Jesus

This article is about Jesus of Nazareth. For other uses, see Jesus (disambiguation).

Jesus
Jesus depicted as the Good Shepherd (stained glass at St John's Ashfield)
Born	7–2 BC Judea, Roman Empire
Died	30–36 AD Judea, Roman Empire
Cause of death	Crucifixion

Jesus (/ˈdʒiːzəs/; Greek: Ἰησοῦς, translit. Iēsous; 7–2 BC to 30–36 AD), also referred to as Jesus of Nazareth, is the central figure of Christianity, whom the teachings of most Christian denominations hold to be the Son of God. Christians believe Jesus to be the awaited Messiah of the Old Testament and refer to him as Jesus Christ or simply Christ, a name that is also used by non-Christians.

Virtually all modern scholars of antiquity agree that a historical Jesus existed, although there is little agreement on the reliability of the gospel narratives and their assertions of his divinity. Most scholars agree that Jesus was a Jewish teacher from Galilee, was baptized by John the Baptist, and was crucified in Jerusalem on the orders of the Roman prefect, Pontius Pilate. Scholars have constructed various portraits of the historical Jesus, which often depict him as having one or more of the following roles: the leader of an apocalyptic movement, Messiah, a charismatic healer, a sage and philosopher, or a social reformer who preached of the "Kingdom of God" as a means for personal and egalitarian social transformation. Scholars have correlated the New Testament accounts with non-Christian historical records to arrive at an estimated chronology of Jesus' life.

Most Christians believe that Jesus was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of a virgin, performed miracles, founded the Church, died sacrificially by crucifixion to achieve atonement, rose from the dead, and ascended into heaven, from which he will return. The majority of Christians worship Jesus as the incarnation of God the Son, who is the Second Person of the Holy Trinity. A few Christian groups reject Trinitarianism, wholly or partly, as non-scriptural.

In Islam, Jesus (commonly transliterated as Isa) is considered one of God's important prophets. To Muslims, Jesus is a bringer of scripture and the product of a virgin birth, but not divine or the victim of crucifixion. Judaism rejects the belief that Jesus was the awaited Messiah, arguing that he did not fulfill the Messianic prophecies in the Tanakh. Bahá'í scripture almost never refers to Jesus as the Messiah, but calls him a Manifestation of God.

Etymology of names

Further information: Jesus (name), Holy Name of Jesus, Name of God in Christianity, and Yeshua (name)

In the Christian Bible, Jesus is referred to as "Jesus from Nazareth" (Matthew 21:11), "Joseph's son" (Luke 4:12), and "Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph" (John 1:45). Paul the Apostle most often referred to Jesus as "Jesus Christ", "Christ Jesus", or "Christ". In the Quran, the central religious text of Islam, he is referred to as Template:Rtl-lang (‘Īsa).

"Jesus" is a Latin transliteration, occurring in a number of languages and based on the Greek Ἰησοῦς (Iēsoûs), which is a hellenization of the Aramaic/Hebrew Template:Rtl-lang (Yēšūă‘), a post-Exilic modification of the Hebrew Template:Rtl-lang (Yĕhōšuă‘, Joshua). The etymology of the name Jesus in the context of the New Testament is generally given as "Yahweh saves" or "Yahweh is salvation". The name Yēšūă‘ appears to have been in use in Judea at the time of the birth of Jesus. The first-century works of historian Flavius Josephus refer to at least twenty different people with this name. Philo's reference in Mutatione Nominum item 121 indicates that the etymology of the name Joshua was known outside Judea at the time.

"Christ" (/ˈkraɪst/) is derived from the Greek Χριστός (Khrīstos), meaning "the anointed one", a translation of the Hebrew מָשִׁיחַ (Māšîaḥ), usually transliterated into English as "Messiah" (/mˈsaɪ.ə/). In the Septuagint version of the Hebrew Bible (written well over a century before the time of Jesus), the word "Christ" (Χριστός) was used to translate the Hebrew word "Messiah" (מָשִׁיחַ) into Greek. In Matthew 16:16, the apostle Peter's profession "You are the Christ" identifies Jesus as the Messiah. In postbiblical usage, "Christ" became viewed as a name—one part of "Jesus Christ"—but originally it was a title ("Jesus the Anointed").

Chronology

Main article: Chronology of Jesus

Judea and Galilee at the time of Jesus

Most scholars agree that Jesus was a Galilean Jew who was born around the beginning of the first century and died between 30 and 36 AD in Judea. Amy-Jill Levine states that the general scholarly consensus is that Jesus was a contemporary of John the Baptist and was crucified by Roman governor Pontius Pilate, who reigned from 26 to 36 AD. Most scholars hold that Jesus lived in Galilee and Judea and did not preach or study elsewhere.

The general scholarly agreement on the historicity of Jesus' interactions with John the Baptist and with Pilate shapes the approximate chronological picture. In the Antiquities of the Jews, first-century historian Josephus places the execution of the Baptist before the defeat of Herod Antipas by Aretas IV in 36 AD; and the dates of Pilate's reign are well established by Roman sources.

Two independent approaches have been used to estimate the year of Jesus' birth. One collates the Nativity accounts in the Gospels with other historical data; the other works backwards from the estimated start of his ministry. The first approach applies Matthew 2:1, which associates the birth of Jesus with the reign of Herod the Great, who died around 4 BC, and Luke 1:5, which mentions that Herod was on the throne shortly before the birth of Jesus. However, Luke's gospel also associates the birth with the first census, which took place in 6 AD. The second approach ignores the Nativity accounts and considers the statement in John 2:13–20 that the temple in Jerusalem was in its 46th year of construction at the start of Jesus' ministry. Correlating this with Josephus' dating of the death of John the Baptist, and working backwards from the statement in Luke 3:23 that Jesus was "about 30 years of age" at the start of his ministry, yields a date of 27–29 AD. Elsewhere, John 8:57 states that Jesus was less than 50 years old. Some scholars thus estimate 28 AD to be roughly the 32nd birthday of Jesus. Most scholars assume a date of birth between 6 and 4 BC, but some propose a wider range between 7 and 2 BC.

Israel Museum model of Herod's Temple, referred to in John 2:13

The years of Jesus' ministry have been estimated using three different approaches. The first applies the reference in Luke 3:1–2 to the start of the ministry of John the Baptist in the 15th year of Tiberius' reign and the statement of Acts 10:37–38 that John's ministry preceded that of Jesus. The dates of Tiberius reign are known, and these indicate a date of around 28–29 AD for the start of Jesus' ministry. The second approach uses the statement about the temple in John 2:13–20, together with Josephus' statement that the temple's reconstruction was started by Herod in the 18th year of his reign, to estimate a date around 27–29 AD. The third method uses the date of the 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, scholars generally agreeing that he died between 30–36 AD. One approach relies on the dates of the prefecture of Pilate, who was the Roman governor of Judea from 26 AD until 36 AD, after which he was replaced by Marcellus (reigned 36–37 AD). Another approach, which yields the latest year possible for the Crucifixion, is to work backwards from the trial of the Apostle Paul in Achaea, Greece, by Roman proconsul Gallio, the date of whose reign is confirmed in the Delphi Inscription discovered in the 20th century at the Temple of Apollo. The conversion of Paul is estimated at around 33–36 AD, and Jesus must have died before this.

Isaac Newton was one of the first astronomers to estimate the precise date of the Crucifixion, and his reasoning suggested Friday, April 23, 34 AD (Julian). In 1990 astronomer Bradley E. Schaefer computed Friday, April 3, 33 AD, (Julian) as the date of the Crucifixion. In 1991 John Pratt stated that Newton's method was sound, but that it introduced a minor error at the end. According to Pratt, Newton selected April 23 because he assumed a "postponement rule" from the modern Hebrew calendar, which was not in use at the time—a fact only demonstrated more than a century after Newton. Pratt considered April 3, 33 AD, to be correct. Using the different approach of a lunar eclipse model, Humphreys and Waddington in 1983 arrived at the conclusion that April 3, 33 AD, was the date of the Crucifixion.

