NationMaster - Encyclopedia: Jesus as myth

Jesus as myth refers to the idea that the narrative of Jesus in the gospels is not about a real person, but a construct of Christian mythology, which parallels mystery religions of the Roman Empire such as Mithraism and the myths of rebirth deities. The study of such elements is often, but not exclusively, associated with a skeptical position toward the historicity of Jesus. This article is about Jesus of Nazareth. ... For other uses, see Gospel (disambiguation). ... Christian mythology is the body of traditional narratives, that would be viewed as sacred stories by Christians, which would often serve to explain or symbolize Christianity and Christian cultures. ... This does not cite its references or sources. ... Motto Senatus Populusque Romanus (SPQR) The Roman Empire at its greatest extent, c. ... Mithras and the Bull: This fresco from the mithraeum at Marino, Italy (third century) shows the tauroctony and the celestial lining of Mithras cape Mithraism was a mystery religion practiced throughout the Roman Empire. ... The category life-death-rebirth deity also known as a dying-and-rising god is a convenient means of classifying the many divinities in world mythology who are born, suffer death or an eclipse or other death-like experience, pass a phase in the underworld among the dead, and are... Skepticism (Commonwealth spelling: Scepticism) can mean: Philosophical skepticism - a philosophical position in which people choose to critically examine whether the knowledge and perceptions that they have are actually true, and whether or not one can ever be said to have absolutely true knowledge; or Scientific skepticism - a scientific, or practical... The historicity of Jesus concerns the historical authenticity of Jesus of Nazareth. ...

The theory was first proposed by historian Bruno Bauer in the 19th century; it is now supported by a small minority of scholars, often outside the historical discipline. Biblical scholars and historians of classical antiquity reject the thesis.^[1] However, there has been some renewed interest in mythicist ideas in the last decade, largely on a popular level. Bruno Bauer (September 6, 1809 - April 13, 1882), was a German theologian, philosopher and historian. ...

History of the theories

The term Jesus as myth covers a broad range of ideas, but most share the common premise that the narrative of the Gospels portrays a figure who never actually lived. Current theories arose from nineteenth century scholarship on the formation of myth, in the work of writers such as Max Müller and James Frazer. Müller argued that religions originated in mythic stories of the birth, death, and rebirth of the sun. Frazer further attempted to explain the origins of humanity's mythic beliefs in the idea of a "sacrificial king", associated with the sun as a dying and reviving god and its connection to the regeneration of the earth in springtime.^[2] Frazer did not doubt the historicity of Jesus, however, stating, "my theory assumes the historical reality of Jesus of Nazareth.... The doubts which have been cast upon the historical reality of Jesus are ... unworthy of serious attention."^[2] The later works by George Albert Wells drew on the Pauline Epistles and the lack of early non-Christian documents to argue that the Jesus figure of the Gospels was symbolic, not historical. Earl Doherty proposed that Jewish mysticism influenced the development of a Christ myth, while John M. Allegro proposed that Christianity began as shamanic religion based on the use of hallucinogenic mushrooms.^[3] Most recently Timothy Freke and Peter Gandy have popularized the Jesus-myth concept in their book The Jesus Mysteries.^[4] Image File history File links Please see the file description page for further information. ... There are very few or no other articles that link to this one. ... For other uses, see Gospel (disambiguation). ... Max MÃ¼ller Friedrich Max MÃ¼ller (December 6, 1823 â€“ October 28, 1900), more commonly known as Max MÃ¼ller, was a German philologist and Orientalist, one of the founders of Indian studies, who virtually created the discipline of comparative religion. ... Sir James George Frazer (January 1, 1854, Glasgow, Scotland â€“ May 7, 1941), was a Scottish social anthropologist influential in the early stages of the modern studies of mythology and comparative religion. ... The category life-death-rebirth deity also known as a dying-and-rising god is a convenient means of classifying the many divinities in world mythology who are born, suffer death or an eclipse or other death-like experience, pass a phase in the underworld among the dead, and are... George Albert Wells (born 1926) is an Emeritus Professor of German at Birkbeck College, but he is more widely known as a New Testament scholar. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... For the genre of Christian-themed music, see gospel music. ... Earl Doherty, currently living in Canada, is the author of The Jesus Puzzle, a work published in 2000 by the Canadian Humanist Association arguing that Jesus never lived. ... The tree of life Kabbalah (קבלה Reception, Standard Hebrew Qabbala, Tiberian Hebrew Qabbālāh; also written variously as Cabala, Cabalah, Cabbala, Cabbalah, Kabala, Kabalah, Kabbala, Qabala, Qabalah) is a religious philosophical system claiming an insight into divine nature. ... Christ is the English translation of the Greek word (ChristÃ³s), which literally means The Anointed One. ... John Marco Allegro is a controversial archaeologist and Dead Sea Scrolls scholar. ... Christianity is a monotheistic[1] religion centered on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as presented in the New Testament. ... A shaman doctor of Kyzyl. ... Magic mushrooms are also known as sacred mushrooms, psychedelic mushrooms, and, more generally, hallucinogenic mushrooms. ... Dr. Timothy Freke has an honours degree in philosophy and is an internationally respected authority on world mysticism. ... Peter Gandy is a scholar of Western religion and philosophy. ... The Jesus Mysteries: Was the Original Jesus a Pagan God? is a 1999 book by Timothy Freke and Peter Gandy that attempts to reconstruct the true origins of Christianity. ...

Some, including Freke and Gandy, have suggested that the idea itself is as old as the New Testament. They point out that 2 John warns of "many deceivers [who] are entered into the world, who confess not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh." John 21:1 Jesus Appears to His Disciples--Alessandro Mantovani: the Vatican, Rome. ... The Second Epistle of John (normally just called 2nd John or 2 John) is a book of the Bible New Testament. ...

Proponents argue that, had Jesus been a true historical figure, there would not have been such a large number of prominent people who denied his existence, or an even larger number who defended him. Such controversies never developed over other contemporary religious figures (e.g., John the Baptist, Paul, James the Just, Hillel, Honi the Circledrawer). Scholars of the period, however, believe that these early quotes refer to docetism, the belief that Jesus mystically appeared to people but lacked a genuinely physical body, rather than a belief that Jesus was a completely fabricated figure.^[5]^[6]^[7]^[8]^[9] For the hip-hop producer with the same name, see John the Baptist (producer). ... Paul of Tarsus (b. ... Saint James the Just (×™×¢×§×‘ Holder of the heel; supplanter; Standard Hebrew YaÊ¿aqov, Tiberian Hebrew YaÊ¿ÄƒqÅá¸‡), also called James Adelphos, James of Jerusalem, or the Brother of the Lord[1] and sometimes identified with James the Less, (died AD 62) was an important figure in Early Christianity. ... Hillel (×”×œ×œ) was a famous Jewish religious leader who lived in Jerusalem during the time of King Herod, Augustus, and probably Jesus; he is one of the most important figures in Jewish history, associated with the Mishnah and the Talmud. ... Honi The Circledrawer - a Jewish miracle worker of the first century BCE. During the first century BCE, a variety of religious movements and splinter groups developed amongst the Jews in Eretz Israel. ... In Christianity, Docetism is the belief, regarded by most theologians as heretical, that Jesus did not have a physical body; rather, that his body was an illusion, as was his crucifixion. ...

Early proponents

The first scholarly proponent of this theory was probably nineteenth century historian Bruno Bauer, a Hegelian thinker who argued that the true founder of Christianity was an Alexandrian Jew, Philo, who had adapted Judaic ideas to Hellenic philosophy. Bauer's arguments made little impact at the time.^{[citation needed]} Other authors included Edwin Johnson, who argued that Christianity emerged from a combination of liberal trends in Judaism and Gnostic mysticism. Less speculative versions of the theory developed under Bible scholars such as A. D. Loman and G. I. P. Bolland. Loman argued that episodes in Jesus's life, such as the Sermon on the Mount, were fictions written to justify compilations of pre-existing liberal Jewish sayings. Bolland developed the theory that Christianity evolved from Gnosticism and that "Jesus" was a symbolic figure representing Gnostic ideas about God. Alternative meaning: Nineteenth Century (periodical) (18th century — 19th century — 20th century — more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 19th century was that century which lasted from 1801-1900 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar. ... An historian is someone who writes history, a written accounting of the past. ... Bruno Bauer (September 6, 1809 - April 13, 1882), was a German theologian, philosopher and historian. ... Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel (August 27, 1770 - November 14, 1831) was a German philosopher born in Stuttgart, Württemberg, in present-day southwest Germany. ... Christianity is a monotheistic[1] religion centered on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as presented in the New Testament. ... Alexandria (Greek: , Coptic: , Arabic: , Egyptian Arabic: Iskindireyya), (population of 3. ... Philo (20 BCE - 40 CE), known also as Philo of Alexandria and as Philo Judeaus, was a Hellenized Jewish philosopher born in Alexandria, Egypt. ... For a discussion of Jews as an ethnicity or ethnic group see the article on Jew. ... Hellenic may refer to: the Hellenic Republic (the modern Greek state) the Hellenes, itself a term for either ancient or modern Greeks anything related to Greece in general or Ancient Greece in particular. ... Edwin Johnson (1842-1901). ... This article or section is in need of attention from an expert on the subject. ... The Sermon on the Mount was, according to the Gospel of Matthew 5-7, a particular sermon given by Jesus of Nazareth (estimated around AD 30) on a mountainside to his disciples and a large crowd. ...

By the early twentieth century a number of writers had published arguments in favour of the Jesus-myth theory, ranging from the highly speculative to the more scholarly. These treatments were sufficiently influential to merit several book-length responses by traditional historians and New Testament scholars. The most influential of the books arguing for a mythic Jesus was Arthur Drews's The Christ-Myth (1909) which brought together the scholarship of the day in defence of the idea that Christianity had been a Jewish Gnostic cult that spread by appropriating aspects of Greek philosophy and Frazerian death-rebirth deities. This combination of arguments became the standard form of the mythic Christ theory. In Why I Am Not a Christian (1927), Bertrand Russell stated that even if Jesus existed, which he doubted, the public does not "know anything" about him. Some like Joseph Wheless in his 1930 Forgery In Christianity went even further and claimed there was an active effort to forge documents to make the myth seem historical beginning as early as the 2nd century. (19th century - 20th century - 21st century - more centuries) Decades: 1900s 1910s 1920s 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s As a means of recording the passage of time, the 20th century was that century which lasted from 1901–2000 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar (1900–1999... Arthur Drews [pronounced drefs] (November 1, 1865, Uetersen, Holstein - July 19, 1935, Illenau bei BÃ¼hl, Baden) was a German philosopher, writer and important representative of German Monist thought. ... 1909 (MCMIX) was a common year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ... Why I Am Not a Christian is an essay by the British philosopher Bertrand Russell in which he explains why he is not a Christian. ... Bertrand Arthur William Russell, 3rd Earl Russell OM FRS (18 May 1872 â€“ 2 February 1970), was a British philosopher, logician, mathematician and advocate for social reform. ...

While aspects of the theory were influential, most mainstream scholars at the time rejected the notion that "Jesus" was little more than a fiction, arguing that the Gospels, the Pauline epistles, and the Acts of the Apostles contained some reliable information about the events they describe. For the genre of Christian-themed music, see gospel music. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... The Acts of the Apostles (Greek Praxeis Apostolon) is a book of the Bible, which now stands fifth in the New Testament. ...

Recent scholarship

In recent years, the Jesus-myth has had few proponents in academia but has been advanced by George Albert Wells (The Jesus Legend and The Jesus Myth), by Timothy Freke and Peter Gandy (co-authors of The Jesus Mysteries and Jesus and the Lost Goddess), and by Earl Doherty (The Jesus Puzzle). George Albert Wells (born 1926) is an Emeritus Professor of German at Birkbeck College, but he is more widely known as a New Testament scholar. ... Dr. Timothy Freke has an honours degree in philosophy and is an internationally respected authority on world mysticism. ... Peter Gandy is a scholar of Western religion and philosophy. ... The Jesus Mysteries: Was the Original Jesus a Pagan God? is a 1999 book by Timothy Freke and Peter Gandy that attempts to reconstruct the true origins of Christianity. ... Earl Doherty, currently living in Canada, is the author of The Jesus Puzzle, a work published in 2000 by the Canadian Humanist Association arguing that Jesus never lived. ... The Jesus Puzzle (subtitled Did Christianity begin with a mythical Christ?) is a 1999 book written by Earl Doherty, a historical scholar. ...

There are many different views regarding the nature of the early texts. Doherty suggests that Jesus is a historicised mythic figure created out of the Old Testament, whom the early Christians experienced in visions, as Paul says he did. Joseph Atwill, on the other hand, argues that Jesus is the deliberate and malefic creation of powerful Romans of the family of Vespasian, who sought to divide and destroy Judaism. Hence in Atwill's version, there really is a historical Jesus, but he is Vespasian's son Titus, and the gospels are a complex allegory of his conquest of Judea. Note: Judaism commonly uses the term Tanakh. ... Paul of Tarsus (b. ... Joseph Atwill is an American scholarly author. ... Area under Roman control Roman Republic Roman Empire Western Empire Eastern Empire Ancient Rome was a civilization that grew from a city-state founded on the Italian Peninsula circa the 9th century BC to a massive empire straddling the Mediterranean Sea. ... Imperator Caesar Vespasianus Augustus (November 17, 9â€“June 23, 79), known originally as Titus Flavius Vespasianus and usually referred to in English as Vespasian, was emperor of Rome from 69 to 79. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... For other uses, see Titus (disambiguation). ... Map of the southern Levant, c. ...

Advocates of the Jesus-myth theory do not agree on the dating and meaning of the early Christian texts, with advocates like Doherty holding to traditional scholarly dating that puts the gospels toward the end of the first century, and others, like Hermann Detering (The Fabricated Paul), arguing that the early Christian texts are largely forgeries and products of the middle to late second century. The 1st century was that century which lasted from 1 to 100 according the Gregorian calendar. ... The 2nd century is the period from 101 - 200 in accordance with the Julian calendar in the Christian Era. ...

Presently, most New Testament scholars and historians consider the question as resolved in favour of Jesus' historicity.^{[citation needed]} Nevertheless, Doherty has infused the Jesus-myth theory with fresh vigour with his website and publication of his book, The Jesus Puzzle. Doherty's treatment of the issue has received much attention on the internet from both sides of the debate, including a favourable review by historian and skeptic Richard Carrier.^[10] The Jesus Puzzle (subtitled Did Christianity begin with a mythical Christ?) is a 1999 book written by Earl Doherty, a historical scholar. ... Richard Carrier Richard Carrier M.A., M.Phil. ...

Specific arguments of the theory

Early non-Christian references to Jesus

Central to many of the mythical theories is the fact that there are no known documents, other than Christian documents, that make reference to Jesus until the end of the first century, when Josephus wrote the Antiquities of the Jews, and the authenticity of that account is subject to controversy. Proponents of these theories note the survival of writings by a number of Roman and Jewish commentators and historians who wrote in the first century but which lack mention of events described in the Gospels, the silence being evidence that Jesus was a later invention. However R. T. France points out that "even the great histories of Tacitus have survived in only two manuscripts, which together contain scarcely half of what he is believed to have written, the rest is lost" and that the life of Jesus, from a Roman point of view, was not a major event.^[11] The historicity of Jesus concerns the historical authenticity of Jesus of Nazareth. ... Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... The historicity of Jesus concerns the historical authenticity of Jesus of Nazareth. ... A fanciful representation of Flavius Josephus, in an engraving in William Whistons translation of his works Josephus (years 37 â€“ shortly after 100 AD)[1], who became known, in his capacity as a Roman citizen, as Flavius Josephus[2], was a 1st-century Jewish historian and apologist of priestly and... Antiquities of the Jews was a work published by the Jewish historian Flavius Josephus in the year A.D. 93. ... This article is part of the Jesus and history series of articles. ... The 1st century was that century which lasted from 1 to 100 according the Gregorian calendar. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... Richard Thomas France, MA BD PhD is a New Testament scholar and Anglican Rector. ... Gaius Cornelius Tacitus Publius (or Gaius) Cornelius Tacitus (c. ...

