M08b
The first reference to Jesus concerns James and his unlawful execution by the Jewish High Priest Ananus around 62 CE. Josephus writes:
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But this younger Ananus, who, as we have told you already, took the high priesthood, was a bold man in his temper, and very insolent; he was also of the sect of the Sadducees, who are very rigid in judging offenders, above all the rest of the Jews, as we have already observed; when, therefore, Ananus was of this disposition, he thought he had now a proper opportunity [to exercise his authority]. Festus was now dead, and Albinus was but upon the road; so he assembled the Sanhedrin of judges, and brought before them the brother of Jesus, who was hailed Christ, whose name was James, and some others, [or, some of his companions]; and when he had formed an accusation against them as breakers of the law, he delivered them to be stoned (Antiquities 20.9.1 [§199-200]).
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As is the case with the Roman sources, Jesus is a tangential figure, as is his brother James in this account. The primary focus in this context is the Governor Albinus, the successor of Festus.
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Alleged bust of Josephus, Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek, Copenhagen.
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The second reference to Jesus by Josephus is more descriptive. However, this passage is clouded in controversy because it contains material that is often attributed to later Christian scribes who wanted to show that Josephus believed Jesus to be the Christ. Unfortunately, we do not have the original copies of Josephus’ writings, but only copies that were probably made by Christian scribes. In the following quotation from Josephus, the square brackets indicate those portions that most scholars believe came from Christian scribes.
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Now, there was about this time Jesus, a wise man, [if it be lawful to call him a man,] for he was a doer of wonderful works—a teacher of such men who receive the truth with pleasure. He drew over to him both many of the Jews, and many of the Gentiles. [He was the Christ]. When Pilate, at the suggestion of the principal men amongst us, had condemned him to the cross, those that loved him at the first did not forsake him, [for he appeared to them alive again the third day, as the divine prophets had foretold these and ten thousand other wonderful things concerning him]; and the tribe of Christians, so named from him, are not extinct at this day (Antiquities, 18.3.3 §63-64).
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Apart from the Christian emendations, Josephus found Jesus significant enough to have mentioned him. However, in the broader context, Jesus is not the subject. He is incorporated into this section because it is primarily about the rule of Pontius Pilate.
Mara bar Serapion. Perhaps the least significant of these sources is a letter by a late first century Syriac Stoic named Mara bar Serapion. The use of “bar” (Aramaic for “son of”) in his name indicates that he may have been Jewish. There is very little known about him, but his letter from prison to his son about the persecution of wise men alludes to Jesus, who is not explicitly mentioned. The letter reads,
For what advantage did the Atheneans gain by the murder of Socrates, the recompense of which they received in famine and pestilence? Or the people of Samos by the burning of Pythagoras, because in one hour our country was entirely covered in sand? Or the Jews [gain] by the death of their wise king, because from that same time their kingdom was taken away? (from Mara’s letter to his son, c. 73 CE).
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See the entire letter at http://www.tertullian.org/fathers/spicilegium_9_mara.htm
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11th century manuscript leaf from the Mishnah, Berakhot 4-5. From the Kaufmann collection (ms50).
Library of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences.
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Mishnah, Tosefta, Talmud, Midrashim. Between 200 CE and 600 CE, the practices and beliefs of the Jewish people were recorded in a collection of works that are the foundation for what is known as formative Judaism, which is the root of modern Judaism. These works are polemical in nature, containing dialogues among rabbis on numerous topics concerning Jewish religious life. The Mishnah (“repetition”), which is the earliest compilation (c. 200CE), is a collection of religious and legal practices. The Tosefta (“supplement”) is a commentary, explanation, and expansion of the Mishnah, published about a generation or two after the Mishnah. The Talmud (“learning”), which most people have heard of today, takes two forms, the Babylonian Talmud (ca. 500-550 CE) and the Jerusalem (also called Palestinian) Talmud (ca. 400-425 CE). Both are extensive, multi-volume interpretations and expansions of the Mishnah and Tosefta, and today serve as the authoritative collections of Jewish tradition. Lastly, midrash (“searching”), or the plural midrashim, refers to the interpretation of scripture by the rabbis after the destruction of the Temple in 70 CE. The midrashim are commentaries on the Jewish scriptures from approximately the second century through the Middle Ages.
