Saint Peter and Judaism
Encyclopedia
The relationship between Saint Peter and Judaism is thought to have been fairly positive. Saint Peter, whom Roman Catholics regard as the first Pope, is mentioned in Jewish folklore as a learned and holy man.

Jewish background

Peter is also known as Ben-Yonah/Bar-Yonah, Simon Peter, Cephas and Kepha (Kepha and Cephas כיפא also mean rock)—original name Shimon or Simeon. He was a Jew who ran a fishing business in Bethsaida . He was named Simon, son of Jonah or John. The synoptic gospels all recount how Peter's mother-in-law was healed by Jesus at their home in Capernaum .

Toledot Yeshu

In the Toledot Yeshu
Toledot Yeshu
Sefer Toledot Yeshu is a medieval version of the story of Jesus from a Jewish perspective. The book concerns Yeshu, son of Joseph and Mary, born in Bethlehem, but also makes this Yeshu a contemporary of Queen Salome Alexandra...

 narratives, a character Shimeon Kepha Ha-Tzadik is found who appears to be based on Peter although the setting of the story is the Hasmonean era. According to the account, he had a pristine reputation as a greatly learned and holy man who sought to bring about the end of one hundred years of strife in Israel.

"The Sages desired to separate from Israel those who continued to claim Yeshu as the Messiah, and they called upon a greatly learned man, Simeon Kepha, for help. Simeon went to Antioch, main city of the Nazarenes and proclaimed to them: "I am the disciple of Yeshu. He has sent me to show you the way. I will give you a sign as Yeshu has done."

Simeon, having gained the secret of the Ineffable Name, healed a leper and a lame man by means of it and thus found acceptance as a true disciple. He told them that Yeshu was in heaven, at the right hand of his Father, in fulfillment of Psalm 110:1. He added that Yeshu desired that they separate themselves from the Jews and no longer follow their practices, as Isaiah had said, "Your new moons and your feasts my soul abhorreth." They were now to observe the first day of the week instead of the seventh, the Resurrection instead of the Passover, the Ascension into Heaven instead of the Feast of Weeks, the finding of the Cross instead of the New Year, the Feast of the Circumcision instead of the Day of Atonement, the New Year instead of Chanukah; they were to be indifferent with regard to circumcision and the dietary laws. Also they were to follow the teaching of turning the right if smitten on the left and the meek acceptance of suffering. All these new ordinances which Simeon Kepha (or Peter, as he was known to the Nazarenes) taught them were really meant to separate these Nazarenes from the people of Israel and to bring the internal strife to an end."

Sabbath in Christianity

According to the directions of his sage, established the Sunday Sabbath for God-Fearers (converted from among Gnostic heretics
Heresy
Heresy is a controversial or novel change to a system of beliefs, especially a religion, that conflicts with established dogma. It is distinct from apostasy, which is the formal denunciation of one's religion, principles or cause, and blasphemy, which is irreverence toward religion...

 known as The Watchers) instead of Saturday, Noel
Noel
Noel is a masculine French given name derived from noël . The actual feminine form is Noelle, but in English-speaking regions Noel is sometimes used for females as well...

 (as a new year feast but not as Christmas) instead of Hanukkah
Hanukkah
Hanukkah , also known as the Festival of Lights, is an eight-day Jewish holiday commemorating the rededication of the Holy Temple in Jerusalem at the time of the Maccabean Revolt of the 2nd century BCE...

, the Feast of the Cross
Feast of the Cross
In the Christian liturgical calendar, there are several different Feasts of the Cross, all of which commemorate the cross used in the crucifixion of Jesus....

 instead of Rosh Hashana, Firstfruits
Easter
Easter is the central feast in the Christian liturgical year. According to the Canonical gospels, Jesus rose from the dead on the third day after his crucifixion. His resurrection is celebrated on Easter Day or Easter Sunday...

 instead of Pesach, remembering The Feast of The Jews instead of Sukkot
Sukkot
Sukkot is a Biblical holiday celebrated on the 15th day of the month of Tishrei . It is one of the three biblically mandated festivals Shalosh regalim on which Hebrews were commanded to make a pilgrimage to the Temple in Jerusalem.The holiday lasts seven days...

