Title: Excellent survey of Early Christianity and Judaism
Product review: The subtitle of this book is "An Introduction" and I think it is aptly named. For the interested non-specialist, Wylen lucidly explains the opinions and debates of interpreters and scholars in the many fields touching on this subject. He convincing places Jesus as a Jew in the context of the great diversity of Jewish practices and beliefs in the first century. He demonstrates the evolution of ideas such as the physical resurrection of the dead and the concept of an immortal soul. Sources discussed include the apochrypha, pseudepigrapha, the apocalyptic writings, Philo, the New Testament, Josephus, and the Misnah and the Talmud.I have read other works that touched on some of these subjects, but what impresses me about this book is it's readability and clarity.
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