Jesus through the CenturiesA WEE REVIEW

The Dilemma of Christology

• Many images of Jesus

with

• One basic claim: – Jesus is the Christ:

Chosen One of God

The Question of Christology

“But who do you say I am?” Mark 8:27-29a

“Each image of Jesus is the ‘key to an age’ in Western Culture.” Javoslav Pelikan

Any image of picture of Jesus tells us as much about the author or artist as it does about Jesus.” Albert Schweitzer

Christology is both an account of the history, message, life, death and resurrection of Jesus AND an account of [Christian] hope.” Karl Rahner

“Jesus through the Centuries”

One set of basic ideas governing multiple interpretations:Jesus of Nazareth is the way to GodJesus of Nazareth is way to human

and global relationshipsJesus of Nazareth is the way to

oneself.

The Modern Search for the Jesus of History

“Quest of the Historical Jesus”

Images source: http://www.bible-archaeology.info/nazareth.htm

Kerkeslager: “Getting Past the People between Us and Jesus”*

The Modern Interpreter (0ur worldview and assumptions) Backward from 21st century

Earlier Interpreters of the New Testament (Church Tradition)

Scribes Who Copy Gospels (Glosses)

(Other early Christian texts)

Gospel authors and their audiences: Mark, Matthew, Luke, John

Paul and his followers: Letters of Paul and other letters attributed to Paul

Written Sources: Miracle Stories, Sayings of Jesus, Parables of Jesus, Passion Accounts

Oral Sources: Eyewitness Accounts, Miracle Stories, Sayings of Jesus, Parables of Jesus, Passion Accounts

Forward from 1st century

Jesus, the human being

*Source: Allen Kerkeslager, SJU Department of Theology and Religious Studies, Allen Kerkeslager, "Critical Methods in the Study of the Gospels: A Basic Outline“ (Blackboard, used by permission of the author)

JESUS IN THE NEW TESTAMENT

Timeline for the New Testament

•Sadducees – aristocracy; associated with Temple priesthood; collaborators with Rome•Pharisees – Judaism w/o the Temple; rules for living•Essenes – apocalyptic sect; withdrew to the desert; cease to exist during Jewish War (66-70CE); Qumran: Dead Sea Scrolls•Jesus movement – Jewish group that sees Jesus of Nazareth as the long-awaited Messiah

JUDAISM IN THE FIRST CENTURY:

Major Sects

Client kings and direct rule: Herod the Great

massive building program: Hellenistic cities, new templemassive new taxes on peasantrycreates a police state of spies, restriction of speech, assemblydies in 4 BCE, divides kingdom up between his 3 sons

Pontius Pilate (Judea)Appointed by Rome to rule south after incompetence of Herod’s sonBrutal, ruthless, despises Judea and JewsCondemns Jesus to death by crucifixion about 33 CE

Roman Conquest and Rule (cont)

Peasantry: life for most in Roman PalestineSubsistence farmingCrushing taxation: temple tax, Roman tribute, Herod’s building

taxesMany lost their land when unable to payConstant fear of Roman troops/reprisalsConstant fear of secret police (Herod)Consistent resistance to Roman rule: non-violent and armedHorizontal violence: Judeans vs. Samaritans, e.g.; inter-village

struggles

Roman Conquest and Rule (cont)

Mission to convert GentilesTension with Jerusalem church over Gentile-Jewish

relationship for new converts; attends Jerusalem conference (49 CE)

Key passages from his letters in the NT:Galatians 3:28: “There is neither Greek nor Jew, slave nor free,

male nor female, but you all are one in Christ Jesus.”Philippians 2:2-12: The kenosis (self-emptying) of Christ; setting

aside of divinity in order to become human and be crucified.I Corinthians 8:1-13 Concerning food offered to idols.Galatians 5:13-14: on Christian freedom and responsibilityThe Letter to the Romans: justification before God by faith in

Christ Jesus, even while continuing to be sinners

Stages in Formation of New Testament

Paul (Saul of Tarsus) 40’s-60’s

Sources for NT Gospel Writers

Jesus’:

Passed on first by oral tradition, then written down.