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“Flight into Egypt.” Altarpiece commissioned by Pella Strozzi for his family chapel in the Church of Santa Trinita, 1423. Uffizi Museum, Florence.
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Since all of these writings contain some references to the first century, especially the beliefs and practices of the Pharisees, they have been regarded as a possible source for the reconstruction of Jesus. They agree with the Gospels that Jesus spent time in Egypt, that he was from Nazareth, that he was opposed by the Jewish establishment, that he performed supernatural deeds, that he preached the kingdom, that he was regarded by some as a king, and that he was killed during Passover.
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But are rabbinic sources historically reliable? They certainly contain valuable information for reconstructing some of the Jewish groups, beliefs, and practices before the destruction of the Temple, but when they make the occasional mention of Jesus, their historical reliability is debatable because these writings emerged several hundred years after Jesus. Nevertheless, some scholars consider these sources as useful, especially those references that correspond to the Gospel material.
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The following examples of references to Jesus, who is sometimes called Yeshu or Yeshu ha-Nosri, are either legendary or appear to be influenced by the Christian Gospels, and thus are considered by historians as second- or third-hand sources.
On the Life of Jesus
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When king Jannai [104-78 bce] slew our rabbis, R. Joshua and Jesus fled to Alexandria of Egypt. On the resumption of peace...he arose, went, and found himself in a certain inn, where great honour was shown him. “How beautiful is this innkeeper!” Thereupon Jesus observed, “Rabbi, her eyes are narrow.” “Wretch,” he rebuked him, “do you engage yourself thus?” He sounded four hundred trumpets and excommunicated him. He [Jesus] came before him many times pleading, “Receive me!” But he would pay no heed to him. One day he [R. Joshua] was reciting the Shema, when Jesus came before him. He intended to receive him and made a sign to him. He [Jesus] thinking that it was to repel him, went, put up a brick, and worshipped it. “Repent,” said he [R. Joshua] to him. He replied, “I have thus learned from you: ‘He who sins and causes others to sin is not afforded the means of repentance.’” And a master has said, “Jesus the Nazarene practiced magic and led Israel astray”… not like Elisha who thrust Gehazi away with both his hands, and not like Joshua ben Perahiah who thrust away Jesus the Nazarene with both his hands.
(b. Sanhedrin 107b; cf. Sotah 47a)
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On the Ministry of Jesus
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Jesus had five disciples: Matthai, Nakai, Nezer, Buni, and Todah”
(b. Sanhedrin 107b)
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Jesus practiced magic and led Israel astray
(b. Sanhedrin 43a)
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On the Teaching of Jesus
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One of the disciples of Jesus the Nazarene, Jacob of Kefar-Sekaniah [James of Alphaeus (Mark 3:18) or James the Little (Mark 15:40)?] by name...said he to me, “Thus was I taught by Jesus the Nazarene, ‘For of the wages of a harlot has she gathered them and unto the wages of a harlot shall they return’”
(b. Abodah Zarah 16b-17a ms. M; cf. Eccl. Rab. 1.8 §3)
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He [a judge] said to them, “I looked at the end of the book, in which it is written, ‘I have not come to take away the Law of Moses and I have not come to add to the Law of Moses’ [cf. Matt 5:17], and it is written, ‘Where there is a son, a daughter does not inherit.’” She said to him, “Let your light shine forth as a lamp” [cf. Matt 5:16]. R. Gamaliel said to her, “The ass came and kicked the lamp over”
(b. Shabbath 116b)
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On the Crucifixion of Jesus
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It was taught: On the Eve of the Passover Yeshu was hanged. For forty days before the execution took place, a herald went forth and cried, “He is going forth to be stoned because he has practiced sorcery and enticed Israel to apostasy. Anyone who can say anything in his favor, let him come forward and plead on his behalf.” But since nothing was brought forward in his favor he was hanged on the eve of the Passover
(b. Sanhedrin 43a)
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On Healing in the Name of Jesus
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An objection was raised, “No man should have any dealings with heretics [Christians], nor is he allowed to be healed by them even in risking an hour’s life. It once happened to Ben Dama the son of R. Ishmael’s sister that he was bitten by a serpent and Jacob, a native of Kefar Sekaniah, came to heal him but R. Ishmael did not let him”
(b. Aboda Zarah 27b; cf. t. Hullin 2.22-23)
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Hanina, the son of R. Joshua’s brother, came to Capernaum, and the heretics [Christians] worked a spell on him and set him riding upon an ass on the Sabbath. He went to his uncle, Joshua, who anointed him with oil and he recovered from the spell. R. Joshua said to him, “Since the ass of that wicked person [Jesus] has roused itself against you, you are not able to reside in the land of Israel.” So he went down from there to Babylon where he died in peace
(Eccl. Rab. 1.8 §3)
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Christian Sources
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In contrast to the previous sources, it should come as no surprise that Christian sources abound with information about Jesus. But again, these sources are not accepted uncritically. Just because they are Christian, does not preclude them from being evaluated in the same way as non-Christian sources. The potential problem that historians face with Christian sources is that they can be strongly biased toward Jesus and thus contain enlargements and exaggerations, much like we have seen in chapter four with respect to the midrashic interpretations of biblical figures in early Jewish writing.
