonization often led to the Hellenization of indigenous peoples; in th ...

of the

Eastern Mediterranean Eastern Mediterranean is a loose definition of the eastern approximate half, or third, of the Mediterranean Sea, often defined as the countries around the Levantine Sea. It typically embraces all of that sea's coastal zones, referring to comm ...

, and was especially adversed in Classical civilization both from

ancient Greeks Ancient Greece ( el, Ἑλλάς, Hellás) was a northeastern Mediterranean civilization, existing from the Greek Dark Ages of the 12th–9th centuries BC to the end of classical antiquity ( AD 600), that comprised a loose collection of cult ...

and Romans, which instead valued the

foreskin In male human anatomy, the foreskin, also known as the prepuce, is the double-layered fold of skin, mucosal and muscular tissue at the distal end of the human penis that covers the glans and the urinary meatus. The foreskin is attached to ...

positively. Before Paul's conversion, Christianity was part of

Second Temple Judaism Second Temple Judaism refers to the Jewish religion as it developed during the Second Temple period, which began with the construction of the Second Temple around 516 BCE and ended with the Roman siege of Jerusalem in 70 CE. The Second Temple p ...

. Gentiles who wished to join the early Christian movement, which at the time comprised mostly Jewish followers, were expected to convert to Judaism, which likely meant submission to adult male circumcision for the uncircumcised, following the dietary restrictions of kashrut, and more. During the time period there were also "partial converts", such as gate proselytes and God-fearers, i.e. Greco-Roman sympathizers which made an allegiance to Judaism but refused to convert and therefore retained their Gentile (non-Jewish) status, hence they were uncircumcised and it wasn't required for them to follow any of the commandments of the

Mosaic Law The Law of Moses ( he, תֹּורַת מֹשֶׁה ), also called the Mosaic Law, primarily refers to the Torah or the first five books of the Hebrew Bible. The law revealed to Moses by God. Terminology The Law of Moses or Torah of Moses (Hebrew ...

. The inclusion of Gentiles into early Christianity posed a problem for the Jewish identity of some of the early Christians: the new Gentile converts were not required to be circumcised nor to observe the Mosaic Law. Circumcision in particular was regarded as a token of the membership of the Abrahamic covenant, and the most traditionalist faction of Jewish Christians (i.e., converted

Pharisees The Pharisees (; he, פְּרוּשִׁים, Pərūšīm) were a Jewish social movement and a school of thought in the Levant during the time of Second Temple Judaism. After the destruction of the Second Temple in 70 CE, Pharisaic beliefs be ...

) insisted that Gentile converts had to be circumcised as well. Paul insisted that

faith Faith, derived from Latin ''fides'' and Old French ''feid'', is confidence or trust in a person, thing, or In the context of religion, one can define faith as "belief in God or in the doctrines or teachings of religion". Religious people often ...

Christ Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label= Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and religi ...

(see also Faith or Faithfulness) was sufficient for

salvation Salvation (from Latin: ''salvatio'', from ''salva'', 'safe, saved') is the state of being saved or protected from harm or a dire situation. In religion and theology, ''salvation'' generally refers to the deliverance of the soul from sin and its c ...

, therefore the Mosaic Law wasn't binding for the Gentiles.

New Testament

In the

New Testament The New Testament grc, Ἡ Καινὴ Διαθήκη, transl. ; la, Novum Testamentum. (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus, as well as events in first-century Christ ...

