Religion is an integral part of the human experience. For thousands of years, humans have wondered about questions that they could not answer. For years, people worshiped spirits and other deities. Soon, people adopted more codified polytheistic traditions, like the Egyptians, Greeks, and the Romans. Later, Abrahamic religions would take root starting with the Hebrew people that would start the first monotheistic tradition. This tradition would be the same religion that would lead to the development of Christianity, and later Islam, three religions that would worship one god. Though they had this in common, there were many differences among them. One of the chief differences would be each religions view of Jesus of Nazareth. Jesus is perhaps …show more content…
The historical examination of Jesus is harder than it would seem. The primary sources for the life and teachings of Jesus Christ are the gospels, which are obviously skewed to a Christian and religious perspective. So, one must look for sources independent of the gospels. Historians generally accept that Jesus existed, but outside of this fact there is not much that is known for certain. Outside of the fact that he existed, there are only two facts those historians are generally certain about. One is that Jesus was baptized, and the other is that he was crucified. He was most likely baptized by John the Baptist and he was a Jew from Galilee and that he mostly likely lived during the times referenced in the bible. He would begin his ministry in Galilee. He would teach about the kingdom of God, and he used parables to teach how one should live his or her life. Some scholars believe that the Kingdom of God may have been a moral one, and that it was a teaching tool. He accumulated followers, the chief of which were known as the Apostles. He would eventually leave Galilee and …show more content…
And, the Christian lens should be examined first. In the Christian religion, Jesus is the incarnation of the Son of God and that he is the long awaited Messiah. Jesus birth and death are incredibly important to the Christian faith. His birthday is celebrated with Christmas. Good Friday honors the date he was crucified with his resurrection celebrated on Easter. Christianity also associates Jesus with the holy trinity; a concept explained in the article “The Holy Trinity” in which the author writes, “the dogma of the Trinity--three persons in one God-- was formulated by St. Augustine. Whenever the Christian speaks of “God.” St. Augustine wrote, he means “neither the Father nor the Son nor the Holy Ghost itself.” However, the Trinity--which, according to St. Bernard, it was ‘temerity to search into, piety to believe, and life eternal to know” (Francis 59). Christians believe that was born to the Virgin Mary, and conceived by the Holy Spirit. When looking at Jesus from a religious perspective the best resources are the gospels. He taught the word of god and that if that people who accepted his message would get to live forever in the Kingdom of Heaven (Mark 10:13-27). Jesus wanted to people to repent for their sins and then devote themselves. He also had many teachings like turning the other cheek, forgiving
In this first chapter of Jesus and the Disinherited , the author Howard Thurman describes
Gerhard Lohfink, in his book, “Jesus of Nazareth” believes that Jesus’ person and ministry are intertwined, or actually one and of the same. After Lohfink clarifies the difference between the "reign of God" as distinct from the “Kingdom of God,” he asserts that in Jesus, there is this active, ongoing reign which is not only revealed, but is manifested in all He says and does. Lohfink states, that Jesus is “not just preaching about the reign of God, but He is announcing it,” going on to indicating that Jesus is manifesting this reign in His own self disclosure and the actions of His ministry. Jesus ways of teaching and interactions with others, is shown as compassionate, gentle, direct and personal, as well as definitive and bold. As we also find in Ch. 3, “All that is happening before everyone’s eyes. The reign of God is breaking forth in the midst of the world and not only within people.” (51) And for Lohfink, this is taking place in the actual preaching, actions and life of Jesus Christ. Simply, we are personally and collectively and actively a part of establishing this “reign” right here, right now. A “reign” of mercy, compassion, forgiveness, self-giving, sacrificial love, as well as of justice and peace.
In The Meaning of Jesus N.T. Wright and Marcus Borg present different views on issues relating to how Jesus is viewed. While Borg and Wright do agree on central ideals of Christianity, Borg tends to have more liberal views, whereas Wright holds more conservative views.
Jesus was different than other human being because he was the Son of God and p the second person in the Trinity. The Trinity consist of the Father (God), The Son (Jesus) and the Holly Sprit. The bible has many verses on the Trinity and is largely in the in the New Testament there are places in the Old Testament a few of texts are Genesis 1:26-27,Isaiah 43:10-11 and Psalm 2 (The Trinity in the Bible Thomas K. Johnson).
He is God incarnate who became flesh to take away the sins of the world. He was a poor servant, an obedient child who grew up with wisdom and understanding and became man so that the Word became flesh to dwell among humanity (Weaver, 2014). For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace (Isaiah 9:6). Jesus’ ministry was to preach and teach about the Kingdom Of Heaven and these teachings are the revelations that mankind are to live by in order to get into Heaven and find salvation (DiVincenzo, 2015). The teaching about the Kingdom was for God to restore his creation into the right relationship with himself (DiVincenzo, 2015). This was established so that he and his people can be together in peace, justice, and truth (DiVincenzo, 2015). This identity of Jesus and the work that he did on earth is important to the Christian worldview because it shows that God fulfilled his promise of the Messiah to save the world and it also fulfilled the scripture of the one that was to come. This is an essential element to the beliefs as a
From the excerpt from the novel, “Under the Feet of Jesus” by Helena Maria Viramontes, the main character is Estrella, a young Spanish girl with a powerful desire to learn to read. Although she is persistent, her teachers refuse to educate her because they are more concerned of Estrella’s personal hygiene. This leaves Estrella resentful because of the barrier between herself and knowledge. Estrella remains silent until a man named Perfecto Flores teaches her how to read by using his expertise in hardware and tools to represent the alphabet. Viramontes depicts the heartfelt growth of Estrella through her use of tone, figurative language, and detail.
