Will the real James Stand
Up?
The
earliest Christians had no writings of Jesus life nor of Paul's
theology. It is likely that the word scripture meant the
Septuagint, a Greek translation of Torah and prophets, and writings
from the Jewish tradition. In some areas scripture may have
meant only Torah. But as centuries past, Christian leaders began
to collect stories about Jesus life and letters from the early churches.
The time came to decide which of these writings reflected the true
Christian church. The authenticity of the Epistle of James has been
debated since those earliest decisions were being made. The issues
today are the same as those in the first years--who wrote James?
When was James written? Is the theology accurate to the Good News
as preached by Jesus and reflected upon by Paul?
WHO IS JAMES?
Which James wrote the Epistle of James? In the epistle
he only identifies himself in the greeting as "James a servant
(slave) of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ..." In the New
Testament there are several different people named James. Did one
of these write this epistle? Was he a disciple? A stepbrother? A
brother of Jesus? Whose son was he? What we discover about the various
men named James has a big impact of how we think about the historical
family of Jesus.
The following study of the various men named "James"
in the New Testament is best read with an open Bible by your side-or
maybe even three so you can compare the three synoptic Gospels on
a particular story. The insights are in the details so take your
time.
1. James Son of Zebedee
Let's begin with James and John who are the sons of Zebedee. The
brothers were called early as Jesus' disciples. In Matthew and Mark,
they were called immediately after Peter and his brother Andrew.
Luke 5:10 says the four brothers were fishing together as "partners."
(See Matthew 9:1-8, Luke 2:1-12, Luke 5:27-32 and also
Matthew 4:18;22, Mark 1:16-20, Luke 5:1-11).
When the twelve are listed, the two sets of brothers (James and
John, Peter and Andrew), come first.
(See Matthew 10:1-4, Mark 3:14-19, Luke 6:12-16.) We often
see Peter, James and John (without Andrew) grouped together with
Jesus for particularly important events:
The Transfiguration (Matt. 17:1-8, Mark 9:2-8, Luke 9:28-36);
Raising of the dead daughter of Jairus (Mark 5:21-43, Luke 8:40-56);
Praying in Gethsemane (Matthew 26:46, Mark 14:32-42).
Matthew leaves them out in the story of Jairus' daughter and Luke
does not mention the trio in Gethsemane. Mark places Peter, James,
John and Andrew with Jesus in a private conversation about what
will be the signs of when all will be accomplished (Mark 13:3-4).
If James the son of Zebedee wrote the Epistle of James, we
have some evidence that he was in on some private teachings from
Jesus.
James and John do some duo appearances in a couple of inauspicious
moments. Not long after the twelve are identified in Luke, a Samaritan
village rejects Jesus. James and John ask Jesus if they should call
down fire from heaven to consume the town. Jesus responds with a
rebuke (Luke 9:51-56).And, it is James and John who ask for seats
at the right hand and left hand of Jesus when he comes into his
kingdom. Matthew says the mother of James and John made the request
which means she may have been traveling with Jesus. Luke does not
mention James and John but recounted a conflict when the disciples
were fighting over who would be the greatest in the kingdom. Jesus
used these points of tension as teachable moments to talk about
the cost of discipleship and the role of servant. (See Matthew
20:2-28, Mark 10:35-45, Luke 22:24-30).
Jesus' brother James was the leader of the church in Jerusalem.
The first mention of this James is when Jesus was rejected in Nazareth.
In Matthew, the townspeople asked, "Is not this the carpenter's
son? Is not his mother called Mary? And are not his brothers James
and Joseph and Simon and Judas? And are not all his sisters with
us?" Mark cites the same lines except for "Joseph"
is replaced by "Joses" which is another way to say "Joseph."
Luke elaborates the story but leaves out the list of siblings. It
is interesting to note that in the Gospel of John, James is not
mentioned at all. (Matthew 13:55-56, Mark 6:1-6, Luke 4:16-30).
In Acts 15, James is clearly a leader and decision maker in the
church of Jerusalem. First, Peter speaks in favor of sharing of
the Gospel to uncircumcised Gentiles. Then Paul and Barnabas recount
the signs and wonders of conversions among the Gentiles. But finally,
it is James who makes the pronouncement of inclusion without circumcision.