, the Judaizers were a group of

who insisted that their co-religionists should follow the Mosaic Law and that Gentile converts to

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesu ...

must first be circumcised (i.e. become Jewish through the ritual of a proselyte). Although such repressive and legalistic requirements may have made Christianity a much less appealing religious choice for the vast majority of Gentiles, the evidence afforded in Paul's

Epistle to the Galatians The Epistle to the Galatians is the ninth book of the New Testament. It is a letter from Paul the Apostle to a number of Early Christian communities in Galatia. Scholars have suggested that this is either the Roman province of Galatia in south ...

exhibits that, initially, a significant number of the Galatian Gentile converts appeared disposed to adopt these restrictions; indeed, Paul strenuously labors throughout the letter to dissuade them from doing so (cf. , , , ). Paul was severely critical of the Judaizers within the

Early Church Early Christianity (up to the First Council of Nicaea in 325) spread from the Levant, across the Roman Empire, and beyond. Originally, this progression was closely connected to already established Jewish centers in the Holy Land and the Je ...

and harshly reprimanded them for their doctrines and behavior. Paul saw the Judaizers as being both dangerous to the spread of the

Gospel Gospel originally meant the Christian message (" the gospel"), but in the 2nd century it came to be used also for the books in which the message was set out. In this sense a gospel can be defined as a loose-knit, episodic narrative of the words a ...

and propagators of grievous doctrinal errors. Many of his letters included in the

(the

Pauline epistles The Pauline epistles, also known as Epistles of Paul or Letters of Paul, are the thirteen books of the New Testament attributed to Paul the Apostle, although the authorship of some is in dispute. Among these epistles are some of the earliest ext ...

) contain considerable material disputing the view of this faction and condemning its practitioners. Paul publicly condemned Peter for his seemingly ambivalent reaction to the Judaizers, embracing them publicly in places where their preaching was popular while holding the private opinion that their doctrines were erroneous (cf. , , , , , , ). Saint James the Just

That Gentile Christians should obey the Law of Moses was the assumption of some Jewish Christians in the

, as represented by the group of

who had converted to Christianity in . Paul opposed this position, concluding that Gentiles did not need to obey to the entire Law of Moses in order to become Christians. The conflict between Paul and his Judaizing opponents over this issue came to a head with the Council of Jerusalem. According to the account given in

, it was determined by the

Great Commission In Christianity, the Great Commission is the instruction of the resurrected Jesus Christ to his disciples to spread the gospel to all the nations of the world. The Great Commission is outlined in Matthew 28:16– 20, where on a mountain i ...

that Gentile converts to Christianity did not have to go through circumcision to be saved; but in addressing the second question as to whether or not they should obey the Torah, James the Just, brother of Jesus encouraged the Gentiles to "abstain from things sacrificed to idols, and from

blood Blood is a body fluid in the circulatory system of humans and other vertebrates that delivers necessary substances such as nutrients and oxygen to the cells, and transports metabolic waste products away from those same cells. Blood in th ...

, and from things strangled, and from

fornication Fornication is generally consensual sexual intercourse between two people not married to each other. When one or more of the partners having consensual sexual intercourse is married to another person, it is called adultery. Nonetheless, John C ...

" (). Paul also addressed this question in his

, in which he condemned as "false believers" those who insisted that circumcision had to be followed for justification: Also Paul warned the early Galatian church that gentile Christians who submit to circumcision will be alienated from Christ: "Indeed I, Paul, say to you that if you become circumcised, Christ will profit you nothing. And I testify again to every man who becomes circumcised that he is a debtor to keep the whole law. You have become estranged from Christ, you who attempt to be justified by law; you have fallen from grace." (). The ''Catholic Encyclopedia'' notes: "Paul, on the other hand, not only did not object to the observance of the Mosaic Law, as long as it did not interfere with the liberty of the Gentiles, but he conformed to its prescriptions when occasion required (). Thus he shortly after circumcised Timothy (), and he was in the very act of observing the Mosaic ritual when he was arrested at Jerusalem ( sqq.)."

Circumcision controversy

Paul, who called himself "Apostle to the Gentiles", criticised the practice of

circumcision Circumcision is a procedure that removes the foreskin from the human penis. In the most common form of the operation, the foreskin is extended with forceps, then a circumcision device may be placed, after which the foreskin is excised. Topic ...