Life and teachings in the New Testament

Main article: Life of Jesus in the New Testament

See also: New Testament places associated with Jesus and Names and titles of Jesus in the New Testament

Although the four canonical gospels, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, are the main sources for the biography of Jesus' life, other parts of the New Testament, such as the Pauline epistles, which were probably written decades before them, also include references to key episodes in his life, such as the Last Supper in 1 Corinthians 11:23–26. The Acts of the Apostles (10:37–38 and 19:4) refers to the early ministry of Jesus and its anticipation by John the Baptist. Acts 1:1–11 says more about the Ascension of Jesus (also mentioned in 1 Timothy 3:16) than the canonical gospels do.

Canonical gospel accounts

See also: Gospel harmony, Historical reliability of the Gospels, and Internal consistency of the New Testament

A 3rd-century Greek papyrus of Luke

Despite being the main sources for the Jesus' life, not everything contained in the New Testament gospels is considered to be historically reliable. Elements whose historical authenticity are disputed include the two accounts of the Nativity, as well as the Resurrection and certain details about the Crucifixion. Views on the gospels range from their being inerrant descriptions of the life of Jesus to their providing no historical information about his life.

Three of the four canonical gospels, Matthew, Mark, and Luke, are known as the Synoptic Gospels, from the Greek σύν (syn "together") and ὄψις (opsis "view"). According to the majority viewpoint, the Synoptic Gospels are the primary sources of historical information about Jesus. They are very similar in content, narrative arrangement, language and paragraph structure. Scholars generally agree that it is impossible to find any direct literary relationship between the Synoptic Gospels and the Gospel of John.

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 John 21:25, the gospels do not claim to provide an exhaustive list of the events in the life of Jesus. The accounts were primarily written as theological documents in the context of early Christianity, with timelines as a secondary consideration. One manifestation of the gospels as theological documents rather than historical chronicles is that they devote about one third of their text to just seven days, namely the last week of the life of Jesus in Jerusalem, referred to as Passion Week. Although the gospels do not provide enough details to satisfy the demands of modern historians regarding exact dates, it is possible to draw from them a general picture of the life story of Jesus.

The gospel accounts differ in the ordering of the parables and miracles they record. While the flow of the some events, such as the Baptism, Transfiguration and Crucifixion of Jesus, and his interactions with the Apostles, are shared among the Synoptic Gospels, events such as the Transfiguration do not appear in John's Gospel, which also differs on other matters, such as the Cleansing of the Temple. Since the second century, attempts have been made to harmonize the gospel accounts into a single narrative, Tatian's Diatesseron perhaps being the first.

The gospels include a number of discourses by Jesus on specific occasions, such as the Sermon on the Mount and the Farewell Discourse. They also include over 30 parables, spread throughout the narrative, often with themes that relate to the sermons. John 14:10 stresses the importance of the words of Jesus and attributes them to the authority of God the Father. The gospel descriptions of Jesus' miracles are often accompanied by records of his teachings.

Genealogy and Nativity

Main articles: Genealogy of Jesus and Nativity of Jesus

"Adoration of the Shepherds" by Gerard van Honthorst, 1622

Accounts of the genealogy and Nativity of Jesus appear in the New Testament only in the Gospel of Luke and the Gospel of Matthew. Outside the New Testament, documents exist that are more or less contemporary with Jesus and the gospels, but few shed any light on biographical details of his life, and these two gospel accounts remain the main sources of information on the genealogy and Nativity.

Matthew begins his gospel with the genealogy of Jesus before giving an account of Jesus' birth. He traces Jesus' ancestry to Abraham through David. Luke 3:22 discusses the genealogy after describing the Baptism of Jesus, when the voice from Heaven addresses Jesus and identifies him as the Son of God. Luke traces Jesus' ancestry through Adam to God.

The Nativity is a prominent element in the Gospel of Luke, comprising over 10 percent of the text and being three times as long as Matthew's Nativity text. 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 and Mary, his betrothed, in Bethlehem, and both support the doctrine of the virgin birth, according to which Jesus was miraculously conceived by the Holy Spirit in Mary's womb when she was still a virgin.

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. Following his betrothal to Mary, Joseph is troubled (Matthew 1:19–20) because Mary is pregnant, but in the first of Joseph's three dreams an angel assures him not be afraid to take Mary as his wife, because her child was conceived by 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 of Quirinius. There Mary gives birth to Jesus, and as they have found no room in the inn, she places the newborn in a manger (Luke 2:1–7). An angel visits some shepherds and sends them to adore the child (Luke 2:22). After presenting Jesus at the Temple, Joseph and Mary return home to Nazareth. In Matthew 1:1–12, wise men or Magi from the East bring gifts to the young Jesus as the King of the Jews. Herod hears of Jesus' birth and, wanting him killed, orders the murder of young male children in Bethlehem. But an angel warns Joseph in his second dream, and the family flees to Egypt, later to return and settle in Nazareth.

Early life and profession

Main article: Child Jesus

See also: Return of young Jesus to Nazareth

Jesus' childhood home is identified in the gospels of Luke and Matthew as the town of Nazareth in Galilee. Mary's husband Joseph appears in descriptions of Jesus' childhood, but no mention is made of him thereafter. The New Testament books of Matthew, Mark, and Galatians mention Jesus' brothers and sisters, but the Greek word adelphos in these verses has also been translated as "kinsman", rather than the more usual "brother".

Mark 6:3 calls Jesus a tekton (Greek τέκτων), usually understood to mean a carpenter, and Matthew 13:55 says he was the son of a tekton. Although traditionally translated as "carpenter", tekton is a rather general word (from the same root that leads to "technical" and "technology") that could cover makers of objects in various materials, even builders. Beyond the New Testament accounts, the association of Jesus with woodworking is a constant in the traditions of the first and second centuries. Justin Martyr (d. ca. 165) wrote that Jesus made yokes and ploughs.

Baptism and temptation

Main articles: Baptism of Jesus and Temptation of Christ

Trevisani's depiction of the typical baptismal scene with the sky opening and the Holy Spirit descending as a dove, 1723

Gospel accounts of the Baptism of Jesus are always preceded by information about John the Baptist and his ministry. They show John preaching penance and repentance for the remission of sins and encouraging the giving of alms to the poor (Luke 3:11) as he baptized people in the area of the River Jordan around Perea at about the time when Jesus began his ministry. The Gospel of John (1:28) initially specifies "Bethany beyond the Jordan", that is Bethabara in Perea, and later John 3:23 refers to further baptisms in Ænon "because there was much water there".

The four gospels are not the only references to John's ministry around the River Jordan. In Acts 10:37–38, Peter refers to the ministry of Jesus as coming "after the baptism which John preached". In the Antiquities of the Jews (18.5.2), Josephus also wrote about John the Baptist and his eventual death in Perea.

In the gospels, John had been foretelling (Luke 3:16) the arrival of someone "mightier than I", and the apostle Paul also refers to this (Acts 19:4). In Matthew 3:14, on meeting Jesus, the Baptist says, "I need to be baptized by you", but Jesus persuades John to baptize him nonetheless. After he does so and Jesus emerges from the water, the sky opens and a voice from Heaven states, "This is my beloved Son with whom I am well pleased." The Holy Spirit then descends upon Jesus as a dove (Matthew 3:13–17, Mark 1:9–11, Luke 3:21–23). In John 1:29–33, rather than a direct narrative, the Baptist bears witness to the episode. This is one of two events described in the gospels where a voice from Heaven calls Jesus "Son", the other being the Transfiguration.

