Divergence Podcast

Author, theologian, and apologist R. L. Solberg examines heresies and worldviews that oppose Christ, especially Hebrew Roots / Torah-observant theologies. Utilizing generous amounts of Scripture and historical research, your friendly host presents compelling insights and builds robust arguments with clarity and grace.

Divergence Mini-Series

This is an 11-part mini-series in which we are examining Jewish-Christian relations in the early church. Was there anti-Semitism as we know it today? Was the theology of the New Testament corrupted because of anti-Jewish sentiment? Did the Council of Nicaea exchange the Saturday Sabbath for Sunday worship and Passover for Easter? This compelling historical journey reveals that all was not as you might think.

This podcast series is a companion to the book Divergence. New episode every Friday.

1: Historical Context of the Early Church

In this episode, we set the table for this series and establish the historical context of the early Church. We look at the culture in which the early Church emerged, including persecution, public discourse, religious convictions, and racial relations.

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2: Paul and the Jews, examining the NT

Part 2 of an 11-part mini-series examining Jewish-Christian relations in the early church. In this episode, we begin establishing our New Testament baseline by examining the writings of the apostle Paul, centering on the book of Romans.

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3: Jesus and the Jews, examining the NT

In part 3, we continue to establish our New Testament baseline by examining the words and actions of Jesus in relation to Israel and the Jewish people.

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4: The NT on Jewish-Christian Relations

In part 4, we begin defining our 5-point New Testament baseline by examining the biblical data we have looked at up to now.

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5: The NT on Sabbath/Lord's Day and Passover/Easter

In part 5, we complete our New Testament baseline by examining two Jewish-Christian issues we will use as theological "markers": Sabbath/Lord's Day and Passover/Easter.

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6: The Parting of the Ways: Judaism & Christianity

We begin our examination of the early Christian writings by looking at the historical context, the "parting of the ways" between Judaism and Christianity, and an overview of the early writings.

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7: Early Christian Writings: Marcion & Martyr

We continue our examination of the early Christian writings by looking at Marcionism and Justin Martyr’s Dialogue with Trypho.

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8: Early Christian Writings: Melito & Cyprian

We continue our examination of the early Christian writings by looking at Melito's On The Pascha and Cyprian's Three Testimonies Against Jews.

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9: Summary of Early Christian Writings

We summarize our look at early Christian writings by comparing them to our NT baseline.

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More to come…