, perhaps as an entrance into the

New Covenant The New Covenant (Hebrew '; Greek ''diatheke kaine'') is a biblical interpretation which was originally derived from a phrase which is contained in the Book of Jeremiah ( Jeremiah 31:31-34), in the Hebrew Bible (or the Old Testament of the C ...

of Jesus. In the case of Timothy, whose mother was a

Jewish Christian Jewish Christians ( he, יהודים נוצרים, yehudim notzrim) were the followers of a Jewish religious sect that emerged in Judea during the late Second Temple period (first century AD). The Nazarene Jews integrated the belief of Jesus a ...

but whose father was a Greek, Paul personally circumcised him "because of the Jews" that were in town.McGarvey on Acts 16
"Yet we see him in the case before us, circumcising Timothy with his own hand, and this 'on account of certain Jews who were in those quarters.'" Some believe that he appeared to praise its value in , yet later in Romans 2 we see his point. In he also disputes the value of circumcision. Paul made his case to the Christians at Rome that circumcision no longer meant the physical, but a spiritual practice. He also wrote: "Circumcision is nothing and uncircumcision is nothing. Keeping God's commands is what counts." Later Paul more explicitly denounced the practice, rejecting and condemning those Judaizers who promoted circumcision to Gentile Christians. He accused them of turning from the Spirit to the flesh: "Are you so foolish, that, whereas you began in the Spirit, you would now be made perfect by the flesh?" Paul warned that the advocates of circumcision as a condition of salvation were "false brothers". He accused the advocates of circumcision of wanting to make a good showing in the flesh, and of glorying or boasting of the flesh. Paul instead stressed a message of

through

opposed to the submission under the Mosaic Law that constituted a

with God, which essentially provides a

justification Justification may refer to: * Justification (epistemology), a property of beliefs that a person has good reasons for holding * Justification (jurisprudence), defence in a prosecution for a criminal offenses * Justification (theology), God's act of ...

for Gentiles from the harsh edicts of the Law, a New Covenant that didn't require circumcision (see also Justification by faith, Pauline passages supporting antinomianism,

Abrogation of Old Covenant laws While most Christian theology reflects the view that at least some Mosaic Laws have been set aside under the New Covenant, there are some theology systems that view the entire Mosaic or Old Covenant as abrogated in that all of the Mosaic Laws ...

). His attitude towards circumcision varies between his outright hostility to what he calls "mutilation" in to praise in . However, such apparent discrepancies have led to a degree of skepticism about the reliability of Acts. Baur, Schwanbeck, De Wette, Davidson, Mayerhoff, Schleiermacher, Bleek, Krenkel, and others have opposed the authenticity of the Acts; an objection is drawn from the discrepancy between and . Some believe that Paul wrote the entire

attacking circumcision, saying in chapter five: "Behold, I Paul say unto you, if ye be circumcised, Christ shall profit you nothing." The division between the Jews who followed the Mosaic Law and were circumcised and the Gentiles who were uncircumcised was highlighted in his Epistle to the Galatians:

Extra-biblical sources

"Judaizer" occurs once in Josephus' '' Jewish War'' 2.18.2, referring to the

First Jewish–Roman War The First Jewish–Roman War (66–73 CE), sometimes called the Great Jewish Revolt ( he, המרד הגדול '), or The Jewish War, was the first of three major rebellions by the Jews against the Roman Empire, fought in Roman-controlled ...

(66-73), written around the year 75: It occurs once in the

Apostolic Fathers The Apostolic Fathers, also known as the Ante-Nicene Fathers, were core Christian theologians among the Church Fathers who lived in the 1st and 2nd centuries AD who are believed to have personally known some of the Twelve Apostles or to have b ...

collection, in Ignatius's letter to the Magnesians 10:3 written around the year 100: There are several direct interpolations by a later forger regarding anti-Judaizing in Ignatius's epistles that are considered authentic, it can be assumed the redactor was either trying to build upon Ignatius' positions or responsible for what is perceived as Ignatius' anti-Judaizing altogether. Judaizing teachers are strongly condemned in the Epistle of Barnabas. (Although it did not become part of the Christian Biblical canon, it was widely circulated among Christians in the first two centuries and is part of the

.) Whereas Paul acknowledged that the Law of Moses and its observance were good when used correctly ("the law is good, if one uses it lawfully", ), the Epistle of Barnabas condemns most Jewish practices, claiming that Jews had grossly misunderstood and misapplied the Law of Moses.

