Healing the Schism - (Jennifer Rosner) - A Review

 HEALING THE SCHISM: Karl Barth, Franz Rosenzweig and the New Christian-Jewish Encounter. (Studies in Historical and Systematic Theology). By Jennifer M. Rosner. Bellingham, WA: Lexham Academic, 2021. 288 pages. 

                It didn't take long for Christianity to leave behind its Jewish roots as Gentiles came to dominate the church by the end of the first century. Over time the Jewishness of Jesus was downplayed, and Judaism became less and less a factor in Christian identity. The unfortunate consequence of this trend was centuries of persecution, pogroms, eviction, forced conversions, and finally genocide. In the post-holocaust era, Christians have begun to take stock of this past and Jewish-Christian conversations have become commonplace. Though supersessionism (the idea that Christianity supersedes or replaces the Jews as God's covenant people) continues to be present, there is greater awareness this is a problem. Therefore, attempts have been made to eradicate it from the church (at least in some places). Some of this reevaluation goes back to Karl Barth's engagement with Judaism, though even he did not have much good to say about Jewish practice. Nevertheless, Barth recognized that salvation is from the Jews. The question then is how the schism that has existed for nearly two millennia be healed?

                Jennifer Rosner offers one possible response to that question in her book Healing the Schism. As the subtitle of the book reveals, two figures, one Christian and one Jewish, who offer assistance in this process are Karl Barth along with his Jewish contemporary, theologian Franz Rosenzweig. Rosner uses these two figures as the starting point in her attempt to answer the question laid out by theologian Bruce Marshall, which asks us to evaluate approaches to the Jewish-Christian encounter along two lines—the affirmation of the irrevocable election of Judaism, including Jewish practice, along with the "Universal, ecclesially mediated saving mission of Christ." (p. 39). As we discover in the course of Rosner’s book, keeping both of these poles in place has proven difficult. Whether she has managed to do so is the question that the book invites us to consider.

                Jennifer Rosner, the author of Healing the Schism, is a Messianic Jewish theologian. That designation will raise eyebrows, as many of my Jewish friends insist that one is either Jewish or Christian, but one can’t be both. So, part of the plot of this book concerns defining identity as Christians and Jews encounter one another. As for Rosner, she teaches at several evangelical institutions including Fuller Theological Seminary (where she received her Ph.D. in theology) and Azusa Pacific University. This book originated as her Ph.D. dissertation at Fuller and was originally published by Fortress Press in its Emerging Scholars series. What we do not know, as Rosner didn’t provide a preface to this edition is the nature of this new edition. Are there revisions of any kind since the first edition? Why did she move to Lexham Academic from Fortress? As a reader, I was left with several unanswered questions.

                In her introduction to the book, Rosner lays out the foundations for this book. That includes the question posed by Bruce Marshall concerning the relationship of the unbroken covenant promise to the Jews as well as Christ’s universal role in salvation. The first question has to do with the doctrine of election, something Barth focused on. The second has to do with the role Christ plays in salvation. The challenge posed by the question concerns whether Jesus is needed as part of the covenant promise to the Jews. Or is there a dual covenant—one for Jews and one for Christians?

                With the question laid out before us, Rosner begins her exploration of the question with a chapter on Karl Barth's doctrine of Israel and the church. She offers us a lengthy discussion of Barth's understanding of the doctrine of election and the centrality of Christology to Barth's vision. While Barth affirms the importance of Judaism to God's work of salvation, he appears to give no place to Jewish practice. Thus, Barth moves us along toward a new Jewish-Christian encounter, but not far enough since he sees no value in Jewish religious practice such as Torah observance or worship. This opening chapter, which speaks to Christian perspectives of Judaism is paired with a chapter on Franz Rosenzweig's understanding of the relationship between the two religions. As Rosen lays out Rosenzweig’s views, we discover that he envisions a two-track purpose for Judaism and Christianity. Rosenzweig believed strongly that Christianity plays a central role in bringing salvation to the Gentile World. At the same time, he believed that Judaism is called on to focus inwardly on its covenant relationship with God. In doing this, by faithfully following Jewish law and practice, Jews bear witness to God's covenant promises. When it comes to Jesus, Rosenzweig believes he has an important role to play in the mission of the God of Israel. But, in terms of Judaism, he has nothing to offer. Rosner concludes that while both theologians seek a fruitful encounter, neither of them answers Marshall’s question. However, in Rosner's view, the two taken together offer a possible pathway to reconciliation and salvation for the world.

                With these two theologians as starting points, she invites us to look at the work of several post-Holocaust theologians, both Christian and Jewish. She focuses on theologians who draw upon the two foundational figures. These include Christian theologians Thomas Torrance (a Barth student) and Robert Jenson. On the Jewish side, there is Will Herberg, David Novack, and Michael Wyschgogrod, among others. These theologians, working from their own vantage points, have attempted with varying success to find pathways for conversation, but they too cannot answer the question of how to maintain both Israel's irrevocable calling and Christ's universal role in salvation. For Jews, there is little room for Jesus.

