The Depiction of Conflict in Acts: A Study of Speech Scenes Involving Christian and Non-Christian Jews

Abstract

<p> There are many factors related to conflict between early Christianity and wider Judaism. I argue that in Acts, Luke employs speech content in speech contexts involving Christian speakers and non-Christian Jewish hearers to advance his belief that Jesus' role and identity, confessed and proclaimed by the early Christians, is the most important factor in these conflicts. My analysis demonstrates that, in his narrative, Luke clarifies that outsiders frequently produce mistaken interpretations of the early Christian movement and that their accusations against Christianity, based on these mistaken interpretations, are false. At the same time, Luke shows how attitudes and decisions regarding Jesus' identity provoke, escalate, and alleviate conflict. The end result of this is that Luke's implied readers are directed to view Christology as the single most important factor involved in conflict between Christian and non-Christian Jews.</p>