Didn't Jews and Christians separate at the time of Jesus' resurrection, each going their separate ways? What did cause the separation? When did it occur, and why?

These are some of the intriguing questions addressed with wit, humor, and insight by Dr. Rosann Catalano in the Fall Mini-Course.

Hosted by Woodbrook Baptist Church on Stevenson Lane, the Mini-Course, Biblical Israel, Rabbinic Judaism, and Christianity, met for two hours over six weeks and dealt with the emer-gence of Rabbinic Judaism and Christianity out of the matrix of first century "Judaisms." Both Jews and Christians harbor many misunderstandings regarding the "when," "why," and "how" of the partings of the ways of their respective traditions in the first century C.E. It likely did not occur immediately after the resurrection, and the group of approximately one hundred people attending this mini-course were treated to blackboard "illustrations" explaining that for decades Christianity was con-sidered one of several branches of Judaism. That the Jewish followers of Jesus proclaimed Jesus' resurrection and believed Jesus to be the Messiah of Israel was apparently not an impediment to their identity as members of the Jewish people, at least not initially. Indeed, it was several decades after the resurrection of Jesus that Jews and Christians actually came to the partings of the ways.

I teach Religious Studies at St. Paul's School for Girls and have already used both of Rosann's courses in mine. Her way of creating questions out of the material has helped me create questions for my students that I hope will deepen their explo-rations as Rosann has deepened mine. The experience was an enriching and rewarding one for me. I hope that the ICJS will continue to offer this mini-course because it provides an opportunity for Jews and Christians to explore together the complex ways in which we are deeply connected to each other. Such experiences can only serve to enrich our mutual understandings and our individual spiritual lives.

Ms. Nicki Ridenour is the Chair of the Religious Studies Department and a teacher at St. Paul School for Girls. Nicki attended both the Fall and the Spring Mini-Courses, and is a frequent participant in other ICJS programs.