The New Testament Gospels

THEMES in MARK’S STORY OF JESUS

• Journeying and Meals• Conflict and Blindness• Suffering and Death

The New Testament Gospels

THEMES in MATTHEW’SSTORY OF JESUS

• The True Judaism and the New Moses

• Maintaining Identity and Boundary Lines

• Compassion and Care for the Other

The New Testament Gospels

THEMES in LUKE’SSTORY OF JESUS

• A “Proper “ Account• God Saves the Poor• The Innocence of Jesus before Rome

The New Testament Gospels

THEMES in JOHN’SSTORY OF JESUS

• The Eternal Word (Logos) …become Flesh…of and by the Father

• Recognizing the Christ: Signs and Metaphors

• Conflict, Rejection and Belief

THE GNOSTIC GOSPELS In the 2nd and 3rd centuries, suppressed groups

of Christians (usually identified as “gnostics”) hide some of their writings to keep them from being destroyed by proto-orthodox church leaders, who have condemned them as heretical.Copies are discovered in 1945 in Egyptian desert

outside the town of Nag HammadiNag Hammadi gospels = Gnostic Gospels13 codices (volumes, singular: codex) containing

banned booksA window onto the diversity

of early Christianity

The Emergence of “proto-orthodoxy” The form of early Christianity that develops into Eastern

Orthodoxy, Roman Catholicism, and (later) Protestantism Emphasis on crucifixion; bodily resurrection; affirmation of

Hebrew bible; humanity and divinity of Jesus

The drive for unity Begins in the 2nd century Proliferation of writings Persecution and martyrdom One important critic: Irenaeus of Lyon, Against Heresies

Lost Christianities/Lost Scriptures: Banning & destruction of non-orthodox writings Rejection and suppression of non-orthodox sects and their

members

FROM THE MANY TO THE ONE

Gospel Images of Jesus

History?.....

Or,….Interpretation?

The Ecumenical Councils: Nicaea to Chalcedon (324-451)

CHRISTIANITY & EMPIRE

The Road to Nicaea:Constantine and Christianity

• Credits the “God of Christ” with his military victory over Maxentius at the Milvian Bridge (312)

• With Licinius, issues the Edict of Milan (Edit of Toleration (313)

• Defeats Licinius (324)• Looks to Christianity as the “glue” to unite his Eastern & Western empire

• Calls the Council of Nicaea in 325 to stop inter-church fighting and force a decision on the status (“essence”) of Jesus Christ in relation to God the Father

The Church

Declares the

Divinityof Jesus

The Council of Nicaea – 325 CE

The Council of Nicaea

A Short Timeline …

…and Locations

Map inset

The Council of Constantinople (381)

The Humanity of Christ(also featuring, The Doctrine of the Trinity!)

Detail from “The Supper at Emmaus” by Rembrandt van Rijn (1648)

STARTING POINT OF AGREEMENT: All participants in the Council of Constantinople agree that the decision

made about Christ’s fully divinity is CORRECT!

The Christological Formula:Jesus Christ is One Person(persona) in Two Natures (natura)

WHAT DOES THE CHRISTOLOGICAL FORMULA DO?

• Tells us who the Christ is in relationship to God and to human beings

• Identifies Jesus as the definition both of what God is like and what human beings can become like

• Claims that God experiences human joys and sufferings with us

• Affirms that the path to the divine is through our own humanity and the human relationships around us

Constantinian Church at Trier

The First Four Ecumenical Councils:The Limits of Appropriate Speech

God is a Trinity:•One God (monotheism) = one divine essence, undivided, in Three distinct Beings: Father, Son, Holy Spirit (Constantinople 381)

Jesus Christ is fully divine•Homoousios (of one essence) with God the Father (Nicaea 325)

Jesus Christ is fully human •In all things like us (but without sin) (Constantinople 381)

The Final Formulae: from Greek to Latin•Jesus Christ is two natures in one person.•God is one nature in three persons.(Chalcedon 451)

Mary is the Mother of God:•Theotokos -- God-bearer (Ephesus 431)