Justice, Jesus and the Jews: A Proposal for Jewish Christian Relations

Justice, Jesus, and the Jews centers on our common root, the Hebrew Bible, and the relationship of the Jewish prophet Jesus of Nazareth to his ancestral heritage. The correspondence between the biblical notion of justice and Jesus' proclamation of the reign of God raises a number of questions for both Jews and Christians. It also provides a common ground or lens for Jewish-Christian dialogue. The hope is that the focus upon justice will deepen that dialogue. Justice is an issue that can unite Jews and Christians rather than divide them. Justice, Jesus, and the Jews explores the foundational question of how justice is to be understood as mediated through the written Torah of the Hebrew tradition and the oral proclamation of the historical Jesus. In particular, was Jesus seeking to express what was deepest and best in the traditions of his own people? Profound differences do exist and any final unification and reconciliation awaits God's future. However, while the differences remain, there are many issues that bring us together. Not the least of these is justice.