Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=
Hebrew
Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...
/
Aramaic
The Aramaic languages, short Aramaic ( syc, ܐܪܡܝܐ, Arāmāyā; oar, 𐤀𐤓𐤌𐤉𐤀; arc, 𐡀𐡓𐡌𐡉𐡀; tmr, אֲרָמִית), are a language family containing many varieties (languages and dialects) that originated in ...
( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other
names and titles), was a first-century
Jewish
Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...
preacher
A preacher is a person who delivers sermons or homilies on religious topics to an assembly of people. Less common are preachers who preach on the street, or those whose message is not necessarily religious, but who preach components such as a ...
and
religious leader
Clergy are formal leaders within established religions. Their roles and functions vary in different religious traditions, but usually involve presiding over specific rituals and teaching their religion's doctrines and practices. Some of the ter ...
; he is the central figure of
Christianity
Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...
, the
world's largest religion. Most
Christians
Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...
believe he is the
incarnation
Incarnation literally means ''embodied in flesh'' or ''taking on flesh''. It refers to the conception and the embodiment of a deity or spirit in some earthly form or the appearance of a god as a human. If capitalized, it is the union of divinit ...
of
God the Son
God the Son ( el, Θεὸς ὁ υἱός, la, Deus Filius) is the second person of the Trinity in Christian theology. The doctrine of the Trinity identifies Jesus as the incarnation of God, united in essence (consubstantial) but distinct in ...
and the awaited
Messiah
In Abrahamic religions, a messiah or messias (; ,
; ,
; ) is a saviour or liberator of a group of people. The concepts of ''mashiach'', messianism, and of a Messianic Age originated in Judaism, and in the Hebrew Bible, in which a ''mashiach'' ...
(the
Christ
Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other Names and titles of Jesus in the New Testament, names and titles), was ...
) prophesied in the
Hebrew Bible
The Hebrew Bible or Tanakh (;["Tanach"](_blank)
''Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary''. Hebrew: ''Tān ...
.
Virtually all modern scholars of antiquity agree that
Jesus existed historically.
Research into the historical Jesus has yielded some uncertainty on the
historical reliability of the Gospels
The historical reliability of the Gospels is the reliability and historic character of the four New Testament gospels as historical documents. While all four canonical gospels contain some sayings and events which may meet one or more of the five ...
and on how closely the Jesus portrayed in the
New Testament
The New Testament grc, Ἡ Καινὴ Διαθήκη, transl. ; la, Novum Testamentum. (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus, as well as events in first-century Christ ...
reflects the
historical Jesus
The term "historical Jesus" refers to the reconstruction of the life and teachings of Jesus by critical historical methods, in contrast to religious interpretations. It also considers the historical and cultural contexts in which Jesus lived. ...
, as the only detailed records of Jesus' life are contained in the
Gospel
Gospel originally meant the Christian message ("the gospel"), but in the 2nd century it came to be used also for the books in which the message was set out. In this sense a gospel can be defined as a loose-knit, episodic narrative of the words an ...
s. Jesus was a
Galilean
Generically, a Galilean (; he, גלילי; grc, Γαλιλαίων; la, Galilaeos) is an inhabitant of Galilee, a region of Israel surrounding the Sea of Galilee (Kinneret). The New Testament notes that the Apostle Peter's accent gave him ...
Jew who
was circumcised, was
baptized
Baptism (from grc-x-koine, βάπτισμα, váptisma) is a form of ritual purification—a characteristic of many religions throughout time and geography. In Christianity, it is a Christian sacrament of initiation and adoption, almost ...
by
John the Baptist
John the Baptist or , , or , ;Wetterau, Bruce. ''World history''. New York: Henry Holt and Company. 1994. syc, ܝܘܿܚܲܢܵܢ ܡܲܥܡܕ݂ܵܢܵܐ, Yoḥanān Maʿmḏānā; he, יוחנן המטביל, Yohanān HaMatbil; la, Ioannes Bapti ...
, began
his own ministry and was often referred to as "
rabbi
A rabbi () is a spiritual leader or religious teacher in Judaism. One becomes a rabbi by being ordained by another rabbi – known as ''semikha'' – following a course of study of Jewish history and texts such as the Talmud. The basic form of ...
".
Jesus debated with fellow Jews on how to best follow
God
In monotheism, monotheistic thought, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator deity, creator, and principal object of Faith#Religious views, faith.Richard Swinburne, Swinburne, R.G. "God" in Ted Honderich, Honderich, Ted. (ed)''The Ox ...
, engaged in healings, taught in
parables
A parable is a succinct, didactic story, in prose or verse, that illustrates one or more instructive lessons or principles. It differs from a fable in that fables employ animals, plants, inanimate objects, or forces of nature as characters, ...
and gathered followers. He was arrested and tried by the
Jewish authorities, turned over to the Roman government, and
crucified
Crucifixion is a method of capital punishment in which the victim is tied or nailed to a large wooden cross or beam and left to hang until eventual death from exhaustion and asphyxiation. It was used as a punishment by the Persians, Carthagin ...
on the order of
Pontius Pilate
Pontius Pilate (; grc-gre, Πόντιος Πιλᾶτος, ) was the fifth governor of the Roman province of Judaea, serving under Emperor Tiberius from 26/27 to 36/37 AD. He is best known for being the official who presided over the trial of J ...
, the
Roman prefect of Jerusalem. After his death, his followers believed he
rose from the dead, and the community they formed eventually became the
early Christian Church
Early Christianity (up to the First Council of Nicaea in 325) spread from the Levant, across the Roman Empire, and beyond. Originally, this progression was closely connected to already established Jewish centers in the Holy Land and the Jewish ...
. Accounts of his teachings and life were
initially conserved by oral transmission, which was the source of the written Gospels.
Christian theology
Christian theology is the theology of Christianity, Christian belief and practice. Such study concentrates primarily upon the texts of the Old Testament and of the New Testament, as well as on Christian tradition. Christian theology, theologian ...
includes the beliefs that Jesus was conceived by the
Holy Spirit
In Judaism, the Holy Spirit is the divine force, quality, and influence of God over the Universe or over his creatures. In Nicene Christianity, the Holy Spirit or Holy Ghost is the third person of the Trinity. In Islam, the Holy Spirit acts as ...
, was
born of a virgin named
Mary
Mary may refer to:
People
* Mary (name), a feminine given name (includes a list of people with the name)
Religious contexts
* New Testament people named Mary, overview article linking to many of those below
* Mary, mother of Jesus, also calle ...
, performed
miracles
A miracle is an event that is inexplicable by natural or scientific lawsOne dictionary define"Miracle"as: "A surprising and welcome event that is not explicable by natural or scientific laws and is therefore considered to be the work of a divin ...
, founded the Christian Church, died by
crucifixion
Crucifixion is a method of capital punishment in which the victim is tied or nailed to a large wooden cross or beam and left to hang until eventual death from exhaustion and asphyxiation. It was used as a punishment by the Persians, Carthagin ...
as a sacrifice to achieve
atonement for sin, rose from the dead, and
ascended into
Heaven
Heaven or the heavens, is a common religious cosmological or transcendent supernatural place where beings such as deities, angels, souls, saints, or venerated ancestors are said to originate, be enthroned, or reside. According to the belie ...
, from where he
will return. Commonly,
Christians believe Jesus enables people to be reconciled to God. The
Nicene Creed asserts that Jesus will
judge the living and the dead either
before
Before is the opposite of after, and may refer to:
* ''Before'' (Gold Panda EP), 2009
* ''Before'' (James Blake EP), 2020
* "Before" (song), a 1996 song by the Pet Shop Boys
* "Before", a song by the Empire of the Sun from ''Two Vines''
* "Befo ...
or
after
After may refer to:
Literature
* ''After'' (Elgar), an 1895 poem by Philip Bourke Marston set to music by Edward Elgar
* ''After'' (Prose novel), a 2003 novel by Francine Prose
* ''After'' (book), a 2005 book by Canadian writer Francis Chalifour
...
their
bodily resurrection,
an event tied to the
Second Coming
The Second Coming (sometimes called the Second Advent or the Parousia) is a Christian (as well as Islamic and Baha'i) belief that Jesus will return again after his ascension to heaven about two thousand years ago. The idea is based on messi ...
of Jesus in
Christian eschatology
Christian eschatology, a major branch of study within Christian theology, deals with "last things". Such eschatology – the word derives from two Greek roots meaning "last" () and "study" (-) – involves the study of "end things", whether of ...
. The great majority of Christians worship Jesus as the incarnation of God the Son, the second of three
persons
A person ( : people) is a being that has certain capacities or attributes such as reason, morality, consciousness or self-consciousness, and being a part of a culturally established form of social relations such as kinship, ownership of property, ...
of the
Trinity
The Christian doctrine of the Trinity (, from 'threefold') is the central dogma concerning the nature of God in most Christian churches, which defines one God existing in three coequal, coeternal, consubstantial divine persons: God the F ...
. However, there is a small minority of
Christian denomination
A Christian denomination is a distinct religious body within Christianity that comprises all church congregations of the same kind, identifiable by traits such as a name, particular history, organization, leadership, theological doctrine, worsh ...
s that
reject trinitarianism, wholly or partly, as non-scriptural. The
birth of Jesus is celebrated annually on 25 December as
Christmas
Christmas is an annual festival commemorating Nativity of Jesus, the birth of Jesus, Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people Observance of Christmas by country, around t ...
. His crucifixion is honored on
Good Friday
Good Friday is a Christian holiday commemorating the crucifixion of Jesus and his death at Calvary. It is observed during Holy Week as part of the Paschal Triduum. It is also known as Holy Friday, Great Friday, Great and Holy Friday (also Hol ...
and his resurrection on
Easter Sunday
Easter,Traditional names for the feast in English are "Easter Day", as in the ''Book of Common Prayer''; "Easter Sunday", used by James Ussher''The Whole Works of the Most Rev. James Ussher, Volume 4'') and Samuel Pepys''The Diary of Samuel ...
. The world's most widely used
calendar era
A calendar era is the period of time elapsed since one ''epoch'' of a calendar and, if it exists, before the next one. For example, it is the year as per the Gregorian calendar, which numbers its years in the Western Christian era (the Coptic ...
—in which the current year is
AD (or
CE)—is based on the approximate
birthdate of Jesus
The date of birth of Jesus is not stated in the gospels or in any historical sources but most biblical scholars assume a year of birth between 6 and 4 BC. The historical evidence is too incomplete to allow a definitive dating, but the year is e ...
.
Jesus is also revered in other religions.
In Islam
IN, In or in may refer to:
Places
* India (country code IN)
* Indiana, United States (postal code IN)
* Ingolstadt, Germany (license plate code IN)
* In, Russia, a town in the Jewish Autonomous Oblast
Businesses and organizations
* Indepe ...
, Jesus (often referred to by his Quranic name ) is considered the penultimate
prophet
In religion, a prophet or prophetess is an individual who is regarded as being in contact with a divine being and is said to speak on behalf of that being, serving as an intermediary with humanity by delivering messages or teachings from the s ...
of
God
In monotheism, monotheistic thought, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator deity, creator, and principal object of Faith#Religious views, faith.Richard Swinburne, Swinburne, R.G. "God" in Ted Honderich, Honderich, Ted. (ed)''The Ox ...
and the
messiah
In Abrahamic religions, a messiah or messias (; ,
; ,
; ) is a saviour or liberator of a group of people. The concepts of ''mashiach'', messianism, and of a Messianic Age originated in Judaism, and in the Hebrew Bible, in which a ''mashiach'' ...
,
who
will return before the
Day of Judgement
The Last Judgment, Final Judgment, Day of Reckoning, Day of Judgment, Judgment Day, Doomsday, Day of Resurrection or The Day of the Lord (; ar, یوم القيامة, translit=Yawm al-Qiyāmah or ar, یوم الدین, translit=Yawm ad-Dīn, ...
.
Muslims
Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abraha ...
believe Jesus was born of the virgin
Mary
Mary may refer to:
People
* Mary (name), a feminine given name (includes a list of people with the name)
Religious contexts
* New Testament people named Mary, overview article linking to many of those below
* Mary, mother of Jesus, also calle ...
(another figure revered in Islam), but was neither God nor a son of God; the
Quran
The Quran (, ; Standard Arabic: , Classical Arabic, Quranic Arabic: , , 'the recitation'), also romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a revelation in Islam, revelation from God in Islam, ...
states that Jesus never claimed to be divine.
Most Muslims do not believe that he
was killed or crucified, but that God
raised him into Heaven while he was still alive. In contrast,
Judaism rejects the belief that Jesus was the awaited messiah, arguing that he did not fulfill
messianic prophecies
In Abrahamic religions, a messiah or messias (; ,
; ,
; ) is a saviour or liberator of a group of people. The concepts of ''mashiach'', messianism, and of a Messianic Age originated in Judaism, and in the Hebrew Bible, in which a ''mashiach'' i ...
, and was neither divine nor resurrected.
[ See ''Avodah Zarah 17a:1'', ''Sanhedrin 43a:20'', ''Gittin 57a:3-4'', and ''Sotah 47a:6''.]
Name
Naming convention, various names
A typical
Jew
Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""Th ...
in Jesus' time
had only one name, sometimes
followed by the phrase "son of ">ather's name, or the individual's hometown.
Thus, in the New Testament, Jesus is commonly referred to as "Jesus of
Nazareth
Nazareth ( ; ar, النَّاصِرَة, ''an-Nāṣira''; he, נָצְרַת, ''Nāṣəraṯ''; arc, ܢܨܪܬ, ''Naṣrath'') is the largest city in the Northern District of Israel. Nazareth is known as "the Arab capital of Israel". In ...