Jesus’ life was ministry and death. Much of the early life of Jesus Christ is a mystery. The preponderance of information on or about his life is found in the four gospels of the New Testaments. Jesus was born to the Virgin Mary in the year “0” B.C. near the town of Bethlehem in a manger outside of an inn. This humble beginning was the foreshadowing of a life of humility and service. At the age of 12 Jesus was seen in the temple talking with, listening to and teaching many learned men. It was then that Jesus declared that he was the Son of God with a divine purpose here on earth. Jesus lived a traditional Jewish life as a simple carpenter. At the age of 30, Jesus was baptized and recognized by John the Baptist; it was now that he began his earthly ministry. The main points of Jesus’ teaching were that God loves you and is with you, to love one another, of the immense value of each person. The Good News: kingdom of God has come to earth. The reality of judgment to heaven or hell and that God forgives those who ask
The book Under the Feet of Jesus by Helena Maria Viramontes shows you the story of Estrella and her family and the struggles they face as migrant workers. Among all the symbolism in the book the one that stand out the most is Petra’s statue of Christ, which symbolizes the failure of religion and the oppressive nature of the Christian religion especially in minorities. Throughout the book, Estrella’s mother, Petra relies on superstitions and religion to get her through the hardships in life. In tough times, she turns to the statue and prays for guidance. Her thirteen-year-old daughter Estrella is the first of her family to realize that she needs to stop relying on religion and take control of her life. This brings in a wave of self-empowerment, not only for Estrella but eventually for all the characters as well. In the book, you’re able to see how religion exemplifies the failures of religion in minorities and how it hinders the growth of the characters while helping some of them.
Jesus is said to have been born around 4-6 BC. When Jesus was 30 he began his ministry. Many of the reasons that his religion succeeded were that it treated everyone equally promised eternal life and was centered on on your personal relationship with God. Jesus¹ teachings included love for God, neighbors, enemies and yourself. The ten commandments and the basic foundation of Judaism was included in his teachings as Jesus was born a Jew.
Christians believe that Jesus was the Son of God and a part of the Trinity, The Trinity is made up of God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. Judaism's view on Jesus is that he was just a human, a great storyteller and a prophet. He was not the Son of God.
For his first thirty years, Jesus lived a traditional Jewish life. Like all Jewish boys Jesus attended the synagogue with his father on the Sabbath Day. Here he learnt to read the Law in Hebrew, recite prayers and the commandments. As he grew he learnt his fathers' trade
In continuing to examine and understand Jesus of Nazareth, Aslan turns to the gospels, the early sources written by Jesus of Nazareth’s followers and disciples. The gospel of John was written, “To produce faith in Jesus as the Christ, the Son of God” (Jn 20:30-31a). This gospel concentrates more on the heavenly nature of Jesus Christ than any of alternate accounts, and as a result of this, Alsan does not look as carefully at this Gospel than he does for Luke, Matthew and Mark. The gospels Luke, Matthew, and Mark at one point talk about the baptism of Jesus, however “Luke goes one step further… choosing to gloss over Jesus’s actual baptism.”(Aslan, R., 2013, p.87.) Nevertheless, Aslan makes one comment on the Gospel of John stating that in John,
During the life of Jesus, there were many religious groups that roamed Judea. There were the Pharisees, the Sadducees, the Essenes, the Herodians, and the Zealots. While they all claimed to be Jews, they were all unique in how they carried out their religion. Some were concerned with the law, others were concerned with freedom, and one group was even concerned with the king Herod. Altogether, they were the same in some ways, but otherwise they were completely different from each other.
Jesus Christ was the light that came to earth to brighten the lives of the people. He taught phenomenal and meaningful lessons that changed many hearts and caused people to accept Jesus as their Lord. Jesus Christ is the life of Christianity; the Word of God in flesh. His life, his ministry, and his crucifixion where prophesied long before he was born and Christians believe that they were all fulfilled. He had so much love for human kind that he came to earth to die for the sins of the people, so that their souls would be able to enter the Kingdom of Heaven. The Bible testifies that Jesus Christ is the Son of God who taught memorable life lessons and performed astonishing miracles during his ministry.
At first glance, the religions of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam look more different than alike, but this is only scratching the surface. It all begins with the oldest of the three religions, Judaism. From Judaism came the sect of Christianity, which emerged after the death of Jesus and has since become the largest religion in the world today. Nearly six hundred years later Muhammad becomes the founder of Islam, a religion that prays to the same God as Jews and Christians do. The biggest similarities between Judaism, Christianity, and Islam are their belief in God, the practices of their religion, and their belief in an afterlife. The biggest differences between these three religions are how they view the role of Jesus in their religion and