According to Giovanni Garbini, Paul had known Joseph of Arimathea (=Josephus?)

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Giuseppe
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According to Giovanni Garbini, Paul had known Joseph of Arimathea (=Josephus?)

Post by Giuseppe »

Giovanni Garbini is a minimalist historicist. I am impressed by this remark done en passant by him:

il proseltismo dei primi discepoli, della cui impostazione non sappiamo molto, portò alla conversione di molti giudei, tra cui non mancavano i membri dell'aristocrazia sacerdotale (Atti 6,7) che vennero ad aggiungersi a quelli che avevano già accolto il messaggio di Gesù. [3]

(Vita e Mito di Gesù, p. 24)

Note [3] reads:

E' ovvio pensare immediatamente a figure come Nicodemo e Giuseppe d'Arimatea; e forse proprio a questo allude Paolo quando parla di «quelli che sembrano essere qualcosa — quali fossero allora non me ne importa nulla» (Galati 2,6).

Hence "those who were held in high esteem" (Galatians 2:6) were, according to Garbini, not (or not only the Pillars), but also Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus.

The observation is surprising insofar one remembers that a case can be made that "Joseph of Arimathea" is Josephus.

The implication, then, would be that that Paul visited Jerusalem when there was also Josephus with the Pillars.

But what was Josephus doing with the Pillars?

was he the Josephus who had not yet gone over to the side of the Romans?

This would make Paul ipso facto a contemporary of the dramatic facts of the 70 CE.
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