Session 1: Differences Between Then & Now

Too often, we make assumptions that things in the 1st Century are like they are today. For instance, many think there was a "middle class" then. THERE WASN'T! Most scholars think that only 1-2% of the population were elites with power and wealth. The other 98% were peasant class.

Some have argued through the years that Jesus was "middle class," because it was thought that he was a carpenter in the tiny town of Nazareth (ONLY Mark 6:3 says Jesus was a carpenter. Elsewhere he is called the carpenter's son). If we assume Jesus was a carpenter, consider this. If you live in a tiny town of all poor folk, who is going to buy your wares to make you middle class, keeping in mind that there was no trucking or train system for easy transportation of goods in Galilee in the 1st Century!

Keep in mind, also, that recent scholarship has shown that the Greek term that gets translated, "carpenter" literally means, "one who works with their hands" or "day laborer." SO, there is a strong possibility that Jesus was not a carpenter (or the son of a carpenter) at all. Rather, he was just a guy who took any job he could to make a living. So, it is likely that even Jesus was a peasant (even in Luke's birth narrative, the mandatory offering after Jesus' birth was two turtle doves or pigeons, the offering of the poor).

In the Session 1 video, Marcus Borg told us that 1st Century Israel was a "pre-industrial agrarian domination system." In other words, the industrial revolution would not happen for several more centuries, so the primary source of income was agriculture. However, 1/2 to 2/3 of the money made from agriculture wound up in the hands of the 1-2% of the population who were in power (a domination system). On top of that, 98% of the population had NO voice.

Borg told us that this type of society (which was the most common type until the last few hundred years as democracies and revolutions have been set up) had 4 primary features:

1. It was ruled by the few (1-2% of the population);
2. There was economic exploitation (1/2 to 2/3 of the money went to those in power);
3. It was claimed that the social structure was divinely legitimated - the world is as it is, because that's the way God set it up; and
4. It was chronically violent (any uprising by the people was squashed quickly and to the extreme).

So, my question is, knowing this background information, what other things do you see that are different between the 1st Century and today in the United States?

How does knowing these differences change they way you look at, study, and understand the New Testament?

ALSO, has any questions or "ah-ha" moments sprung to mind since our meeting on Sunday?