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Non-Canonical Sources
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Since non-canonical Christian writings and their representative groups have already been addressed in the fifth chapter, we will limit our discussion to their usefulness for historical Jesus research. Many scholars today regard the non-canonical (or apocryphal) Christian writings, which date from approximately the early second century to the late fourth century, to be of little use for reconstructing Jesus. The main reasons are that they (1) are written much later than the New Testament writings, (2) are influenced by earlier (canonical) Christian writings, and (3) contain Gnostic interpretations of Jesus.
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Eastern icon of the Apostle Thomas.
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This view, however, is not unanimous. There are some scholars who forcefully argue that a few of the non-canonical sources, such as the Gospel of Thomas and the Gospel of Peter, contain material that may precede the canonical Gospels. While this view is controversial, it has gained considerable interest even among the general public. Although the arguments for (and against) the dating of these sources are far too complex for this introduction, students should know that they are significant and continue to be debated in academic circles. If this non-canonical material is early, then it potentially effects reconstructions of Jesus. Since Jesus’ teachings in these writings are less Jewish and less apocalyptic, and more Gnostic and cynical, it is no wonder that scholars, like John Dominic Crossan (discussed above), portray Jesus as a cynic philosopher or Gnostic wisdom teacher whose aim was social justice reform.
Once again, one’s sources will impact one’s portrayal of Jesus. Let’s take a closer look at the Gospel of Thomas and the Gospel of Peter.
Beginning of the Gospel of Thomas, 4th century. Coptic manscript found at Nag Hammadi.
Gospel of Thomas. Just before the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls in 1948, archaeologists found a library of Christian documents in the Egyptian village of Nag Hammadi, along the Nile River. The majority of the documents are Gnostic, written in Coptic. Since the documents were dated to the fourth century, their value for historical Jesus research was initially regarded as minimal. However, since some of these writings matched early second century Greek fragments that were discovered a few decades earlier, their historical value was reconsidered. One such writing is the Gospel of Thomas. Since the Coptic version discovered at Nag Hammadi matched Greek fragments that were dated to the early part of the second century, the Gospel of Thomas (which may have originally been written in Greek) came to be regarded as a very early document. As a result, a handful of scholars have come to see some of the 114 sayings as valuable for reconstructing Jesus’ teachings.
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Though it is possible that the Gospel of Thomas provides independent information about Jesus, its Gnostic perspective has caused many to be suspect of its historical value. Though not all of the sayings can be traced to Gnostic roots. Some are probably Jewish. Other sayings are very similar to the Gospels. Regardless, it is an early document and it appears to be independent of the four canonical Gospel. Scholars who accepted it as a viable source focus on the non-Gnostic sayings, suggesting that they may even pre-date the Gospels. See the entire Gospel at http://www.gnosis.org/naghamm/gosthom.html
Manuscript of the Gospel of Peter, 4th century. Cairo Museum.
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Gospel of Peter.
