Abraham, Judaism and Christianity

Paper Summary:

In this article, the writer focuses on the interpretation of Abraham. The writer points out that although the figure of Abraham is central to both the Jewish and Christian traditions, the way in which Abraham's meaning is understood and applied is strikingly different. Specifically, the writer looks at the significance and meaning of Abraham in the two religions. The writer maintains that although the Abraham illustrated in the New Testament as opposed to the Abraham portrayed in the Hebrew Scriptures seems, at times, like two entirely different individuals, his significance to each faith is equally important. The writer concludes that it seems that when it comes to Abraham, Christian and Jews will just have to share.

From the Paper:

"The influence and historical impact of Abraham is truly profound. The way in which the story of a simple herdsman from Ur has affected the lives of literally billions of people is remarkable to say the least. However, it would be naive to believe the legend of Abraham, once severed from its Semitic roots and subjected to the pluralistic forces of Greek philosophy and pagan mysticism, would remain consistent and unchanged . As Christianity exploded throughout Asia Minor and the Roman Empire in the first half of the first millennium, Abraham was interpreted in a new light. Different ethnicities and cultures began to 'Christianize' him, inevitably leading to a drastically different portrayal of the patriarch as compared to that of their Jewish counterparts .
"For Jews, Abraham is, through Isaac and Jacob, the founding patriarch of the Children of Israel."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Barnett, Paul, Jesus & the Rise of Early Christianity: A History of New Testament Times. InterVarsity Press, London, 2002.
• Baird, William, Abraham in the New Testament: Tradition and the New Identity," Interpretation 42 no 4, Oct. 1988.
• Dodds, Adam, The Abrahamic Faiths? Continuity and Discontinuity in Christian, Jewish and Islamic Doctrine. Evangelical Quarterly 81, July 2009.
• Ginzberg, Louis. The Legends of the Jews. trans. Henrietta Szold, Philadelphia: Jewish Publication Society of America, 1909.
• Guggenheimer, Heinrich W. Seder Olam: The rabbinic view of Biblical chronology, (trans., & ed.), Northvale Publishing, Oxford, 1998.

More papers on Abraham, Judaism and Christianity:

• Comparison Essay # 115848 : "Judaism and Christianity"
• Comparison Essay # 57466 : "Similarities and Differences Between Judaism and Christianity"
• Essay # 8027 : "Religion and the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict"

APA Citation:

MLA Citation: