Two Views of Jesus (1F) Flashcards
(21 cards)
What worldivew does NT wright think we have all been affected by
Enlightenment worldview-Ideas of rational empiricism, cause and effect and Bacons scientific method
What dichotomy does Wright reference to highlight the futility of seperating faith and objectivity
Forces people to live in either the ‘attic of faith’(divorced from reality, deeply personal) or the ‘dungeon of history’(divorced from personality, deeply abstract)
“History prevents faithh becoming fantasy”. “Faith prevents history becoming antiquarianism”
Why does Wright say that understanding the first century worldivew is important in understanding Jesus
It was a world in which politics, faith, history and science were all closely interrelated, and so Jesus cannot be understood through the modern meaning of faith (personal and insular)
What is critical realism
The acknowledgement that all ideas, evidence and facts are perceived through a worldivew, and that this must be acknowledged in order to evaluate biases.
It is about being critical about what you think is real
What are the two extremes of views on knowledge
Positivism or naive realism; You can have knowledge as long as it can be verified with sense experience
Phenomenalism or postmodernism-Anytthing we think we know is merely what our sense-experience tells us- we dont actually know anything but the knower.
How does wright say we should evaluate the new testament
Without writing off any ideas we consider wrong, e.g. the more mythological aspects, but acknowledging there may be a truth beyond ourselves, and be willing to adapt our worldview to it
What points does wright see as critical when talking about jesus
Jesus was jewish prophet-he announced the kingdom of god-not a wandering prophet or philospher
Eschatological expectation-Jewish world was expecting the kingdom of god/rapture/doomsday-jesus as a social prophet?
A messiah who gave his life-Seen as a victorious figure (Ben Kosiba?) so his defeat means he is not the messiah. However, his rejection of violence and using jewish traditions of suffering suggest he may have reinterpreted the meaning of messiah-Began to think of his death as a messianic task
What other figures in the first millenium were announcing the kingdom of god
Judas the galilean and Simeon Ben Kosiba
What difference does wright point out between jesus and other messianic figures
Christianity persisted after his death-the reinterpreting of dying for humanitys sins caught on
Why does Wright say we should take the gospel seriously
It is writers trying to present a historical view of what really happened, meant for the public, and due to the compelling nature of the claims.
What three technqiues does jd crossan use to attempt to understand Jesus
Cross cultural anthropology-knowing mediterrenean culture
Jewish and Greco-Roman history-particularly for the lower classes(most histories were written by wealthy males)
Literary and textual study of the New testament
What is Crossans simplistic view of Jesus
Jesus is a mediterrenean Jewish peasant itinerant preacher
Does Crossan say we can rely on the Gospels
To some extent; He only uses material between 30 and 60 ad and never bases any claim on a single attestation
The 4 gospels reached their final form after 60 ad, so he is careful to discriminate between early and later versions
What is Crossans opinion on the apocryphal gospels
Some are very useful for knowing the historical jesus, as they are untainted by the churches dogma and later teachings
What is the name for gospels that were removed for being allegedly written by a false author
Pseudepigrapha
What is the name Crossan gives to a fictional source he believes is important in knowing the real Jesus and why
Source q(for the german Quelle)
He saw similariteies in Matthew and Luke, and concluded that as they were written independently there must have been a single shared source(q)
What is the order of the gospels in when they were written
Mark, Mathew, Luke, John(latest)
What two sources does Crossan say are the most important for knowing Jesus
Gospel of Thomas and source Q
What is Crossans picture of Jesus
He intended a social revolution-rather than being an ascetic, he shared meals with everyone and preached equality
He thought the kingdom of god could be experienced on earth
He broke down social and cultural barriers
He performed miracles of social healing
Practised an itinerant lifestyle-prevent monopolisation of his teachings by one area
Can be compared to the cynics-other itinerant teachers but more indidual focused whereas jesus fostered a community
What does Crossan say has in some ways corrupted Christianity
Adoption by Constantine and the roman empire and its all male all wealthy priest caste-e.g. turned communion from an open meal to a closed ceremony conducted by authority-crossan says this is against Jessus’ teachings