Late in the 19th century, French archaeologists discovered a gospel manuscript in Egypt that would lead to controversy. The Gospel of Peter dates to the 2nd century CE and provides a detailed account of Jesus’ trial and execution. It has been promoted by a handful of historians as the oldest form of the passion story, perhaps even used by the author of Mark’s Gospel. The majority of Jesus scholars, however, have not endorsed this view primarily because of its anti-Jewish bias that most likely reflects a later period. In Peter’s retelling, Pilate delivers Jesus into the hands of the Jews. During the crucifixion the Jews are filled with guilt and regret, and the criminal on the cross beside Jesus rebukes the Jewish people instead of the other criminal as in Luke 23:40-41. Jesus’ last words are not the Aramaic “Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani” (“My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”) as they appear in Mark 15:34 and Matt 27:46, but rather “My power, my power, you have forsaken me.”
The resurrection scene is most unusual with its walking cross that preaches. It reads,
Now in the night in which the Lord’s day dawned, when the soldiers, two by two in every watch, were keeping guard, there rang out a loud voice in heaven, and they saw the heavens opened and two men came down from there in a great brightness and draw near to the sepulcher. That stone which had been laid against the entrance to the sepulcher started of itself to roll and gave way to the side, and the sepulcher was opened, and both the young men entered. When now those soldiers saw this, they awakened the centurion and the elders—for they also were there to assist the watch. And while they were relating what they had seen, they saw again three men come out from the sepulcher, two of them sustaining the other, and a cross following them, and the heads of the two reaching to heaven, but that of him who was led by them by the hand overpassing the heavens. And they heard a voice out of the heavens crying, ‘Did you preach to those who sleep?’ and from the cross there was heard the answer, “Yes.”
(Gospel of Peter 9:35–10:42)
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See the entire Gospel at http://www.gnosis.org/library/gospete.htm
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A leaf from Matthew 11, Codex Bezae Cantabrigiensis, 5th century. University of Cambridge (Lat. Cantabrigia).
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Agrapha. Historical Jesus scholars also appeal to floating sayings of Jesus called agrapha (“unwritten”; singular agraphon). Several agrapha that are considered to go back to Jesus have been isolated in the first 500 years of Christianity. They were first popularized by Joachim Jeremias in his book Unknown Sayings of Jesus. Agrapha do not contribute significant information about Jesus. Many are very similar to sayings in the New Testament. However, they do help us to see how broadly independent sayings of Jesus circulated and were interpreted. Here are a few examples of agrapha:
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1. Codex Bezea Luke 6:5
On the same day he saw a man performing a work on the Sabbath. Then he said to him: “Man, if you know what you are doing, you are blessed. But if you do not know, you are cursed and a transgressor of the Law.”
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The scribe of Codex Bezea, a sixth century manuscript, added this saying after Luke 6:5 to the story of the disciples picking and eating grain on the Sabbath.
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2. Origen, Homilies on Jeremiah 20.3
In one of his expositions, the third century scholar Origen says, “I have read somewhere that the Saviour said–and I question whether someone has assumed the person of the Saviour, or called the words to memory, or whether it be true that is said–but at any rate the Saviour says there: ‘Whoever is near me is near the fire; whoever is far from me is far from the Kingdom’” (also found in the Gospel of Thomas §82).
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Origen. Illustration from "Les Vrais Portraits Et Vies Des Hommes Illustres" by André Thévet, 16th century.
This saying is similar to Mark 9:49 and 12:34 and reflects Jesus’ fondness of sharp antitheses. It also translates well into the Aramaic, where it takes the form of a common rhythm characteristic of proverbs. But we cannot say that this kind of saying would have been unique to Jesus. A similar expression is found in rabbinic writings: “Aqiba, he that separates himself from you separates himself from life” (b, Qidd. 66d; b. Zebah. 13a). It is also found in Greek literature: “He who is near Zeus is near the lightning” (Aesop); “Far from Zeus and far from the lightning” (Diogenianus).
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3. Tertullian, On Baptism 20
Watch and pray. He said, “that you do not enter into temptation.” And this I believe is the reason why they were tempted–because they had fallen asleep, so that they forsook the Lord when he was taken, and even he who stayed with him and used the sword, likewise denied him three times. For the saying [of Jesus] had gone before, that “No one can obtain the kingdom of heaven who has not passed through temptation.”