Later, when Paul visits Jerusalem in Acts 21:17, his first stop
is to see James and the elders. In Galatians 1:18-19, Paul recounts
his visit to Jerusalem where he stayed with Peter fifteen days and
saw James, the brother of Jesus. Paul notes that it is James, Peter
and John who were "pillars" of the church. James is listed
first (Galatians 2:9).
Despite these various references to James who was a leader in Jerusalem,
there are only two specific references telling us that James is
the brother of Jesus. One is in the parallel texts about the family
of Jesus in the Gospels; the other is when Paul recounts his trip
to Jerusalem in Galatians and says he spoke to "James, the
brother of Jesus." Some say Paul was talking about James being
a spiritual brother of Jesus but this would have to be in contrast
to all the others who loved Jesus, even Paul himself, so it is probable
that Paul was referring to a sibling relationship.
These references to Jesus having a human family gave the early
church real problems. As "Jesus as God" came to overshadow
Jesus as the "Human One" or "Son of Man" the
church became increasingly uncomfortable with the idea that Jesus
has a brother, and that Mary had additional children. A late account
of Jesus' birth, The Protoevangelium of James, makes James a stepbrother
to Jesus.
Check out these web links for the debate on whether there is really
a James, the brother of Jesus:
- Josephus' History comments on James, the brother of Jesus
http://www.uncc.edu/jdtabor/james.html
- Was James Jesus' brother? Details on the scholarly debate
http://www.bibleinterp.com/articles/Chilton_James.htm
3. James Son of Mary
In Acts 12:2, James, the brother of John, was killed on the order
of King Herod. In that same sequence of events, Peter is imprisoned
and miraculously brought out by an angel. When he escapes, he goes
to the house of Mary who was the mother of John called Mark. Peter
tells his miraculous story and then says, "Tell this to James
and to the believers." We can surmise that there must have
been another James besides the one who was killed. Mary, mother
of John (Mark) could be the mother of the deceased James or another
Mary with a son named John who was distinguished as the John called
Mark.
Let's look more closely at the Marys at the tomb. Who were the
women? Mary Magdalene is named in all four Gospels. Matthew adds
"the other Mary." Mark lists "Mary the mother of
James and Salome." Luke adds "Joanna, Mary the mother
of James and the other women." (Matthew 28:1, Mark 16:1, Luke
24:10.)
The conclusion that Mary was the mother of James and therefore
of John (Mark) is not the only conclusion possible from this maze
of people. Jesus also had a brother by the name of James as mentioned
in Matthew and Mark, it is within the realm of possibility that
Mary the mother of James was also Jesus' mother. This would suggest
a cultural practice of not naming Mary as the mother of Jesus as
she went to his tomb or perhaps this represents the ambivalence
early believers had about Jesus having an earthly family if he was
the Christ. In any case, it helps explain where Jesus' mother was
on that day. She was there to prepare his body.
Another scripture supporting the argument that it was Mary the
mother of Jesus and James at the tomb with Mary Magdalene comes
from the crucifixion scene. Matthew lists Mary Magdalene, Mary the
mother of James and Joseph and the mother of the sons of Zebedee
among the women "looking on from afar." Mark lists Mary
Magdalene and Mary the mother of James the younger and of Joses,
and Salome as being among the women. Luke just mentions "the
women" and does not name them. John specifically places Jesus'
mother, her sister, Mary the wife of Clopas and Mary Magdalene at
the cross within speaking distance. When we hear Mary, mother of
James and Joses, it correlates with both the list of siblings at
the rejection scene in Nazareth and with the reference to Mary the
mother of James at the tomb and would have modeled the reference
to Jesus' brothers rather than to Jesus, the victim of the execution.
(Matthew 27:56, Mark 15:40, Luke 23:49, John 19:25.)
It is also feasible, given that the names Mary and James are used
so often, that these were all distinct people-that John Mark whose
mother was Mary was different from John the brother of James. But
given the prominence of James and John and the presence of their
mother in the request to seat them in Heaven, it seems likely that
this Mary had two sons who were two of Jesus' closest companions.
Matthew places her at the crucifixion, she was very likely among
the women at his tomb as a close family friend-if not spiritual
next-of-kin.
