Was Paul the Founder of Christianity?

A common belief within mainstream Judaism today is that Christianity is a religion founded by Paul. He is viewed by many modern-day rabbis as an apostate Jew who taught the Gentiles that they don't need Torah because the Torah is cursed and those who follow it are under a curse. When reading Paul, one can very easily make that inference. For many years I held that same opinion. However, here are some inconsistencies that are often overlooked or ignored by that way of thinking:

1. Paul made a nazirite vow for which he went to the Temple in Jerusalem at Shavuot (Pentecost) to fulfill (Acts 18:18; 20:16; 21:17-26; 24:17). In so doing, Jacob (James) told him that everyone will know that he keeps the Torah (Acts 21:24).
   


2. His normal practice was to keep the Sabbath (Acts 13:13-15; 13:44; 16:13; 17:2; 20:7).
   


3. He had Timothy circumcised because his mother was Jewish (Acts 16:3).
   


4. He obeyed the Jerusalem council decision of Acts 15 when he delivered the council's mandate to the Gentile followers of Yeshua (Acts 16:4).
   


5. He observed the week of Unleavened Bread, not traveling until after those days were completed (Acts 20:5).
   


6. Jacob (James) and the other apostles accepted him into their ranks (Acts 15:4; 21:17-20; 2Peter 3:15-16).
   


7. Paul continued to claim to be a Pharisee after coming to accept Yeshua as the Messiah (Acts 23:6; 26:5; Philippians 3:5).
   

These inconsistencies have caused many to question the conventional interpretation of Paul. Two recent books challenge that way of thinking by offering a well-reasoned case to see Paul in a new light. Space does not permit me to give a summary. Instead, the titles will have to suffice. They are:

• The Mystery of Romans by Mark Nanos
• The Formation of Christianity in Antioch by Magnus Zetterholm
  

These books are well worth reading. Others have pointed out problems with Gentile translations of Paul's letters - interpretations that reflect a Christian bias. Dozens of examples can be cited, but one in particular provides a good illustration. In Romans 10:4, the typical Christian translation says, "Christ is the end of the Law...." The underlying Greek text actually says, "Messiah is the goal of the Torah...."

Whole commentaries could be written on these mistranslations. No wonder Judaism has such a problem with Paul. Perhaps I'll wrote more on this topic later.

To answer my own original question, Paul was not the founder of Christianity. Christianity is a man-made distortion of the teachings of Yeshua. Perhaps we can lay this honor at the feet of Ignatius, second century bishop of Antioch. He seemed to be the first to agitate for a separation from the Jewish community. Others followed his lead until the final separation occurred in the year 325 at the Council of Nicea.