Let's Talk About Jesus

There is little doubt that Jesus is the most talked about, written about, and influential figure in history. His life and message have powerfully impacted the world he lived in and continue to do so for over two thousand years. Granted, there are other religious figures, such as the Buddha, who have been a remarkable influence on the world. Yet the movement that became the Christian Church has spread from the Middle East to cover almost the entire planet.

So just who was this Jesus? What do we know about him? Well, for one thing, if we read the New Testament — our only real source of information about Jesus —we learn very little about the person. Over the centuries, there have been many suppositions and ideas, but none with any legitimacy. There are a couple of pseudo-Gospels that purport to tell stories about the young Jesus. However, thankfully, these are obviously written long after Jesus' death and have no veracity. I say that because the young Jesus that they describe is quite cruel, using "powers" to harm and kill other children.

We do not even know for sure when or where Jesus was born. The date we use was arbitrarily chosen by the Church to provide consistency and to co-opt a pagan festival that was already entrenched in the popular mind. As to where he was born, the Gospels of Luke and Matthew suggest Bethlehem. However, Mark, the oldest Gospel, does not mention it. It is likely that Matthew and Luke believed Bethlehem was the location because it aligned with some OT prophecies.

All of that being said, I do not think that the birth narrative is all that important to Christians today. What is, or should be, important is the Kerygma--the message of Jesus.

We do know from the Gospels that Jesus attended a wedding, had friends as well as disciples, and was supportive of women. We know that he was well-versed in the Torah and could debate with the authorities on interpretation. We know that he could be angry, sad, and compassionate. In other words, a very human person.

We also know that he was committed to his ministry and sought to change how people thought about what the law was and how it should be fulfilled. He wanted to impress on them the priority of how they lived. Over the centuries, the Church has emphasized death and life after. This has led to some willingness to tolerate great inequities, which I suspect Jesus is not happy with. His emphasis on the poor and the obligation to lift them up is not ignored by the Church, but it is not required by the Church.

So now let's look at the message or Kerygma.

As we look at the message of Jesus, we have to remember that each of the four Gospels paints a different picture of Jesus. While the message is essentially the same, each has a different spin. I will deal with that more fully in the Biblical section of this site.