After the baptism, the Synoptic Gospels describe the Temptation of Christ, in which Jesus resisted temptations from the devil while fasting for forty days and nights in the Judaean Desert. The Gospel of John omits the Temptation and proceeds directly to the first encounter between Jesus and two of his future disciples (John 1:35–37): on the day after the Baptism, the Baptist sees Jesus again and calls him the Lamb of God; two disciples of John the Baptist hear this and follow Jesus.

Ministry

Main article: Ministry of Jesus

A 19th-century painting depicting the Sermon on the Mount by Carl Bloch

The gospels present John the Baptist's ministry as the precursor of that of Jesus. Starting with his Baptism, Jesus begins his ministry in the countryside of Judea, near the River Jordan, when he is "about 30 years of age" (Luke 3:23). He then travels, preaches and performs miracles, eventually completing his ministry with the Last Supper with his disciples (Matthew 26, Luke 22) in Jerusalem.

Scholars divide the ministry of Jesus into several stages. The "Early Galilean ministry" begins when Jesus returns to Galilee from the Judaean Desert after rebuffing the temptation of Satan. In this early period Jesus preaches around Galilee, and in Matthew 4:18–20, 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.

The "Major Galilean ministry" which begins in Matthew 8 describes activities up to the death of John the Baptist. It includes Calming the storm and a number of other miracles and parables. The "Final Galilean ministry" includes the miracles of Feeding the 5000 and Walking on water, both in Matthew 14. This period ends with the Confession of Peter and the Transfiguration.

As Jesus travels towards Jerusalem, in the "Later Perean ministry", he returns to the area where he was baptized, about one-third the way down from the Sea of Galilee along the Jordan (John 10:40–42). The "Final ministry in Jerusalem" is sometimes called the "Passion Week" and begins with the Jesus' triumphal entry into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday. In the Synoptic Gospels, during that week Jesus drives the money changers from the Temple and Judas bargains to betray him. However, John's Gospel places the Temple incident during the early part of Jesus' ministry, and scholars differ on whether these are one or two separate incidents. This period culminates in the Last Supper and the Farewell Discourse. The accounts of the ministry of Jesus generally end with the Last Supper.

Teachings and preachings

Main articles: Sermon on the Mount and Parables of Jesus

See also: Sermon on the Plain, Five Discourses of Matthew, Farewell Discourse, and Olivet Discourse

Jesus Christ Pantocrator – ancient mosaic from Hagia Sophia

Commentaries often discuss the teachings of Jesus in terms of his "words and works". The words include a number of sermons, as well as parables that appear throughout the narrative of the Synoptic Gospels (the Gospel of John includes no parables). The works include the miracles and other acts performed during Jesus' ministry. Although the canonical gospels are the major source of the teachings of Jesus, the Pauline epistles, which were probably written decades before the gospels, provide some of the earliest written accounts.

The New Testament presents the teachings of Jesus not merely as his own preaching, but as divine revelation. John the Baptist, for example, states in John 3:34: "For the one whom God has sent speaks the words of God, for God gives the Spirit without limit"; and in John 7:16 Jesus says, "My teaching is not my own. It comes from the one who sent me." He asserts the same thing in John 14:10: "Don't you believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father is in me? The words I say to you I do not speak on my own authority. Rather, it is the Father, living in me, who is doing his work." In Matthew 11:27 Jesus claims divine knowledge, stating: "No one knows the Son except the Father and no one knows the Father except the Son".

In the gospels, the approximately thirty parables form about one third of Jesus' recorded teachings. The parables appear within longer sermons and at other places in the narrative. They are seemingly simple and memorable stories, often with imagery, and they usually relate the physical world to the spiritual.

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 in the gospels teach the importance of faith. For instance in the cleansing of ten lepers and the raising of Jairus' daughter, the beneficiaries are told that their healing was due to their faith.

Proclamation as Christ and Transfiguration

Main articles: Confession of Peter and Transfiguration of Jesus

Transfiguration of Jesus depicting him with Elijah, Moses and 3 apostles by Carracci, 1594

At about the middle of each of the three Synoptic Gospels, two related episodes mark a turning point in the narrative: the Confession of Peter and the Transfiguration of Jesus. They take place near Caesarea Philippi, just north of the Sea of Galilee, at the beginning of the final journey to Jerusalem that ends in the Passion and Resurrection of Jesus. These events mark the beginnings of the gradual disclosure of the identity of Jesus to his disciples and his prediction of his own suffering and death.

Peter's Confession begins as a dialogue between Jesus and his disciples in Matthew 16:13, Mark 8:27 and Luke 9:18. Jesus asks his disciples, "who do you say that I am?" Simon Peter answers, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God." In Matthew 16:17 Jesus replies, "Blessed art thou, Simon Bar-jonah: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father who is in heaven." With this blessing, Jesus affirms that the titles Peter ascribes to him are divinely revealed, thus unequivocally declaring himself to be both Christ and the Son of God.

The account of the Transfiguration appears in Matthew 17:1–9, Mark 9:2–8, and Luke 9:28–36. Jesus takes Peter and two other apostles up an unnamed mountain, where he "was transfigured before them; his face shining as the sun, and his garments became white as the light". A bright cloud appears around them, and a voice from the cloud says, "This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him". The Transfiguration reaffirms that Jesus is the Son of God (as in his Baptism), and the command "listen to him" identifies him as God's messenger and mouthpiece.

Final week: betrayal, arrest, trial, and death

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 a description of the Triumphal entry into Jerusalem and ending with his Crucifixion. The last week in Jerusalem is the conclusion of the journey through Perea and Judea that Jesus began in Galilee. Just before the entry into Jerusalem, the Gospel of John includes the Raising of Lazarus, which increases the tension between Jesus and the authorities.

Final entry into Jerusalem

Main articles: Triumphal entry into Jerusalem, Cleansing of the Temple, and Bargain of Judas

A painting of Jesus' final entry into Jerusalem, by Jean-Léon Gérôme in 1897

In the four canonical gospels, Jesus' final entry into Jerusalem takes place at the beginning of the last week of his life, a few days before the Last Supper, marking the beginning of the Passion narrative. The day of entry into Jerusalem is identified by Mark and John as Sunday and by Matthew as Monday; Luke does not identify the day. After leaving Bethany Jesus rides a young donkey into Jerusalem. People along the way lay cloaks and small branches of trees in front of him and sing part of Psalm 118:25–26. The cheering crowds greeting Jesus as he enters Jerusalem add to the tension between him and the authorities.

In the three Synoptic Gospels, entry into Jerusalem is followed by the Cleansing of the Temple, in which Jesus expels the money changers from the Temple, accusing them of turning it into a den of thieves through their commercial activities. This is the only account of Jesus using physical force in any of the gospels. John 2:13–16 includes a similar narrative much earlier, and scholars debate whether the passage refers to the same episode. The Synoptics include a number of well-known parables and sermons, such as the Widow's mite and the Second Coming Prophecy, during the week that follows.

The Synoptics record conflicts that took place between Jesus and the Jewish elders during Passion Week in episodes such as the Authority of Jesus questioned and the Woes of the Pharisees, in which Jesus criticizes their hypocrisy. Judas Iscariot, one of the twelve apostles, approaches the Jewish elders and strikes a bargain with them, in which he undertakes to betray Jesus and hand him over to them for a reward of thirty silver coins.

Last Supper

Main article: Last Supper

See also: Jesus predicts his betrayal, Denial of Peter, and Last Supper in Christian art

The Last Supper, depicted in this 16th century painting by Joan de Joanes.

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, and Paul's First Epistle to the Corinthians (11:23–26), which was probably written before the gospels, also refers to it.

During the meal, 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 Matthew 26:26–29, Mark 14:22–25, Luke 22:19–20 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 is my blood of the covenant". 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 6:58–59 (the Bread of Life Discourse) has a eucharistic character and resonates with the "words of institution" used 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 (Luke 22:34, John 22:34). In Matthew and Mark, the prediction is made after the Supper, and he also predicts that all his disciples will desert him (Matthew 26:31–34, Mark 14:27–30).

