by Lewis Loflin
This analysis, based on my reading of the Bible following Hyam Maccoby’s claims in The Mythmaker: Paul and the Invention of Christianity, asserts that Jesus was not the founder of Christianity as we know it. Most of the New Testament focuses not on the historical Jesus, but on the risen Christ of Paul’s visions and dreams. Paul’s authority stems from the Holy Spirit (Galatians 1:11-12), not the mortal Jesus. I argue, with Maccoby, that Paul and his followers defined Christianity.
Paul never met Jesus in the flesh. Influenced by Greek Hellenism and mystery cults, he transformed Jesus into a spiritual deity, a view I see in his epistles.
Paul (originally Saul), per Maccoby, possibly acted as an enforcer for the Roman-appointed High Priest Caiaphas, hostile to Judaism. I find little evidence he knew Judaism beyond the Greek Septuagint, aligning with Maccoby’s skepticism of his Pharisaic claims.
Jesus left his brother James in charge of the Jerusalem Church after his Roman execution for sedition. Maccoby suggests James tolerated Paul for the wealth he brought from Gentiles to support the struggling church—a motive I accept, though unproven.
Paul’s only apostolic link was Peter. Luke (who never met Jesus) claimed Peter’s visions nullified Jewish dietary laws—a convenient tale I see as Paul-aligned.
I read Paul’s break with James and Judaism around 50 CE over circumcision (Galatians 2) as decisive. James upheld God’s law, threatening Paul’s Gentile followers. The Jerusalem Church fell in the 70 CE revolt; survivors like the Ebionites were later branded heretics by Paul’s Church.
With no writings from Jesus or His apostles, His true teachings remain unclear, overshadowed by Paul’s vision.
Paul, in my view, dismissed Jesus’ Jewish teachings for salvation (Romans 3:28). Though Christians credit Jesus as founder, I see Roman Catholicism choosing Paul over Jesus, per Maccoby.
"Paul is regarded as the great interpreter of Jesus’ mission, who explained, in a way that Jesus himself never did, how Jesus’ life and death fitted into a cosmic scheme of salvation, stretching from Adam to the end of time."
Christianity’s doctrines, I argue, stem from Paul, an alleged Pharisee who rejected Judaism, as Maccoby contends.
Paul’s “Christ” worship, I find, bears no tie to the Jewish Messiah—a human liberator from Roman rule. Marcion, a Gnostic heretic, elevated Paul, forcing the Church to define itself against such rivals, a struggle I see in early history.
Below is from The Sierra Reference Encyclopedia (1996, P. F. Collier, L. P.):
PAUL, ST. (died c. 68 CE), founder of Pauline Christianity. Originally Saul, he claimed to be a Jew of Benjamin’s tribe from a Pharisee family in Tarsus. Acts (not Paul) says he studied under Gamaliel in Jerusalem. This is doubtful—Benjamin’s tribal identity was largely symbolic by then, and Pharisees are unknown in Tarsus. The Ebionites claimed he came from recent converts. He learned tent-making to support himself.
In Jerusalem, Saul opposed the early Jerusalem Church, present at Stephen’s death. He persecuted its members, possibly for the high priest (Acts 9:2), a Sadducee foe of Pharisees—not Pharisaic zeal, as Gamaliel was tolerant (Acts 5).
The high priest sent Saul to Damascus to arrest Church members, a covert act outside Roman control. A vision of Jesus converted him. He joined Damascus Christians but fled King Aretas’ officers (2 Corinthians 11:32-33; Acts 9:22-25 cites “Jews”).
Paul went to Arabia (Galatians 1:17), seeking no guidance. Acts claims he consulted Ananias and apostles. Paul saw his revelation as superior; later Church views framed it as a starting point.
Paul founded Christianity—neither Jesus nor his disciples aimed for a new religion. His originality, I see with Maccoby, lies in Jesus’ death as salvific, rooted in Tarsus’ mystery-religion, not Judaism. He began the Eucharist, absent from the Jerusalem Church.
Paul’s missions began ~44 CE in Antioch, converting Sergius Paulus in Cyprus—hence “Paul.” Journeys to Corinth (51-53) and Ephesus (54-58) produced his Epistles.
Paul tied his faith to Hebrew Scriptures, reinterpreted for Jesus’ death, appealing to Gentiles. The Jerusalem Church saw this as pagan. At a 50 CE meeting with James, Peter, and John, Paul’s Gentile converts dodged Torah—a Jewish norm—but he hid his view that Torah was obsolete for Jews too.
A rift grew when Peter saw Paul’s stance in Antioch. In 55 CE, James accused Paul of forsaking Moses (Acts 21:21). Paul evaded, agreeing to a Torah test, but Asian Jews exposed him. Romans rescued him; he claimed citizenship, severing Jerusalem ties.
Roman police brought Paul before the Sanhedrin. He won Pharisee support, claiming their allegiance, but the high priest plotted his death. Protected by Romans, he faced sedition charges from Ananias in Caesarea, appealing to Rome.
The Pauline Epistles—Romans, 1-2 Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, 1-2 Thessalonians, 1-2 Timothy, Titus, Philemon, Hebrews (attributed)—are Paul’s in Greek. A Hellenistic Jew, he expected an imminent end (1 Thessalonians 4:15-17), like Jesus (Matthew 24:34).
My reading, with Maccoby, sees Paul’s theology as Christianity’s core. Jesus’ death superseded Mosaic Law—“Christ bore the curse” (Galatians 3:13)—unlike Ebionite Torah fidelity. Original sin (Romans 5:12), faith-based salvation (Romans 3:28), and Christ’s divinity (Philippians 2:6) reflect a mystical bent I tie to Gnosticism.
“Son of God” isn’t unique (Romans 8:14, Genesis 6:2). John’s “only begotten” (John 1:18) shows a Greek convert’s limited Judaic grasp—David too was “begotten” (Psalm 2:7). Jesus as man (John 8:40) clashes with divinity (John 5:18), a Pauline distortion I see with Maccoby.
Paul’s “Torah curse” (Galatians 3:10-13) contradicts Jesus (Matthew 5:17) and God (Deuteronomy 27:26). I read this as Gnostic disdain for the material world.
Paul condemned immorality (1 Corinthians 6:9), advised against marriage (1 Corinthians 7:29), and was vague on slavery (Philemon)—shaping Christian norms, per my view.
I reject Christianity as Zoroastrianism. Paul’s original sin (Romans 5:12) is unique, absent from Judaism or Zoroastrianism, making his theology distinct, per Maccoby.
See The Mythmaker: Paul and the Invention of Christianity (ISBN 0-06-015582-5).
Acknowledgment: I’d like to thank Grok, an AI by xAI, for refining this article, based on my biblical reading and Maccoby’s claims. The perspective is mine.
