Dual-covenant theology - Wikipedia
Dual-covenant or
two-covenant theology is a school of thought in
Christianity regarding the relevance of the
Hebrew Bible, which Christians call the
Old Testament.
Most
Christians hold that the Old Testament has been
superseded or
abrogated and replaced with the
New Covenant, which is the only one of the
biblical covenants that remains valid today.
Dual-covenant theology is unique in holding that the
Old Covenant or the
Law of Moses remains valid for
Jews while the New Covenant only applies to non-Jews or
gentiles.
Judaism
maintains that in the
post-flood era there is a universally binding covenant between God and man in the form of the
Seven Laws of Noah[2][3][4] and that there is additionally a unique
Sinaitic covenant that was made between God and the Hebrews at
biblical Mount Sinai.
However Judaism
has not historically maintained that there is a separate covenant for gentiles wherein they should convert to Christianity.
Indeed from the
Maimonidean perspective, belief in the
divinity of Jesus would be a
breach of Noahide Law.
[5]
The 18th-century rabbinic thinker
Yaakov Emden has even opined:.........................
Messianic Judaism
See also:
Messianic Judaism and
Olive Tree Theology
David H. Stern, a
Messianic Jewish theologian, wrote that dual-covenant theology is said to originate with
Maimonides. It was proffered in the 20th century by the Jewish philosopher
Franz Rosenzweig, and was elaborated upon by such theologians as
Reinhold Niebuhr and
James Parkes.[
citation needed]
These founders believe that Jesus' message is not for Jews but for Gentiles and, that
John 14:6 is to be understood thusly: "I am the way, the truth and the life; and no Gentile comes to the father except through me."
[9] Stern asserts that the problem of dual-covenant theology is that "replacing Yeshua’s 'No one comes to the Father except through me' with 'No Gentile comes...' does unacceptable violence to the plain sense of the text and to the whole New Testament."
[10]
Apostolic Decree
The
Apostolic Decree in the
Book of Acts (
15:19-29) has been commonly interpreted as a parallel to
Noahide Law.
[11]
Although the Apostolic Decree is no longer observed by many
Christian denominations today, it is still observed in full by the
Greek Orthodox.
[12]
Opinion of Pope John Paul II
Traditional supersessionist theology, as exemplified in
Pope Eugene IV's papal bull, which he published at the
Council of Florence in 1441:
The Holy Roman Church . . . firmly believes, professes and teaches that the matter pertaining to the law of the Old Testament, of the Mosaic law ... after our Lord’s coming had been signified by them, ceased, and the sacraments of the New Testament began; ... after the promulgation of the Gospel it asserts that they cannot be observed without the loss of eternal salvation.
All, therefore, who after that time observe circumcision and the Sabbath and the other requirements of the law, the holy Roman Church declares alien to the Christian faith and not in the least fit to participate in eternal salvation...........................
Criticism
A major theme of Paul's
Epistle to the Romans is said to be that, so far as
salvation is concerned, Jews and Gentiles are equal before God (
2:7-12;
3:9-31;
4:9-12;
5:12,17-19;
9:24;
10:12-13;
11:30-32). Romans
1:16, by stating that the
Gospel is the same for Jew and Gentile, may present a serious problem for dual-covenant theology.
[15]..........................
Catholic
Cardinal
Avery Dulles was critical of dual-covenant theology, especially as understood in the USCCB's document
Reflections on Covenant and Mission.
[25] In the article
All in the Family: Christians, Jews and God, evidence has also been compiled from Scripture, the
Church Fathers and official Church documents that the
Catholic Church does not support dual covenant theology.
[26]
Though it is to be removed from the next edition (at order of the
Vatican, as misrepresenting the
editio typica) the United States Catholic Catechism for Adults (2006) states:
[27]
The covenant that God made with the Jewish people through Moses remains eternally valid for them.
In June 2008 the bishops decided by a vote of 231-14 to remove this from the next printing of the Catechism, because it could be construed to mean that Jews have their own path to
salvation and do not need Christ or the Church.
[28] In August 2009, the Vatican approved the change, and the revised text states (in conformity with the
editio typica):
[29]
To the Jewish people, whom God first chose to hear his Word, 'belong the sonship, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the worship and the promises; to them belong the patriarchs, and of their race, according to the flesh, is the Christ.'
Protestant
In 2006, Evangelical Protestant
Jerry Falwell denied a report in the
Jerusalem Post that he supported dual-covenant theology:
[30]
I have been on record all 54 years of my ministry as being opposed to dual covenant theology... I simply cannot alter my deeply held belief in the exclusivity of salvation through the Gospel of Christ for the sake of political or theological expediency. Like the Apostle Paul, I pray daily for the salvation of everyone, including the Jewish people.