The Gospel of John provides the only account of Jesus washing his disciples' feet before 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 Christological content.

Agony in the Garden, betrayal and arrest

Main articles: Agony in the Garden, Kiss of Judas, and Arrest of Jesus

See also: Holy Hour

A 17th-century depiction of the kiss of Judas and the arrest of Jesus by Caravaggio

After the Last Supper, Jesus, accompanied by his disciples, takes a walk to pray. Matthew and Mark identify the place as the garden of Gethsemane, while Luke identifies it as the Mount of Olives. Judas appears in the garden, accompanied by a crowd that includes the Jewish priests and elders and people with weapons, and kisses Jesus to identify him to the crowd, which then arrests Jesus.

In an attempt to stop them, one of Jesus' disciples uses a sword to cut off the ear a man in the crowd. Luke states that Jesus miraculously heals the wound, and John and Matthew report that Jesus criticizes the violent act, enjoining his disciples not to resist his arrest. In Matthew 26:52 Jesus says, "all they that take the sword shall perish with the sword".

After the arrest of Jesus, Jesus' disciples go into hiding, and Peter, when questioned, thrice denies knowing Jesus. After the third denial, he hears the rooster crow and recalls the prediction as Jesus turns to look at him. Peter then weeps bitterly.

Trials by the Sanhedrin, Herod and Pilate

Main articles: Sanhedrin trial of Jesus, Pilate's Court, Jesus at Herod's Court, and Crown of Thorns

See also: Jesus, King of the Jews and What is truth?

Jesus in the upper right hand corner, his hands bound behind, is being tried at the high priest's house and turns to look at Peter, in Rembrandt's 1660 depiction of Peter's denial.

After his arrest, Jesus is taken to the Sanhedrin, a Jewish judicial body. The gospel accounts differ on the details of the trials. In Matthew 26:57, Mark 14:53 and Luke 22:54, Jesus is taken to the high priest's house, where he is mocked and beaten that night. Early 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, the father-in-law of Caiaphas, and then to Caiaphas. All four gospels report the Denial of Peter, where Peter denies knowing Jesus three times before the rooster crows, as predicted by Jesus.

During the trials Jesus speaks very little, mounts no defense and gives very infrequent and indirect answers to the questions of the priests, prompting an officer to slap him. In Matthew 26:62 Jesus' unresponsiveness leads the high priest to ask him, "Answerest thou nothing?" In Mark 14:61 the high priest then asks Jesus, "Art thou the Christ, the Son of the Blessed?", and Jesus replies "I am", and then predicts the coming of the Son of Man. This provokes the high priest to tear his own robe in anger and to accuse Jesus of blasphemy. In Matthew and Luke, Jesus' answer is less direct. In Matthew 26:64 Jesus responds "Thou hast said", and in Luke 22:70 he says, "Ye say that I am".

Taking Jesus to Pilate's Court, the Jewish elders ask Roman governor Pontius Pilate to judge and condemn Jesus, accusing him of claiming to be the King of the Jews. 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 of this world", but he does not directly deny being the King of the Jews. In Luke 23:7–15 Pilate realizes that Jesus is a Galilean, thus coming under the jurisdiction of Herod Antipas. 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 a gorgeous robe on him to make him look like a king, and send him back to Pilate. Pilate then calls together the Jewish elders and says that he has "found no fault in this man".

As a Passover custom, Pilate allows one prisoner chosen by the crowd to be released. He gives the crowd a choice between Jesus and a murderer called Barabbas. Persuaded by the elders (Matthew 27:20), the mob chooses to release Barabbas and crucify Jesus. Pilate writes a sign that reads "Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews" (abbreviated as INRI in depictions) to be affixed to the cross of Jesus. He then scourges Jesus and send him to be cricified. The soldiers mock Jesus as the King of Jews by clothing him in a purple robe (which signifies royal status) and placing a Crown of Thorns on his head. They beat and taunt him before taking him to Calvary, also called Golgotha, for crucifixion.

Crucifixion and burial

Main articles: Crucifixion of Jesus and Entombment of Christ

See also: Sayings of Jesus on the cross and Crucifixion eclipse

Pietro Perugino's depiction of the Crucifixion as Stabat Mater, 1482

Jesus' crucifixion is described in all four canonical gospels. After the trials, Jesus makes his way to Calvary by a route known traditionally 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 wine mixed with gall, a concoction usually offered as a painkiller. Matthew and Mark state that he refused it.

The soldiers then crucify Jesus and cast lots for his clothes. Above Jesus' head on the cross is Pilate's inscription "Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews", and the soldiers and passers-by mock him about it. Jesus is crucified between two convicted thieves, one of whom rebukes Jesus, while the other defends him.

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. One soldier, traditionally identified as Saint Longinus, pierces Jesus' side with a lance, and water flows out. In Mark 15:39, impressed by the events, the Roman centurion affirms that Jesus was the Son of God.

On the same day, Joseph of Arimathea, with Pilate's permission and with Nicodemus' help, removes Jesus' body from the cross, wraps him in a clean cloth and buries him in a new rock-hewn tomb. In Matthew 27:62–66, on the following day the Jews ask Pilate for the tomb to be sealed with a stone and placed under guard to ensure the body will remain there.

Resurrection and ascension

Main articles: Resurrection of Jesus, Resurrection appearances of Jesus, and Ascension of Jesus

See also: Empty tomb, Great Commission, Second Coming, Resurrection of Jesus in Christian art, and Ascension of Jesus in Christian art

Mary Magdalene's encounter with Jesus after his resurrection, depicted by Alexander Andreyevich Ivanov in 1835

New Testament accounts of Jesus' resurrection state that on the first day of the week after the crucifixion (typically interpreted as a Sunday), his tomb is discovered to be empty and his followers encounter him risen from the dead. His followers arrive at the tomb early in the morning and meet either one or two beings (men or angels) dressed in bright robes. Mark 16:9 and John 20:15 indicate that Jesus appears to Mary Magdalene first, and Luke 16:9 states that she is one of the myrrhbearers.

After the discovery of the empty tomb, Jesus makes a series of appearances to the disciples. These include the Doubting Thomas episode and the appearance on the road to Emmaus, where Jesus meets two disciples. The catch of 153 fish is a miracle by the Sea of Galilee, after which Jesus encourages Peter to serve his followers.

Before he ascends into heaven, Jesus commissions his disciples to spread his teachings to all the nations of the world. Luke 24:51 states that Jesus is then "carried up into heaven". The Ascension account is elaborated in Acts 1:1–11 and mentioned 1 Timothy 3:16. In Acts, forty days after the Resurrection, as the disciples look on, "he was taken up; and a cloud received him out of their sight". 1 Peter 3:22 describes Jesus as being on "the right hand of God, having gone into heaven".

The Acts of the Apostles describe several appearances by Jesus after his Ascension. Acts 7:55 describes a vision experienced by Stephen just before his death. On the road to Damascus, 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, Ananias of Damascus is instructed to heal Paul. It is the last conversation with Jesus reported in the Bible until the Book of Revelation, in which a man named John receives a revelation from Jesus concerning the end times.

Historical views

Main articles: Historical Jesus and Quest for the historical Jesus

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. The second quest, which started in 1953, reached a plateau in the 1970s, and by 1992 the term "third quest" had been coined to characterize the new research approaches. In the third quest, research on the historical Jesus entered a new phase. According to Gerd Theissen and Dagmar Winter, the third quest gave greater emphasis to the methods of mainstream historical scholarship.

Donald Akenson has argued that, with very few exceptions, the historians of Yeshua have not followed sound historical practices. He has stated that there is an unhealthy reliance on consensus for propositions which should be based on primary sources or rigorous interpretation. He also holds that some of the criteria being used are faulty.