Justin Martyr Justin Martyr ( el, Ἰουστῖνος ὁ μάρτυς, Ioustinos ho martys; c. AD 100 – c. AD 165), also known as Justin the Philosopher, was an early Christian apologist and philosopher. Most of his works are lost, but two apologies and ...

(about 140) distinguishes two kinds of Jewish Christians: those who observe the Law of Moses, but do not require its observance of others — with these he would hold communion – and those who believe the Mosaic law to be obligatory on all, whom he considers heretics (''

Dialogue with Trypho The ''Dialogue with Trypho,'' along with the First and Second Apologies, is a second-century Christian apologetic text, usually agreed to be dated in between AD 155-160. It is seen as documenting the attempts by theologian Justin Martyr to sho ...

'' 47). The Council of Laodicea of around 365 decreed 59 laws, #29: According to

Eusebius Eusebius of Caesarea (; grc-gre, Εὐσέβιος ; 260/265 – 30 May 339), also known as Eusebius Pamphilus (from the grc-gre, Εὐσέβιος τοῦ Παμφίλου), was a Greek historian of Christianity, exegete, and Christ ...

' ''History of the Church'' 4.5.3-4: the first 15 Bishops of Jerusalem were "of the circumcision", although this in all likelihood is simply stating that they were Jewish Christians (as opposed to gentile Christians), and that they observed biblical circumcision and thus likely the rest of Torah as well. The eight homilies '' Adversus Judaeos'' ("against the Jews") of

John Chrysostom John Chrysostom (; gr, Ἰωάννης ὁ Χρυσόστομος; 14 September 407) was an important Early Church Father who served as archbishop of Constantinople. He is known for his preaching and public speaking, his denunciation of a ...

(347 – 407) deal with the relationship between Christians, Jews and Judaizers. The influence of the Judaizers in the church diminished significantly after the destruction of Jerusalem, when the Jewish-Christian community at Jerusalem was dispersed by the Romans during the

. The Romans also dispersed the Jewish leadership in

Jerusalem Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...

in 135 during the

Bar Kokhba Revolt The Bar Kokhba revolt ( he, , links=yes, ''Mereḏ Bar Kōḵḇāʾ‎''), or the 'Jewish Expedition' as the Romans named it ( la, Expeditio Judaica), was a rebellion by the Jews of the Judea (Roman province), Roman province of Judea, led b ...

. Traditionally it is believed the Jerusalem Christians waited out the Jewish–Roman wars in

Pella Pella ( el, Πέλλα) is an ancient city located in Central Macedonia, Greece. It is best-known for serving as the capital city of the ancient Greek kingdom of Macedon, and was the birthplace of Alexander the Great. On site of the ancient cit ...

in the Decapolis. These setbacks however didn't necessarily mean an end to Jewish Christianity, any more than Valerian's Massacre of 258, (when he killed all Christian bishops, presbyters, and deacons, including

Pope Sixtus II Pope Sixtus II ( el, Πάπας Σίξτος Β΄), also written as Pope Xystus II, was bishop of Rome from 31 August 257 until his death on 6 August 258. He was martyred along with seven deacons, including Lawrence of Rome, during the persec ...

and Antipope Novatian and Cyprian of Carthage), meant an end to Roman Christianity. 20050921circoncisionB

The Latin verb ''iudaizare'' is used once in the

Vulgate The Vulgate (; also called (Bible in common tongue), ) is a late-4th-century Bible translations into Latin, Latin translation of the Bible. The Vulgate is largely the work of Jerome who, in 382, had been commissioned by Pope Damasus&nbs ...

where the Greek verb ''ioudaizein'' occurs at Galatians 2:14.

