Monday of the Sixth Week of Easter
Early Christians, particularly Jewish believers in Jesus as the Messiah, faced increasing hostility and exclusion from synagogues, especially in the late 1st century (c. 90s AD). Known as aposynagōgos (put out of the synagogue), this separation was driven by theological disputes, especially the confession of Jesus’ messiahship, and the rise of the birkatha-minim, against heretics.
Many scholars believe the exclusion reflects the period after the destruction of the Temple (post-70 AD), as Judaism redefined itself and “Christianity” separated from it. In fact the term “Christianity” itself did not become common until towards the last decade of the first century. The first Gospel, Mark, was composed after 70.
Writing before any of the Gospels, Paul considered himself a Jew, of the tribe of Benjamin, a “Hebrew of Hebrews”, and a Pharisee. Even after his commissioning on the road to Damascus, he maintained his Jewishness, participating in Jewish communal life until his martyrdom. Some of Paul’s letters were either created after his death (2 Thessalonians, Ephesians, Colossians, Hebrews, I & 2 Timothy, Titus) or doctored later to apply anti-Jewish elements.
The Gospel of John we hear today highlights that those acknowledging Jesus as the Messiah risked expulsion, creating a "trauma" for early Jewish followers. Expulsion meant not just exclusion from worship, but the severance of social, family, and community ties, leaving the Jesus Jews/Followers of the Way (later called “Christians”) open to harassment and ritual curses.
The expulsion was likely not an immediate event but a gradual, grass roots local movement, as Jesus Jews and other Jews interactions continued in some places. Some scholars argue that a benediction inserted into the synagogue prayers after the destruction of Jerusalem in 70, was intended to exclude "heretics" (minim), including Jesus Jews.
The question for us today is an old one: If it were unacceptable (even against the law) to be a Christian in 2026 would there be enough evidence to convict you? Isn’t the “expulsion” of followers of Jesus far more subtle in 2026 but still very real?
—Timothy J. Cronin