Existence

Main articles: Historicity of Jesus and Christ myth theory

See also: Josephus on Jesus and Tacitus on Jesus

A 1640 edition of the works of Josephus, a 1st-century Romano-Jewish historian who referred to Jesus

In antiquity, those who opposed Christianity never denied the existence of Jesus, and neither pagans nor Jews questioned it. While theological differences existed among early Christians as to the nature of Jesus—views included monophysitism, miaphysitism, Docetism and Nestorianism, for example—these were debates about Christian theology, not about the historical existence of Jesus.

The Christ myth theory, which questions the existence of Jesus, appeared in the 18th and 19th centuries and was debated during the 20th century. Some of its supporters contend that Jesus is a myth invented by early Christians. Supporters of the theory point to the lack of any known written references to Jesus during his lifetime, and to the relative scarcity of non-Christian references to him in the 1st century, to challenge the veracity of the existing accounts of him. Beginning in the 20th century, scholars such as G. A. Wells, Robert M. Price and Thomas Brodie have presented various arguments to support the Christ myth theory.

In response to the argument that the lack of the contemporary references implies that Jesus did not exist, Robert E. Van Voorst stated that, "as every good student of history knows", such arguments from silence are "specially perilous". Arguments from silence generally fail unless a fact is known to the author and is important enough and relevant enough to be mentioned in the context of a document. Bart D. Ehrman states that the view that Jesus had an immense impact on the society of his day, so that one might have expected contemporary accounts of his deeds, is completely unsound; he adds that although Jesus had a large impact on future generations, his impact on the society of his time was "practically nil". Van Voorst states that Roman sources came to consider Jesus only when the growth of Christianity came to be seen as a threat to Rome, and given that they viewed Christianity as a "superstition" they had little interest in its origins. Timothy Barnes states that at the turn of the first century, there was only a low level of interest in and awareness of Christians within the Roman Empire, resulting in the lack of any discernible mention of them by Roman authors.

Ehrman states that arguments based on the lack of physical or archeological evidence of Jesus and of any writings from him are poor, as there is no such evidence of "nearly anyone who lived in the first century". Teresa Okure states that the existence of historical figures is established by the analysis of later references to them, rather than by contemporary relics and remnants. A number of scholars caution against the use of such arguments from ignorance and consider them generally inconclusive or fallacious because of their reliance on "negative evidence". Douglas Walton states that arguments from ignorance can only lead to sound conclusions in cases where we can assume that our "knowledge-base is complete".

Non-Christian sources used to establish the historical existence of Jesus include the works of first-century Roman historians Josephus and Tacitus. Josephus scholar Louis H. Feldman has stated that "few have doubted the genuineness" of Josephus' reference to Jesus in Book 20 of the Antiquities of the Jews, and it is disputed only by a small number of scholars. Ehrman states that a wide range of sources, including Josephus and Tacitus, attest to Jesus' existence and crucifixion by the Romans.

Today, virtually all scholars of antiquity agree that Jesus existed and regard events such as his baptism and his crucifixion as historical. Van Voorst states that the idea of the non-historicity of Jesus has always been controversial and has consistently failed to convince scholars of many disciplines. Richard A. Burridge states: "I have to say that I do not know any respectable critical scholar who says [that Jesus did not exist] any more." Van Voorst and (separately) Michael Grant state that biblical scholars and classical historians now regard theories of the non-existence of Jesus as effectively refuted.

Archaeology

Main article: Jesus and archaeology

The ancient synagogue at Capernaum

Despite the lack of specific archaeological remains directly attributed to Jesus, 21st-century scholars have become increasingly interested in using archaeology to seek greater understanding of the socio-economic and political background to Jesus' life. James Charlesworth states that few modern scholars would now ignore the archaeological discoveries that cast light on life in Galilee and Judea during the time of Jesus. Jonathan Reed states that chief contribution of archaeology to the study of the historical Jesus is the reconstruction of his social world.

Historicity of events

Main article: Historicity of Jesus

See also: Cultural and historical background of Jesus, History of the Jews in the Roman Empire, Higher criticism, Textual criticism, and Historical reliability of the Gospels

Most modern scholars consider Jesus' baptism and crucifixion to be definite historical facts. James 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. Ehrman states that crucifixion on the orders of Pilate is the most certain fact about Jesus. John Dominic Crossan, Craig Blomberg and John P. Meier all aver the indisputability of Jesus' crucifixion. Meier adduces the criterion of embarrassment, saying that Christians would not have invented the painful death of their leader. He further states that a number of other criteria, such as the criterion of criterion of multiple attestation (confirmation by more than one source), the criterion of coherence (that it fits with other historical elements) and the criterion of rejection (that it is not disputed by ancient sources), help confirm the Crucifixion as a historical event.

P52, a papyrus fragment from a codex (c. 90–160), one of the earliest known New Testament manuscripts

Although most scholars agree on the historicity of the Crucifixion, they differ on the reason and context for it. For an example, both E.P. Sanders and Paula Fredriksen contend that Jesus' prediction of the Crucifixion is a Christian myth, a view opposed by B. F. Meyer, J. C. O'Neill, and N. T. Wright, who consider the the gospel accounts of Jesus' expectation of his death to be genuine.

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 in their entirety, 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 are a very small minority, whose views have hardly any academic following. Although no totally maximalist view is accepted as historical, 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.

Portraits of Jesus

Main article: Historical 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. Ben Witherington states that "there are now as many portraits of the historical Jesus as there are scholarly painters". Thus, the portraits of Jesus constructed in these quests often differ from each other, and from the image portrayed in the gospels. The attributes described in the portraits overlap, however, and scholars who differ on some attributes often agree on others.

The mainstream profiles in the third quest may be grouped according to whether they portray Jesus primarily as apocalyptic prophet, charismatic healer, Cynic philosopher, Jewish Messiah or egalitarian prophet of social change. Each of these types has a number of variants, and some scholars reject the basic elements of some portraits. In spite of the disagreements, Levine states that there is "a consensus of sorts" on the basic outline of Jesus' life, in that most scholars agree that Jesus was baptized by John the Baptist, debated with Jewish authorities on the subject of God, performed some healings, taught in parables, gathered followers, and was crucified on Pilate's orders.

Language, ethnicity and appearance

See also: Aramaic of Jesus and Race and appearance of Jesus

The representation of the ethnicity of Jesus has been influenced by cultural settings.

Jesus grew up in Galilee and much of his ministry took place there. The languages spoken in Galilee and Judea during the first century AD include Aramaic, Hebrew and Greek, with Aramaic predominant. Most scholars agree that in the early first century, Aramaic was the mother tongue of virtually all women in Galilee and Judea. Most scholars support the theory that Jesus spoke Aramaic and may also have spoken Hebrew and Greek. Dunn states that there is "substantial consensus" that Jesus gave most of his teachings in Aramaic.

In a review of the state of modern scholarship, 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". In the New Testament, written in Koine Greek, Jesus was referred to as Ioudaios (Judean) on three occasions, although he did not refer to himself as such. He was so described: by the Magi in Matthew 2, who referred to Jesus as βασιλεὺς τῶν Ἰουδαίων (basileus ton ioudaion; king of the Jews); by the Samaritan woman at the well in John 4 when Jesus was travelling out of Judea; and (in all four gospels) during the Passion, by the Romans, who also used the phrase basileus ton ioudaion.

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. The Synoptic Gospels include accounts of the Transfiguration, during which Jesus was glorified, with "his face shining as the sun", but they do not give details of his everyday appearance. The Book of Revelation describes the features of a glorified Jesus in a vision (1:13–16), but the vision refers to Jesus in heavenly form, after his death and resurrection.