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The second century Church Father, Tertullian, quotes this saying of Jesus in an admonition on the preparation for baptism. He uses Jesus’ words as a support.
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Canonical Sources
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Most historians would agree that the writings of the New Testament contain our earliest and most accurate sources for reconstructing Jesus. As we have mentioned before, the difficulty with these sources for the historian is to determine which parts are historically accurate and which parts are theological interpretations. The difficulty is compounded because all of the writings are written after Easter (from the vantage point of the resurrection), from the perspective of faith, to people of faith, about faith.
Jesus is certainly the subject of all the writings, but only parts of the Gospels, Paul’s letters, and sometimes the book of Acts are consulted by historical Jesus scholars.
The reason for this restriction of sources is that the writings of the New Testament are occasional, meaning that their aim is not to reconstruct Jesus, but to address the issues that target audiences are facing. All the writings are primarily oriented toward the meaning of Jesus in newly formed Christian communities, but a few (like the Gospels) contain material that is relevant for historical reconstruction.
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Rembrandt van Rijn, The Apostle Paul, 1657. National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
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Paul’s Letters.
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Students are often surprised to learn that the majority of what we know about Jesus outside the four canonical Gospels comes from Paul’s writings. The Apostle Paul did not know Jesus, but he came to know some of the disciples after his vision and conversion. His first hand exposure to the disciples makes him a reliable source. Paul’s letters are the earliest written accounts that we currently have. His earliest letters (1 Thessalonians and perhaps Galatians) precede Mark (the first Gospel) by about twenty years. Unfortunate for historians, Paul does not say much about the historical events of Jesus’ life. Nor does Paul recite any of Jesus’ sayings. Paul is more concerned with Jesus’ theological identity and the meaning of his death and resurrection as it impacts his converts. The little historical information that Paul does provide is summarized in the following list.
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• Jesus had a brother named James (Gal 1:19)
• Jesus was born of a woman and born a Jew (Gal 4:4)
• Jesus was crucified (1 Cor 2:2)
• Jesus had multiple brothers (1 Cor 9:5)
• Jesus instituted the Lord’s Supper (1 Cor 11:23-25)
• Jesus was betrayed (1 Cor 11:23)
• Jesus had twelve disciples (1 Cor 15:7)
• Jesus ministered among Jews (Rom 15:7)
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Acts of the Apostles.
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The book of Acts covers a thirty-year theological history of the early church, beginning with the ascension of Jesus. So, while it is not specifically a book about the ministry of Jesus, Acts does contain an agraphon of Jesus that is often regarded as historically reliable. In Acts 20:35, Paul quotes Jesus saying: “It is more blessed to give than to receive.” This saying is neither found in Luke’s Gospel (written by same author as Acts) nor any of the other Gospels. If this is an authentic quote, then it demonstrates that the sayings of Jesus are not limited to the Gospels.
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Gioacchino Assereto, St. Mark the Evangelist, c. 1640. Mote Carlo, private collection.
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The Gospels.
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Most scholars agree that the Gospels were written between 70 CE and 95 CE, with Mark being the earliest and John being the latest. Of the four Gospels, Mark is considered to be the best source for reconstructing Jesus. This does not mean that the other Gospels have nothing to contribute. The problem is that they are plagued with several characteristics that make their use by historians a little more difficult. For example, as we will see in the next chapter, Matthew and Luke most likely used Mark as a source. If this is the case, then the overlapping material is not considered to be independent. However, the material that is common to Matthew and Luke, but is not in Mark, probably stems from a document that contained a list of Jesus’ sayings. This hypothetical document is called Q, which stands for the German word Quelle (meaning “source”). Since this hypothetical source is dated to the 40s CE and is very Jewish, most scholars consider the Q sayings as the oldest source we have. So, in short, Mark and Q, along with Paul, are probably our oldest and most reliable sources for reconstructing Jesus.
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Titian, St. John the Evangelist, Santa Maria della Salute, Venice. c 1540.