Augustine Augustine of Hippo ( , ; la, Aurelius Augustinus Hipponensis; 13 November 354 – 28 August 430), also known as Saint Augustine, was a theologian and philosopher of Berber origin and the bishop of Hippo Regius in Numidia, Roman North Af ...

in his ''Commentary on Galatians'', describes Paul's opposition in Galatia as those ''qui gentes cogebant iudaizare'' – "who thought to make the Gentiles live in accordance with Jewish customs." Christian groups following Jewish practices never completely vanished, although they had been designated as

heretical Heresy is any belief or theory that is strongly at variance with established beliefs or customs, in particular the accepted beliefs of a church or religious organization. The term is usually used in reference to violations of important religi ...

by the 5th century.

Later history

The Sect of Zacharias the Jew

Skhariya or

Zacharias the Jew De Ghisolfi (also known as de Guizolfi, de Gisolfi, Guigursis, Guilgursis and Giexulfis) was the name of a Genoese- Jewish family prominent in the late Middle Ages and the early Renaissance. In 1419, the Genoese Jew Simeone de Ghisolfi married a ...

from Caffa led a sect of Judaizers in Russia. In 1480 Grand Prince Ivan III of Moscow invited some of Zacharias's prominent adherents to visit Moscow. The Judaizers enjoyed the support of high-ranking officials, of statesmen, of merchants, of Yelena Stefanovna (wife of

Ivan the Young Ivan Ivanovich (also known as, Ivan the Young, Ioann Ioannovich and Ivan Molodoy) (''Иван Иванович'', ''Иоанн Иоаннович'', ''Иван Молодой'' in Russian) (15 February 1458 – 6 March 1490), was the eldest son a ...

, heir to the throne) and of Ivan's favorite deacon and diplomat

Fyodor Kuritsyn Feodor Vasiliyevich Kuritsyn () (? - died no earlier than 1500) was a Russian statesman, philosopher and a poet. As a government official and a diplomat, Kuritsyn exerted great influence on the Russian foreign policy in the times of Ivan III. In ...

. The latter even decided to establish his own club in the mid-1480s. However, in the end Ivan III renounced his ideas of secularization and allied with the Orthodox Christian clergy. The struggle against the adherents was led by hegumen Joseph Volotsky and his followers (иосифляне, iosiflyane or Josephinians) and by Archbishop Gennady of Novgorod. After uncovering adherents in Novgorod around 1487, Gennady wrote a series of letters to other churchmen over several years calling on them to convene ''sobors'' ("church councils") with the intention "not to debate them, but to burn them". Such councils took place in 1488, 1490, 1494 and 1504. The councils outlawed religious and non-religious books and initiated their burning, sentenced a number of people to death, sent adherents into exile, and excommunicated them. In 1491 Zacharias the Jew was executed in Novgorod by the order of Ivan III. At various times since then, the

Russian Orthodox Church , native_name_lang = ru , image = Moscow July 2011-7a.jpg , imagewidth = , alt = , caption = Cathedral of Christ the Saviour in Moscow, Russia , abbreviation = ROC , type ...

has described several related Spiritual Christian groups as having a Judaizing character; the accuracy of this label – which was influenced by the early Christian polemics against Judaizers – has been disputed. The most famous of the

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the List of Russian monarchs, Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended th ...

's Judaizing sects were the

Karaimites Subbotniks ( rus, Субботники, p=sʊˈbotnʲɪkʲɪ, "Sabbatarians") is a common name for adherents of Russian religious movements that split from Sabbatarian sects in the late 18th century. The majority of Subbotniks were converts t ...

or Karaimizing-Subbotniks like

Alexander Zaïd Alexander Zaïd (1886 − 10 July 1938) was one of the founders of the Jewish defense organizations Bar Giora and Hashomer, and a prominent figure of the Second Aliyah. Biography Zaïd was born in 1886 in Zima, a town in Irkutsk Oblast, Siberia. ...

