A couple questions about Jesus...

[fujiyama]

Please excuse my Biblical and theological ignorance. I was not raised Christian (and have absolutely no interest in becoming one)...but I had a couple questions...

What does the "H" refer to in the expression "Jesus H Christ"?

What exactly was Jesus? I know he was a man, and that he was the "son of God"...but what exactly is that?

What domcumentation from the era (other than the New Testament which is mostly written years after his death as far as I know) support the claim of his existance? Did any of the authors of the Gospels actually KNOW Jesus?

thanks.

[Dogmudgeon]

1. Behold, My Son ...

Jesus was Yeshua ben Yusuf. He was called "The Christ" because "Christ" is Greek for "annointed one", and is also a pun on the words for "gift" (kharismos) and "gold" (khruse).

Documentation on Jesus from non-Biblical sources comes mainly through an historian named Josephus. His works are not historically definitive, as far as I know.

What was Jesus? The phrase "Son of God" was a literary metaphor to the Hebrews. It meant "human". This should neither elevate nor disparage the Gospels -- it reinforces the humanity of Jesus.

The authors of the Gospels probably did know Jesus, though there is still a lot of controversy over that, as well as when they were actually written.

The H in "Jesus H. Christ" is a nickname. It probably means "Hunkalicious".

Go in peace, my son ...

--bkl
That's "Rev. BKL" to you, sinner.

[SheilaT]

2. There is absolutely no documentation

or evidence of the existence of "Jesus" outside of the New Testament. Anyone who says otherwise is wrong.

[H2O Man]

7. Actually there is.

The post before you lists just one historian who wrote some about the historic being, a Rabbi named Jesus. You should also be familiar with the Nag Hammadi Scrolls, the Dead Sea Scrolls, and other evidence of Gnostic Gospels. Here is another interesting though: what do empires do really, really well? Keep records! Where are the records from that period of time most likely to be found? The Vatican, smack dab in Rome. Would these records support the childrens' story about Jesus that keeps people ignorant, feeling guilty, and donating $$$ to the Grand Coneheads? Nope. Yes, Virginia, there was a Jesus, but he was not the blond-haired, blue-eyed character on those expensive stained-glass windows.

[truthspeaker]

8. The Dead Sea Scrolls don't mention Jesus

Common misconception.

[H2O Man]

10. Actually they may ...

... as the Qumran's Teacher of Righteouness." Obviously this is open to debate. There are people who make a good case that this teacher was Jesus's brother James. I guess that texts that help define the context that Jesus lived in, and which make reference to (1) him, or (2) his brother, might be considered evidence of his existence. Hence, it is not a common misconception ... it is a matter of interpretation, much like the gospels. It's almost always better to have some respect for other's opinions, even if you may not agree with them!

[SheilaT]

11. The Romans kept pretty good records.

And nowhere do they seem to have made a record of Jesus of Nazareth.

I've long thought that the supposed Gospels may well be a collective work of deliberate fiction, a writing down by several different people of the supposed founder of their religion, but who actually never existed.

Think of such characters as Paul Bunyan. Stories about him exist, written over a period of time. Does that prove he existed?

How about James Bond? Lots of books, many movies. A thousand years from now, how will anyone be able to tell if he was real? Especially when you realize that things like movies, in any format, will deteriorate tremendous over hundreds of years. The books will still remain. And other references to Bond in many other places.

But back to my original point. There are simply no contemporary records of Jesus. None. There are frequent claims to the contrary, but they are all incorrect.

[kcwayne]

3. This sums up the documentation issue very well

Is there a historical Jesus?

[DODI]

4. H stands for "Hosannah" I believe

There is no actual historical evidence of Jesus. The Gospels were written by the apostles. From what I understand two knew Jesus -- John and Matthew, Mark and Luke worked with St. Paul (who did not know Jesus).

In the Catholic faith the "being of Jesus" is a mystery . The mystery being the holy trinity composed of the Father, the Son and Holy Spirit. Jesus was both man and God and holy spirit.

[Loonman]

5. Tacitus

Tacitus has the trial and execution reported in his commentaries.

[GreenPartyVoter]

6. There is a very short but concise book

called "Meeting Jesus Again for the First Time" that really looks over the historical figure of Jesus as well as the "faith" figure.

It's a quick and easy read, and you can absorb a lot about the history of the Christian faith tradition from it. :)

[MichaelUK]

9. Was there a "Jesus"?

Yes there was. At least, there was a bloke who later became known as Jesus who was in Judea around what we now call 0AD, preaching a new form of religion based loosely on a combination of the teachings of John the Baptist and Egyptian Magi.

However, the gospels were written between 30 - 100 years after the death of Jesus (or, as some commentators would have you believe, one of the best illusions ever pulled). Their accuracy is down to word of mouth OR the memories of the apostles a long time after the event. But they've been altered so much over the years...