". Jesus' neighbors in Nazareth refer to him as "the carpenter, the son of
Mary
Mary may refer to:
People
* Mary (name), a feminine given name (includes a list of people with the name)
Religious contexts
* New Testament people named Mary, overview article linking to many of those below
* Mary, mother of Jesus, also calle ...
and brother of
James
James is a common English language surname and given name:
*James (name), the typically masculine first name James
* James (surname), various people with the last name James
James or James City may also refer to:
People
* King James (disambiguati ...
and
Joses
Joses ( grc-gre, Ἰωσῆς) is a name, usually regarded as a form of Joseph, occurring many times in the New Testament:
* Joses, one of the four brothers of Jesus ()
* Joses or Joseph, son of a Mary and brother of a James ( James the Less acc ...
and
Judas
Judas Iscariot (; grc-x-biblical, Ἰούδας Ἰσκαριώτης; syc, ܝܗܘܕܐ ܣܟܪܝܘܛܐ; died AD) was a disciple and one of the original Twelve Apostles of Jesus Christ. According to all four canonical gospels, Judas betr ...
and
Simon
Simon may refer to:
People
* Simon (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the given name Simon
* Simon (surname), including a list of people with the surname Simon
* Eugène Simon, French naturalist and the genus ...
", "the carpenter's son", or "
Joseph
Joseph is a common male given name, derived from the Hebrew Yosef (יוֹסֵף). "Joseph" is used, along with "Josef", mostly in English, French and partially German languages. This spelling is also found as a variant in the languages of the mo ...
's son". In the Gospel of John, the disciple
Philip
Philip, also Phillip, is a male given name, derived from the Greek (''Philippos'', lit. "horse-loving" or "fond of horses"), from a compound of (''philos'', "dear", "loved", "loving") and (''hippos'', "horse"). Prominent Philips who popularize ...
refers to him as "Jesus son of Joseph from Nazareth".
The name ''Yeshua'' appears to have been in use in Judea at the time of the birth of Jesus. The 1st-century works of historian
Flavius Josephus
Flavius Josephus (; grc-gre, Ἰώσηπος, ; 37 – 100) was a first-century Romano-Jewish historian and military leader, best known for ''The Jewish War'', who was born in Jerusalem—then part of Roman Judea—to a father of priestly d ...
, who wrote in
Koine Greek
Koine Greek (; Koine el, ἡ κοινὴ διάλεκτος, hē koinè diálektos, the common dialect; ), also known as Hellenistic Greek, common Attic, the Alexandrian dialect, Biblical Greek or New Testament Greek, was the common supra-reg ...
, the same language as that of the New Testament, refer to at least twenty different people with the name Jesus (i.e. Ἰησοῦς).
The
Gospel of Matthew
The Gospel of Matthew), or simply Matthew. It is most commonly abbreviated as "Matt." is the first book of the New Testament of the Bible and one of the three synoptic Gospels. It tells how Israel's Messiah, Jesus, comes to his people and for ...
states that an
angel
In various theistic religious traditions an angel is a supernatural spiritual being who serves God.
Abrahamic religions often depict angels as benevolent celestial intermediaries between God (or Heaven) and humanity. Other roles include ...
appeared to Jesus' adoptive father,
Joseph
Joseph is a common male given name, derived from the Hebrew Yosef (יוֹסֵף). "Joseph" is used, along with "Josef", mostly in English, French and partially German languages. This spelling is also found as a variant in the languages of the mo ...
, to tell Joseph about his future son and to name him Jesus because "he will save his people from their sins":
But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, "Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins."
Etymology
Modern linguistic analysis
The English name ''Jesus'' is derived from the Latin ''Iesus'', itself a
transliteration
Transliteration is a type of conversion of a text from one writing system, script to another that involves swapping Letter (alphabet), letters (thus ''wikt:trans-#Prefix, trans-'' + ''wikt:littera#Latin, liter-'') in predictable ways, such as ...
of the Greek (').
The Greek form is probably a rendering of the
Hebrew
Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...
and
Aramaic
The Aramaic languages, short Aramaic ( syc, ܐܪܡܝܐ, Arāmāyā; oar, 𐤀𐤓𐤌𐤉𐤀; arc, 𐡀𐡓𐡌𐡉𐡀; tmr, אֲרָמִית), are a language family containing many varieties (languages and dialects) that originated in ...
name (''
Yēšūaʿ''), a shorter variant of the earlier Hebrew name (''
Yəhōšūaʿ'', English: "Joshua").
The modern linguistic analysis of the name ''Yehoshua'' is "
Yahweh
Yahweh *''Yahwe'', was the national god of ancient Israel and Judah. The origins of his worship reach at least to the early Iron Age, and likely to the Late Bronze Age if not somewhat earlier, and in the oldest biblical literature he posse ...
is lordly".
Joshua (''Yehoshua'') was also the name of
Moses's successor and of a
Jewish high priest
High Priest ( he, כהן גדול, translit=Kohen Gadol or ; ) was the title of the chief religious official of Judaism from the early post- Exilic times until the destruction of the Second Temple in Jerusalem by the Romans in 70 CE. Previousl ...
in the Hebrew Bible, both of whom are represented in the
Septuagint
The Greek Old Testament, or Septuagint (, ; from the la, septuaginta, lit=seventy; often abbreviated ''70''; in Roman numerals, LXX), is the earliest extant Greek translation of books from the Hebrew Bible. It includes several books beyond th ...
(a Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible) as '.
Traditional Christian analysis
The name ''Yəhōšūaʿ'' likely means "
Yah saves".
The etymology of Jesus' name in the context of the New Testament is generally given as "
Yahweh
Yahweh *''Yahwe'', was the national god of ancient Israel and Judah. The origins of his worship reach at least to the early Iron Age, and likely to the Late Bronze Age if not somewhat earlier, and in the oldest biblical literature he posse ...
is salvation".
Jesus as the Christ
Since the early period of
Christianity
Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...
, Christians have commonly referred to Jesus as "Jesus Christ". "Jesus Christ" is the name that the author of the
Gospel of John
The Gospel of John ( grc, Εὐαγγέλιον κατὰ Ἰωάννην, translit=Euangélion katà Iōánnēn) is the fourth of the four canonical gospels. It contains a highly schematic account of the ministry of Jesus, with seven "sig ...
claims Jesus gave to himself during his
high priestly prayer
In the New Testament, chapters 14–17 of the Gospel of John are known as the Farewell Discourse given by Jesus to eleven of his disciples immediately after the conclusion of the Last Supper in Jerusalem, the night before his crucifixion.''Joh ...
. The word ''
Christ
Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other Names and titles of Jesus in the New Testament, names and titles), was ...
'' was a
title or office ("the Christ"), not a given name. It derives from the Greek (''Christos''),
a translation of the Hebrew ''
mashiakh'' () meaning "
anointed
Anointing is the ritual act of pouring aromatic oil over a person's head or entire body.
By extension, the term is also applied to related acts of sprinkling, dousing, or smearing a person or object with any perfumed oil, milk, butter, or oth ...
", and is usually transliterated into English as "
messiah
In Abrahamic religions, a messiah or messias (; ,
; ,
; ) is a saviour or liberator of a group of people. The concepts of ''mashiach'', messianism, and of a Messianic Age originated in Judaism, and in the Hebrew Bible, in which a ''mashiach'' ...
". In biblical Judaism,
sacred oil was used to anoint certain exceptionally holy people and objects as part of their religious investiture.
Christians of the time designated Jesus as "the Christ" because they believed him to be the messiah, whose arrival is
prophesied
In religion, a prophecy is a message that has been communicated to a person (typically called a ''prophet'') by a supernatural entity. Prophecies are a feature of many cultures and belief systems and usually contain divine will or law, or pret ...
in the
Hebrew Bible
The Hebrew Bible or Tanakh (;["Tanach"](_blank)
''Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary''. Hebrew: ''Tān ...
and Old Testament. In postbiblical usage, ''Christ'' became viewed as a name — one part of "Jesus Christ".
Etymons of the term ''
Christian
Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...
'' (meaning a follower of Christ) have been in use since the 1st century.
Life and teachings in the New Testament
Canonical gospels
The four
canonical gospel
Gospel originally meant the Christian message ("the gospel"), but in the 2nd century it came to be used also for the books in which the message was set out. In this sense a gospel can be defined as a loose-knit, episodic narrative of the words an ...
s (
Matthew
Matthew may refer to:
* Matthew (given name)
* Matthew (surname)
* ''Matthew'' (ship), the replica of the ship sailed by John Cabot in 1497
* ''Matthew'' (album), a 2000 album by rapper Kool Keith
* Matthew (elm cultivar), a cultivar of the Ch ...
,
Mark
Mark may refer to:
Currency
* Bosnia and Herzegovina convertible mark, the currency of Bosnia and Herzegovina
* East German mark, the currency of the German Democratic Republic
* Estonian mark, the currency of Estonia between 1918 and 1927
* F ...
,
Luke
People
*Luke (given name), a masculine given name (including a list of people and characters with the name)
*Luke (surname) (including a list of people and characters with the name)
*Luke the Evangelist, author of the Gospel of Luke. Also known as ...
, and
John
John is a common English name and surname:
* John (given name)
* John (surname)
John may also refer to:
New Testament
Works
* Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John
* First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John
* Secon ...
) are the foremost sources for the life and message of Jesus.
But other parts of the New Testament also include references to key episodes in his life, such as the
Last Supper
Image:The Last Supper - Leonardo Da Vinci - High Resolution 32x16.jpg, 400px, alt=''The Last Supper'' by Leonardo da Vinci - Clickable Image, Depictions of the Last Supper in Christian art have been undertaken by artistic masters for centuries, ...
in
1 Corinthians
The First Epistle to the Corinthians ( grc, Α΄ ᾽Επιστολὴ πρὸς Κορινθίους) is one of the Pauline epistles, part of the New Testament of the Christian Bible. The epistle is attributed to Paul the Apostle and a co-aut ...
11:23–26.
Acts of the Apostles
The Acts of the Apostles ( grc-koi, Πράξεις Ἀποστόλων, ''Práxeis Apostólōn''; la, Actūs Apostolōrum) is the fifth book of the New Testament; it tells of the founding of the Christian Church and the spread of its messag ...
refers to Jesus' early ministry and its anticipation by
John the Baptist
John the Baptist or , , or , ;Wetterau, Bruce. ''World history''. New York: Henry Holt and Company. 1994. syc, ܝܘܿܚܲܢܵܢ ܡܲܥܡܕ݂ܵܢܵܐ, Yoḥanān Maʿmḏānā; he, יוחנן המטביל, Yohanān HaMatbil; la, Ioannes Bapti ...
.
Acts 1:1–11 says more about the Ascension of Jesus than the canonical gospels do. In the
undisputed Pauline letters, which were written earlier than the Gospels, Jesus' words or instructions are cited several times.
Some
early Christian groups had separate descriptions of Jesus' life and teachings that are not in the New Testament. These include the
Gospel of Thomas
The Gospel of Thomas (also known as the Coptic Gospel of Thomas) is an extra-canonical Logia, sayings gospel. It was discovered near Nag Hammadi, Egypt, in December 1945 among a group of books known as the Nag Hammadi library. Scholars specu ...
,
Gospel of Peter
The Gospel of Peter ( grc, κατά Πέτρον ευαγγέλιον, kata Petron euangelion), or the Gospel according to Peter, is an ancient text concerning Jesus Christ, only partially known today. It is considered a non-canonical gospel and w ...
, and
Gospel of Judas
The Gospel of Judas is a non-canonical Gnostic gospel. The content consists of conversations between Jesus and Judas Iscariot. Given that it includes late 2nd-century theology, it is widely thought to have been composed in the 2nd century (prio ...
, the
Apocryphon of James
The Apocryphon of James, also known by the translation of its title – the Secret Book of James, is a pseudonymous text amongst the New Testament apocrypha. It describes the secret teachings of Jesus to Peter and James, given after the ...
, and
many other apocryphal writings. Most scholars conclude that these were written much later and are less reliable accounts than the canonical gospels.
The canonical gospels are four accounts, each by a different author. The authors of the Gospels are all anonymous, attributed by tradition to the
four evangelists, each with close ties to Jesus: Mark by John Mark, an associate of Saint Peter, Peter;
Matthew the Apostle, Matthew by one of Jesus' disciples; Luke the Evangelist, Luke by a companion of Paul the Apostle, Paul mentioned in a few epistles; and John by another of Jesus' disciples, the "beloved disciple".
One important aspect of the study of the Gospels is the literary genre under which they fall. Genre "is a key convention guiding both the composition and the interpretation of writings". Whether the gospel authors set out to write novels, myths, histories, or biographies has a tremendous impact on how they ought to be interpreted. Some recent studies suggest that the genre of the Gospels ought to be situated within the realm of ancient biography. Although not without critics, the position that the Gospels are a type of ancient biography is the consensus among scholars today.
Concerning the accuracy of the accounts, viewpoints run the gamut from considering them inerrancy, inerrant descriptions of Jesus' life, to doubting whether they are historically reliable on a number of points, to considering them to provide very little historical information about his life beyond the basics. According to a broad scholarly consensus, the Synoptic Gospels (the first three—Matthew, Mark, and Luke) are the most reliable sources of information about Jesus.
According to the Marcan priority, the first to be written was the Gospel of Mark (written AD 60–75), followed by the Gospel of Matthew (AD 65–85), the Gospel of Luke (AD 65–95), and the Gospel of John (AD 75–100). Most scholars agree that the authors of Matthew and Luke used Mark as a source for their gospels. Since Matthew and Luke also share some content not found in Mark, many scholars assume that they used another source (commonly called the "Q source") in addition to Mark.
Matthew, Mark, and Luke are known as the Synoptic Gospels, from the Greek σύν (''syn'' "together") and ὄψις (''opsis'' "view"),
because they are similar in content, narrative arrangement, language and paragraph structure, and one can easily set them next to each other and synoptically compare what is in them.
Scholars generally agree that it is impossible to find any direct literary relationship between the Synoptic Gospels and the Gospel of John.
While the flow of some events (such as Jesus' baptism, Transfiguration of Jesus, transfiguration, crucifixion and interactions with his Apostles in the New Testament, apostles) are shared among the Synoptic Gospels, incidents such as the transfiguration do not appear in John, which also differs on other matters, such as the Cleansing of the Temple.
The Synoptics emphasize different aspects of Jesus. In Mark, Jesus is the Son of God (Christianity), Son of God whose mighty works demonstrate the presence of God's Kingdom.
He is a tireless wonder worker, the servant of both God and man.
[Thompson, Frank Charles. The Thompson Chain-Reference Bible. Kirk bride Bible Co & Zondervan Bible Publishers. 1983. pp. 1563–64.] This short gospel records few of Jesus' words or teachings.
