Christianity historically arose in the religious context of Judaism during the Second Temple: Jesus himself and his immediate followers (apostles) were Jewish by birth and education; many Jews, as well as Greeks and Romans, perceived them as one of the many Jewish sects.
According to the 24th chapter of the Book of Acts, in the trial of the apostle Paul, Paul himself declares himself a Pharisee (Acts 23:6), and at the same time he is referred to on behalf of the high priest and Jewish elders as the “representative of the Nazarene heresy” (Acts 24: 5); the term “Nazarene” is also repeatedly mentioned as a characteristic of Jesus himself, which apparently corresponds to the Jewish status of the Nazirs (Num. 6: 3).