, and the Ascension instead of Shavuot
Shavuot
The festival of is a Jewish holiday that occurs on the sixth day of the Hebrew month of Sivan ....

. R. Judah ben Samuel of Regensburg
Judah ben Samuel of Regensburg
Judah ben Samuel of Regensburg , also called HeHasid or 'the Pious' in Hebrew, was the initiator of the Chassidei Ashkenaz, a movement of Jewish mysticism in Germany....

, who led Germany's 12th-century Chasidei Ashkenaz, considered him to be a Tzaddik .

Apostle of the Jews

Paul affirms that Peter had the special charge of being apostle to the Jews, just as he, Paul, was apostle to the Gentiles. Another apostle, James, is regarded as the leader of the Jewish Christians
Jewish Christians
Jewish Christians is a term which appears in historical texts contrasting Christians of Jewish origin with Gentile Christians, both in discussion of the New Testament church and the second and following centuries....

.

Incident at Antioch

The incident at Antioch refers to a meeting between Paul of Tarsus and Peter which occurred the city of Antioch. The incident is described in Paul's Epistle to the Galatians.

As Gentiles began to convert from Paganism to Christianity, a dispute arose among Christian leaders as to whether or not Gentiles needed to observe all the tenets of Mosaic Law. In particular, it was debated as to whether Gentile converts needed to be circumcised or observe the dietary laws.Paul was a strong advocate of the position that Gentiles need not be circumcised or observe dietary laws. Others, sometimes termed Judaizers, felt that Gentile Christians needed to fully comply with the Mosaic Law.

Council of Jerusalem

Peter was a leader at the council of Jerusalem
Council of Jerusalem
The Council of Jerusalem is a name applied by historians and theologians to an Early Christian council that was held in Jerusalem and dated to around the year 50. It is considered by Catholics and Orthodox to be a prototype and forerunner of the later Ecumenical Councils...

, where he took decisions related to noachide laws and circumcision. He ultimately stood a middle-ground between the Jewish Christians and the Gentile Christians.
It was agreed that acceptance of the Noachian Laws — namely, regarding avoidance of idolatry, fornication, and the eating of flesh cut from a living animal — should be demanded of the heathen desirous of entering the Church.

Tosaphist

The Tosaphist Rabbeinu Tam
Rabbeinu Tam
Rabbeinu Tam , born Jacob ben Meir, was one of the most renowned French Tosafists and a foremost halachic authority of his generation...

 wrote that he was "a devout and learned Jew who dedicated his life to guiding gentiles along the proper path". R. Tam also passed on the traditions that St. Peter was the author of the Sabbath and feast-day prayer, although Otzar Hatefillah, quoting Mahzor Vitri, pointedly denies this claim, offering instead Simeon ben Shetach
Simeon ben Shetach
Simeon ben Shetach or Shimon ben Shetach was a Pharisee scholar and Nasi of the Sanhedrin during the reigns of Alexander Jannæus and his successor, Queen Alexandra Salome , who was Simeon's sister...

 as the probable author . Peter is also thought to have authored a prayer for Yom Kippur
Yom Kippur
Yom Kippur , also known as Day of Atonement, is the holiest and most solemn day of the year for the Jews. Its central themes are atonement and repentance. Jews traditionally observe this holy day with a 25-hour period of fasting and intensive prayer, often spending most of the day in synagogue...

 in order to prove his commitment to Judaism despite his work amongst Gentiles (Julius Eisenstein
Julius Eisenstein
Julius Eisenstein was a Polish-Jewish-American writer born in Międzyrzec Podlaski, a city in Biała Podlaska County, Lublin Voivodeship, Congress Poland....

).

Mahzor Vitri

Legends about Peter and his activities are also mentioned in other medieval works, such as the Mahzor Vitri.
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