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John’s Gospel is the most controversial for historians. Not only is it written approximately sixty five years after Jesus’ death, it contains sayings and events that are very different from Mark and Q (see the list in chapter 5), it is highly polemical and theological, it was considered in the early Church as a “spiritual Gospel,” and its authorship is highly debated. One of the issues that is at the forefront of determining the historical value of John is its connection with the Synoptic Gospels. Did the author of John know these writings? If so, why did he deviate so much from them? Did he only know one of them? Some have suggested that it was Luke. If John did not know the Synoptics, it is an independent source and potentially much more useful for reconstruction. The debate about the use of John for historical Jesus research is interesting, vibrant, and ongoing.
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Although the four canonical Gospels contain most of the information that we have about Jesus from the first century, historians approach them with caution. Reconstructions of Jesus based on these Gospels need to take into account three overarching problems.
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Relief of the crucifixion on the central gate of the main portal, St. Vitus Cathedral, 14th century. Prague. Reliefs and stained glass windows were the most common media used to communicate biblical scenes throughout much of Christian history.
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The first problem is the timespan between the life of Jesus and the writing about him. Mark is considered to be the earliest Gospel, written around 70 CE, which is approximately forty years after Jesus’ death. Matthew and Luke were written in the mid-80s and John was written about a decade after that. Since the Gospels are anonymous, we are not sure exactly who their authors were, but most scholars do not regard them as eyewitness. Detailed discussion of the Gospels and their authorship is found in the following chapters. For now, let us suppose that they were eyewitness, simply to communicate the problem of timespan. Historians have observed that even eyewitness accounts of the same event or description of the same individual, can vary, and at times significantly. Eyewitness testimonies are never free from individual perspectives. No one testimony can give the full picture. Some testimonies can be deemed as more reliable than others. Usually the earlier testimonies are deemed as more accurate. For reasons like these, historians exercise caution when they use the Gospels.
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The second, and related problem to that of timespan, is the oral transmission of the Jesus material. As early Christianity developed, the stories about Jesus were initially communicated through oral traditions that were passed down from one person to another. This means that the stories were taken from the event, transformed into a memorable story to be retained and repeated orally, and eventually written down. Once the oral traditions were written down, they were forever embedded in the host writing and hence its context. This process may explain why so many of Jesus’ sayings in the Gospels are short and memorable. Scholars disagree whether or not these sayings in the Gospels are the very words of Jesus (apart form their Greek form in the Gospels) or the voice of Jesus, which was meant to communicate the meaning of his teachings. The whole process from the time of Jesus to the writing of the Gospels is riddled with complexity. Take, for example, the parable of the sower. Scholars are not sure how many times, and in what contexts, Jesus spoke the parable. Likewise, they are not sure how the parable functioned in the preaching of the early Christians. The earliest reference to the parable is found in Mark 4 in the context of other parables. Working backwards through the compositional process to reconstruct the actual words of Jesus is a difficult and often imprecise undertaking.
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Fra Angelico, “St. Peter Preaching in thePresence of St Mark.” c. 1433. Museo di San Marco, Florence. Notice how biblical scenes were depicted in the cultural style of the artist. This is similar to the way the evangelists depicted Jesus. Emphasis was placed on present meaning and relevance.
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The third problem is that the Gospels are not modern histories, journalism accounts, or reconstructions of Jesus (see the section on Gospel genre in the following chapters).Rather, they are complex syntheses of memories, traditions, and theological interpretations, the historian faces the difficult task of identifying what goes back to Jesus and what was developed by his followers. Put simply, the historian attempts to discern the so-called facts from their interpretation. Although facts have no meaning in of themselves, they serve as the building blocks for the historian’s reconstructions. The Christian interpretations of Jesus in the Gospels should not be regarded as somehow untrue or insignificant. Quite to the contrary, the interpretations of Jesus in the Gospels are theologically vital for the church because they have been canonized. For the historian, however, the interpretations are not the goal. They are the proverbial window through which the historical Jesus can potentially be seen. As one might imagine, scholars disagree as to what material in the Gospels is deemed historical and theological.
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Historians have long recognized that ancient sources do not simply communicate the cold hard facts as we might want them or as they might be presented today. This was not the way that ancient writers communicated stories, biographies, and even histories. They were more interested in communicating why events happened and what they meant rather than reconstructing those events.