The Gospel of Matthew emphasizes that Jesus is the fulfillment of God's will as revealed in the Old Testament, and the Lord of the Church.
[May, Herbert G. and Bruce M. Metzger. The New Oxford Annotated Bible with the Apocrypha. 1977. "Matthew" pp. 1171–1212.] He is the "Davidic line, Son of David", a "king", and the messiah.
Luke presents Jesus as the divine-human savior who shows compassion to the needy.
[May, Herbert G. and Bruce M. Metzger. The New Oxford Annotated Bible with the Apocrypha. 1977. "Luke" pp. 1240–85.] He is the friend of sinners and outcasts, come to seek and save the lost.
This gospel includes well-known parables, such as the Parable of the Good Samaritan, Good Samaritan and the Parable of the Prodigal Son, Prodigal Son.
The John 1:1, prologue to the Gospel of John identifies Jesus as an incarnation of the divine Word (Logos (Christianity), Logos).
[May, Herbert G. and Bruce M. Metzger. The New Oxford Annotated Bible with the Apocrypha. 1977. "John" pp. 1286–318.] As the Word, Jesus was eternally present with God, active in all creation, and the source of humanity's moral and spiritual nature.
Jesus is not only greater than any past human prophet but greater than any prophet could be. He not only speaks God's Word; he is God's Word. In the Gospel of John, Jesus reveals his divine role publicly. Here he is the Bread of Life, the Light of the World, the True Vine and more.
In general, the authors of the New Testament showed little interest in an absolute chronology of Jesus or in synchronizing the episodes of his life with the secular history of the age. As stated in s:Bible (American Standard)/John#21:25, John 21:25, the Gospels do not claim to provide an exhaustive list of the events in Jesus' life. The accounts were primarily written as theological documents in the context of early Christianity, with timelines as a secondary consideration.
In this respect, it is noteworthy that the Gospels devote about one third of their text to the last week of Jesus' life in Jerusalem, referred to as Passion (Christianity), the Passion.
The Gospels do not provide enough details to satisfy the demands of modern historians regarding exact dates, but it is possible to draw from them a general picture of Jesus' life story.
Genealogy and nativity
Jesus was Jewish, born to
Mary
Mary may refer to:
People
* Mary (name), a feminine given name (includes a list of people with the name)
Religious contexts
* New Testament people named Mary, overview article linking to many of those below
* Mary, mother of Jesus, also calle ...
, wife of
Joseph
Joseph is a common male given name, derived from the Hebrew Yosef (יוֹסֵף). "Joseph" is used, along with "Josef", mostly in English, French and partially German languages. This spelling is also found as a variant in the languages of the mo ...
. The Gospels of Matthew and Luke offer two accounts of his genealogy of Jesus, genealogy. Matthew traces Jesus' ancestry to Abraham through David. Luke traces Jesus' ancestry through Adam to God. The lists are identical between Abraham and David, but differ radically from that point. Matthew has 27 generations from David to Joseph, whereas Luke has 42, with almost no overlap between the names on the two lists. Various theories have been put forward to explain why the two genealogies are so different.
![Gerard van Honthorst - Adoration of the Shepherds (1622)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/05/Gerard_van_Honthorst_-_Adoration_of_the_Shepherds_%281622%29.jpg)
Matthew and Luke each describe Jesus' birth, especially that Jesus was born to a virgin named Mary in Bethlehem in fulfillment of prophecy. Luke's account emphasizes events before the
birth of Jesus and centers on Mary, while Matthew's mostly covers those after the birth and centers on Joseph.
Both accounts state that Jesus was born to
Joseph
Joseph is a common male given name, derived from the Hebrew Yosef (יוֹסֵף). "Joseph" is used, along with "Josef", mostly in English, French and partially German languages. This spelling is also found as a variant in the languages of the mo ...
and Mary, his betrothed, in Bethlehem, and both support the doctrine of the virgin birth of Jesus, according to which Jesus was miraculously conceived by the Holy Spirit in Mary's womb when she was still a virgin.
At the same time, there is evidence, at least in the Lukan
Acts of the Apostles
The Acts of the Apostles ( grc-koi, Πράξεις Ἀποστόλων, ''Práxeis Apostólōn''; la, Actūs Apostolōrum) is the fifth book of the New Testament; it tells of the founding of the Christian Church and the spread of its messag ...
, that Jesus was thought to have had, like many figures in antiquity, a dual paternity, since there it is stated he descended from the seed or loins of David. By taking him as his own, Joseph will give him the necessary Davidic descent.
![Bellini-circumcision-NG1455-fm](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/40/Bellini-circumcision-NG1455-fm.jpg)
In Matthew, Joseph is troubled because Mary, his betrothed, is pregnant, but in the first of St. Joseph's dream, Joseph's four dreams an angel assures him not to be afraid to take Mary as his wife, because her child was conceived by the Holy Spirit.
In Matthew 2:1–Matthew 2:12, 12, Biblical Magi, wise men or Magi from the East bring gifts to the young Jesus as the Jesus, King of the Jews, King of the Jews. They find him in a house in Bethlehem. Jesus is now a child and not an infant. Matthew focuses on an event after the Luke Nativity where Jesus was an infant. In Matthew Herod the Great hears of Jesus' birth and, wanting him killed, Massacre of the Innocents, orders the murders of male infants in Bethlehem under age of 2. But an angel warns Joseph in his second dream, and the family Flight to Egypt, flees to Egypt—later to return and settle in
Nazareth
Nazareth ( ; ar, النَّاصِرَة, ''an-Nāṣira''; he, נָצְרַת, ''Nāṣəraṯ''; arc, ܢܨܪܬ, ''Naṣrath'') is the largest city in the Northern District of Israel. Nazareth is known as "the Arab capital of Israel". In ...
.
In Luke 1:31–38, Mary learns from the angel Gabriel that she will conceive and bear a child called Jesus through the action of the Holy Spirit.
When Mary is due to give birth, she and Joseph travel from Nazareth to Joseph's ancestral home in Bethlehem to register in the census ordered by Augustus, Caesar Augustus. While there Mary gives birth to Jesus, and as they have found no room in the inn, she places the newborn in a manger. An Annunciation to the shepherds, angel announces the birth to a group of shepherds, who go to Bethlehem to see Jesus, and subsequently spread the news abroad. Luke 2:21 tells how Joseph and Mary circumcision of Jesus, have their baby circumcised on the eighth day after birth, and name him Jesus, as Gabriel had commanded Mary.
After the presentation of Jesus at the Temple, Joseph, Mary and Jesus return to Nazareth.
Early life, family, and profession
![William Holman Hunt - The Finding of the Saviour in the Temple - Google Art Project](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f0/William_Holman_Hunt_-_The_Finding_of_the_Saviour_in_the_Temple_-_Google_Art_Project.jpg)
Jesus' childhood home is identified in the Gospels of Luke and Matthew as the town of Nazareth in Galilee, where he lived with his family. Although Joseph appears in descriptions of Jesus' childhood, no mention is made of him thereafter. His other family members—his mother, Mary, Brothers of Jesus, his brothers
James
James is a common English language surname and given name:
*James (name), the typically masculine first name James
* James (surname), various people with the last name James
James or James City may also refer to:
People
* King James (disambiguati ...
, Joses, brother of Jesus, Joses (or Joseph),
Judas
Judas Iscariot (; grc-x-biblical, Ἰούδας Ἰσκαριώτης; syc, ܝܗܘܕܐ ܣܟܪܝܘܛܐ; died AD) was a disciple and one of the original Twelve Apostles of Jesus Christ. According to all four canonical gospels, Judas betr ...
and
Simon
Simon may refer to:
People
* Simon (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the given name Simon
* Simon (surname), including a list of people with the surname Simon
* Eugène Simon, French naturalist and the genus ...
and his unnamed sisters—are mentioned in the Gospels and other sources.
The Gospel of Mark reports that Jesus comes into conflict with his neighbors and family. Jesus' mother and brothers come to get him because people are saying that Mental health of Jesus, he is crazy. Jesus responds that his followers are his true family. In John, Mary follows Jesus to his crucifixion, and he expresses concern over her well-being.
Jesus is called a τέκτων (''tektōn'') in s:Bible (American Standard)/Mark#6:3, Mark 6:3, traditionally understood as carpenter but it could cover makers of objects in various materials, including builders. The Gospels indicate that Jesus could read, paraphrase, and debate scripture, but this does not necessarily mean that he received formal scribal training.
When Jesus is presented as a baby in the temple per Jewish Law, a man named Simeon (Gospel of Luke), Simeon says to Mary and Joseph that Jesus "shall stand as a sign of contradiction, while a sword will pierce your own soul. Then the secret thoughts of many will come to light." Several years later, when Jesus goes missing on a visit to Jerusalem, his parents Finding in the Temple, find him in the temple sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking questions, and the people are amazed at his understanding and answers; Mary scolds Jesus for going missing, to which Jesus replies that he must "be in his father's house".
Baptism and temptation
The Synoptic accounts of Jesus' baptism are all preceded by information about
John the Baptist
John the Baptist or , , or , ;Wetterau, Bruce. ''World history''. New York: Henry Holt and Company. 1994. syc, ܝܘܿܚܲܢܵܢ ܡܲܥܡܕ݂ܵܢܵܐ, Yoḥanān Maʿmḏānā; he, יוחנן המטביל, Yohanān HaMatbil; la, Ioannes Bapti ...
. They show John preaching penance and repentance for the remission of sins and encouraging the giving of alms to the poor as he baptizes people in the area of the Jordan River around Perea and foretells the arrival of someone "more powerful" than he.
Later, Jesus identifies John as "the Elijah who was to come", the prophet who was expected to arrive before the "great and terrible day of the Lord". Likewise, Luke the Evangelist, Luke says that John had the spirit and power of Elijah.
In the Gospel of Mark, John the Baptist baptizes Jesus, and as he comes out of the water he sees the Holy Spirit descending to him like a dove and he hears a voice from heaven declaring him to be God's Son. This is one of two events described in the Gospels where a voice from Heaven calls Jesus "Son", the other being the Transfiguration of Jesus, Transfiguration.
The spirit then drives him into the wilderness where he is tempted by Satan. Jesus then begins his ministry after John's arrest. Jesus' baptism in the
Gospel of Matthew
The Gospel of Matthew), or simply Matthew. It is most commonly abbreviated as "Matt." is the first book of the New Testament of the Bible and one of the three synoptic Gospels. It tells how Israel's Messiah, Jesus, comes to his people and for ...
is similar. Here, before Jesus' baptism, John protests, saying, "I need to be baptized by you." Jesus instructs him to carry on with the baptism "to fulfill all righteousness". Matthew also details the Temptation of Christ, three temptations that Satan offers Jesus in the wilderness. In the Gospel of Luke, the Holy Spirit descends as a dove after everyone has been baptized and Jesus is praying. John implicitly recognizes Jesus from prison after sending his followers to ask about him. Jesus' baptism and temptation serve as preparation for his public ministry.
The Gospel of John leaves out Jesus' baptism and temptation. Here, John the Baptist testifies that he saw the Spirit descend on Jesus. John publicly proclaims Jesus as the sacrificial Lamb of God, and some of John's followers become disciples of Jesus. In this Gospel, John denies that he is Elijah. Before John is imprisoned, Jesus leads his followers to baptize disciples as well, and they baptize more people than John.
Public ministry
![Bloch-SermonOnTheMount](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/96/Bloch-SermonOnTheMount.jpg)
The Synoptics depict two distinct geographical settings in Jesus' ministry. The first takes place north of Judea, in Galilee, where Jesus conducts a successful ministry, and the second shows Jesus rejected and killed when he travels to Jerusalem.
Often referred to as "
rabbi
A rabbi () is a spiritual leader or religious teacher in Judaism. One becomes a rabbi by being ordained by another rabbi – known as ''semikha'' – following a course of study of Jewish history and texts such as the Talmud. The basic form of ...
",
Jesus preaches his message orally.
Notably, Jesus forbids those who recognize him as the messiah to speak of it, including people he heals and demons he exorcises (see Messianic Secret).
John depicts Jesus' ministry as largely taking place in and around Jerusalem, rather than in Galilee; and Jesus' divine identity is openly proclaimed and immediately recognized.
Scholars divide the ministry of Jesus into several stages. The Galilean ministry begins when Jesus returns to Galilee from the Judaean Desert after rebuffing the temptation of Satan. Jesus preaches around Galilee, and in s:Bible (American Standard)/Matthew#4:18, Matthew 4:18–20, first disciples of Jesus, his first disciples, who will eventually form the core of the early Church, encounter him and begin to travel with him. This period includes the Sermon on the Mount, one of Jesus' major discourses, as well as the calming the storm, calming of the storm, the feeding the multitude, feeding of the 5,000, Jesus walking on water, walking on water and a number of other miracles and parables of Jesus, parables. It ends with the Confession of Peter and the Transfiguration.
As Jesus travels towards Jerusalem, in the Perean ministry, he returns to the area where he was baptized, about a third of the way down from the Sea of Galilee along the Jordan River. The Ministry of Jesus#Final ministry in Jerusalem, final ministry in Jerusalem begins with Jesus' triumphal entry into Jerusalem, triumphal entry into the city on Palm Sunday. In the Synoptic Gospels, during that week Jesus Cleansing of the Temple, drives the money changers from the Second Temple and Bargain of Judas, Judas bargains to betray him. This period culminates in the
Last Supper
Image:The Last Supper - Leonardo Da Vinci - High Resolution 32x16.jpg, 400px, alt=''The Last Supper'' by Leonardo da Vinci - Clickable Image, Depictions of the Last Supper in Christian art have been undertaken by artistic masters for centuries, ...
and the Farewell Discourse.
