Orthodoxy means right thinking. The Christian sects of this era are orthodoxic. Each and everyone has a particular religious point of view which it expects the adherents of its sect to believe and espouse. Any deviation from the norm of the sect is considered heresy and dealt with by expulsion from the sect.
Orthopraxy means right acting. Judaism and the early followers of Jesus were orthopractic. These groups did not care what one believed, but expected careful adherence to the actions required of members. Thus the variations in interpretation of how to do the Torah would result in excommunication.
The Essene/Nasorean sect called their members among other things, the Doers of the Torah, to emphasize that they were the right acting group. The followers of Jesus were a group within the sect of Nasoreans and Jesus was called a Nasorean, both in Matthew and by the Romans who wrote Yeshua the Nazorean, King of the Jews on the tablet put over his head on the cross. The Gospel of Matthew makes clear the position of Jesus on doing the Torah; he says,
“Because not everyone who says unto me, Lord, will enter the Kingdom of Heaven but the one who DOES the will of my Father who is in Heaven will enter the Kingdom of Heaven….Again he said to them: Everyone who hears these words and DOES them is like a wise man who built his house on a rock. The rain came down against it and the winds beat it and it did not fall because its foundation was a rock. Everyone who hears these my words and DOES NOT DO them is like a foolish man who built his house upon the sand. The rains came down, the floods came and fell against it, and it fell with a great fall.” 7:21,24-26.
Jesus clearly said his position on the Torah: “Truly I say to you that until heaven and earth depart not one letter or dot shall be abolished from the Torah or the Prophets, because all will be fulfilled. He who shall transgress one word of these mitzvoth and shall teach others, shall be called a vain person in the Kingdom of Heaven; but whoever upholds and teaches them shall be called great in the Kingdom of Heaven.” 5:18-19.
Christians are so busy trying to decide who Jesus is that they miss His message. His message is that you must become Tzaddikkim, righteous, and to become righteous one must keep the Torah. Matthew 5:20.
The minimum requirement for the seed of the House of Jacob is the entire Torah. The minimum requirement for the Gentiles is set forth in the Didache. What is more important, doing the good things from faith in the Torah or talking about the writers and interpreters of the Torah.
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