Religious Institutions of the Time of Jesus

In this post I will be explaining the religious institution during the time of Jesus and talking about what the church can learn from them.

There are three religious institutions during the time of Christ. The first institution is the Temple, which was the worship center of Judaism.1 Sacrifices in the morning and the evening were offered and both rituals were almost identical.2 While in the temple, where no Gentiles were permitted, the Jewish people would observe the sacrifice, recite the Ten Commandments, the Shema, benedictions, other prayers, and even sing in praise to God.3 Toward the end of the ritual, the Levites began singing, trumpet blasts prompted the people to prostrate themselves, and when the singing ended so did the service.4

The second institution is the synagogue. The synagogues provided a variety of functions for Judaism. Lea says this about the synagogue, “The synagogue served as the center of religious, social, and educational life for the Jewish community.”5 Every week Jews would gather to study the law, and during the weekdays children were instructed in the law. It also served as a place of worship and a place were money was collected for the poor.6 Though the Temple was the center of worship, the synagogue became the center of Jewish life, and was emphasized more.7 The synagogues were operated by the scribes who, according to Emil Schurer, “took more and more control of the nation’s spiritual guidance.”8

The third institution is not mentioned so directly by Lea, but cannot be overlooked and that is the institution of the home. Deuteronomy 6:6-9 lays out the importance of the home and the responsibility of parents to pass on the faith to their children. Scott says, “The Shema and other prayers were recited before the household started the affairs of the day and at other times.”9 Mom and dad were given the primary task of instilling the Jewish faith into their children. While the synagogue emphasized the study of the law, it seems that the home emphasized the practice of the law through the feasts and festivals, the Sabbath, trips to the temple, and the evening meal. The home played a major role in the spiritual formation of a Jewish child; however, it seems that the synagogue was the most important institution during the days of Jesus.

The church and synagogues are similar in a few ways. It is a place of worship as well as a place to learn the Scriptures, but to compare the activities of the synagogue to that of the modern church is a difficult task since many churches put their emphasis in different areas. I will say that it alarms me to see a lack of emphasis on doctrine in many modern churches. Many shy away from doctrine, either because it becomes divisive or it is boring to the average person. Regardless of the reason, I believe the church would do well to learn from the model of the synagogues and teach right doctrine without compromising our command to love God and love others.

Additionally, in many cases, the church has replaced the home as the primary place where faith is passed on. The synagogue, temple, and the home had a symbiotic relationship where as the church, I fear, has de-emphasized the home as God’s design to pass on the faith. The church has become primary as opposed to the being a partner to the primary… the home! What would it look like to have a church who genuinely partnered with the home to pass on the faith to their children?

1 Thomas D. Lea and David Alan Black, The New Testament: Its Background and Message, 60.

2 J. Julius Scott Jr., Jewish Background of the New Testament, 152.

3 J. Julius Scott Jr., Jewish Background of the New Testament, 151-152.

4 J. Julius Scott Jr., Jewish Background of the New Testament, 152.

5 Thomas D. Lea and David Alan Black, The New Testament: Its Background and Message, 63.

6 Thomas D. Lea and David Alan Black, The New Testament: Its Background and Message, 63.

7 J. Julius Scott Jr., Jewish Background of the New Testament, 155.

8 J. Julius Scott Jr., Jewish Background of the New Testament, 158.

9 J. Julius Scott Jr., Jewish Background of the New Testament, 251.

Comments

David said…
Tax Exempt for starters!
November 1, 2011 at 6:05 PM
David said…
Melchizadek's city has changed hands through history yet God keeps the choosen one's as the apple of His eye, right? Recently, I read an article concerning Jewish school text books for children of today (it's still called today). The debating issue was the authenticity of culture being viewed from a christiandom verses mahammedan dominance. Some arguments were breached while others were covered up and left for the reader to use better discretion; however, that was probably not the way for Jesus as a schoolboy. Does Israel want another crusade or does the United States need Thomas Jefferson back in office? Sarcasticly speaking, I'd love to go on a knight tales adventure for a holy grail instead of being a slave! Institutionalizing the home for revolutionalizing the church is a very faithful quest but is it noble to forfeit an individual's freedoms or subjugate the home to such change when we understand Christ truly brought a sword...
November 1, 2011 at 6:51 PM
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Hebrews 1:3-14 (Relate)

When forming the Big Idea of a passage, I try to determine what question is the author addressing. Is he addressing a who, what, when, where, why, or how question. Here is a simple way to find the Big Idea... Subject (what question) plus the Compliment (the answer to that question) equals the Big Idea. What we are looking for is the main point, so its important not to get caught up with the little things, though there is much we can learn about God in the little things. Big Idea: Subject... The author is trying to convince the audience that the New Covenant is superior to the Old Covenant. As a matter of fact, we will find that he is trying to convince them that the New Covenant, of which Jesus is the author, has replaced the Old Covenant. He begins with the superiority of the Son. The Son is the author of this New Covenant and the fulfillment of the Old Covenant, therefore the New is validated by the author Himself. A Jewish person held a high view of angels since they believe...
Read more

Reasons I Believe Intro: Faith and Pre-Assumptions

  Faith is an interesting word. The very nature of the word conveys the idea of trusting that what a particular source says is right. The source of that trust can be a personal experience, a religious text, or patterns that you observe in life. When one chooses to believe what they have determined to be facts, then that too is an act of faith. Faith is trusting a source. The source of my faith is ultimately the Christian Bible. There are reasons for this, and I will tease these reasons out over the next several weeks through this blog, but I say this now as an example that faith requires a source. The difference between faith and opinion is that faith is based on what a trusted source says, and opinions seem to have their roots in one’s own thoughts. We all have opinions; however, my faith is built on a trusted source. Instead of speculating, I draw upon the wisdom of what this trusted source says about a subject. Why am I writing about this? I wanted to take about seven ...
Read more

Navigating a Culture of "Pride" as a Christian

 June has been known as Pride Month ever since President Bill Clinton announced it back in 1999, and it has gained more and more steam since, particularly in the last 5 years.  It has made its way into small towns, into schools, and into the faith community as well.  In many ways it has become the loudest voice of the culture we live in, especially in the month of June.  It is a topic all over social media, the film industry, and media itself.  The agenda to normalize issues such as homosexuality and gender identity is pervasive.  You can hardly watch a series on main stream television, much less cable tv, without being confronted with these issues.  Some of the most prominent influences and influencers are now targeting children as their primary audience.  All of this has quickly shaped our culture, and anyone who thinks that the bombardment of these influences do not really have an effect on people, I would challenge them to learn about marketin...
Read more