On October 7 I began teaching the class “Jesus and His Teachings” at First Unity of St. Petersburg.  In this class, we’re exploring the man Jesus and his teachings from a variety of angles – most notably  history and New Thought metaphysics.  In this series of posts, I’ll be presenting what I have shared in class and providing links so that you can further your own study on the topic.  Please note that you could, and many have, earned a PhD in this topic! Fortunately, there is an amazing array of resources available to laypeople to guide your independent study.

The first question to address when studying Jesus is:  What do we really know about the historical person Jesus? In other words, beyond the Bible, what records exist that document his existence?  To some people, merely asking the question is tantamount to heresy, but to those of us Unity, we understand that asking questions leads to greater understanding.

The short answer to the question is: not much. Since most people are familiar with the Bible, let’s start with that; however, I’ll put the Gospels and the writings of Paul in chronological order (the order in which they were written).  This order is generally accepted among both academicians and theologians.  What you’ll immediately note is that the order is different than what is found in the Bible.

The letters of Paul:    mid 50’s – mid 60’s c.e. (c.e. = common era)

Mark: about 70 c.e.

Matthew: about 80 c.e.

Luke/Acts: about 85 c.e. (Same author of both books.  Acts is generally believed to be a continuation of Luke)

John:  about 90 c.e.

Here are some facts of note:

• Although Paul says in Galatians 1:18-24 that he spent 15 days with “James, the Lord’s brother,” Paul never mentions the details of Jesus’ birth or death.  All he says about Jesus’ birth is that “God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law.” Galatians 4:4-5.  In other words, Jesus was born a Jew (under the law) and had a mother.  In fact, Paul’s theology is based on his experience of the risen Christ, not the teachings of Jesus the man. Paul says in 1 Corinthians 15 that “Christ died for our sins, was buried, and on the third day raised.”  No details about the betrayal, trial, etc.
• Mark doesn’t mention details of Jesus’ birth either.  And, Mark’s gospel ends with the crucifixion; however, Mark has two endings.  The second ending is believed to be a later addition to the original.  The shorter version is believed to be how the gospel was written.
• Matthew and Luke have the birth narratives and genealogies.  Matthew’s genealogy goes back to King David.  Matthew is making the point that Jews who follow Jesus are truly in alignment with the prophecy that the Messiah will come from David’s lineage.  Luke’s genealogy goes back to Adam, making Luke’s point that Jesus is related to everyone.  Luke has a more universal tone than the other gospels.
• Also note that 90% of the content of Mark is repeated verbatim in both Matthew and Luke.
• Mark, Matthew and Luke are called synoptic gospels from the Greek term meaning “with the same eye, or perspective.”  They tell the story of Jesus’ life and ministry from similar perspectives.
• John is so different in its perspective that it is often considered a “mystical” interpretation of the life of Jesus.  It was also written nearly 70 years after the crucifixion.  There is no birth narrative in John; however, it opens with an apparent identification of Jesus as the “word” who was with God from the beginning.
• Forty years passed between the crucifixion of Jesus and the writing of the first gospel, Mark.  So, the stories of Jesus were passed orally for 40 years before they were written.
• None of the gospel writers was a disciple or an eyewitness to the life of Jesus.  This is the biggest misconception people have about the Bible.

To sum up the above, the Bible gives scant information about the historical man Jesus.  In the next entry, we’ll examine what historical non-Bible references say about the man Jesus.