When one thinks of the phrase “quest for the Historical Jesus”, one cannot help but imagine a perilous journey into the heart of Bethlehem for this “historical Jesus.” While a choose-your-own adventure may sound appealing, a perilous quest for the Historical Jesus is not what is being conveyed. This quest is a reflection of who Jesus was and what He was like. Was this omnipotent, all-loving incarnation of God an accurate reflection of what we know? The view of Christ’s life has undergone critical study, analyzation through the Reformation, the Enlightenment, and even modern times. What is this “historical Jesus” then? What lens are we viewing this from? There are no “eyewitness” accounts written about Jesus; thus historians must rely on the …show more content…
canonical gospel texts, mostly written decades after his death. The term "historical Jesus" refers to attempts to "reconstruct the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth by critical historical methods", in "contrast to Christological definitions ('the dogmatic Christ') and other Christian accounts of Jesus ('the Christ of faith’)” (Wikipedia). The first quest for the Historical Jesus was right as the Enlightenment ended.
This exceeded simple textual analysis and brought for biographies, which attempted to give a new outlook in the life of Jesus. By the late 19th century, hundreds of “Lives of Jesus” were written. What we must take into account is that this is not necessarily blasphemous, for some interpreted the gospels in new ways. This brought human curiosity and questions. If Mark’s gospel was written earlier than Matthew’s, this causes it to be more historically reliable. According to the Church, Mark was a follower of Peter after the crucifixion, while Matthew was a disciple. How did Peter's interpreter come to write an earlier gospel than a disciple of Jesus? If Mark was written first, who wrote Matthew's and Luke's gospels? This was the spark of the first quest for the Historical Jesus. Scholars assumed that critical historical work would shed light on who Jesus was. They assumed that this would get rid of any inaccuracies placed on by followers after Jesus’ death. This method of inquisition was often used, but applying it to the Bible was something new. The conclusion simply was that this “historical” Jesus was in no way similar to the Christ of
faith. What did this Second Quest for the Historical Jesus teach about the Lord? The Second Quest taught that with Jesus challenging the Laws of the time, this shook the foundation of first-century Judaism. Jesus was seen as a “second Moses”, who was the healer of the broken, and a leader with mercy. Not only did he forgive, but he actively sought sinners to forgive them. The historical Jesus was thrust in the framework of discontinuity with Judaism; this Judaism differed from Christianity. This difference was rooted in the very essence of Jesus. The Third Quest was marked by the Jesus Seminar, which was an effort to analyze the New Testament to determine who Jesus was really was. This was an attempt to set the Church straight from their misinterpretation of Him over the centuries. For those who strive for historical authenticity, this brings up skepticism. The Seminar does not expunge deeds or events concentrating on what Jesus said or did, so the foundation of historical authenticity is hard to build. The Third Quest for the Historical Jesus is actually an attempt to replace Jesus’s discontinuity with Judaism with his continuity. Because of the Holocaust and its lasting influence, there is a desire from the Christian community to reverse and even atone for what is perceived as Christianity's tendency towards anti-Semitism.
From the excerpt from the novel, “Under the Feet of Jesus” by Helena Maria Viramontes, the main character is Estrella, a young Spanish girl with a powerful desire to learn to read. Although she is persistent, her teachers refuse to educate her because they are more concerned of Estrella’s personal hygiene. This leaves Estrella resentful because of the barrier between herself and knowledge. Estrella remains silent until a man named Perfecto Flores teaches her how to read by using his expertise in hardware and tools to represent the alphabet. Viramontes depicts the heartfelt growth of Estrella through her use of tone, figurative language, and detail.
In this first chapter of Jesus and the Disinherited , the author Howard Thurman describes
The book Under the Feet of Jesus by Helena Maria Viramontes shows you the story of Estrella and her family and the struggles they face as migrant workers. Among all the symbolism in the book the one that stand out the most is Petra’s statue of Christ, which symbolizes the failure of religion and the oppressive nature of the Christian religion especially in minorities. Throughout the book, Estrella’s mother, Petra relies on superstitions and religion to get her through the hardships in life. In tough times, she turns to the statue and prays for guidance. Her thirteen-year-old daughter Estrella is the first of her family to realize that she needs to stop relying on religion and take control of her life. This brings in a wave of self-empowerment, not only for Estrella but eventually for all the characters as well. In the book, you’re able to see how religion exemplifies the failures of religion in minorities and how it hinders the growth of the characters while helping some of them.
Gerhard Lohfink, in his book, “Jesus of Nazareth” believes that Jesus’ person and ministry are intertwined, or actually one and of the same. After Lohfink clarifies the difference between the "reign of God" as distinct from the “Kingdom of God,” he asserts that in Jesus, there is this active, ongoing reign which is not only revealed, but is manifested in all He says and does. Lohfink states, that Jesus is “not just preaching about the reign of God, but He is announcing it,” going on to indicating that Jesus is manifesting this reign in His own self disclosure and the actions of His ministry. Jesus ways of teaching and interactions with others, is shown as compassionate, gentle, direct and personal, as well as definitive and bold. As we also find in Ch. 3, “All that is happening before everyone’s eyes. The reign of God is breaking forth in the midst of the world and not only within people.” (51) And for Lohfink, this is taking place in the actual preaching, actions and life of Jesus Christ. Simply, we are personally and collectively and actively a part of establishing this “reign” right here, right now. A “reign” of mercy, compassion, forgiveness, self-giving, sacrificial love, as well as of justice and peace.