(1886-1938) who successfully settled in the Holy Land from 1904.

Protestantism

The

strongly influenced

Martin Luther Martin Luther (; ; 10 November 1483 – 18 February 1546) was a German priest, theologian, author, hymnwriter, and professor, and Augustinian friar. He is the seminal figure of the Protestant Reformation and the namesake of Luther ...

at the time of the

Protestant Reformation The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church and in ...

because of its exposition of justification by grace. Nevertheless, various sects of Messianic Jews such as Jews for Jesus have managed to stake out territory for themselves in the Protestant camp.

Inquisitions

This behavior was particularly persecuted from 1300 to 1800 during the Spanish and

Portuguese Inquisition The Portuguese Inquisition ( Portuguese: ''Inquisição Portuguesa''), officially known as the General Council of the Holy Office of the Inquisition in Portugal, was formally established in Portugal in 1536 at the request of its king, John III. ...

s, using as a basis the many references in the

regarding the "Law as a curse" and the futility of relying on the Law for attaining

, known as legalism. Thus, in spite of Paul's agreement at the Council of Jerusalem, gentile Christianity came to understand that any Torah Laws (with the exception of the

Ten Commandments The Ten Commandments ( Biblical Hebrew עשרת הדברים \ עֲשֶׂרֶת הַדְּבָרִים, ''aséret ha-dvarím'', lit. The Decalogue, The Ten Words, cf. Mishnaic Hebrew עשרת הדיברות \ עֲשֶׂרֶת הַדִּבְ ...

) were

anathema Anathema, in common usage, is something or someone detested or shunned. In its other main usage, it is a formal excommunication. The latter meaning, its ecclesiastical sense, is based on New Testament usage. In the Old Testament, anathema was a ...

, not only to gentile Christians but also to Christians of Jewish extraction. Under the Spanish Inquisition, the penalty to a converted Jew for "Judaizing" was usually

death by burning Death by burning (also known as immolation) is an execution and murder method involving combustion or exposure to extreme heat. It has a long history as a form of public capital punishment, and many societies have employed it as a punishment ...

. The Spanish word ''Judaizante'' was applied both to Jewish '' conversos'' to Catholicism who practiced Judaism secretly and sometimes to Jews who had not converted, in Spain and the New World at the time of the Spanish Inquisition. The term "Judaizers" was used by the Spanish Inquisition and the inquisitions established in

Mexico City Mexico City ( es, link=no, Ciudad de México, ; abbr.: CDMX; Nahuatl: ''Altepetl Mexico'') is the capital and largest city of Mexico, and the most populous city in North America. One of the world's alpha cities, it is located in the Valley of ...

Lima Lima ( ; ), originally founded as Ciudad de Los Reyes (City of The Kings) is the capital and the largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón, Rímac and Lurín Rivers, in the desert zone of the central coastal part of t ...

, and

Cartagena de Indias Cartagena ( , also ), known since the colonial era as Cartagena de Indias (), is a city and one of the major ports on the northern coast of Colombia in the Caribbean Coast Region, bordering the Caribbean sea. Cartagena's past role as a link ...

for Conversos (also termed Marranos) accused of continuing to observe the Jewish religion, as Crypto-Jews. Entry of Portuguese

New Christians New Christian ( es, Cristiano Nuevo; pt, Cristão-Novo; ca, Cristià Nou; lad, Christiano Muevo) was a socio-religious designation and legal distinction in the Spanish Empire and the Portuguese Empire. The term was used from the 15th centur ...

into Spain and the Spanish realms occurred during the Union of Crowns of Spain and Portugal, 1580–1640, when both kingdoms and their overseas empires were held by the same monarch. The Bnei Anusim are modern day Hispanic Judaizers.

