-Messianic Jewish Theologian-
Rabbi Mark S. Kinzer, Ph.D.
Stones the Builders Rejected
The Jewish Jesus, His Jewish Disciples, and the Culmination of History
By: Mark S. Kinzer
Edited by: Jennifer M. Rosner
Since the groundbreaking publication of Postmissionary Messianic Judaism (2005), Mark Kinzer has challenged theologians and religious leaders to consider the essential ecumenical vocation of Jewish disciples of Jesus. Proposing a bilateral ecclesiology in solidarity with Israel, he argued that the overcoming of Christian supersessionism required a robust affirmation of the distinctive calling of Jews within the community of Jesus the Messiah. In this way, Kinzer’s work put the issue of Jewish followers of Jesus on the theological agenda for those seeking a reparative reconfiguration of the relationship between the church and the Jewish people.
In recent years, Kinzer has attended to the theological implications of this perspective and has widened his focus to include not only the Messianic Jewish movement but also Jews within Catholic, Orthodox, and Protestant churches. The present collection of essays reflects this wider concern. According to Kinzer, the theological stones of contention are Christology conceived of as Messianology, ecclesiology understood as Israelology, and eschatology imagined as Zionology. Moreover, it is the presence of Jewish disciples of Jesus that concretizes these theological abstractions in the form of Jewish flesh and blood, summoning Jews and Christians to rethink their relationship to one another in ways that express their essential mutual dependence.
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1666778605
ISBN-13: 978-1666778601
Imprint: Cascade Books
Published: June 4, 2024
Paperback: 244 pages
Endorsements
"Mark Kinzer's essays in this collection show how both Jews who follow Jesus and gentiles who follow a Jewish messiah need to rethink together doctrines of Christ, church, and eschatology. This book continues Kinzer's contribution to biblical, doctrinal, and ecumenical theology. It is challenging, prophetic, and required reading."
Gavin D'Costa, visiting professor of interreligious dialogue, Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas
"It is providential that the reunification of Jerusalem after two thousand years came in the same decade as the birth of a new movement of messianic Judaism, which is the necessary link between two expressions of the Messiah's Body--his gentile followers in the church and his Jewish followers in Israel. This book is essential for understanding the most exciting new chapter in the history of redemption through the mind of this most gifted thinker."
Gerald R. McDermott, author of A New History of Redemption: The Work of Jesus the Messiah through the Millennia
"In this collection of very thoughtful essays, Mark Kinzer advances his role as the leading theologian and biblical scholar reflecting on the living reality of Messianic Judaism/Jewish Christianity. Kinzer reminds of what was lost when the 'church of the circumcised' disappeared in early Christian history and celebrates the many positive implications of its reemergence. I highly recommend this profound contribution."
David P. Gushee, distinguished university professor of Christian ethics, Mercer University