                So, if these theologians, all of whom desire to build bridges between Christians and Jews, cannot keep together both of Marshall’s polls, then is there a possible solution? Rosner believes there is, and that solution is to be found in Messianic Judaism. More specifically, she believes that one theologian who can bridge the two is Rabbi Mark Kinzer. Kinzer is Jewish, at least by birth, but as we discover in chapter 4 he embraces Jesus (Yeshua) as Messiah. He not only embraces Jesus as Messiah, but he also seeks to embody that confession within a practicing Jewish context. Here is where my Jewish friends get uncomfortable. Nevertheless, as Rosner details, Kinzer envisions Messianic Judaism not as another Christian denomination (one composed of Jewish Christians) but as a faithful branch of Judaism. As I read this, I tried to envision Christianity in its earliest decades before the Gentile mission truly took hold. Is this what he has in mind? We know from the Book of Acts that the followers of Jesus in Jerusalem continued normal Jewish practices, including Temple worship. Is this the model that Rosner and Kinzer have in mind? Perhaps. What we discover here is that for Kinzer, Messianic Jews should seek to maintain Jewish practice even as they center their lives around Jesus. That raises the question of syncretism. Rosner is, at the very least, sympathetic to Kinzer's program, but she understands the critiques from both sides (that is from traditional Christian and Jewish sides).

                The question remains, does Messianic Judaism answer the question that seems irreconcilable—the ongoing covenant status of the Jewish people and Christ's universal role in salvation. That is, how do we say that God's covenant with Israel is irrevocable and cannot be superseded while at the same time affirming the premise that salvation is to be found in Jesus? Unless, as Rosenzweig suggests, Jesus is for Gentiles and not for Jews. As Rosner brings the book to a close, she reviews the options that range from supersession to an eschatological resolution, but whether she has untied the Gordian knot is still uncertain.

                As I finished the book, I was grateful to Rosner for helping me gain a better understanding of the questions and the possibilities. I find myself in a bit of a quandary as I want to keep both of Marshall’s poles in place but find myself at times ending up embracing some form of the dual covenant position. It is clear to me that God's covenant with Israel is irrevocable (that is the position I see Paul taking in Romans). Unlike Barth, I see the value in the continuing religious practices of Judaism including Torah observance. At the same time, I affirm the centrality of Jesus to the ultimate salvation of the world. But how that ultimately plays out remains unclear to me. My mind hasn't changed as a result of reading the book, though I do seem to have more questions that require answers. What I do have as well are more resources to explore (I didn’t know about Rosenzweig before). I should note here that I’ve had the opportunity to hear Mark Kinzer a few years back, so perhaps I’ll be able to have some personal engagement as he lives nearby in Ann Arbor.

                I couldn’t help but think of my Jewish friends who are faithful to Judaism as I read the book. I think of my Rabbi Arthur Gross-Schaefer with whom I have written several pieces and who watched Mel Gibson’s The Passion with me. I know that for them conversations about Jesus are difficult because of two millennia of Christian persecution of Jews. I also reflected on my reading of other post-holocaust theologians whom Rosner does not engage. That includes Clark Williamson, the late Disciples of Christ theologian whose book A Guest in the House of Israel: Post-Holocaust Church Theology has been influential in my journey. Williamson, however, is a Process Theologian and stands outside the more evangelical circle of theologians that Rosner has engaged here.

                When it comes to Messianic Judaism, including Kinzer's version, I have many questions. Some of them are rooted in Scripture. Kinzer and other Messianic Jews embrace an ecclesiology in which they would remain separate from Gentile Christians, operating essentially as a Jewish Christian synagogue that maintains Jewish practices. The question then is, are they embracing what we know to be first-century practices or are they embracing later rabbinic practices? Do they keep kosher? (Not all my observant Jewish friends, including rabbis, keep kosher. I would suggest that Paul didn’t either!). There is a vision of separation within the body of Christ that appears to be present here that my reading of Paul would seem to be problematic.  Consider Paul’s words in Galatians 3, where he insists that there is neither Jew nor Greek, but all are one in Christ. Then in Ephesians, which likely emerged later in the first century as the two communities were diverging, which speaks of breaking down the dividing wall between Jew and Gentile. While the Book of Acts suggests that the Jerusalem Jesus followers maintained their traditional practices, at least for a time, did this extend beyond Jerusalem? Rosner recognizes the critiques from both Jewish and Christian sides of this conversation (my Jewish friends insist that if a Jew becomes a Christian, they cease being a Jew, therefore there is no room for a Messianic Judaism after the holocaust).

                Healing the Schism, as a former dissertation that assumedly has been revised (perhaps twice), is an academic text. It is rooted in deep scholarship. As one might expect the book is dense and thus not an easy read. That doesn’t mean it is inaccessible, but it will require diligence on the part of the reader as Rosner covers a lot of material. That also means this is an insightful book (even if I remain unconvinced by the Messianic Jewish premise). Thus, it warrants a close reading on the part of Christians who wish to enter this new Jewish-Christian encounter. If nothing else, hopefully, the book provides another nail in the coffin of supersessionism that has poisoned the church since almost the beginning. If that occurs, then perhaps we will find a path toward a more fruitful relationship with our Jewish friends.