Contemporary Christianity

The Coptic,

Ethiopian Ethiopians are the native inhabitants of Ethiopia, as well as the global diaspora of Ethiopia. Ethiopians constitute several component ethnic groups, many of which are closely related to ethnic groups in neighboring Eritrea and other parts of ...

and

Eritrean Orthodox The Eritrean Orthodox Tewahedo Church ( ti, ቤተ ክርስትያን ተዋህዶ ኤርትራ) is one of the Oriental Orthodox Churches with its headquarters in Asmara, Eritrea. Its autocephaly was recognised by Pope Shenouda III of Alexandri ...

Churches all continue to practice male circumcision.Customary in some Coptic and other churches: * "The Coptic Christians in Egypt and the Ethiopian Orthodox Christians — two of the oldest surviving forms of Christianity — retain many of the features of early Christianity, including male circumcision. Circumcision is not prescribed in other forms of Christianity... Some Christian churches in

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring count ...

oppose the practice, viewing it as a pagan ritual, while others, including the Nomiya church in Kenya, require circumcision for membership and participants in focus group discussions in

Zambia Zambia (), officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of Central, Southern and East Africa, although it is typically referred to as being in Southern Africa at its most central point. Its neighbours are ...

and

Malawi Malawi (; or aláwi Tumbuka: ''Malaŵi''), officially the Republic of Malawi, is a landlocked country in Southeastern Africa that was formerly known as Nyasaland. It is bordered by Zambia to the west, Tanzania to the north and northe ...

mentioned similar beliefs that Christians should practice circumcision since Jesus was circumcised and the Bible teaches the practice." * "The decision that Christians need not practice circumcision is recorded in ; there was never, however, a prohibition of circumcision, and it is practiced by Coptic Christians.
"circumcision"
, The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition, 2001-05. In Torah-submissive Christian groups which include the

Ethiopian Orthodox The Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church ( am, የኢትዮጵያ ኦርቶዶክስ ተዋሕዶ ቤተ ክርስቲያን, ''Yäityop'ya ortodoks täwahedo bétäkrestyan'') is the largest of the Oriental Orthodox Churches. One of the few Chris ...

church, dietary laws and Saturday Sabbath are observed as well. A list of notable contemporary groups of Judaizers includes: * Assemblies of Yahweh * Bene Ephraim * Black Hebrew Israelites * Bnei Menashe * British Israelism * Christian Identity * Hebrew Roots Movement * Jews of San Nicandro * Makuya * Messianic Judaism * Sacred Name Movement * Subbotniks *

Szekler Sabbatarians The Szekler Sabbatarians (in Transylvanian Saxon: (Siebenbürgen) Sambatianer; in German: Siebenbürgische Sabbatianer; in Hungarian: Szombatosok, zombatosok, sabbatariusok, zsidózók, Şomrei Sabat) were a religious group in Transylvania and Hun ...

* Yehowists

References

Footnotes

Bibliography

*Escobar Quevedo, Ricardo. ''Inquisición y judaizantes en América española (siglos XVI-XVII)''. Bogota: Editorial Universidad del Rosario, 2008. *Márquez Villanueva. ''Sobre el concepto de judaizante''. Tel Aviv: University Publishing Projects, 2000. * *''Sábado Secreto. Periodico Judaizante''. OCLC Number: 174068030 *Universidad de Alicante. ''Sobre las construcciones narrativas del "judío judaizante" ante la Inquisición''. Universidad de Alicante. Departamento de Filología Española, Lingüística General y Teoría de la Literatura; Rovira Soler, José Carlos. Universidad de Alicante 2014

External links

{{Wiktionary, Judaization
Catholic Encyclopedia: Judaizers

Jewish Encyclopedia: Judaizers

Gentiles and Circumcision
1st-century Christianity Bible-related controversies Christian anti-Judaism Christian terminology Christianity and Judaism related controversies Early Christianity and Judaism Judaism in the New Testament Mosaic law in Christian theology New Testament words and phrases People in the Pauline epistles Schisms in Christianity