Trading Places

Numerous scholars have argued that the histories of early Christianity and Rabbinic Judaism run parallel. In this book, however, Bruce Chilton and Jacob Neusner suggest precisely the opposite. By demonstrating that these two great traditions intersected and ultimately traded places during the first four centuries of the Common Era -- the private and communal Christianity became public and political after the conversion of Constantine, while the public and political Rabbinic Judaism became private and communal -- the authors offer a startlingly new paradigm for interpreting Western religious history.Trading Places is accompanied by a sourcebook containing critical passages from primary sources within each tradition, along with insightful commentaries by Professors Chilton and Neusner. Both volumes are designed for classroom use.