What is Epistle of James?
[[File:Minuscule 319 (GA) f85r.jpg|thumb|An ancient copy of the [[Epistle]] ([[Minuscule 319]]).]] The '''Epistle of James''' is a [[book]] inclused in the [[Christian]] [[Bible]], the [[Twenty|twentieth]] in the [[New Testament]]. ==Author and aim== According to its opening verse, this epistle was written by James (often identified with the “brother of the Lord” who lead the [[Jerusalem]] Church about 20 years and was killed around [[62]] [[AD]]). The title “servant of [[God]] and of the Lord [[Jesus Christ]]” (which suggest a [[Church]] official), the courage to address “the twelve tribes in the [[Dispersion]]” (i.e. [[Jew]]ish Christian communities outside [[Palestine]], or all faithful living in a non-Christian environment), and the tone of [[authority]] throughout the letter, all indicate someone well known and respected. The writer appears concerned in clarifying [[Paul]]’s teaching on [[faith]]/[[action]], against [[Christians]] who deform it. This indicates that the letter was written after those of Paul had begun to circulate diffusely, in the last decades of the [[1st century]]. This late dating, together with the quite elegant [[Greece|Greek]] style and the lack of any real emphasis on the Jewish [[legalism]] which was part of James’ approach to [[religion]], have persuaded a growing majority of contemporary scholars that a Christian versed in both [[Hellenism]] and [[Judaism]] wrote using James’ name. May be early [[tradition]] stemming from James was updated and published by an unknown Christian [[teacher]] of a later generation: possibly this is why the letter was not universally accepted by the Churches until near the end of the [[4th century]]. ==Sources and contents== The author’s two chief sources are [[OT]] [[Wisdom books]] and the teaching found in the [[Gospels]], though he hardly ever uses direct [[quotations]]. Reflecting Jewish Christian assemblies, he rethinks OT sayings in the light of [[Jesus]]’ teachings and re-presents them in an original way. The epistle consists of a