NOSTALGIA FOR CHRISTIANITY: GETTING MEDIEVAL AGAIN Daniel Boyarin In his recent book, Jesus in the Talmud, Peter Schafer assesses the mate rial about Jesus in the Babylonian Talmud, arguing that there is more of it than previously dreamed of, and that, while it is of no purpose for historical Jesus studies (of course!), it is nonetheless valuable for reconstructingjewish and Christian history. In short the work is a distinct methodological and substantive advance over that of Johann Maier. So far, so good. But one of his specific arguments is that much of the Jesus material in the Talmud consists of a concerted attempt on the part of the Babylonian Rabbis to present the Holy Family and thus Christians as incestuous fornicators or ritual libertines. I claim (quite strenuously, see below) that this is simply not so: The Babylonian Rabbis, whatever they may have thought about Christ or Christians, did not, on the evidence we have, accuse them of sexual debauchery. Schafer writes at one point (a point to which I will return): "We get a glimpse at the weapons that the rabbinic Jews used in order not only to demarcate themselves off from Christian Jews but to fight against them with all the means at their disposal. And a fight to the death it was" (51). He argues that the Talmud reflects, manipulates, and utilizes ancient pagan slanders against Christians of sexual license in the Rabbis' alleged "fight to the death" against Christians. I believe that he fails to make his case. In every instance, I contend, it is heretical teaching and not sexual R&L 42.1-2 (Spring-Summer 2010) 49