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To reiterate, since the Gospels synthesize the Christ of faith and the Jesus of history, historians have wrestled with the relationship between the two. Some have argued for a complete divide, in that the theologized interpretation of Jesus in the context of Christianity should not be imposed onto the search for the historical Jesus whose identity was formed by the context of peasant life in Palestinian Judaism. Others have taken the opposite approach, arguing that the Christ of faith should inform the Jesus of history because they are not two separate persons, but one. The Christ of faith gives us a fuller, even more accurate, understanding of Jesus’ identity as a Jew. The debate has stimulated fascinating discussion on the nature of theology and history, and their relationship.
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Mosaic of Jesus’ baptism from St. Mary of Cosmedin, Ravenna. Early 6th century. In this synthesis of the Gospel story and popular belief, notice that Jesus is baptized by John, but he is also accompanied by the Jordan River god. Jesus appears as a Roman Gentile instead of a Jew from Galilee. Some scholars have suggested that Jesus’ youthful appearance mimics the divine attributes associated with personal saviour gods.
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More recent discussion of the relationship between theology and history has been influenced by studies on the function of collective memory (i.e. how groups remember the past) in oral cultures. From this perspective, recollections of the past (e.g. Jesus) are viewed as being influenced by the present (e.g. the Gospels). But, according to collective memory theorists, the past is not completely lost to the present. While the past is continually (re)shaped and (re)collected so as to have meaning in the present, the present is continually informed and guided by the past, especially if the tradition is older, is adopted by a large number of adherents, and is widespread. One of the implications arising from the application of collective memory theory to the New Testament writings is the observation that Jesus tends to lose his (Galilean) Jewishness and his adherence to purity laws in memories of him within Gentile Christian communities.
Criteria of Authenticity
As scholars increasingly wrestled with the historical and theological components of the Gospels, it became necessary to have a standardized process of evaluation. Out of this need to critically determine what material in the Gospels is historical, several criteria were proposed. These criteria, initiated in the New Quest period, have often been called the “criteria of authenticity.” Not all scholars, however, abide by these. Some scholars only utilize some of them. And others are highly critical of this kind of standardization. There are approximately ten criteria that scholars have utilized, but the following three are the most common. The primary aim of their inclusion in this chapter is to introduce students to the ways that historians have attempted to verify material that may go back to Jesus. No one criterion determines the historicity of a saying or deed, but the convergence of the criteria offers the best case for a probable historical account. For a broader list of criteria, see http://homes.chass.utoronto.ca/~kloppen/criteria.htm
Criterion of Multiple Attestation
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This criterion targets sayings and deeds of Jesus that appear in more than one independent source. For example, if a common saying or theme appears in Mark and Q, then it is said to have a high degree of probability that it is authentic, namely that it goes to back to Jesus. The more independent sources there are, the higher the probability that their common saying is authentic. The reason why there is consensus that Jesus preached about the kingdom of God is that it appears in seven independent sources: Mark, Q, M (unique material to Matthew), L (unique material to Luke), John, Paul, the Gospel of Thomas. Other examples from the Gospels that are strongly attested (appearing in Mark, Q, M, L) include,
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• healing miracles
• connection with John the Baptist
• Jesus had disciples
• use of parables
• concern for outcasts like tax collectors and sinners
• preaching of ethical reform
• emphasis on love
• preaching of forgiveness
• clash with authorities, especially concerning the Sabbath
• “son of man” sayings
By contrast, those sayings or deeds that only appear in one source are regarded as less probable. For example, Peter’s confession that Jesus is the Messiah appears in all three Synoptic Gospels. But since Matthew and Luke are dependent on Mark, this saying does not satisfy the criterion. As a result, some scholars have argued that Peter’s confession was the product of the early church.
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Info Box 8.4: The Earliest Strata
The early strata of independent sources to which historical Jesus scholars turn are Mark, Paul’s letters, Q, M (unique material to Matthew), L (unique material to Luke), John (which is further divided into the “signs source” and the “passion source,” the Gospel of Thomas, and (for a few) the Gospel of Peter. For example, three independent sources attest that Jesus had brothers: Mark (6:3), John (7:3) and Paul (1 Cor 9:5). Mark, Paul and Josephus even state that his name was James.
