The following articles address objections found in Jews for Judaism's
FAQ.
All articles listed here can be found elsewhere on the site (see the index
of objections).
Back to Christianity for Jews
Resurrection
Did Jesus fulfill his prediction that he would be buried for three days and three nights and then be resurrected?
(JFJ article)
Objection: Jesus was only buried for two nights, not three, and therefore didn't fulfill his prediction.
See How long was Jesus in the tomb?
Original Sin
Do Jews believe in the doctrine of original sin?
(JFJ article)
Objection: Right standing with God depends on right living, and is therefore available to everyone
(as opposed to the Christian belief that one must believe in Jesus).
"Original sin" refers to the doctrine that we inherited a sinful nature from Adam and Eve (for more on this,
see Is original sin an unjust doctrine?).
I don't mean to debate whether
or not Judaism includes this doctrine, but to respond to the author's claim that everyone
can be saved/be right with God if only they do what is right and are repentant for their sins.
This claim is addressed in
What distinguishes Christianity from other monotheistic religions?
See also Is Jesus the only way to God?
What are the implications of the Christian doctrine of original sin?
(JFJ article)
Objection: Christianity teaches that those who have never heard of Jesus are automatically condemned.
See What happens to those who never hear about Jesus?
New Testament Anti-Judaism
Were the NT authors contriving anti-Jewish episodes?
(JFJ article)
Objection: Did the New Testament authors blame the Jews for Jesus' death?
See Is the New Testament anti-Semitic? In particular,
JFJ asserts that no Roman is ever blamed for Jesus' death, yet
Acts 4:27
explicitly names the Roman government and Gentiles as conspirators against Jesus.
Could Jesus have hated anyone when he spoke words of forgiveness and non-resistance to wickedness?
(JFJ article)
Objection: Jesus and Paul preached forgiveness and non-resistance, but didn't practice either.
See Did Jesus practice forgiveness?,
Jesus' anger and
Was Jesus a pacifist? Concerning Paul's cursing
the high priest, see Paul and the high priest.
Is it true that the NT criticism of the Jews is quite mild?
(JFJ article)
Objection: The NT harshly and unfairly criticizes Jews.
See Is the New Testament anti-Semitic?
Matthew 23:35 is addressed in Does God punish children for their parents' sins?
Why is it said that Luke 19:11-27 calls upon Jesus' followers to murder Jews who do not accept him?
(JFJ article)
Objection: Jesus' parable has been used by Christians to justify murdering Jews.
See Does Christianity endorse killing nonbelievers?
Whom does the author of the Book of Matthew blame for the death of John the Baptist?
(JFJ article)
Objection: Jesus blamed the Jews for rejecting John and killing him.
See Did Matthew blame the Jews for killing John the Baptist?
How does the Book of Revelation promote hatred of Jews?
(JFJ article)
Objection: Revelation 2:9 and 3:9 promote hatred and persecution of Jews.
See Does Revelation justify persecution of Jews?
According to the New Testament, should all of Christianity be condemned because some that profess to be
Christians have perpetrated horrific crimes in the name of Jesus?
(JFJ article)
Objection: Jesus said that a good tree can't produce bad fruit, and vice versa. Since the Bible's teachings
have produced bad fruit in the form of religious persecution, Christianity itself is evil.
JFJ's claims that the NT teaches Christians to persecute Jews and other nonbelievers are refuted above.
Without a clear indication that Christians doing evil were following the NT (instead of misinterpreting it
or contradicting it altogether), their claim that Christianity itself is evil doesn't hold.
The Hebrew Bible records many evil acts of Jewish
kings, but they were clearly going against God's laws despite being the leaders of the Jewish nation, and so
it is they, not God nor the Law, who were culpable. The same principle holds true for Christians who disobey
Christ's teachings. JFJ points to the multitude and magnitude of Christian wrongs throughout history as being
further evidence of Christianity's inherent wrongness, yet the Israelites fared no better. Of the entire
nation that left Egypt, only two people were allowed into the promised land, and once there the nation was
repeatedly punished with oppression and exile because the vast majority had turned away from God. Should this
serve as proof that Judaism is rotten at the core? Of course not - it only affirms the truth written in
the Hebrew Bible that no one is righteous
(Ps 143:2).
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