In The Meaning of Jesus N.T. Wright and Marcus Borg present different views on issues relating to how Jesus is viewed. While Borg and Wright do agree on central ideals of Christianity, Borg tends to have more liberal views, whereas Wright holds more conservative views.
The Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John are the origin of nearly everything the Christian Church teaches about Jesus. The Gospels, in turn, serve as the scale or test of truth and authenticity of everything the church teaches about Jesus. It is said that the Gospels are the link between Jesus of Nazareth and the people of every age throughout history who have claimed to be his followers. Although the Gospels teach us about Jesus’ life they may not provide concrete evidence that what they speak of is true there are several other sources.
For someone so well known, Jesus is someone the historical world knows little about. Around this religious figure revolves a strange phenomena. Most people could probably tell you something Jesus stood for, or the gist of something he said, just off the top of their head. But someone who has spent years studying Jesus within a historical context, would probably have a hard time pinpointing anything Jesus really said. Scholars have been interested, and even obsessed with the historical Jesus for centuries, and two of the most well known Jesus scholars of today are Dale C. Allison and John Dominic Crossan. Yet how they go about examining the historical Jesus is completely different.
The study of the Gospel of John can be viewed as distinct and separate from the study of any of the previous three synoptic gospels. The Fourth Gospel contains language and conceptions so distinct from the synoptics that scholars are often faced with the question of its historical origins. Originally, scholars believed the main source for the Gospel of John to be Jewish wisdom literature, Philo, the Hermetic books and the Mandaean writings, leading to the idea that John was the most Greek of the Gospels. However, with the discovery of the scrolls, scholars were now faced with source materials, remarkably similar to the concepts and language found in John, illuminating the literature as not only Jewish but Palestinian in origin. The discovery of the manuscripts opened up an entirely new interpretation of the gospel of John and a progressive understanding of its proper place within biblical scripture.
Being a Christian and a student of Communications, I felt compelled to reading The Case for Christ. I decided to use this book for this review especially due to the large amount of criticisms and backlash it had received. Lee Strobel is known for being a hard-nosed skeptical journalist and ex-investigative reporter for the Chicago Tribune. He also described himself as a "former spiritual skeptic" before his personal mission for the proof of God. Skeptics around the world claim that Jesus either never said He was God or He never exemplified the activities and mindset of God. Either way they rather triumphantly proclaim that Jesus was just a man. Some will go so far as to suggest that He was a very moral and special man, but a man nonetheless. For Strobel, there was far too much evidence against the idea of God, let alone the possibility that God became a man. God was just mythology, superstition, or wishful thinking.
One of the main characteristics of the gospel of Mark is it’s length. Mark is much shorter than Matthew and Luke, but what it lacks in quantity, it makes up for in quality. The author of Mark does not slow down the gospel story and makes sure that only important and relevant details are included. When Mark is compared with Matthew and Luke, it becomes obvious to see what Mark has eliminated. The author’s omission of Jesus’ birth, lineage, resurrection, and ascension denote careful planning and purpose in the gospel of Mark.
In the gospels of Mark and John, both showed a vivid portrait of Jesus in their writing. Mark’s gospel describes much more of Jesus' life, miracles, and parables as suffering servant. However, John’s gospel was written to convince people to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God. Nonetheless, both John and Mark present many of the crucial events of Jesus' life, including his trial, crucifixion, and resurrection.
Moreland, J.P., and Wilkins, Michael, ed. Jesus Under Fire: Modern Scholarship Reinvents the Historical Jesus. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1995.
¶324.9d: How do you interpret the statement Jesus Christ is Lord? Serving as a local pastor has caused me to spend more time reflecting on the theology and doctrine of the hymns in our worship practices. I recently noticed that the statement Jesus Christ is Lord is reflected in the composition entitled “Crown Him with Many Crowns.” The hymn celebrates Jesus as the Lamb upon the throne who triumphs over death (UMH 327) (Revelation 19.12). According to the doctrine in The Apostles’ Creed, all authority in heaven and earth rests in Jesus as our Ascended Lord who died for us, who is seated at the right hand of God the Father Almighty, who will one day return to judge the living and the dead, and whose Kingdom has no end (UMH 881).
The contents of the Bible have dealt with controversy in regards to its inerrancy since publication, and will surely continue to. Historians progress to learn more about biblical stories in order to provide evidence for the reliability of information. Many believers today understand that not everything in the Bible has been factually proven. An outstanding topic many scholars pay attention to lies within the four gospels. The three synoptic gospels, Matthew, Mark, and Luke, replay essentially the same story with minor inconsistencies, while John portrays Jesus in an entirely different way. The differences in each gospel are due to how each gospel entertains different portrayals of the life and understanding of Jesus himself, in order to persuade
The gospel of Luke illustrates the controversies that surround Jesus through a triangular pattern where a person or group of people, usually the Romans or Pharisees, have a problem with Jesus’s actions, miracles, healing ...