By the 19th century, theories that Jesus was of Aryan descent, and in particular European, had been developed. These theories later appealed to those (such as Nazi theologians) who rejected Jesus' Jewish ethnicity, but they have not gained scholarly acceptance. By the 20th century, theories had also been proposed that Jesus was of black African descent, some of them based on the claim that Mary his mother was a descendant of black Jews.

Religious perspectives

Main article: Religious perspectives on Jesus

Apart from his own disciples and followers, the Jews of Jesus' day generally rejected him as the Messiah, as do Jews today. Christian theologians, ecumenical councils, reformers and others have written extensively about Jesus over the centuries. Christian sects and schisms have often been defined or characterized by their descriptions of Jesus. Meanwhile, Manichaeans, Gnostics, Muslims, Baha'is, and others have found prominent places for Jesus in their religions.

Christian views

Main articles: Jesus in Christianity and Christology

See also: Christian denominations

Although Christian views of Jesus vary, it is possible to summarize the key beliefs shared among major denominations, as stated in their catechetical or confessional texts. Christian views of Jesus are derived from various sources, but especially from the canonical gospels and from 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. In the New Testament, Jesus indicates that he is the Son of God by calling God his father. Despite the many shared beliefs, not all Christian denominations agree on all doctrines, and both major and minor differences on teachings and beliefs have persisted throughout Christianity for centuries.

Christians consider Jesus the Christ and believe that through his death and resurrection, humans can be reconciled with God and are thereby offered salvation and the promise of eternal life. Recalling the words of John the Baptist on the day after Jesus' baptism, these doctrines sometimes refer to to Jesus as the Lamb of God, who was crucified to fulfil his role as the servant of God. Jesus is thus seen as the new and last Adam, whose obedience contrasts with Adam's disobedience.

Most Christians believe that Jesus was both human and the Son of God. While there has been theological debate over the nature of Jesus, Trinitarian Christians generally believe that Jesus is the Logos, God's incarnation and God the Son, both fully divine and fully human. However, the doctrine of the Trinity is not universally accepted among Christians.

Christians worship not only Jesus himself, but also his name. Devotions to the Holy Name of Jesus go back to the earliest days of Christianity. These devotions and feasts exist both in Eastern and Western Christianity.

Jewish views

Main article: Judaism's view of Jesus

See also: Jesus in the Talmud

Judaism rejects the idea of Jesus being God, or a mediator to God, or part of a Trinity. Judaism 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. According to Jewish tradition, there were no prophets after Malachi, who delivered his prophesies around 420 BC.

The New Testament states that Jesus was criticized by the Jewish authorities of his time. The Pharisees and scribes criticized Jesus and his disciples for not observing the Mosaic Law, for not washing their hands before eating (Mark 7:1–23, Matthew 15:1–20), and for gathering grain on the Sabbath (Mark 2:23–3:6).

The Talmud includes stories that some consider to be accounts of Jesus. In one such story, Yeshu ha-nozri ("Jesus the Christian"), a lewd apostate, is executed by the Jewish high court for spreading idolatry and practicing magic. There is a wide spectrum of opinion among scholars concerning these stories. Some, such as Johann Maier, consider that only the accounts with the name Yeshu (יֵשׁוּ) refer to the Christian Jesus, and that these are late redactions. Others, such as Joseph Klausner, suggest that accounts related to Jesus in the Talmud may contain traces of the historical Jesus. However, the majority of contemporary historians consider that this material provides no information on the historical Jesus.

Judaic criticism of Jesus is long-standing. The Mishneh Torah, a late 12th century work of Jewish law written by Moses Maimonides, states that Jesus is a "stumbling block" who makes "the majority of the world err to serve a divinity besides God". This remains the consensus, even among more liberal Jews. Jonathan Waxman of the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism writes that Jews who believe Jesus is the Messiah have "crossed the line out of the Jewish community". Reform Judaism holds that "For us in the Jewish community anyone who claims that Jesus is their savior is no longer a Jew and is an apostate".

Islamic views

Main article: Jesus in Islam

Muhammad leads Jesus, Abraham, Moses and others in prayer. Medieval Persian miniature.

In Islam, Jesus (Arabic: عيسى ʿĪsā) is considered to be a Messenger of God and the Masih (Messiah) who was sent to guide the Children of Israel (banī isrā'īl) with a new scripture, the Injīl or Gospel. Belief in Jesus (and all other messengers of God) is requirement for being a Muslim. The Quran mentions Jesus by name 25 times—more often than Muhammad.

The Quran does not mention Joseph but does describe the Annunciation to Mary (Arabic: Maryam) by an angel 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 Allah. The Quran (21:91 and 66:12) states that God breathed His Spirit into Mary while she was chaste. In Islam, Jesus is called the "Spirit of God" because he was born through the action of the Spirit, but that belief does not include the doctrine of his pre-existence, as it does in Christianity.

Jesus has numerous titles in Islamic literature, the most common being al-Masīḥ (the Messiah). He is sometimes called the "Seal of the Israelite Prophets", because Muslims believe that Jesus was the last prophet sent by God to guide the Children of Israel. Jesus is seen in Islam as a precursor to Muhammad and is believed by Muslims to have foretold Muhammad's coming. 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.

The Quran emphasizes that Jesus was a mortal human who, like all other prophets, had been divinely chosen to spread God's message. Islamic texts emphasize a strict notion of monotheism (tawhīd) and forbid the association of partners with God, which would be idolatry (shirk). Like all prophets in Islam, Jesus is considered to have been a Muslim, as he preached that his followers should adopt the "straight path", as commanded by God.

Islam considers that Jesus was neither the incarnation nor the son of God. It denies that he was crucified, that he rose from the dead, and that he atoned for the sins of mankind. The Quran says that Jesus himself never claimed any of these things, and it predicts that at the Last Judgment, Jesus will deny having ever claimed divinity, and that God will vindicate him (Quran 5:116). According to Muslim traditions, Jesus was not crucified but was physically raised into the heavens by God. Muslims believe that Jesus will return to earth near the day of judgment to restore justice.

Ahmadiyya views

Main article: Jesus in Ahmadiyya Islam

The Ahmadiyya Movement believes that Jesus was a mortal man who survived his crucifixion and died a natural death at the age of 120 in Kashmir. According to Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, the 19th-century founder of the Ahmadiyya Movement, Jesus did not die on the cross but fell into a coma and later regained consciousness after being nursed back to health with aloe and myrrh. Mainstream Muslims reject this and various other Ahmadi beliefs, and some (for exmaple, in Pakistan) consider Ahmadis not to be Muslim.

Ahmadis believe that after his apparent death and resurrection, Jesus fled Judea and went east to further teach the gospel, and that he is buried at Roza Bal in Kashmir. Ahmadis reject the notion that Jesus traveled to India before his crucifixion. Mirza Ghulam Ahmad declared himself to be the second coming of Jesus for Christians and the Mujaddid (renewer of faith) for Muslims.

Bahá'í views

Bahá'í teachings consider Jesus to be a manifestation of God, a Bahá'í concept that refers to what are commonly called prophets—intermediaries between God and humanity, serving as messengers and reflecting God's qualities and attributes. The Bahá'í concept also emphasizes the simultaneous qualities of humanity and divinity. This concept is most similar to the Christian concept of incarnation. In Bahá'í thought, Jesus was a perfect incarnation of God's attributes, but Bahá'í teachings reject the idea that divinity was contained with a single human body, stating that, on the contrary, God transcends physical reality.

Bahá'u'lláh, the founder of the Bahá'í 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. Through this process Bahá'ís believe God's plan unfolds gradually as mankind matures, and that some of the manifestations arrive in specific fulfilment of the missions of previous ones. Thus, Bahá'ís believe that Bahá'u'lláh is the promised return of Christ.

