Abstract:
The article deals with the problem of the Christian beginnings. Unlike many other
scholars, the article does not defend the traditional metaphor which compares Judaism and
Christianity to the relationship of mother and daughter. It also does not take for granted that
ancient Judaism and Christianity can be viewed as religious. The category "religion" is a modern
concept and therefore does not meet the ancient discourse. The article aims to argue that the
emergence of Christianity could be better understood in terms of "ethnicity". Another version of the
article was published in Di storia dell' esegesi 21(2), 2004, 497-513.
