Another parallel between Jesus and the Pharisees can be seen in the teachings of Hillel, a leading rabbi of the Pharisees, who flourished around 50 BCE. In a famous story reprted in the Talmud, a pagan Greek came to Hillel and said he would convert to Judaism if Hillel could teach him the entire Torah in the time he could remain standing on one foot. Hillel replied, "what is hateful to you, do not do to your neighbor: this is the essence of the Torah; all the rest is commentary. Now go and study it."
Hey..Jesus would have fit in well here at FR! lol
He pretty muched nailed it, didn't he? LOL
He was accurate though, as Jesus did the same thing when he condensed the 613 commandments into two with "Love G-d with all your heart, mind, and soul--and Love your neighbor as yourself."
I have heard this story. It does suggest that Yeshua bar Yosef would have liked Hillel, but it also demonstrates one of the chief differences between the Nazarene sect and today's Judaism.
Hillel said, Don't do to your neighbor anything you don't want done to you (negative phrasing).
Yeshua said, Do to your neighbor the things you would like done to you (positive phrasing).
That is, to be a good Jew it is only necessary to avoid doing evil. To be a good Christian it is necessary to try to do good - even to those who persecute you.
Shalom.
When I ask people what Jesus' real name was, they are astounded, thinking that the name Jesus is correct. Y'shua was also thought to be a form of Joshua or Jehosua. The Greeks could'nt easily translate the name Y'shua so they made it Iesu and so did the Romans, thence to Jesus in English. Any flames?