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Criterion of Embarrassment
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This criterion attempts to isolate sayings or deeds of Jesus that may have been embarrassing or difficult for the early Christians in the face of opposition. It is reasoned that such sayings or deeds would not have been created by early Christians, and thus probably go back to Jesus. By contrast, it is argued that the “softened” versions of the same sayings or deeds probably are the product of the early church. The example of Jesus’ baptism is helpful for clarifying the aim of this criterion. The story appears in all four Gospels, but only Mark (1:4-11) preserves that Jesus was baptized with “a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.”
Piero della Francesca, “The Baptism Of Christ,” c 1450. National Gallery, London.
In Matthew’s (3:13-17) “softened” version, the Baptist confesses his unworthiness to baptize and simply follows Jesus’ instructions. In Luke (3:19-22), the Baptist is imprisoned prior to Jesus’ baptism, so we do not know who baptized Jesus. And in John (1:29-34), Jesus’ baptism is implied, but not stated explicitly. Proponents of this criterion argue that later Gospel writers removed Mark’s description of the baptism because it may have caused problems or even an embarrassment for early Christian preaching that Jesus was the Christ, and even sinless. As a result, Mark’s rendition is the earliest and may go back to Jesus.
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While this criterion may help in the evaluation process, it cannot stand alone, but must be used in conjunction with other criteria. It must also be used with caution. That which may be considered as an embarrassment to us, may not have been the case for the early Christians.
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Criterion of Dissimilarity
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Limbourg Brothers’ Illuminated manuscript depicting the exorcism scene in Matt 12,22-28, c. 1416. Musée Condé, Chantilly, France.
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This criterion attempts to isolate sayings or deeds of Jesus that do not appear to derive from either the early church or early Judaism. It focuses on those sayings of Jesus that are said to be unique to him or “dissimilar.” The aim is to find distinctive Jesus material. Proponents have argued that this criterion is fundamental for reconstructing Jesus because it provides assured minimum results as a starting point. Some of the sayings that have been deemed as satisfying this criterion include (1) the reference to the “finger of God” in Luke 11:20 (“But if I cast out demons by the finger of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you”), (2) the saying that the kingdom of God is “in your midst” in Luke 17:20-21, and (3) the saying in Matt 11:12 that the “kingdom of heaven suffers violence and violent men take it by force.”
This criterion can be the most promising in theory, but also the most troublesome. Several criticisms have been leveled against it. For example, (1) it is very difficult to divorce Jesus from the Judaism in which he was raised and later preached. (2) Even if this criterion can isolate unique sayings, they may not be representative of Jesus’ central message. And (3) the term “unique” and even “dissimilar” is a slippery concept. Some scholars wonder if there can even be such a thing as uniqueness.
Burden of Proof
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On whom does the burden of proof lie? Is it on the one who is trying to prove the authenticity of a saying or deed? Or is it on the one who is trying to prove the inauthenticity? These are important questions because they allow the historian to better see the assumptions that are at play in reconstructions of Jesus.
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Since the Gospels are filled with Jesus’ sayings and deeds, it is easy to assume that they are repositories of authentic historical data, even if they may have been slightly altered by the early church or Gospel writers. Indeed, some conservative scholars begin with the assumption that the burden of proof lies on the side of the one trying to disprove authenticity. But as we will see in the next chapter, the genre of the Gospels is not easily identified. We can’t simply assume one genre over another.
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On the other side of the debate are those who assume that the Gospels are mainly repositories of the beliefs of the early church. For these scholars, whatever can be deemed as stemming from the early Christians does. In this regard, scholars begin with the assumption that the burden of proof lies on the side of the one who is trying to prove authenticity. Likewise, assumptions also extend to the genre of the Gospels.
Perhaps the best approach is to place the burden of proof on the one making the case. Each position requires evidence. Logic dictates that no one position is immune from evidence and argumentation. So, if one wants to argue that a saying of Jesus is authentic or that the Gospels are historical, legendary, or some kind of synthesis, then it is incumbent upon the claimant to make the best case possible. In order for a fair evaluative process to take place, both parties need to agree on method and what constitutes as evidence.
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Bibliography
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