The Scandalous Messages of James

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letter came from Palestine. He tries to establish it as Sitz im Leben, (a German phrase meaning setting in life. The specific context in which a biblical text was written, relating that text to the history and circumstances of the writers life.) something that is not done often. He argues this based on the mention of farmers, and merchants. He analyzes the groups that existed in Palestine before the fall of Jerusalem (45-65 C.E.) and after (75-85 C.E.) to determine when the letter was edited.
While there are many different James that could have written the letter, most scholars are no longer accepting the manes of James, the son of Alpheus, and James, the son of Zebedee. Egypt and Syria have been the most commonly suggested places of origin, and the letter could have written anywhere from 40 to 130 C.E. There are a few definite things known about the letter. We know that the author was Jewish, he knows the Hebrews Scriptures thoroughly. And we know that the author was Christian, he uses many saying of Jesus, and speaks of the practices of the early church. The author also reveals significant Hellenic influence, which is seen in some commentaries, and since he wrote in Greek as his mother tongue. Tamez sums it up as the main point is that the author is a man named James, a servant of Christ. He is a person concerned about the oppressed and the poor. The identity of the man is not important; all that matters is that his message reaches people. When and where the letter was written is also not important, as long as we know it was a time when there was suffering and oppression, and Christian communities needed it.
Tamez gives an overview of the chapters of James; I will only list a few, as some of them are long.
Chapter One:
a) Greetings
b) Joy, testing, tested faith
c) Patience, suffering, perfect works, integrity
d) Prayer, wisdom
e) Vacillation, lack of constancy
Chapter Two:
a) No favoritism
b) Rich versus poor...