the Old Testament traditionally ascribed to him, in synagogues. Note that these early Christian texts posit scenes set in synagogues both in Roman Judaea (Palestine) and in the Jewish Diaspora. Moreover, these New Testament references are consistent with statements by knowledgeable contemporary Jewish writers. Josephus, the Jewish historian from Judaea who wrote in the late first century AD, stated that Jews assembled weekly “to listen to the Law and to obtain a thorough and accurate knowledge of