Disciples and followers
Near the beginning of his ministry, Jesus Commissioning of the Twelve Apostles, appoints twelve apostles. In Matthew and Mark, despite Jesus only briefly requesting that they join him, Jesus' first four apostles, who were fishermen, are described as immediately consenting, and abandoning their nets and boats to do so. In John, Jesus' first two apostles were disciples of John the Baptist. The Baptist sees Jesus and calls him the Lamb of God; the two hear this and follow Jesus. In addition to the Twelve Apostles, the opening of the passage of the Sermon on the Plain identifies a much larger group of people as disciples. Also, in s:Bible (American Standard)/Luke#10:1, Luke 10:1–16 Jesus sends Seventy disciples, 70 or 72 of his followers in pairs to prepare towns for his prospective visit. They are instructed to accept hospitality, heal the sick, and spread the word that the Kingship and kingdom of God, Kingdom of God is coming.
In Mark, the disciples are notably obtuse. They fail to understand Jesus' miracles, his parables, or what "rising from the dead" means. When Jesus is later arrested, they desert him.
Teachings and miracles
![Hoffman-ChristAndTheRichYoungRuler](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8e/Hoffman-ChristAndTheRichYoungRuler.jpg)
In the Synoptics, Jesus teaches extensively, often in parables, about the Kingdom of God (or, in Matthew, the Kingdom of Heaven (Gospel of Matthew), Kingdom of Heaven). The Kingdom is described as both imminent and already present in the ministry of Jesus. Jesus promises inclusion in the Kingdom for those who accept his message. He talks of the "Son of man, Son of Man", an Apocalypse, apocalyptic figure who will come to gather the chosen.
Jesus calls people to repent their sins and to devote themselves completely to God.
He tells his followers to adhere to Jewish law, although he is perceived by some to have broken the law himself, for example regarding the Sabbath.
When asked what the greatest commandment is, Jesus replies: "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind ... And a second is like it: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself. Other ethical teachings of Jesus include Matthew 5:44, loving your enemies, refraining from hatred and lust, turning the other cheek, and forgiving people who have sinned against you.
John's Gospel presents the teachings of Jesus not merely as his own preaching, but as divine revelation. John the Baptist, for example, states in s:Bible (American Standard)/John#3:34, John 3:34: "He whom God has sent speaks the words of God, for he gives the Spirit without measure." In s:Bible (American Standard)/John#7:16, John 7:16 Jesus says, "My teaching is not mine but his who sent me." He asserts the same thing in s:Bible (American Standard)/John#14:10, John 14:10: "Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own; but the Father who dwells in me does his works."
![Pompeo Batoni 003](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c0/Pompeo_Batoni_003.jpg)
Approximately 30 parables form about one-third of Jesus' recorded teachings.
The parables appear within longer sermons and at other places in the narrative. They often contain symbolism, and usually relate the physical world to the Spirituality, spiritual. Common themes in these tales include the kindness and generosity of God and the perils of transgression. Some of his parables, such as the Parable of the Prodigal Son, Prodigal Son, are relatively simple, while others, such as the Parable of the Growing Seed, Growing Seed, are sophisticated, profound and abstruse. When asked by his disciples why he speaks in parables to the people, Jesus replies that the chosen disciples have been given to "know the secrets of the kingdom of heaven", unlike the rest of their people, "For the one who has will be given more and he will have in abundance. But the one who does not have will be deprived even more", going on to say that the majority of their generation have grown "dull hearts" and thus are unable to understand.
![Christ cleans leper man](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/42/Christ_cleans_leper_man.jpg)
In the gospel accounts, Jesus devotes a large portion of his ministry by performing miracles, especially healings. The miracles can be classified into two main categories: healing miracles and nature miracles. The healing miracles include cures for physical ailments, exorcisms, and Miracles of Jesus#Resurrection of the dead, resurrections of the dead. The nature miracles show Jesus' power over nature, and include turning water into wine, walking on water, and calming a storm, among others. Jesus states that his miracles are from a divine source. When his opponents suddenly accuse him of performing exorcisms by the power of Beelzebul, the prince of demons, Jesus counters that he performs them by the "Spirit of God" (s:Bible (American Standard)/Matthew#12:28, Matthew 12:28) or "finger of God", arguing that all logic suggests that Satan would not let his demons assist the Children of God because it would divide Satan's house and bring his kingdom to desolation; furthermore, he asks his opponents that if he exorcises by Beelzebub, Beel'zebub, "by whom do your sons cast them out?"
In s:Bible (American Standard)/Matthew#12:28, Matthew 12:31–32, he goes on to say that while all manner of sin, "even insults against God" or "insults against the son of man", shall be forgiven, whoever insults goodness (or "The Holy Spirit") shall never be forgiven; they carry the guilt of their sin forever.
In John, Jesus' miracles are described as "signs", performed to prove his mission and divinity.
In the Synoptics, when asked by some teachers of the Law and some Pharisees to give miraculous signs to prove his authority, Jesus refuses,
saying that no sign shall come to corrupt and evil people except the sign of the prophet Jonah. Also, in the Synoptic Gospels, the crowds regularly respond to Jesus' miracles with awe and press on him to heal their sick. In John's Gospel, Jesus is presented as unpressured by the crowds, who often respond to his miracles with trust and faith. One characteristic shared among all miracles of Jesus in the gospel accounts is that he performed them freely and never requested or accepted any form of payment. The gospel episodes that include descriptions of the miracles of Jesus also often include teachings, and the miracles themselves involve an element of teaching.
Many of the miracles teach the importance of faith. In the Cleansing ten lepers, cleansing of ten lepers and the Daughter of Jairus, raising of Jairus's daughter, for instance, the beneficiaries are told that their healing was due to their faith.
Proclamation as Christ and Transfiguration
![Transfigurationbloch](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/15/Transfigurationbloch.jpg)
At about the middle of each of the three Synoptic Gospels are two significant events: the Confession of Saint Peter, Peter and the Transfiguration of Jesus.
These two events are not mentioned in the Gospel of John.
In his Confession, Saint Peter, Peter tells Jesus, "You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God."
Jesus affirms that Peter's confession is divinely revealed truth.
After the confession, Jesus tells his disciples about his upcoming death and resurrection.
In the Transfiguration,
Jesus takes Peter and two other apostles up an unnamed mountain, where "he was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became dazzling white." A bright cloud appears around them, and a voice from the cloud says, "This is my Son, the Beloved; with him I am well pleased; listen to him."
Passion Week
The description of the last week of the life of Jesus (often called Passion Week) occupies about one-third of the narrative in the canonical gospels,
starting with Jesus' triumphal entry into Jerusalem and ending with his Crucifixion.
Activities in Jerusalem
In the Synoptics, the last week in Jerusalem is the conclusion of the journey through Perea and Judea that Jesus began in Galilee. Jesus rides a young donkey into Jerusalem, reflecting the tale of the Messiah's Donkey, an oracle from the Book of Zechariah in which the Jews' humble king enters Jerusalem this way.
People along the way lay cloaks and small branches of trees (known as palm fronds) in front of him and sing part of Psalms 118:25-26.
Jesus next expels the money changers from the Second Temple, accusing them of turning it into a den of thieves through their commercial activities. He then prophecies about the coming destruction, including false prophets, wars, earthquakes, celestial disorders, persecution of the faithful, the appearance of an "abomination of desolation", and unendurable tribulations. The mysterious "Son of Man", he says, will dispatch angels to gather the faithful from all parts of the earth. Jesus warns that these wonders will occur in the lifetimes of the hearers. In John, the Cleansing of the Temple occurs at the beginning of Jesus' ministry instead of at the end.
Jesus comes into conflict with the Jewish elders, such as when they Authority of Jesus questioned, question his authority and when he Woes of the Pharisees, criticizes them and calls them hypocrites. Judas Iscariot, one of the twelve apostles, secretly strikes a bargain with the Jewish elders, agreeing to betray Jesus to them for Thirty pieces of silver, 30 silver coins.
The Gospel of John recounts of two other feasts in which Jesus taught in Jerusalem before the Passion Week. In Bethany (biblical village), Bethany, a village near Jerusalem, Jesus Raising of Lazarus, raises Lazarus from the dead. This potent sign increases the tension with authorities, who conspire to kill him. Mary of Bethany anoints Jesus' feet, foreshadowing his entombment. Jesus then makes his Messianic entry into Jerusalem.
The cheering crowds greeting Jesus as he enters Jerusalem add to the animosity between him and the establishment. In John, Jesus has already cleansed the Second Temple during an earlier Passover visit to Jerusalem. John next recounts Jesus' Last Supper with his disciples.
Last Supper
![Última Cena - Juan de Juanes](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/bc/%C3%9Altima_Cena_-_Juan_de_Juanes.jpg)
The Last Supper is the final meal that Jesus shares with his twelve apostles in Jerusalem before his crucifixion. The Last Supper is mentioned in all four canonical gospels; Paul's First Epistle to the Corinthians also refers to it.
During the meal, Jesus predicts his betrayal, Jesus predicts that one of his apostles will betray him. Despite each Apostle's assertion that he would not betray him, Jesus reiterates that the betrayer would be one of those present. Matthew 26:23–25 and John 13:26–27 specifically identify Judas as the traitor.
In the Synoptics, Jesus takes bread, breaks it, and gives it to the disciples, saying, "This is my body, which is given for you". He then has them all drink from a cup, saying, "This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood,"
The Christian sacrament or Ordinance (Christian), ordinance of the Eucharist is based on these events. Although the Gospel of John does not include a description of the bread-and-wine ritual during the Last Supper, most scholars agree that John 6:22–59 (the Bread of Life Discourse) has a eucharistic character and resonates with the Origin of the Eucharist#Institution narratives, institution narratives in the Synoptic Gospels and in the Pauline writings on the Last Supper.
In all four gospels, Jesus predicts that Peter will deny knowledge of him three times before the rooster crows the next morning.
In Luke and John, the prediction is made during the Supper. In Matthew and Mark, the prediction is made after the Supper; Jesus also predicts that all his disciples will desert him. The Gospel of John provides the only account of Maundy (foot washing), Jesus washing his disciples' feet after the meal. John also includes a long sermon by Jesus, preparing his disciples (now without Judas) for his departure. Chapters 14–17 of the Gospel of John are known as the Farewell Discourse and are a significant source of Christology, Christological content.
Agony in the Garden, betrayal, and arrest
![The Taking of Christ-Caravaggio (c](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4d/The_Taking_of_Christ-Caravaggio_%28c.1602%29.jpg)
In the Synoptics, Jesus and his disciples go to the garden Gethsemane, where Jesus prays to be spared his coming ordeal. Then Judas comes with an armed mob, sent by the chief priests, Scribe#Judaism, scribes and elders. He Kiss of Judas, kisses Jesus to identify him to the crowd, which then arrest of Jesus, arrests Jesus. In an attempt to stop them, an unnamed disciple of Jesus uses a sword to cut off the ear of a man in the crowd. After Jesus' arrest, his disciples go into hiding, and Peter, when questioned, thrice Denial of Peter, denies knowing Jesus. After the third denial, Peter hears the rooster crow and recalls Jesus' prediction about his denial. Peter then weeps bitterly.
In John 18:1–11, Jesus does not pray to be spared his crucifixion, as the gospel portrays him as scarcely touched by such human weakness. The people who arrest him are Imperial Roman army, Roman soldiers and Temple guards. Instead of being betrayed by a kiss, Jesus proclaims his identity, and when he does, the soldiers and officers fall to the ground. The gospel identifies Peter as the disciple who used the sword, and Jesus rebukes him for it.
Trials by the Sanhedrin, Herod, and Pilate
After his arrest, Jesus is taken late at night to the private residence of the high priest, Caiaphas, who had been installed by Pilate's predecessor, the Roman procurator Valerius Gratus. The Sanhedrin was a Jewish judicial body, The gospel accounts differ on the Sanhedrin trial of Jesus, details of the trials. In Matthew 26:57, Mark 14:53 and Luke 22:54, Jesus is taken to the house of the high priest, Caiaphas, where he is Mocking of Jesus, mocked and beaten that night. Early the next morning, the chief priests and scribes lead Jesus away into their council.
John 18:12–14 states that Jesus is first taken to Annas, Caiaphas's father-in-law, and then to the high priest.
![Ecce homo by Antonio Ciseri (1)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/de/Ecce_homo_by_Antonio_Ciseri_%281%29.jpg)
During the trials Jesus speaks very little, mounts no defense, and gives very infrequent and indirect answers to the priests' questions, prompting an officer to slap him. In Matthew 26:62, Jesus' unresponsiveness leads Caiaphas to ask him, "Have you no answer?"
In Mark 14:61 the high priest then asks Jesus, "Are you the Messiah, the Son of the Blessed One?" Jesus replies, "I am", and then predicts the coming of the Son of man (Christianity), Son of Man.
This provokes Caiaphas to tear his own robe in anger and to accuse Jesus of blasphemy. In Matthew and Luke, Jesus' answer is more ambiguous:
in Matthew 26:64 he responds, "You have said so", and in Luke 22:70 he says, "You say that I am".
The Jewish elders take Jesus to Pilate's Court and ask the Roman governor,
Pontius Pilate
Pontius Pilate (; grc-gre, Πόντιος Πιλᾶτος, ) was the fifth governor of the Roman province of Judaea, serving under Emperor Tiberius from 26/27 to 36/37 AD. He is best known for being the official who presided over the trial of J ...
, to judge and condemn Jesus for various allegations: subverting the nation, opposing the payment of tribute, claiming to be Christ, a King, and claiming to be the son of God.
The use of the word "king" is central to the discussion between Jesus and Pilate. In John 18:36 Jesus states, "My kingdom is not from this world", but he does not unequivocally deny being the King of the Jews. In Luke 23:7–15, Pilate realizes that Jesus is a Galilean, and thus comes under the jurisdiction of Herod Antipas, the Herodian Tetrarchy, Tetrarch of Galilee and Perea. Pilate sends Jesus to Herod to be tried, but Jesus says almost nothing in response to Herod's questions. Herod and his soldiers mock Jesus, put an expensive robe on him to make him look like a king, and return him to Pilate, who then calls together the Jewish elders and announces that he has "not found this man guilty".
Observing a Passover custom of the time, Pilate allows one prisoner chosen by the crowd to be released. He gives the people a choice between Jesus and a murderer called Barabbas ( or ''Bar-abbâ'', "son of the father", from the common given name ''Abba (given name), Abba'': 'father'). Persuaded by the elders, the mob chooses to release Barabbas and crucify Jesus. Pilate writes a sign in Hebrew, Latin, and Greek that reads "Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews" (abbreviated as INRI in depictions) to be affixed to Jesus' cross, then Flagellation of Christ, scourges Jesus and sends him to be crucified. The soldiers place a crown of thorns on Jesus' head and ridicule him as the King of the Jews. They beat and taunt him before taking him to Calvary,
also called Golgotha, for crucifixion.