4. James Son of Alphaeus
Another "James" shows up as one of the twelve. He is the
son of Alphaeus. It is curious that in Mark 2:14, Levi is called
"son of Alphaeus." Matthew and Luke call the tax collector
Luke and do not mention Alphaeus. This may be another brother pair
but there is no further mention of a relationship and no other references
to Alphaeus. (Matthew 10:1-4, Mark 3:14-19, Luke 6:12-16)
5. James Father or Brother of Judas
Finally, there is a James who is the father or brother of Judas
who is present in the upper room (Acts 1:13). A New Revised Standard
Version footnote suggests it can be read as either father or brother.
This raises the possibility that Judas might be another brother
of Jesus who became actively engaged in spreading the gospel. Jude
opens his brief letter with the claim that he is the brother of
James. Like Joses and Joseph, Jude may be a short hand reference
to Judas.
6. Someone Else writing as James
Although the letter opens by identifying James as the author, it
is common for authors to use pseudonyms of prestigious people to
add value to their work. The modern concept of plagiarism is completely
foreign to first century writing. It is, therefore, quite possible
that a later Christian wrote the letter and attributed it to James
as a way of adding authority to the text. Some scholars argue for
a pseudonym because the letter of James shows signs of being written
long after the Biblical James would have died.
The Letter of James is written in higher quality Greek than other
New Testament books. It contains no description of the writer James,
nor how James is knows Jesus. In addition, some scholars insist
that the Letter's argument: You see that a person is justified
by works and not by faith alone (James 2:24) is a response to
Paul's letters to Galatia and the Romans, and so must be written
after these letters.
Could a first century Palestinian Jew have written such a polished
Greek text? For years this was a strong argument against a Biblical
James as writer, but recent research has shown that Judaism was
heavily influenced by Hellenistic language and ideas. It is possible
that even the poor in Galilee may have learned to speak Greek fluently.
Although it is frustrating that James doesn't tell us more about
himself, today this is actually understood as strong evidence that
James, a well-known Christian, wrote the letter. Clearly, the writer
did not feel it necessary to explain who he was. A later writer,
attributing his work to the earlier James, is more likely to build
up the character.
The question of whether James view on faith and works is earlier
or later than Paul's is a subject of much debate. It is important
to remember that the Letter of James and the Paul's letters
are each written to specific communities with specific needs to
be addressed. These are not theological treatise, but rather advice
to congregations facing specific problems. James is concerned that
his readers are failing to live out their Christian commitment.
James, the Writer of the Epistle
One is tempted to quip, "Will the REAL James, please stand
up!" We do have a challenge here. Let's establish some basics.
Either the epistle was written by someone named James or the writer
was giving the letter authority by claiming the name of James. Given
the minimal emphasis on the name and its authority, it seems like
a good possibility that someone by the name of James probably wrote
the letter.
Which James was it? Acts accounts for the death of James the brother
of John. James, the brother of Jesus speaks as the most prominent
leader in Jerusalem. The epistle of James is full of Jewish teachings
yet it is written in "clear and even somewhat elegant Koine
Greek." Would Jesus' brother have written in almost perfect
Greek? Was it dictated by James? Was it written in Aramaic and then
translated later by a Greek writer? A variety of scenarios are possible
but it is quite feasible, and even likely, that James, the brother
of Jesus was responsible for the letter.
From our close look at the various men named James, the narrative
of Jesus' last days takes shape with only close female relatives
and friends being named at his crucifixion and burial. Moreover,
there appears to be more involvement of Jesus' siblings than we
may have thought. James, Judas/Jude and Solome may have been his
siblings and the children of Mary as well as spiritual companions.
James took on prominent leadership in Jerusalem and Jude followed
and wrote a letter of his own.
We see also that a closer cadre than even the twelve was at work
in Jesus ministry. It was Peter, James and John who Jesus called
on repeatedly to witness to the turning points of his life.
Resources:
Biblegateway.com (an on-line concordance with access to various
versions of the Bible)
Johnson, Luke Timothy, "The Letter of James: Introduction"
The New Interpreter's Bible Vol. XII (Nashville: Abingdon
Press, 1998).
Painter, John. Just James: The Brother of Jesus in History and
Tradition, (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1999).
Throckmorton, Burton, H. ed. Gospel Parallels, (NY: National
Council of Churches 1979).
Douglas J. Moo, The Letter of James in The Pillar New
Testament Commentary, DA Carson, general editor. (Grand Rapids,
Michigan: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2000).
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