Bahá'í teachings confirm many, but not all, aspects of the historical Jesus as portrayed in the gospels. Bahá'ís believe in the Virgin Birth and in the Crucifixion, but see the Resurrection and the miracles of Jesus as symbolic. Bahá'í thought also accepts Jesus as the Son of God.

Buddhist views

Main article: Buddhism and Christianity

Buddhist views of Jesus vary. Although Jesus is not a theological figure in Buddhism, some Buddhists, including Tenzin Gyatso, the 14th Dalai Lama, regard him as a bodhisattva who dedicated his life to the welfare of people. It is recorded in 101 Zen Stories that the 14th-century Zen master Gasan Jōseki, on hearing some of the sayings of Jesus in the gospels, remarked that he was "an enlightened man", and "not far from Buddhahood". On the other hand, Buddhist scholars such as Masao Abe and D. T. Suzuki have stated that the centrality of the crucifixion of Jesus to the Christian view of his life is totally irreconcilable with the foundations of Buddhism.

In a letter to his daughter Indira Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru wrote, "All over Central Asia, in Kashmir and Ladakh and Tibet and even farther north, there is a strong belief that Jesus or Isa traveled about there." The theory that an adult Jesus traveled to India first appeared in 1887, and it gave rise to other stories, but the author later confessed to fabricating it. Van Voorst states that modern scholarship has "almost unanimously agreed" that claims that Jesus traveled to Tibet, Kashmir or India contain "nothing of value". Marcus Borg states that suggestions that an adult Jesus traveled to Egypt or India and came into contact with Buddhism are "without historical foundation". Although modern parallels have been drawn between the teachings of Jesus and Buddha, these comparisons emerged after missionary contacts in the 19th century, and there is no historically reliable evidence of contacts between Buddhism and Jesus during his life. Crossan states that none of the theories presented to fill the 15–18 year gap between the early life of Jesus and the start of his ministry have been supported by modern scholarship.

Other views

See also: Criticism of Jesus

Manichaeism (which once counted Augustine of Hippo as a follower, although he later opposed it) accepted Jesus as a prophet, along with Gautama Buddha and Zoroaster. More recently, the New Age movement entertains a wide variety of views on Jesus. The New Age movement teaches that Christhood is something that all may attain. Theosophists, from whom many New Age teachings originated, refer to Jesus as the Master Jesus and believe that Christ, after various incarnations, occupied the body of Jesus. U.S. President Thomas Jefferson, a deist, created the Jefferson Bible, an early but incomplete gospel harmony that included only Jesus' ethical teachings, because he did not believe in Jesus' divinity, nor any other supernatural aspects of the Bible.

Critics of Jesus included Celsus in the second century and Porphyry, who wrote a 15-volume attack on Christianity as a whole. In the 19th century, Nietzsche was highly critical of Jesus, whose teachings he considered to be "anti-nature" in their treatment of topics such as sexuality. In the 20th century Bertrand Russell was also critical of Jesus, stating in Why I Am Not a Christian that Jesus was "not so wise as some other people have been, and He was certainly not superlatively wise".

Depictions

Main article: Depiction of Jesus

A very early image of Jesus, from Dura Europos, c. 235

Despite the lack of biblical references or historical records, during the last two millennia a wide range of depictions of Jesus have appeared, often influenced by cultural settings, political circumstances and theological contexts. As in other Christian art, the earliest depictions date to the late second or early third century, and surviving images are found especially in the Catacombs of Rome.

The Byzantine Iconoclasm acted as a barrier to developments in the East, but by the ninth century, art was permitted again. The Transfiguration was a major theme in the East, and every Eastern Orthodox monk who had trained in icon painting had to prove his craft by painting an icon depicting it. 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. The Protestant Reformation brought a revival of aniconism in Christianity, 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. On the other hand, 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.

Relics associated with Jesus

Main article: Relics associated with Jesus

Secondo Pia's 1898 negative of the photograph of the Shroud of Turin

A number of relics have been claimed to be associated with Jesus, however their authenticity is disputed. 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 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, receive only a modest number of pilgrims, others such as the Shroud of Turin (which is associated with an approved Catholic devotion to the Holy Face of Jesus) receive millions, recently including Pope John Paul II and Pope Benedict XVI.

See also

• Views on Jesus
  • Jesuism
  • Jews for Jesus
  • Lost years of Jesus
• Related lists
  • List of books about Jesus
  • List of founders of religious traditions
  • List of people claimed to be Jesus
  • List of people who have been considered deities