Crucifixion and entombment
![Pietro Perugino 040](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a9/Pietro_Perugino_040.jpg)
Jesus' crucifixion is described in all four canonical gospels. After the trials, Jesus is led to Calvary Christ Carrying the Cross, carrying his cross; the route traditionally thought to have been taken is known as the Via Dolorosa. The three Synoptic Gospels indicate that Simon of Cyrene assists him, having been compelled by the Romans to do so. In Luke 23:27–28, Jesus tells the women in the multitude of people following him not to weep for him but for themselves and their children. At Calvary, Jesus is offered a sponge soaked in a concoction usually offered as a Analgesic, painkiller. According to Matthew and Mark, he refuses it.
The soldiers then crucify Jesus and Sortes (ancient Rome), cast lots for his clothes. Above Jesus' head on the cross is Pilate's inscription, "Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews". Soldiers and passersby Mocking of Jesus, mock him about it. Two convicted thieves are crucified along with Jesus. In Matthew and Mark, both thieves mock Jesus. In Luke, Impenitent thief, one of them rebukes Jesus, while Penitent thief, the other defends him. Jesus tells the latter: "today you will be with me in Paradise." In John, Mary, the mother of Jesus, and the beloved disciple were at the crucifixion. Jesus tells the beloved disciple to take care of his mother.
The Roman soldiers break the two thieves' legs (a procedure designed to hasten death in a crucifixion), but they do not break those of Jesus, as he is already dead (John 19:33). In John 19:34, Longinus, one soldier pierces Jesus' side with a Holy Lance, lance, and Five Holy Wounds, blood and water flow out. In the Synoptics, when Jesus dies, the heavy curtain at the Temple is torn. In Matthew 27:51–54, Crucifixion darkness, an earthquake breaks open tombs. In Matthew and Mark, terrified by the events, a Roman centurion states that Jesus was the Son of God (Christianity), Son of God.
On the same day, Joseph of Arimathea, with Pilate's permission and with Nicodemus's help, Descent from the Cross, removes Jesus' body from the cross, wraps him in a clean cloth, and buries him in his new Sepulchre, rock-hewn tomb. In Matthew 27:62–66, on the following day the chief Jewish priests ask Pilate for the tomb to be secured, and with Pilate's permission the priests place seals on the large stone covering the entrance.
Resurrection and ascension
Mary Magdalene (alone in the Gospel of John, but accompanied by other women in the Synoptics) goes to Jesus' tomb on Sunday morning and is surprised to find it empty. Despite Jesus' teaching, the disciples had not understood that Jesus would rise again.
*In Matthew 28, there are guards at the tomb. An angel descends from Heaven, and opens the tomb. The guards faint from fear. Jesus appears to Mary Magdalene and "the other Mary" after they visited the tomb. Jesus then appears to the eleven remaining disciples in Galilee and Great Commission, commissions them to baptize noachide, all nations in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, ''"teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you."''
*In Mark 16, Salome (disciple), Salome and Mary, mother of James are with Mary Magdalene. In the tomb, a young man in a white robe (an angel) tells them that Jesus will meet his disciples in Galilee, as he had told them (referring to Mark 14:28).
[May, Herbert G. and Bruce M. Metzger. The New Oxford Annotated Bible with the Apocrypha. 1977. "Mark" pp. 1213–39]
*In Luke, Mary and various other women meet two angels at the tomb, but the eleven disciples do not believe their story. Jesus appears to two of his followers in Emmaus. He also makes an appearance to Peter. Jesus then appears that same day to his disciples in Jerusalem. Although he appears and vanishes mysteriously, he also eats and lets them touch him to prove that he is not a spirit. He repeats his command to bring his teaching to all nations.
*In John, Mary is alone at first, but Peter and the beloved disciple come and see the tomb as well. Jesus then appears to Mary at the tomb. He later appears to the disciples, breathes on them, and gives them the power to forgive and retain sins. In a second visit to disciples, he proves to a doubting disciple ("Doubting Thomas") that he is flesh and blood. The disciples return to Galilee, where Jesus makes another appearance. He performs a miracle known as the catch of 153 fish at the Sea of Galilee, after which Jesus encourages Peter to serve his followers.
Jesus' Entering Heaven alive, ascension into Heaven is described in Luke 24:50–53, Acts 1:1–11 and mentioned in 1 Timothy 3:16. In the
Acts of the Apostles
The Acts of the Apostles ( grc-koi, Πράξεις Ἀποστόλων, ''Práxeis Apostólōn''; la, Actūs Apostolōrum) is the fifth book of the New Testament; it tells of the founding of the Christian Church and the spread of its messag ...
, forty days after the Resurrection, as the disciples look on, "he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight". 1 Peter 3:22 states that Jesus has "gone into heaven and is at the right hand of God".
The Acts of the Apostles describes several appearances of Jesus after his Ascension. In Acts 7:55, Saint Stephen, Stephen gazes into heaven and sees "Jesus standing at the right hand of God" just before his death. On the road to Damascus, the Apostle Conversion of Paul the Apostle, Paul is converted to Christianity after seeing a blinding light and hearing a voice saying, "I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting." In Acts 9:10–18, Jesus instructs Ananias of Damascus in a vision to heal Paul.
The Book of Revelation includes a revelation from Jesus concerning the Christian eschatology, last days of Earth.
Early Christianity
![Good shepherd 02b close](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/ce/Good_shepherd_02b_close.jpg)
After Jesus' life, his followers, as described in the first chapters of the
Acts of the Apostles
The Acts of the Apostles ( grc-koi, Πράξεις Ἀποστόλων, ''Práxeis Apostólōn''; la, Actūs Apostolōrum) is the fifth book of the New Testament; it tells of the founding of the Christian Church and the spread of its messag ...
, were all Jews either by birth or conversion to Judaism, conversion, for which the biblical term "proselyte" is used, and referred to by historians as Jewish Christians. The early Gospel message was spread oral gospel traditions, orally, probably in Aramaic language, Aramaic, but almost immediately also in Koine Greek, Greek. The
New Testament
The New Testament grc, Ἡ Καινὴ Διαθήκη, transl. ; la, Novum Testamentum. (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus, as well as events in first-century Christ ...
's Acts of the Apostles and Epistle to the Galatians record that the first Christian community was First Christian church, centered in Jerusalem and its leaders included Saint Peter, Peter, James (brother of Jesus), James, the brother of Jesus, and John the Apostle.
After the conversion of Paul the Apostle, he claimed the title of "Apostle to the Gentiles". Paul's influence on Christian thinking is said to be more significant than that of any other authorship of the New Testament, New Testament author. By the end of the Christianity in the 1st century, 1st century, Christianity began to be recognized internally and externally as a split of early Christianity and Judaism, separate religion from Judaism which itself was refined and developed further in the centuries after the Siege of Jerusalem (70 CE), destruction of the Second Temple.
Numerous quotations in the New Testament and other Christian writings of the first centuries, indicate that early Christians generally used and revered the
Hebrew Bible
The Hebrew Bible or Tanakh (;["Tanach"](_blank)
''Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary''. Hebrew: ''Tān ...
(the Tanakh) as religious text, mostly in the Greek (
Septuagint
The Greek Old Testament, or Septuagint (, ; from the la, septuaginta, lit=seventy; often abbreviated ''70''; in Roman numerals, LXX), is the earliest extant Greek translation of books from the Hebrew Bible. It includes several books beyond th ...
) or Aramaic (Targum) translations.
Early Christians wrote many religious works, including the ones included in the canon of the New Testament. The canonical texts, which have become the main sources used by historians to try to understand the historical Jesus and sacred texts within Christianity, were probably written between 50 and 120 AD.
Historical views
Prior to the Age of Enlightenment, Enlightenment, the Gospels were usually regarded as accurate historical accounts, but since then scholars have emerged who question the reliability of the Gospels and draw a distinction between the Jesus described in the Gospels and the Jesus of history. Since the 18th century, three separate scholarly quests for the historical Jesus have taken place, each with distinct characteristics and based on different research criteria, which were often developed during the quest that applied them. While there is widespread scholarly agreement on the existence of Jesus, and a basic consensus on the general outline of his life, the portraits of Jesus constructed by various scholars often differ from each other, and from the image portrayed in the gospel accounts.
Approaches to the historical reconstruction of the life of Jesus have varied from the "maximalist" approaches of the 19th century, in which the gospel accounts were accepted as reliable evidence wherever it is possible, to the "minimalist" approaches of the early 20th century, where hardly anything about Jesus was accepted as historical. In the 1950s, as the second quest for the historical Jesus gathered pace, the minimalist approaches faded away, and in the 21st century, minimalists such as Robert M. Price, Price are a very small minority. Although a belief in the Biblical inerrancy, inerrancy of the Gospels cannot be supported historically, many scholars since the 1980s have held that, beyond the few facts considered to be historically certain, certain other elements of Jesus' life are "historically probable". Modern scholarly research on the historical Jesus thus focuses on identifying the most probable elements.
Judea and Galilee in the 1st century
![Palestine in the time of Jesus](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b2/Palestine_in_the_time_of_Jesus.jpg)
In AD 6, Judea, Edom, Idumea, and Samaria were transformed from a Herodian dynasty, Herodian Client state, client kingdom of the Roman Empire into an imperial province, also called Judea (Roman province), Judea. A Roman prefect, rather than a client king, ruled the land. The prefect ruled from Caesarea Maritima, leaving Jerusalem to be run by the List of High Priests of Israel, High Priest of Israel. As an exception, the prefect came to Jerusalem during religious festivals, when religious and patriotic enthusiasm sometimes inspired unrest or uprisings. Gentile lands surrounded the Jewish territories of Judea and Galilee, but Roman law and practice allowed Jews to remain separate legally and culturally. Galilee was evidently prosperous, and poverty was limited enough that it did not threaten the social order.
This was the era of Hellenistic Judaism, which combined Judaism, Jewish religious tradition with elements of Hellenistic Greek culture. Until the fall of the Western Roman Empire and the Muslim conquests of the Eastern Mediterranean, the main centers of Hellenistic Judaism were Alexandria (Egypt) and Antioch (now Southern Turkey), the two main Greek colonies, Greek urban settlements of the MENA, Middle East and North Africa area, both founded at the end of the 4th century BCE in the wake of the conquests of Alexander the Great. Hellenistic Judaism also existed in Jerusalem during the Second Temple Period, where there was conflict between Hellenization, Hellenizers and traditionalists (sometimes called Judaizers). The
Hebrew Bible
The Hebrew Bible or Tanakh (;["Tanach"](_blank)
''Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary''. Hebrew: ''Tān ...
was translated from Biblical Hebrew and Biblical Aramaic into Jewish Koine Greek; the Targum translations into Aramaic were also generated during this era, both due to the decline of knowledge of Hebrew.
Jews based their faith and religious practice on the Torah, five books said to have been given by God to Moses. The three prominent religious parties were the Pharisees, the Essenes, and the Sadducees. Together these parties represented only a small fraction of the population. Most Jews looked forward to a time that God would deliver them from their pagan rulers, possibly through war against the Romans.
Sources
![WorksJosephus1640TP](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/32/WorksJosephus1640TP.jpg)
New Testament scholars face a formidable challenge when they analyze the canonical Gospels.
The Gospels are not biographies in the modern sense, and the authors explain Jesus' theological significance and recount his public ministry while omitting many details of his life.
The reports of supernatural events associated with Jesus' death and resurrection make the challenge even more difficult.
Scholars regard the Gospels as compromised sources of information because the writers were trying to glorify Jesus.
Even so, the sources for Jesus' life are better than sources scholars have for the life of Alexander the Great.
Scholars use a number of criteria, such as the criterion of multiple attestation, criterion of independent attestation, the Biblical criticism#Coherence, criterion of coherence, and the criterion of discontinuity to judge the historicity of events. The historicity of an event also depends on the reliability of the source; indeed, the Gospels are not independent nor consistent records of Jesus' life. Mark, which is most likely the earliest written gospel, has been considered for many decades the most historically accurate. John, the latest written gospel, differs considerably from the Synoptic Gospels, and thus is generally considered less reliable, although more and more scholars now also recognize that it may contain a core of older material as historically valuable as the Synoptic tradition or even more so.
Some scholars (most notably the Jesus Seminar) believe that the non-canonical
Gospel of Thomas
The Gospel of Thomas (also known as the Coptic Gospel of Thomas) is an extra-canonical Logia, sayings gospel. It was discovered near Nag Hammadi, Egypt, in December 1945 among a group of books known as the Nag Hammadi library. Scholars specu ...
might be an independent witness to many of Jesus' parables and aphorisms. For example, Thomas confirms that Jesus blessed the poor and that this saying circulated independently before being combined with similar sayings in the Q source. However, the majority of scholars are skeptical about this text and believe it should be dated to the 2nd century CE instead.
Other select non-canonical Christian texts may also have value for historical Jesus research.
Early non-Christian sources that attest to the historical existence of Jesus include the works of the historians Josephus and Tacitus. Josephus scholar Louis Feldman has stated that "few have doubted the genuineness" of Josephus's reference to Jesus in s:The Antiquities of the Jews/Book XX#Chapter 9, book 20 of the ''Antiquities of the Jews'', and it is disputed only by a small number of scholars. Tacitus referred to Christ and his execution by Pilate in s:The Annals (Tacitus)/Book 15#44, book 15 of his work ''Annals (Tacitus), Annals''. Scholars generally consider Tacitus's reference to the execution of Jesus to be both authentic and of historical value as an independent Roman source.
Non-Christian sources are valuable in two ways. First, they show that even neutral or hostile parties never show any doubt that Jesus actually existed. Second, they present a rough picture of Jesus that is compatible with that found in the Christian sources: that Jesus was a teacher, had a reputation as a miracle worker, had a brother James, and died a violent death.
