‘Jesus Was Unique’ Flashcards
Intro DC
This essay will argue that Jesus was unique as he was god incarnate and taught morals that were unique in his time.
PE 1
The first reason to support the idea that Jesus was unique is he was god incarnate, which separates him from other political revolutionaries and + moral teachers (the other 2 aspects of Jesus)
Without being god incarnate (“I and the father are one”) he could just be someone trying to stir things up and is just like everyone else (nothing unique). The fact he is god incarnate makes his teachings unique as they are the words of god (logos) - described as word of god “in the beginning there was the word … and the word was god” therefore teachings are infallible, other moral teachers can’t claim this (unique). Also been other prophets but is even unique compared to them as only he claimed to be the son of god - gives ultimate status
A 1
This is convincing as only been one god incarnate (that has been believed worldwide through all time periods) which makes Jesus unique in that sense. Also the fact he is not human but divine gives him the ultimate status of uniqueness as there are no other examples of this. Also performed miracles throughout life which proves he is unique as no other examples of this
C 1
This argument can be refuted by the argument that there were plenty of other preachers at the time who claimed to be the messiah, there is no more evidence for Jesus’ claims than for theirs.
E.g Simon magus - Samaritan who hinted he was Christ + were claims he performed miracles and Simon Bar Kokhba - also recognised as the messiah + was a Jewish military leader. What’s to say j had more authority over these claims j was also not proven as the messiah. Making him not unique in claiming to be the messiah
E 1
This counter argument fails however as Jesus is the only one that has been remembered and followed for many many years after he died. The fact he is still followed and his teachings used today cements the fact he is unique as there are few other examples of this across the world. If wasn’t unique his ideas would be faded in popularity over the years but Christianity has grown astronomically since the time period of Jesus.
PE 2
The second reason to support the view that Jesus was unique is the morals Jesus taught were definitely unique in his time.
In the sermon on the mount Jesus adds an extra layer to morality by adding the idea of inner purity, specifically to the 10 commandments “do not commit murder” but now I tell you: if you are angry with your brother you will be brought to trial”. By doing this j expands parameters of sin which is unusual in Jewish times as Pharisees were only concerned with actions + outward behaviours
Story of the lost son was also controversial as the story has a message of forgiveness (“your brother was dead, but now he is alive, he was lost, but now he has been found”)despite there being multiple instances in the story where it is controversial. (E.g son didn’t honour father, went to non-Jewish land, came into contact with pigs). Shows that for god there is no sin that can’t be forgiven which is completely contradictory to Jewish teachings as would’ve killed or ostracised him
A 2
This is convincing as the fact his teachings were so different and controversial to those at the time (so much so he was arrested and crucified) prove that he was unique and offered a different perspective to the opinions and laws at the time. Also allows people who dont believe he is god incarnate to accept he is unique as doesn’t require belief in god to be able to see his ideas were different
C 2
This argument could be refuted by the argument that nowadays, the morals he taught are no different from other great leaders
E.g Nelson Mandela’s approach to leadership was rooted in forgiveness and the fact forgiveness can bring about healing. Jesus’ overarching message was forgiveness “ love your neighbour as yourself”
E.g mlk believed in non-violence to bring peace and j also preached this “blessed are the peacemakers” and promoted peace
Shows these are not unique ideas and that they have been repeated throughout history.
E 2
This counter argument however fails as Jesus came before both Mandela and mlk who both are inspired by Jesus and his messages. Suggesting that whilst his ideas are no longer unique as people are inspired by him, they were unique enough to begin with to cause people to be inspired by him. Were unique when he started preaching
