Person of Jesus Christ Flashcards
Jesus as teacher of wisdom
what does jesus’ affirmation of life mean?
ludwid wittgenstein was convinced by leo tolstoy’s presentation of christ
for wittgenstein the truth of christianity lay not in god’s promise of redemption in the afterlife by living as honestly as possible
wittgenstein believed jesus was a ‘form of life’ as a way of living simply
Jesus as teacher of wisdom
what was jesus’ moral teaching?
sermon on the mount
gospel presents jesus as the new moses with the role of displaying the law to humans
Jesus as teacher of wisdom
what was jesus’ moral teaching on forgiveness?
“turn the other cheek”
parable of the lost son
Jesus as teacher of wisdom
motive and inner purity?
although jesus was critical of the pharisees, he admired those of them who were trying to achieve spiritual holiness or ‘righteousness’
he taught morality was about developing one’s character
“be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly father is perfect” (matthew 5:48)
Jesus as teacher of wisdom
personal responsibility?
the sabbath day is the day of rest.
morality requires personal responsibility and not blind obedience to rules
jesus as son of god, point 1
- Christology from above – Jesus was sent by God as a saviour for humanity, in order to bring about the Kingdom of Heaven and restore the human-God relationship and spread God’s spirit. Suffering servant – “bore the sin of many” (Isaiah 53). Numerous passages in the Gospels to support his divinity – “my kingdom is not from this world” (John 18)
- Ultimately belief must be rooted in the unique Christian narrative and the Christ-event i.e. the resurrection; if Jesus is separated from his divinity, manifested in the resurrection as the miraculous affirmation of Jesus’ relationship with God, Jesus remains no different from other prophets.
response to son of god, Darius, kant and ep sanders
- Jesus does not seem to be aware of his divinity, preferring alternative messianic titles such as Son of Man
- Although resurrection affirms the unique father-son relationship its literal significance can be questioned. It seems one must take a relationist approach – 1054 CE Great Schism, Arius points out the absoluteness and singularity of God, who is transcendent and not part of this earth and therefore beyond human comprehension. Jesus is thus a human manifestation of God/ morality – represents God but is not God in himself (never know if God exists), much like Kant explains how our phenomenal realm represents the noumenal realm.
- Although the resurrection suggests affirmation of the Father-Son relationship, in line with the Nicene Creed claiming Father and Son are the same substance (homoousios), E P Sanders argues it is impossible to know the literal significance or uniqueness of Jesus’ relationship with God.
ability to perform miracles as evidence for son of god
- Numerous passages in the Gospels referring to Jesus’ miracles, demonstrating his literal divine powers and authority, thus suggesting he is God not human
- Mark 6 shows Jesus to walk on water and calm the winds, in a similar fashion to how God commands over nature in Genesis, John 9 Jesus miraculously heals the blind man
miracles are only symbolic
- One is able to reference Hume’s work on miracles to question the testimony of Biblical writers – humans are drawn to the bizarre and unusual. However miracles still have significance, if not necessarily a literal one…
- N T Wright argues Jesus’ healing miracles are symbolic of his reconciliation of socially outcast persons, as a metaphor of God’s forgiveness and inclusivity (mediator of the divine) e.g. John 9 can be read in a wholly metaphorical sense – Jesus heals spiritual or moral blindness, not literal blindness.
jesus as teacher, point 2
- In the Gospels there is much evidence of Jesus’ teachings e.g. forgiveness in the Parable of the Lost Son, and the idea that forgiveness is about a radical change of mindset (metanoia) not just merely saying you forgive someone.
- John Hick “gift to the world” – Jesus as a teacher means Xnity is not in competition with other religions, aid interfaith dialogue
teacher is meaningless without other other labels
Yet without placing Jesus as a teacher alongside other titles such as Son of God, Christianity becomes secularised and Jesus is left like any other inspirational teacher.
• Many Christians would choose to follow Jesus example BECAUSE he is connected with the Father – what makes his teaching unique…
counter to teacher being meaningless, inner purity
• Equally in the Sermon on the Mount Jesus outlines the importance of motivation and inner purity for moral actions; he targets the Pharisees and religious authorities who merely follow religious customs and do not act out of moral goodness.
Living the moral life is liberation from sin – symbolic resurrection
• Tolstoy focused more on Jesus’ renunciation of worldly pleasures and the example of the moral life, such as in Sermon on the Mount
Wittgenstein admired Jesus for his clarity and authenticity – saw him as the embodiment of the external moral and inner spiritual life “if you try to help other people you will in the end find your way to God” (God = moral action, not a reality)
jesus as political liberator, point 3
- Throughout Jesus’ ministry he can be found to show preferential option for the poor and marginalised – the concept of reversal in the Gospels (e.g. Parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus), Mark 1 and 8 he heals individuals with leprosy typically classed as unclean, entry in Jerusalem on a donkey during Passover have distinct messianic overtones (Zechariah 9)
- His influence and value in this sense can be seen through liberation theology in South America 1960s, with Jesus portrayal as a liberator inspiring liberation theologians such as Gustavo Gutierrez to actively change the structures of society in order to liberate the poor and oppressed
- Reza Aslan’s book ‘Zealot’ and S.G.F. Brandon’s study ‘Jeaous and the Zealots’ highlight his revolutionary nature was watered down for the gentile Roman empire – Jesus was concerned with all being equally valued in society, as equals in the eyes of God…
political liberator is too narrow
Political liberator is too narrow in scope and does not account for the wider spiritual liberation Christ personifies. Has to be a liberator from sin (Christ event)
• Paul in Corinthians 15, “if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins”
• He must have spiritual and divine connection to the Father to remain authentically Christian – liberator Jesus secularises Christianity, as seen through Liberation Theology based on a SECULART THEORY – MARXISM!
moral action liberates, bonhoefferr + wittgenstein
Moral action is what liberates us (Bonhoeffer) – not belief in theological doctrine
• Wittgenstein and religion as a “form of life” – “if you and I are to live religious lives, it mustn’t be that we talk a lot about religion, but that our manner of life is different”
• Jesus himself put great emphasis on the need to put the self last and be servant of all, “bore the sin of many”; I think his crucifixion was symbolic of how we should forgive and act selflessly and help “set free the oppressed”
