Judaizers

The Judaizers were a faction of the Jewish Christians, both of Jewish and non-Jewish origins, who regarded the Levitical laws of the Old Testament as still binding on all Christians. They tried to enforce Jewish circumcision upon the Gentile converts to early Christianity and were strenuously opposed and criticized for their behavior by the Apostle Paul, who employed many of his epistles to refute their doctrinal positions.

The term is derived from the Koine Greek word Ἰουδαΐζειν (Ioudaizein), used once in the Greek New Testament (Galatians 2:14), when Paul publicly challenged the Apostle Peter for compelling Gentile converts to early Christianity to "judaize". This episode is known as the incident at Antioch.

Most Christians believe that much of the Old Covenant has been superseded, and many believe it has been completely abrogated and replaced by the Law of Christ. The Christian debate over judaizing began in the lifetime of the apostles, notably at the Council of Jerusalem and the incident at Antioch. It has been carried on parallel to continuing debates about Paul the Apostle and Judaism, Protestant views of the Ten Commandments, and Christian ethics.

The meaning of the verb judaize, from which the noun Judaizer is derived, is derived from its various historical uses. Its biblical meaning is inferred and is not clearly defined beyond its obvious relationship to the word "Jew". The Anchor Bible Dictionary, for example, says: "The clear implication is that gentiles are being compelled to live according to Jewish customs."

The word Judaizer comes from judaize, which is seldom used in English Bible translations (an exception is the Young's Literal Translation for Galatians 2:14).

The Council of Jerusalem is generally dated to 48 AD, roughly 15 to 25 years after the crucifixion of Jesus, between 26 and 36 AD. Acts 15 and Galatians 2 both suggest that the meeting was called to debate whether male Gentiles who were converting to become followers of Jesus were required to become circumcised; the rite of circumcision was considered execrable and repulsive during the period of Hellenization of the Eastern Mediterranean and was especially adversed in Classical civilization both from ancient Greeks and Romans, which instead valued the foreskin positively.

Before Paul's conversion, Christianity was part of Second Temple Judaism. Gentiles who wished to join the early Christian movement, which at the time comprised mostly Jewish followers, were expected to convert to Judaism, which likely meant submission to adult male circumcision for the uncircumcised, following the dietary restrictions of kashrut, and more. During the time period there were also "partial converts", such as gate proselytes and God-fearers (i.e. Greco-Roman sympathizers who made an allegiance to Judaism but refused to convert and therefore retained their Gentile (non-Jewish) status), hence they were uncircumcised and it was not required for them to follow any of the commandments of the Mosaic Law.

The inclusion of Gentiles into early Christianity posed a problem for the Jewish identity of some of the early Christians: the new Gentile converts were not required to be circumcised nor to observe the Mosaic Law. Circumcision in particular was regarded as a token of the membership of the Abrahamic covenant, and the most traditionalist faction of Jewish Christians (i.e., converted Pharisees) insisted that Gentile converts had to be circumcised as well. Paul insisted that faith in Christ (see also Faith or Faithfulness) was sufficient for salvation, therefore the Mosaic Law was not binding for the Gentiles.