Bibliography

• Anderson, Paul N.; Just, Felix; Thatcher, Tom (2007). John, Jesus, and History, Volume 1: Critical Appraisals of Critical Views. ISBN 978-1-58983-293-0. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Barnett, Paul (2002). Jesus & the Rise of Early Christianity: A History of New Testament Times. ISBN 0-8308-2699-8. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Blomberg, Craig (2009). Jesus and the Gospels: An Introduction and Survey. ISBN 0-8054-4482-3. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Bockmuehl, Markus N. A. (2001). Cambridge companion to Jesus. Cambridge University Press. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Boring, M. Eugene; Craddock, Fred B. (2004). The people's New Testament commentary. Westminster John Knox Press. ISBN 978-0-664-22754-8. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Bromiley, Geoffrey W. (1988). International Standard Bible Encyclopedia. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing. ISBN 978-0-8028-3785-1. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Brown, Raymond E. (1977). The birth of the Messiah: a commentary on the infancy narratives in Matthew and Luke. Doubleday. ISBN 978-0-385-05907-7. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Brown, Raymond E. (1988). The Gospel and Epistles of John: A Concise Commentary. ISBN 978-0-8146-1283-5. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Brown, Raymond E. (1994). The Death of the Messiah: from Gethsemane to the Grave: A Commentary on the Passion Narratives in the Four Gospels. New York: Doubleday, Anchor Bible Reference Library. ISBN 978-0-385-19397-9. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Burridge, Richard A.; Gould, Graham (2004). Jesus Now and Then. ISBN 0-8028-0977-4. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Carson, D. A.; Moo, Douglas J.; Morris, Leon (1992). An Introduction to the New Testament. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Carter, Warren (2003). Pontius Pilate: portraits of a Roman governor. ISBN 978-0-8146-5113-1. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Comings, Jill B. (2004). Aspects of the liturgical year in Cappadocia (325–430). Continuum International Publishing Group. ISBN 0-8204-7464-9. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Cox, Steven L.; Easley, Kendell H (2007). Harmony of the Gospels. ISBN 978-0-805-49444-0. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Crossan, John D. (1993). The Historical Jesus: The Life of a Mediterranean Jewish Peasant. New York: HarperSanFrancisco. ISBN 0-06-061629-6. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Crossan, John D.; Watts, Richard G. (1999). Who Is Jesus?. Westminster John Knox Press. ISBN 0-664-25842-5. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Davies, W. D.; Allison, Dale C. (2004). Matthew 1-7. Continuum International Publishing Group. ISBN 978-0-567-08355-5. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Donahue, John R.; Harrington, Daniel J. (2002). The Gospel of Mark. Liturgical Press. ISBN 978-0-8146-5804-8. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Doninger, Wendy (1999). Merriam-Webster's Encyclopedia of World Religions. Merriam-Webster. ISBN 978-0-87779-044-0. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Dunn, James D.G. (2003). Jesus Remembered. ISBN 0-8028-3931-2. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Düzgün, Şaban Ali (2004). Uncovering Islam: Questions and Answers about Islamic Beliefs and Teachings. The Presidency of Religious Affairs. Ankara: Diyanet Isleri Baskanligi. ISBN 978-975-19-3636-3. Retrieved 2012-10-24. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Eddy, Paul R.; Boyd, Gregory A. (2007). The Jesus legend: a case for the historical reliability of the synoptic Jesus tradition. Baker Academic. ISBN 978-0-8010-3114-4. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Ehrman, Bart (1999). Jesus: Apocalyptic Prophet of the New Millennium. Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-512474-X. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Ehrman, Bart (2011). Forged: writing in the name of God – Why the Bible's Authors Are Not Who We Think They Are. HarperCollins. ISBN 978-0-06-207863-6. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Evans, Craig A. (2003). The Bible Knowledge Background Commentary: Matthew-Luke. David C Cook. ISBN 978-0-7814-3868-1. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Evans, Craig A. (2005). The Bible Knowledge Background Commentary: John's Gospel, Hebrews-Revelation. David C Cook. ISBN 978-0-7814-4228-2. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Evans, Craig A. (2012). Jesus and His World: The Archaeological Evidence. Westminster John Knox Press. ISBN 978-0-664-23413-3. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Fredriksen, Paula (2000). Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews: A Jewish Life and the Emergence of Christianity. New York: Vintage. ISBN 0-679-76746-0. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Freedman, David N. (2000). Eerdmans Dictionary of the Bible. Amsterdam University Press. ISBN 90-5356-503-5. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Grant, Michael (1977). Jesus: An Historian's Review of the Gospels. Scribner's. ISBN 978-0-684-14889-2. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Green, Joel B. (1997). The gospel of Luke: New International Commentary on the New Testament Series. Grand Rapids, MI: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing. ISBN 978-0-8028-2315-1. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Grudem, Wayne (1994). Systematic Theology: An Introduction to Biblical Doctrine. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan. ISBN 0-310-28670-0. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Lee, Dorothy A. (2005). Transfiguration. ISBN 978-0-8264-7595-4. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Houlden, J. Leslie (2003). Jesus in history, thought, and culture: an encyclopedia, Volume 1. ABC-CLIO. ISBN 978-1-57607-856-3. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Houlden, J. Leslie (2006). Jesus: the complete guide. ISBN 0-8264-8011-X. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Köstenberger, Andreas J.; Kellum, L. Scott; Quarles, Charles L (2009). The Cradle, the Cross, and the Crown: An Introduction to the New Testament. ISBN 978-0-8054-4365-3. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Levine, Amy-Jill (2006). "Introduction". In Levine, Amy-Jill; Allison, Dale C.; Crossan, John D. (eds.). The Historical Jesus in Context. Princeton Univ Press. ISBN 978-0-691-00992-6. {{cite encyclopedia}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Liddell, Henry G.; Scott, Robert (1889). An Intermediate Greek–English Lexicon: The Seventh Edition of Liddell and Scott's Greek–English Lexicon. Oxford: Clarendon Press. ISBN 978-1-84902-595-9. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Maier, Paul L. (1989). "The Date of the Nativity and Chronology of Jesus". In Vardaman, Jerry; Yamauchi, Edwin M. (eds.). Chronos, kairos, Christos: nativity and chronological studies. ISBN 0-931464-50-1. {{cite encyclopedia}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Maier, Paul L. (1991). In the Fullness of Time. Kregel. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Majerník, Ján; Ponessa, Joseph; Manhardt, Laurie W. (2005). The Synoptics: Matthew, Mark, Luke. ISBN 1-931018-31-6. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• McClymond, Michael J. (2004). Familiar stranger: an introduction to Jesus of Nazareth. ISBN 0-8028-2680-6. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Meier, John P. (1991). A Marginal Jew: Rethinking the Historical Jesus. Vol. 1. New York: Anchor Doubleday. ISBN 0-385-26425-9. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Meier, John P. (1994). A Marginal Jew: Rethinking the Historical Jesus. Vol. 2. New York: Anchor Doubleday. ISBN 0-385-46992-6. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Meier, John P. (2006). "How do we decide what comes from Jesus". In Dunn, James D. G.; McKnight, Scot (eds.). The Historical Jesus in Recent Research. ISBN 1-57506-100-7. {{cite encyclopedia}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Mills, Watson E.; Bullard, Roger A. (1998). Mercer dictionary of the Bible. Macon, GA: Mercer University Press. ISBN 0-86554-373-9. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Morris, Leon (1992). The Gospel according to Matthew. Grand Rapids, MI: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing. ISBN 978-0-85111-338-8. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Niswonger, Richard L. (1992). New Testament History. ISBN 0-310-31201-9. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Pannenberg, Wolfhart (1968). Jesus—God and Man. S.C.M. Press. ISBN 978-0-334-00783-8. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Powell, Mark A. (1998). Jesus as a Figure in History: How Modern Historians View the Man from Galilee. ISBN 0-664-25703-8. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Price, Robert M. (2009). "Jesus at the Vanishing Point". In Beilby, James K.; Eddy, Paul R. (eds.). The Historical Jesus: Five Views. InterVarsity. ISBN 0-281-06329-X. {{cite encyclopedia}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Rahner, Karl (2004). Encyclopedia of theology: a concise Sacramentum mundi. ISBN 0-86012-006-6. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Rausch, Thomas P. (2003). Who is Jesus?: an introduction to Christology. Liturgical Press. ISBN 978-0-8146-5078-3. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Redford, Douglas (2007). The Life and Ministry of Jesus: The Gospels. ISBN 0-7847-1900-4. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Reed, Jonathan L. (2002). Archaeology and the Galilean Jesus: a re-examination of the evidence. ISBN 1-56338-394-2. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Sanders, E.P. (1993). The Historical Figure of Jesus. London: Allen Lane Penguin Press. ISBN 978-0-7139-9059-1. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Schnackenburg, Rudolf (2002). The Gospel of Matthew. ISBN 0-8028-4438-3. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Stanton, Ghraham (2002). The Gospels and Jesus. Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-924616-5. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Sykes, S. W. (2007). Paul's understanding of the death of Jesus. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-04460-X. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help); Unknown parameter |encyclopedia= ignored (help)
• Talbert, Charles H. (2010). Matthew. Baker Academic. ISBN 978-0-8010-3192-2. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Theissen, Gerd; Merz, Annette (1998). The historical Jesus : a comprehensive guide. Minneapolis: Fortress Press. ISBN 0-8006-3122-6. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Van Voorst, Robert E (2000). Jesus Outside the New Testament: An Introduction to the Ancient Evidence. Eerdmans Publishing. ISBN 0-8028-4368-9. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Vermes, Géza (1973). Jesus the Jew. Philadelphia: Fortress Press. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Vermes, Geza (2004). The authentic gospel of Jesus. London: Penguin Books. ISBN 978-0-14-100360-3. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Vermes, Géza (2006). "The Nativity: History and Legend". London: Penguin. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help); Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Wright, N. T. (1998). HarperCollins. {{cite book}}: |work= ignored (help); Invalid |ref=harv (help); Missing or empty |title= (help)
• Walvoord, John F.; Zuck, Roy B. (1983). The Bible Knowledge Commentary: New Testament. David C Cook. ISBN 978-0-88207-812-0. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Wells, George A. (2004). Can We Trust the New Testament?. Open Court Publishing. ISBN 978-0-8126-9567-0. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Theissen, Gerd; Winter, Dagmar (2002). The Quest for the Plausible Jesus: The Question of Criteria. ISBN 0-664-22537-3. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Vine, WE (1940). Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words. Old Tappan, NJ: Fleming H. Revell Company. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Witherington, Ben (1997). The Jesus Quest: The Third Search for the Jew of Nazareth. ISBN 0-8308-1544-9. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Witherington, Ben (1998). "Primary Sources". Christian History. {{cite journal}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help); Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)
• Zanzig, Thomas (2000). Jesus of history, Christ of faith. ISBN 0-88489-530-0. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)

External links

• Complete Sayings of Jesus Christ in parallel Latin and English
• "Jesus Christ." Encyclopædia Britannica. 2009. Encyclopædia Britannica Online. 12 Nov. 2009
• From Jesus to Christ: The First Christians – documentary about Jesus' life and the early Church.
• The Jewish Roman World of Jesus
• Template:Worldcat id