Archaeology helps scholars better understand Jesus' social world. Recent archaeological work, for example, indicates that Capernaum, a city important in Jesus' ministry, was poor and small, without even a Forum (Roman), forum or an agora.
This archaeological discovery resonates well with the scholarly view that Jesus advocated reciprocal sharing among the destitute in that area of Galilee.
Chronology
Jesus was a Galilean Jew, born around the beginning of the 1st century, who died in 30 or 33 AD in Judea (Roman province), Judea. The general scholarly consensus is that Jesus was a contemporary of
John the Baptist
John the Baptist or , , or , ;Wetterau, Bruce. ''World history''. New York: Henry Holt and Company. 1994. syc, ܝܘܿܚܲܢܵܢ ܡܲܥܡܕ݂ܵܢܵܐ, Yoḥanān Maʿmḏānā; he, יוחנן המטביל, Yohanān HaMatbil; la, Ioannes Bapti ...
and was crucified as ordered by the Roman governor
Pontius Pilate
Pontius Pilate (; grc-gre, Πόντιος Πιλᾶτος, ) was the fifth governor of the Roman province of Judaea, serving under Emperor Tiberius from 26/27 to 36/37 AD. He is best known for being the official who presided over the trial of J ...
, who held office from 26 to 36 AD.
The Gospels offer several indications concerning the year of Jesus' birth. Matthew 2:1 associates the birth of Jesus with the reign of Herod the Great, who died around 4 BC, and Luke 1:5 mentions that Herod was on the throne shortly before the birth of Jesus, although this gospel also associates the birth with the Census of Quirinius which took place ten years later. Luke 3:23 states that Jesus was "about thirty years old" at the start of his ministry of Jesus, ministry, which according to Acts 10:37–38 was preceded by John the Baptist's ministry, which was recorded in Luke 3:1–2 to have begun in the 15th year of Tiberius's reign (28 or 29 AD).
By collating the gospel accounts with historical data and using various other methods, most scholars arrive at a date of birth for Jesus between 6 and 4 BC,
but some propose estimates that include a wider range.
The date range for Jesus' ministry has been estimated using several different approaches. One of these applies the reference in Luke 3:1–2, Acts 10:37–38, and the dates of Tiberius's reign, which are well known, to give a date of around 28–29 AD for the start of Jesus' ministry. Another approach estimates a date around 27–29 AD by using the statement about the temple in John 2:13–20, which asserts that the Second Temple, temple in Jerusalem was in its 46th year of construction at the start of Jesus' ministry, together with Josephus's statement that the temple's reconstruction was started by Herod the Great in the 18th year of his reign. A further method uses the date of the Beheading of St. John the Baptist, death of John the Baptist and the marriage of Herod Antipas to Herodias, based on the writings of Josephus, and correlates it with Matthew 14:4 and Mark 6:18. Given that most scholars date the marriage of Herod and Herodias as AD 28–35, this yields a date about 28–29 AD.
A number of approaches have been used to estimate the year of the crucifixion of Jesus. Most scholars agree that he died in 30 or 33 AD. The Gospels state that the event occurred during the prefecture of Pilate, the Roman governor of Judea from 26 to 36 AD. The date for the conversion of Paul (estimated to be 33–36 AD) acts as an upper bound for the date of Crucifixion. The dates for Paul's conversion and ministry can be determined by analyzing the Pauline epistles and the
Acts of the Apostles
The Acts of the Apostles ( grc-koi, Πράξεις Ἀποστόλων, ''Práxeis Apostólōn''; la, Actūs Apostolōrum) is the fifth book of the New Testament; it tells of the founding of the Christian Church and the spread of its messag ...
. Astronomers have tried to estimate the precise date of the Crucifixion by analyzing lunar motion and calculating historic dates of Passover, a festival based on the Lunisolar calendar, lunisolar Hebrew calendar. The most widely accepted dates derived from this method are 7 April 30 AD, and 3 April 33 AD (both Julian calendar, Julian).
Historicity of events
Nearly all historical scholars agree that Jesus was a real person who historically existed. Scholars have reached a limited consensus on the basics of Jesus' life.
Family
Many scholars agree that Joseph, Jesus' father, died before Jesus began his ministry. Joseph is not mentioned at all in the Gospels during Jesus' ministry. Joseph's death would explain why in Mark 6:3, Jesus' neighbors refer to Jesus as the "son of Mary" (sons were usually identified by their fathers).
According to Theissen and Merz, it is common for extraordinary Charismatic authority, charismatic leaders, such as Jesus, to come into conflict with their ordinary families. In Mark, Jesus' family comes to get him, fearing that he is mad (Mark 3:20–34), and this account is thought to be historical because early Christians would likely not have invented it. After Jesus' death, many members of his family joined the Christian movement. Jesus' brother
James
James is a common English language surname and given name:
*James (name), the typically masculine first name James
* James (surname), various people with the last name James
James or James City may also refer to:
People
* King James (disambiguati ...
became a leader of the Jerusalem Church.
Géza Vermes says that the doctrine of the virgin birth of Jesus arose from theological development rather than from historical events.
Despite the widely held view that the authors of the Synoptic Gospels drew upon each other (the so-called synoptic problem), other scholars take it as significant that the virgin birth is criterion of multiple attestation, attested by two separate gospels, Matthew and Luke.
According to E. P. Sanders, the Nativity of Jesus, birth narratives in the
Gospel of Matthew
The Gospel of Matthew), or simply Matthew. It is most commonly abbreviated as "Matt." is the first book of the New Testament of the Bible and one of the three synoptic Gospels. It tells how Israel's Messiah, Jesus, comes to his people and for ...
and the Gospel of Luke are the clearest case of invention in the Gospel narratives of Jesus' life. Both accounts have Jesus born in Bethlehem, in accordance with Jewish salvation history, and both have him growing up in Nazareth. But Sanders points that the two Gospels report completely different and irreconcilable explanations for how that happened. Luke's account of a census in which everyone returned to their ancestral cities is not plausible. Matthew's account is more plausible, but the story reads as though it was invented to identify Jesus as like a new Moses, and the historian Josephus reports Herod the Great's brutality without ever mentioning that Massacre of the Innocents, he massacred little boys. The contradictions between the two Gospels was probably apparent to the early Christians already, since attempts to harmonize the two narratives are already present in the earlier apochryphal infancy gospels (the Infancy Gospel of Thomas and the Gospel of James), which are dated to the 2nd century CE.
Sanders says that the genealogies of Jesus are based not on historical information but on the authors' desire to show that Jesus was the universal Jewish savior. In any event, once the doctrine of the virgin birth of Jesus became established, that tradition superseded the earlier tradition that he was descended from David through Joseph. The Gospel of Luke reports that Jesus was a Consanguinity, blood relative of
John the Baptist
John the Baptist or , , or , ;Wetterau, Bruce. ''World history''. New York: Henry Holt and Company. 1994. syc, ܝܘܿܚܲܢܵܢ ܡܲܥܡܕ݂ܵܢܵܐ, Yoḥanān Maʿmḏānā; he, יוחנן המטביל, Yohanān HaMatbil; la, Ioannes Bapti ...
, but scholars generally consider this connection to be invented.
Baptism
![ဗတ္တိဇံ](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4d/%E1%80%97%E1%80%90%E1%80%B9%E1%80%90%E1%80%AD%E1%80%87%E1%80%B6.jpg)
Most modern scholars consider Jesus' baptism to be a definite historical fact, along with his crucifixion. Theologian James Dunn (theologian), James D. G. Dunn states that they "command almost universal assent" and "rank so high on the 'almost impossible to doubt or deny' scale of historical facts" that they are often the starting points for the study of the historical Jesus. Scholars adduce the criterion of embarrassment, saying that early Christians would not have invented a baptism that might imply that Jesus committed sins and wanted to Repentance, repent. According to Theissen and Merz, Jesus was inspired by
John the Baptist
John the Baptist or , , or , ;Wetterau, Bruce. ''World history''. New York: Henry Holt and Company. 1994. syc, ܝܘܿܚܲܢܵܢ ܡܲܥܡܕ݂ܵܢܵܐ, Yoḥanān Maʿmḏānā; he, יוחנן המטביל, Yohanān HaMatbil; la, Ioannes Bapti ...
and took over from him many elements of his teaching.
Ministry in Galilee
Most scholars hold that Jesus lived in Galilee and Judea and did not preach or study elsewhere.
They agree that Jesus debated with Jewish authorities on the subject of God, performed some healings, taught in parables and gathered followers. Jesus' Jewish critics considered his ministry to be scandalous because he feasted with sinners, fraternized with women, and allowed his followers to pluck grain on the Sabbath. According to Sanders, it is not plausible that disagreements over how to interpret the Law of Moses and the Sabbath would have led Jewish authorities to want Jesus killed.
According to Ehrman, Jesus taught that a coming kingdom was everyone's proper focus, not anything in this life. He taught about the Jewish Law, seeking its true meaning, sometimes in opposition to other traditions. Jesus put love at the center of the Law, and following that Law was an apocalyptic necessity. His ethical teachings called for forgiveness, not judging others, loving enemies, and caring for the poor. Funk and Hoover note that typical of Jesus were paradoxical or surprising turns of phrase, such as advising one, when struck on the cheek, Turning the other cheek, to offer the other cheek to be struck as well.
The Gospels portray Jesus teaching in well-defined sessions, such as the Sermon on the Mount in the Gospel of Matthew or the parallel Sermon on the Plain in Luke. According to Gerd Theissen and Annette Merz, these teaching sessions include authentic teachings of Jesus, but the scenes were invented by the respective evangelists to frame these teachings, which had originally been recorded without context. While Jesus' miracles fit within the social context of Ancient history, antiquity, he defined them differently. First, he attributed them to the faith of those healed. Second, he connected them to Eschatology, end times prophecy.
Jesus chose Apostles in the New Testament, twelve disciples (the "Twelve"), evidently as an Apocalypticism, apocalyptic message. All three Synoptics mention the Twelve, although the names on Luke's list vary from those in Mark and Matthew, suggesting that Christians were not certain who all the disciples were. The twelve disciples might have represented the twelve original Twelve Tribes of Israel, tribes of Israel, which would be restored once God's rule was instituted. The disciples were reportedly meant to be the rulers of the tribes in the coming Kingdom. According to Bart Ehrman, Jesus' promise that the Twelve would rule is historical, because the Twelve included Judas Iscariot. In Ehrman's view, no Christians would have invented a line from Jesus, promising rulership to the disciple who betrayed him.
In Mark, the disciples play hardly any role other than a negative one. While others sometimes respond to Jesus with complete faith, his disciples are puzzled and doubtful. They serve as a Foil (literature), foil to Jesus and to other characters. The failings of the disciples are probably exaggerated in Mark, and the disciples make a better showing in Matthew and Luke.
Sanders says that Jesus' mission was not about repentance, although he acknowledges that this opinion is unpopular. He argues that repentance appears as a strong theme only in Luke, that repentance was
John the Baptist
John the Baptist or , , or , ;Wetterau, Bruce. ''World history''. New York: Henry Holt and Company. 1994. syc, ܝܘܿܚܲܢܵܢ ܡܲܥܡܕ݂ܵܢܵܐ, Yoḥanān Maʿmḏānā; he, יוחנן המטביל, Yohanān HaMatbil; la, Ioannes Bapti ...
's message, and that Jesus' ministry would not have been scandalous if the sinners he ate with had been repentant. According to Theissen and Merz, Jesus taught that God was generously giving people an opportunity to repent.
Role
Jesus taught that an apocalyptic figure, the "Son of man (Christianity), Son of Man", would soon come on clouds of glory to gather the elect, or chosen ones. He referred to himself as a "son of man" in the colloquial sense of "a person", but scholars do not know whether he also meant himself when he referred to the heavenly "Son of Man". Paul the Apostle and other early Christians interpreted the "Son of Man" as the risen Jesus.
The Gospels refer to Jesus not only as a messiah but in the absolute form as "the Messiah" or, equivalently, "the Christ". In early Judaism, this absolute form of the title is not found, but only phrases such as "his messiah". The tradition is ambiguous enough to leave room for debate as to whether Jesus defined his Eschatology, eschatological role as that of the messiah. The Jewish messianic tradition included many different forms, some of them focused on a messiah figure and others not. Based on the Christian tradition, Gerd Theissen advances the hypothesis that Jesus saw himself in messianic terms but did not claim the title "Messiah". Bart Ehrman argues that Jesus did consider himself to be the messiah, albeit in the sense that he would be the king of the new political order that God would usher in, not in the sense that most people today think of the term.
Passover and crucifixion in Jerusalem
Around AD 30, Jesus and his followers traveled from Galilee to Jerusalem to observe Passover. Jesus caused a disturbance in the Second Temple, which was the center of Jewish religious and civil authority. Sanders associates it with Jesus' prophecy that the Temple would be totally demolished. Jesus held a last meal with his disciples, which is the origin of the Christian sacrament of bread and wine. His words as recorded in the Synoptic gospels and Paul's First Epistle to the Corinthians, First Letter to the Corinthians do not entirely agree, but this symbolic meal appears to have pointed to Jesus' place in the coming Kingdom of God when very probably Jesus knew he was about to be killed, although he may have still hoped that God might yet intervene.
The Gospels say that Jesus was betrayed to the authorities by a disciple, and many scholars consider this report to be highly reliable. He was executed on the orders of
Pontius Pilate
Pontius Pilate (; grc-gre, Πόντιος Πιλᾶτος, ) was the fifth governor of the Roman province of Judaea, serving under Emperor Tiberius from 26/27 to 36/37 AD. He is best known for being the official who presided over the trial of J ...
, the Roman prefect of Judea (Roman province), Judaea. Pilate most likely saw Jesus' reference to the Kingdom of God as a threat to Roman authority and worked with the Temple elites to have Jesus executed. The Sadducean high-priestly leaders of the Temple more plausibly had Jesus executed for political reasons than for his teaching. They may have regarded him as a threat to stability, especially after he caused a disturbance at the Second Temple.
Other factors, such as Jesus' triumphal entry into Jerusalem, may have contributed to this decision. Most scholars consider Jesus' crucifixion to be factual, because early Christians would not have invented the painful death of their leader.
