2 Separation: Synagogue and Church, Jew and Christian (29–414 ce) In the irst century of the Common Era, Jesus of Nazareth lived as a Jew among Jews. He prayed in the synagogue, observed Jewish laws (including the dietary laws), and probably wore the fringes on his clothing (tzitziot in Hebrew) as required for Jewish men. His earliest followers did the same. Yet by the end of the fourth century, Jesus’s followers had left the synagogue and established a new religion known as Christianity. (The word Christianity refers to a religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. Christ was not part of Jesus’s name, though his followers soon began using it that way. It is a title that comes from the Greek word meaning “anointed” or “chosen.” The English word messiah comes from a Hebrew word that has the same meaning.) The separation of Christianity from Judaism did not happen simply or quickly. It was not a single event but rather a sometimes painful process that took generations to complete. And in this separation can be found the roots of hostility between Jews and Christians and the roots of some aspects of modern antisemitism. JESUS AND HIS FOLLOWERS Little is known about the early life of Jesus. He was raised in the Jewish town of Nazareth, less than 100 miles north of Jerusalem in the area known as Galilee. By all accounts, Jesus lived as a Jew and, like other Jews, obeyed the laws of the Torah. At about the age of 30, he began his ministry and was often referred to as “rabbi” (meaning “teacher”). Jesus was also killed as a Jew. Cruciixion was a method of execution commonly used by the Romans. In 4 bce, the Romans crushed a Jewish revolt and cruciied 2,000 Jewish rebels outside the walls of Jerusalem (see Chapter 1). It was the Romans, in fact, who cruciied Jesus as a Jewish troublemaker.