After crucifixion
![The Resurrection Beaufort arms in border (f](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6a/The_Resurrection_Beaufort_arms_in_border_%28f._131%29_Cropped.jpg)
After Jesus' death, his followers said he was restored to life, although exact details of their experiences are unclear. The gospel reports contradict each other, possibly suggesting competition among those claiming to have seen him first rather than deliberate fraud. On the other hand, L. Michael White suggests that inconsistencies in the Gospels reflect differences in the agendas of their unknown authors.
The followers of Jesus formed a community to wait for his return and the founding of his kingdom.
Portraits of Jesus
Modern research on the historical Jesus has not led to a unified picture of the historical figure, partly because of the variety of academic traditions represented by the scholars. Given the scarcity of historical sources, it is generally difficult for any scholar to construct a portrait of Jesus that can be considered historically valid beyond the basic elements of his life. The portraits of Jesus constructed in these quests often differ from each other, and from the image portrayed in the Gospels.
Jesus is seen as the founder of, in the words of Sanders, a "renewal movement within Judaism". One of the criteria used to discern historical details in the "third quest" is the criterion of plausibility, relative to Jesus' Jewish context and to his influence on Christianity. A disagreement in contemporary research is whether Jesus was Apocalypticism, apocalyptic. Most scholars conclude that he was an apocalyptic preacher, like
John the Baptist
John the Baptist or , , or , ;Wetterau, Bruce. ''World history''. New York: Henry Holt and Company. 1994. syc, ܝܘܿܚܲܢܵܢ ܡܲܥܡܕ݂ܵܢܵܐ, Yoḥanān Maʿmḏānā; he, יוחנן המטביל, Yohanān HaMatbil; la, Ioannes Bapti ...
and Paul the Apostle. In contrast, certain prominent North American scholars, such as Burton Mack and John Dominic Crossan, advocate for a non-Eschatology, eschatological Jesus, one who is more of a Cynicism (philosophy), Cynic Sage (philosophy), sage than an apocalyptic preacher. In addition to portraying Jesus as an apocalyptic prophet, a charismatic healer or a Cynicism (philosophy), cynic philosopher, some scholars portray him as the true messiah or an Egalitarianism, egalitarian prophet of social change.
However, the attributes described in the portraits sometimes overlap, and scholars who differ on some attributes sometimes agree on others.
Since the 18th century, scholars have occasionally put forth that Jesus was a political national messiah, but the evidence for this portrait is negligible. Likewise, the proposal that Jesus was a Zealots (Judea), Zealot does not fit with the earliest strata of the Synoptic tradition.
Titles and other names for Jesus
In addition to "Christ", Jesus is affectionately called by various other names or titles throughout the
New Testament
The New Testament grc, Ἡ Καινὴ Διαθήκη, transl. ; la, Novum Testamentum. (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus, as well as events in first-century Christ ...
. Some of them include:
* Almighty (Revelation 1:8)
* Alpha and Omega (Revelation 22:13)
* Advocate (1 John 2:1)
* Author and Perfecter of Our Faith (Hebrews 12:2)
* Authority (Matthew 28:18)
* Bread of Life (John 6:35)
* Beloved Son of God (Matthew 3:17)
* Counsellor (Isaiah 9:6)
* Creator (John 1:3)
* Chief Shepherd (1 Pet. 5:4)
* The Bridegroom (Matthew 9:15)
* The Bread of Life (John 6:35)
* Deliverer (1 Thessalonians 1:10)
* The Door (John 10:9)
* Eternal (John 8:58)
* Faithful and True (Revelation 19:11)
* God (John 20:28, 2 Peter 1:1)
* Good Shepherd (John 10:11)
* Great High Priest (Hebrews 4:14)
* Head of the Church (Ephesians 1:22)
* Holy Servant (Acts 4:29-30)
* I am (biblical term), I am (John 8:58)
* Immanuel (Isaiah 7:14)
* Indescribable Gift (2 Corinthians 9:15)
* Judge (Acts 10:42)
* King of Kings (Revelation 17:14)
* Lamb of God (John 1:29)
* The Life (John 11:25, 14:6)
* Light of the World (John 8:12)
* Lion of the Tribe of Judah (Revelation 5:5)
* Lord of All (Philippians 2:9-11)
* Mediator (I Timothy 2:5)
* The Messiah (John 1:41)
* One Who Sets Free (John 8:36)
* Our Hope (1 Timothy 1:1)
* Peace (Ephesians 2:14)
* Prophet (Mark 6:4)
* The Resurrection (John 11:25)
* Risen Lord (1 Corinthians 15:3-4)
* The Rock (1 Corinthians 10:4)
* Sacrifice for Our Sins (1 John 4:10)
* Savior (Luke 2:11)
* Son of Man (Luke 19:10)
* Son of the Most High (Luke 1:32)
* Supreme Creator Over All (Colossians 1:16-17)
* True Vine (John 15:1)
* The Truth (John 8:32, 14:6)
* Victorious One (Revelation 3:21)
* The Way (John 14:6)
* The Word (John 1:1)
Language, ethnicity, and appearance
![CompositeJesus](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/65/CompositeJesus.JPG)
Jesus grew up in Galilee and much of his ministry took place there. The languages spoken in Galilee and Judea during the 1st century AD include Jewish Palestinian Aramaic,
Hebrew
Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...
, and Koine Greek, Greek, with Aramaic being predominant.
There is substantial consensus that Jesus gave most of his teachings in Aramaic in the Galilean dialect.
Modern scholars agree that Jesus was a Jew of 1st-century Palestine (region), Palestine. ''Ioudaios'' in New Testament Greek is a term which in the contemporary context may refer to religion (Second Temple Judaism), ethnicity (of Judea), or both. In a review of the state of modern scholarship, Amy-Jill Levine writes that the entire question of ethnicity is "fraught with difficulty", and that "beyond recognizing that 'Jesus was Jewish', rarely does the scholarship address what being 'Jewish' means".
The New Testament gives no description of the physical appearance of Jesus before his death—it is generally indifferent to racial appearances and does not refer to the features of the people it mentions.
Jesus probably looked like a typical Jewish man of his time and place; standing around tall with a thin but fit build, Olive skin, olive-brown skin, brown eyes and short, dark hair. He also likely had a beard that was not particularly long or heavy. His clothing may have suggested poverty consisting of a mantle (shawl) with tassels, a knee-length basic tunic and sandals.
Christ myth theory
The Christ myth theory is the hypothesis that Jesus of Nazareth never existed; or if he did, that he had virtually nothing to do with the founding of Christianity and the accounts in the gospels. Stories of Jesus' birth, along with other key events, have so many mythic elements that some scholars have suggested that Jesus himself was a myth.
Bruno Bauer (1809–1882) taught that the first Gospel was a work of literature that produced history rather than described it.
According to Albert Kalthoff (1850–1906), a social movement produced Jesus when it encountered Jewish messianic expectations.
Arthur Drews (1865–1935) saw Jesus as the concrete form of a myth that predated Christianity.
Despite arguments put forward by authors who have questioned the existence of a
historical Jesus
The term "historical Jesus" refers to the reconstruction of the life and teachings of Jesus by critical historical methods, in contrast to religious interpretations. It also considers the historical and cultural contexts in which Jesus lived. ...
, there remains a strong consensus in Historical criticism, historical-critical biblical scholarship that a historical Jesus did live in that area and in that time period.
[James D.G. Dunn "Paul's understanding of the death of Jesus" in ''Sacrifice and Redemption'' edited by S.W. Sykes (3 December 2007) Cambridge University Press pp. 35–36][''Jesus Now and Then'' by Richard A. Burridge and Graham Gould (1 April 2004) p. 34][''Jesus'' by Michael Grant 2004 p. 200][''The Gospels and Jesus'' by Graham Stanton, 1989 Oxford University Press, p. 145][Robert E. Van Voorst ''Jesus Outside the New Testament: An Introduction to the Ancient Evidence'' Eerdmans Publishing, 2000. p. 16]
Perspectives
Apart from his own disciples and followers, the Jews of Jesus' day generally rejected him as the messiah, as do the great majority of Jews today. Christian theologians, ecumenical councils, reformers and others have written extensively about Jesus over the centuries. Christian sects and Christian schisms, schisms have often been defined or characterized by their descriptions of Jesus. Meanwhile, Manichaeism, Manichaeans, Gnosticism, Gnostics, Muslims, Druzes,
the Baháʼí Faith, and others, have found prominent places for Jesus in their religions.
Christian
![Shield-Trinity-Scutum-Fidei-English](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b3/Shield-Trinity-Scutum-Fidei-English.svg)
Jesus is the central figure of Christianity. Although Christian views of Jesus vary, it is possible to summarize the key beliefs shared among major Christian denomination, denominations, as stated in their catechism, catechetical or Confessionalism (religion), confessional texts. Christian views of Jesus are derived from various sources, including the canonical gospels and New Testament letters such as the Pauline epistles and the Johannine writings. These documents outline the key beliefs held by Christians about Jesus, including his divinity, humanity, and earthly life, and that he is the Christ and the Son of God (Christianity), Son of God. Despite their many shared beliefs, not all Christian denominations agree on all doctrines, and both East–West Schism, major and minor differences on teachings and beliefs have persisted throughout Christianity for centuries.
The New Testament states that the resurrection of Jesus is the foundation of the Christian faith. Christians believe that through his sacrifice#Christinity, sacrificial death and resurrection, humans can be reconciliation (theology), reconciled with God and are thereby offered Salvation (Christianity), salvation and the promise of Eternal life (Christianity), eternal life.
Recalling the words of John the Baptist on the day after Jesus' baptism, these doctrines sometimes refer to Jesus as the Lamb of God, who was crucified to fulfill his role as the servant of God. Jesus is thus seen as the new Adam, new and last Adam, whose obedience contrasts with Fall of man, Adam's disobedience. Christians view Jesus as a role model, whose God-focused life believers are encouraged to imitate.
At present, most Christians believe that Jesus is both human and the Son of God. While there has been Christological controversies, theological debate over his nature, Trinitarian Christians generally believe that Jesus is the Logos, God's incarnation and
God the Son
God the Son ( el, Θεὸς ὁ υἱός, la, Deus Filius) is the second person of the Trinity in Christian theology. The doctrine of the Trinity identifies Jesus as the incarnation of God, united in essence (consubstantial) but distinct in ...
, both fully divine and fully human. However, the doctrine of the Trinity is not universally accepted among Christians. With the Reformation, Christians such as Michael Servetus and the Socinians started questioning the ancient creeds that had established Jesus' two natures.
Nontrinitarian Christian groups include the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Unitarianism, Unitarians and Jehovah's Witnesses.
Christians revere not only Jesus himself, but also Name of Jesus, his name. Devotions to the Holy Name of Jesus go back to the earliest days of Christianity. These devotions and feasts exist in both Eastern Christianity, Eastern and Western Church, Western Christianity.
Jewish
Judaism rejects the idea of Jesus (or any future Jewish messiah) being God,
or a mediator to God, or part of a Trinity. It holds that Jesus is not the messiah, arguing that he neither fulfilled the Messianic prophecies in the Tanakh nor embodied the personal qualifications of the Messiah. Jews argue that Jesus did not fulfill prophesies to build the Third Temple, gather Jews back to Israel, bring world peace, and unite humanity under the God of Israel.
[Shraga Simmons, Simmons, Rabbi Shraga]
"Why Jews Don't Believe in Jesus"
. Accessed 22 December 2011. Furthermore, according to Jewish tradition, there were no prophets after Malachi, who delivered his prophesies in the 5th century BC.
Judaic criticism of Jesus is long-standing, and includes a Jesus in the Talmud, range of stories in the Talmud, written and compiled from the 3rd to the 5th century AD. In one such story, ''Yeshu HaNozri'' ("Jesus the Nazarene"), a lewd apostate, is executed by the Jewish high court for spreading idolatry and practicing magic. According to some, the form Yeshu is an acronym which in Hebrew reads: "may his name and memory be blotted out." The majority of contemporary scholars consider that this material provides no information on the historical Jesus. The ''Mishneh Torah'', a late 12th-century work of Halakha, Jewish law written by Moses Maimonides, states that Jesus is a "stumbling block" who makes "the majority of the world to err and serve a god other than the Lord".
Medieval Hebrew literature contains the anecdotal "Episode of Jesus" (known also as ''Toledot Yeshu''), in which Jesus is described as being the son of Joseph, the son of Tiberius Julius Abdes Pantera, Pandera (see: s:Translation:Story of Jesus, ''Episode of Jesus''). The account portrays Jesus as an impostor.
Manichaeism
Manichaeism was the first organised religion outside of Christianity to venerate Jesus.
He is considered one of the four prophets, along with Zoroaster, Gautama Buddha and Mani (prophet), Mani.
Islamic
![Jesus Name in Arabic](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/19/Jesus_Name_in_Arabic.gif)
A major figure in Islam,
Jesus (often referred to by his Quranic name ) is considered to be a Prophets and messengers in Islam, messenger of
God
In monotheism, monotheistic thought, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator deity, creator, and principal object of Faith#Religious views, faith.Richard Swinburne, Swinburne, R.G. "God" in Ted Honderich, Honderich, Ted. (ed)''The Ox ...
() and the messiah (Masih (title), ) who was sent to guide the Israelites, Children of Israel () with a new scripture, the Gospel (referred to in Islam as Gospel in Islam, ).
Muslims regard the gospels accounts in the New Testament as partially authentic, and believe that Jesus' original message was altered (tahrif, ) and that Muhammad in Islam, Muhammad came later to revive it. Belief in Jesus (and all other Prophets in Islam, messengers of God) is a requirement for being a Muslim. The Quran mentions Jesus by name 25 times—more often than Muhammad—and emphasizes that Jesus was a mortal human who, like all other prophets, had been divinely chosen to spread God's message.
While the Quran affirms the Virgin birth of Jesus, he is considered to be neither an incarnation nor a Son of God (Christianity), son of God. Islamic texts emphasize a strict notion of monotheism () and forbid the association of partners with God, which would be Shirk (Islam), idolatry.
The Quran describes the annunciation to Mary (Mary in Islam, ) by the Holy Spirit that she is to give birth to Jesus while remaining a virgin. It calls the virgin birth a miracle that occurred by the will of God.
The Quran (Q21:91 and Q66:12) states that God breathed Holy Spirit (Islam), his spirit into Mary while she was chaste.
Jesus is called a "spirit from God" because he was born through the action of the Spirit,
but that belief does not imply Pre-existence of Christ, his pre-existence.
To aid in his ministry to the Jewish people, Jesus was given the ability to perform miracles, by permission of God rather than by his own power.
Through his ministry, Jesus is seen as a precursor (religion), precursor to Muhammad.
In the Quran (An-Nisa, Q4:157–159) it is said that Jesus was not killed but was merely made to appear that way to unbelievers, and that he was raised into the heavens while still alive by God.
[: "''And because of their saying: We slew the Messiah Jesus son of Mary, Allah’s messenger — They slew him not nor crucified, but it appeared so unto them''"]
4:157
by Marmaduke Pickthall. According to most classic Sunni and Twelver Shi'ite interpretations of these verses, the likeness of Jesus was cast upon a Substitution hypothesis, substitute (most often one of the apostles), who was crucified in Jesus' stead. However, some medieval Muslims (among others, the ghulat, writing under the name of al-Mufaddal ibn Umar al-Ju'fi, the Brethren of Purity, various Isma'ili philosophers, and the Sunni mystic al-Ghazali) affirmed the historicity of Jesus' crucifixion. These thinkers held the docetic view that, although Jesus' human form (his body) had died on the cross, his true divine nature (his spirit) had survived and ascended into heaven, so that his death was only an appearance. Nevertheless, to Muslims it is the ''Ascension of Jesus, ascension'' rather than the ''Crucifixion of Jesus, crucifixion'' that constitutes a major event in the life of Jesus.
There is no mention of his resurrection on the third day, and his death plays no special role in Soteriology#Islam, Islamic theories of salvation. However, Jesus is a central figure in Islamic eschatology: Muslims believe that Second Coming#Islam, he will return to Earth at the Eschatology, end of time and defeat the Antichrist (''Masih ad-Dajjal, ad-Dajjal'') by killing him.
According to the Quran, the coming of Muhammad was predicted by Jesus: "And remember, Jesus, the son of Mary, said: ‘O children of Israel! I am God’s messenger to you, confirming the law (which came) before me, and giving glad tidings of a messenger to come after me, whose name shall be Ahmad'" (Quran 61:6). Through this verse, early Arab Muslims claimed legitimacy for their new faith in the existing religious traditions and the alleged predictions of Jesus.
Isma'ili faith
According to Al-Qadi al-Nu'man, Qadi al-Nu'man, a famous Muslim jurist of the Fatimid Caliphate, Fatimid period, Jesus is referred to as the messiah () in the
Quran
The Quran (, ; Standard Arabic: , Classical Arabic, Quranic Arabic: , , 'the recitation'), also romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a revelation in Islam, revelation from God in Islam, ...
because he was sent to the people who responded to him in order to remove (''masaḥa'') their impurities, the ailments of their faith; whether apparent (''Zahir (Islam), '') or hidden (''Batin (Islam), ''). Al-Qadi al-Nu'man, Qadi al-Nu'man, in his work ''Foundation of Symbolic Interpretation'' (), talks about the spiritual birth () of Jesus, as an interpretation of his story of physical birth () mentioned in the
Quran
The Quran (, ; Standard Arabic: , Classical Arabic, Quranic Arabic: , , 'the recitation'), also romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a revelation in Islam, revelation from God in Islam, ...
. He says that
Mary
Mary may refer to:
People
* Mary (name), a feminine given name (includes a list of people with the name)
Religious contexts
* New Testament people named Mary, overview article linking to many of those below
* Mary, mother of Jesus, also calle ...
, the mother of Jesus, is a metaphor for someone who nurtured and instructed Jesus (), rather than physically giving birth to him. Al-Qadi al-Nu'man, Qadi al-Nu'man explains that Jesus was from the pure progeny of Abraham in Islam, Abraham, just as Ali and his sons were from the pure progeny of Muhammad, through Fatimah, Fatima.
Ahmadiyya Islam
The Ahmadiyya Muslim Community has several Jesus in Ahmadiyya Islam, distinct teachings about Jesus. Ahmadis believe that he was a mortal man who survived his crucifixion and died a natural death at the age of 120 in Kashmir, India, and is buried at Roza Bal.
Druze faith
![Maqam Al-masih](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6a/Maqam_Al-masih.jpg)
In the Druze faith, Jesus is considered the Messiah and one of God's important prophets,
being among the seven prophets who appeared in different periods of history.
The Druze venerate Jesus "the son of Joseph and Mary" and his Four Evangelists, four disciples, who wrote the Gospels.
In the Druze tradition, Jesus is known under three titles: the True Messiah (''al-Masih al-Haq''), the Messiah of all Nations (''Masih al-Umam''), and the Messiah of Sinners. This is due, respectively, to the belief that Jesus delivered the true Gospel message, the belief that he was the Saviour of all nations, and the belief that he offers forgiveness.
According to the Druze manuscripts Jesus is the Greatest Imam and the incarnation of Ultimate Reason (''Akl'') on earth and the first cosmic principle (''Hadd''),
and regards Jesus and Hamza ibn Ali as the incarnations of one of the five great celestial powers, who form part of their system. Druze believe that Hamza ibn Ali was a reincarnation of Jesus, and that Hamza ibn Ali is the true Messiah, who directed the deeds of the messiah Jesus "the son of Joseph and Mary", but when Jesus "the son of Joseph and Mary" strayed from the path of the true Messiah, Hamza filled the hearts of the Jews with hatred for him - and for that reason, they crucified him, according to the Druze manuscripts.
Despite this, Hamza ibn Ali took him down from the cross and allowed him to return to his family, in order to prepare men for the preaching of his religion.
In an epistle ascribed to one of the founders of Druzism, Baha al-Din al-Muqtana, probably written sometime between AD 1027 and AD 1042, accused the Jews of crucifixion of Jesus, crucifying Jesus.
Baháʼí faith
The teaching of the Baháʼí Faith consider Jesus to be a Manifestation of God (Baháʼí Faith), manifestation of God, a Baháʼí concept for prophets
—intermediaries between God and humanity, serving as messengers and reflecting God's qualities and attributes.
The Bahá'í concept emphasizes the simultaneous qualities of humanity and divinity;
thus, it is similar to the Christian concept of incarnation.
Bahá'í thought accepts Jesus as the Son of God.
In Baháʼí thought, Jesus was a perfect incarnation of God's attributes, but Baháʼí literature, Baháʼí teachings reject the idea that "ineffable essence" of the Divinity was contained within a single human body because of their beliefs regarding "omnipresence and Transcendence (religion)#Baháʼí Faith, transcendence of the essence of God".
Bahá'u'lláh, the founder of the Baháʼí Faith, wrote that since each manifestation of God has the same divine attributes, they can be seen as the spiritual "return" of all previous manifestations of God, and the appearance of each new manifestation of God inaugurates a religion that supersedes the former ones, a concept known as Progressive revelation (Baháʼí), progressive revelation.
Baháʼís believe that God's plan unfolds gradually through this process as mankind matures, and that some of the manifestations arrive in specific fulfillment of the missions of previous ones. Thus, Baháʼís believe that Bahá'u'lláh is the promised return of Christ.
Baháʼí teachings confirm many, but not all, aspects of Jesus as portrayed in the Gospels. Baháʼís believe in the virgin birth and in the Crucifixion,
but see the Resurrection and the miracles of Jesus as symbolic.
Other
![The_Liberator_masthead,_1861_Jan_11](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/47/The_Liberator_masthead%2C_1861_Jan_11.jpg)
In Christian Gnosticism (now a largely extinct religious movement), Jesus was sent from the divine realm and provided the secret knowledge (gnosis) necessary for salvation. Most Gnostics believed that Jesus was a human who became possessed by the spirit of "the Christ" at his baptism. This spirit left Jesus' body during the crucifixion, but was rejoined to him when he was raised from the dead. Some Gnostics, however, were docetism, docetics, believed that Jesus did not have a physical body, but only appeared to possess one.
Some Hinduism, Hindus consider Jesus to be an avatar or a sadhu. Paramahansa Yogananda, an Indian people, Indian guru, taught that Jesus was the reincarnation of Elisha and a student of
John the Baptist
John the Baptist or , , or , ;Wetterau, Bruce. ''World history''. New York: Henry Holt and Company. 1994. syc, ܝܘܿܚܲܢܵܢ ܡܲܥܡܕ݂ܵܢܵܐ, Yoḥanān Maʿmḏānā; he, יוחנן המטביל, Yohanān HaMatbil; la, Ioannes Bapti ...
, the reincarnation of Elijah. Some Buddhists, including Tenzin Gyatso, 14th Dalai Lama, Tenzin Gyatso, the 14th Dalai Lama, regard Jesus as a bodhisattva who dedicated his life to the welfare of people. The New Age movement entertains a wide variety of views on Jesus.
Theosophy (Blavatskian), Theosophists, from whom many New Age teachings originated, refer to Jesus as the Master Jesus, a spiritual reformer, and they believe that Christ, after reincarnation, various incarnations, occupied the body of Jesus. ''The Urantia Book'' teaches Jesus is one of more than 700,000 heavenly sons of God. Jesus in Scientology, Scientologists recognize Jesus (along with other religious figures such as Zoroaster, Muhammad, and Buddha) as part of their "religious heritage".
Antony Theodore in the book ''Jesus Christ in Love'' writes that there is an underlying oneness of Jesus' teachings with the messages contained in
Quran
The Quran (, ; Standard Arabic: , Classical Arabic, Quranic Arabic: , , 'the recitation'), also romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a revelation in Islam, revelation from God in Islam, ...
, Vedas, Upanishads, Talmud and Avesta. Atheists reject Jesus' divinity, but have different views about him – from challenging Mental health of Jesus, his mental health to emphasizing his "moral superiority" (Richard Dawkins).
Artistic depictions
![Christ Healing the Paralytic - Dura-Europos circa 232](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/aa/Christ_Healing_the_Paralytic_-_Dura-Europos_circa_232.jpg)
Some of the earliest depictions of Jesus at the Dura-Europos church are firmly dated to before 256. Thereafter, despite the lack of biblical references or historical records, a wide range of depictions of Jesus appeared during the last two millennia, often influenced by cultural settings, political circumstances and theological contexts.
As in other Early Christian art, the earliest depictions date to the late 2nd or early 3rd century, and surviving images are found especially in the Catacombs of Rome.
The depiction of Christ in pictorial form was highly Aniconism in Christianity, controversial in the early Church.
[Synod of Elvira, 'Pictures are not to be placed in churches, so that they do not become objects of worship and adoration', AD 306, Canon 36] From the 5th century onward, flat painted icons became popular in the Eastern Church. The Byzantine Iconoclasm acted as a barrier to developments in the East, but by the 9th century, art was permitted again. The Protestant Reformation brought renewed aniconism in Christianity, resistance to imagery, but total prohibition was atypical, and Protestant objections to images have tended to reduce since the 16th century. Although large images are generally avoided, few Protestants now object to book illustrations depicting Jesus. The use of depictions of Jesus is advocated by the leaders of denominations such as Anglicans and Catholics
and is a key element of the Eastern Orthodox tradition.
The Transfiguration of Jesus in Christian art, Transfiguration was a major theme in Eastern Christian art, and every Eastern Orthodox monk who had trained in icon painting had to prove his craft by painting an icon depicting it. Icons receive the external marks of veneration, such as kisses and prostration, and they are thought to be powerful channels of divine grace. The Renaissance brought forth a number of artists who focused on depictions of Jesus; Fra Angelico and others followed Giotto in the systematic development of uncluttered images.
Before the Protestant Reformation, the crucifix was common in Western Christianity. It is a model of the cross with Jesus crucified on it. The crucifix became the central ornament of the altar in the 13th century, a use that has been nearly universal in Roman Catholic churches since then.
Jesus appears as an infant in a manger (feed trough) in Christmas creches, which depict the Nativity scene.
He is typically joined by Mary, Joseph, animals, shepherds, angels, and the Biblical Magi, Magi.
Francis of Assisi (1181/82–1226) is credited with popularizing the creche, although he probably did not initiate it.
The creche reached its height of popularity in the 17th and 18th centuries in southern Europe.
["Creche". Encyclopædia Britannica Online. Retrieved 16 March 2015.]
Associated relics
![Shroud of Turin 001](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e2/Shroud_of_Turin_001.jpg)
The total destruction that ensued with the Siege of Jerusalem (70), siege of Jerusalem by the Romans in AD 70 made the survival of items from 1st-century Judea very rare and almost no direct records survive about the history of Judaism from the last part of the 1st century through the 2nd century.
[Helmut Koester ''Introduction to the New Testament'', Vol. 1: History, Culture, and Religion of the Hellenistic Age. Berlin: de Gruyter Press, 1995 p. 382] Margaret M. Mitchell writes that although Eusebius reports (''Church History (Eusebius), Ecclesiastical History'' III 5.3) that the early Christians left Jerusalem for Pella, Jordan, Pella just before Jerusalem was subjected to the final lockdown, we must accept that no first-hand Christian items from the early Jerusalem Church have reached us. Joe Nickell writes, "as investigation after investigation has shown, not a single, reliably authenticated relic of Jesus exists."
However, throughout the history of Christianity, a number of relics attributed to Jesus have been claimed, although doubt has been cast on them. The 16th-century Catholic theologian Erasmus wrote sarcastically about the proliferation of relics and the number of buildings that could have been constructed from the wood claimed to be from the True Cross, cross used in the Crucifixion. Similarly, while experts debate whether Jesus was crucified with three nails or with four, at least thirty holy nails continue to be venerated as relics across Europe.
Some relics, such as purported remnants of the crown of thorns placed on the head of Jesus, receive only a modest number of Christian pilgrimage, pilgrims, while the Shroud of Turin (which is associated with an approved Catholic devotion to the Holy Face of Jesus), has received millions, including popes John Paul II and Pope Benedict XVI, Benedict XVI.
See also
Notes
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External links
Complete Sayings of Jesus Christin parallel Latin and English
*Lists of Christians
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