Earliest recorded references

The earliest references to Jesus are by Christian writers (in the New Testament and its Apocrypha). Of the few references outside of Christian documents: In the process of determining the Biblical canon, a large number of works were excluded from the New Testament. ...

A fanciful representation of Flavius Josephus, in an engraving in William Whistons translation of his works Josephus (years 37 â€“ shortly after 100 AD)[1], who became known, in his capacity as a Roman citizen, as Flavius Josephus[2], was a 1st-century Jewish historian and apologist of priestly and... Events March 18 - The Roman Senate annuls Tiberius will and proclaims Caligula Roman Emperor. ... Era Vulgaris redirects here. ... -1... Note: Sometimes the 93 is used as shorthand for the 1993. ... This article is part of the Jesus and history series of articles. ... Centuries: 1st century BC - 1st century - 2nd century Decades: 10s 20s 30s 40s 50s - 60s - 70s 80s 90s 100s 110s Years: 57 58 59 60 61 - 62 - 63 64 65 66 67 Events A great earthquake damages cities in Calabria including Pompeii. ... For the tractate in the Mishnah, see Sanhedrin (tractate). ... Saint James the Just (×™×¢×§×‘ Holder of the heel; supplanter; Standard Hebrew YaÊ¿aqov, Tiberian Hebrew YaÊ¿ÄƒqÅá¸‡), also called James Adelphos, James of Jerusalem, or the Brother of the Lord[1] and sometimes identified with James the Less, (died AD 62) was an important figure in Early Christianity. ... The first page of the Vilna Edition of the Babylonian Talmud, Tractate Berachot, folio 2a The Talmud (Hebrew: ×ª×œ×ž×•×“) is a record of rabbinic discussions pertaining to Jewish law, ethics, customs and history. ... Gaius Cornelius Tacitus Publius (or Gaius) Cornelius Tacitus (c. ... Nero[1] Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus (December 15, AD 37 â€“ June 9, AD 68)[2], born Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus, also called Nero Claudius Drusus Germanicus, was the fifth and last Roman Emperor of the Julio-Claudian dynasty. ... Tiberius Caesar Augustus, born Tiberius Claudius Nero (November 16, 42 BC â€“ March 16 AD 37), was the second Roman Emperor, from the death of Augustus in AD 14 until his own death in 37. ... Ecce Homo (Behold the Man!), Antonio Ciseris depiction of Pontius Pilate presenting a scourged Jesus to the people of Jerusalem. ... Gaius Suetonius Tranquillus ( 69/75 - after 130), also known as Suetonius, was a prominent Roman historian and biographer. ... Gayus Plinius Colonoscopy Caecilius Secundus (63 - ca. ... Gayus Plinius Colonoscopy Caecilius Secundus (63 - ca. ... Template:Infobox boobies the Roman emperor This article is about the Roman Emperor. ... For other uses, see number 110. ...

Apparent omissions in early records

Justus

Justus of Tiberias wrote at the end of the first century a history of Jewish kings, with whom the gospels state Jesus had interacted. Justus' history does not survive, but Photius, who read it in the 9th century, stated that it did not mention "the coming of Christ, the events of His life, or the miracles performed by Him."^[15] Justus of Tiberias was a Jewish author and historian living in the second half of the 1st century AD. Little is known about his life. ... Icon of Photius Photios I or Photius I (in Greek: Î¦ÏŽÏ„Î¹Î¿Ï‚, PhÅtios), (Constantinople c. ... As a means of recording the passage of time the 9th century was that century that lasted from 801 to 900. ...

The New Testament epistles

It is widely held that the authentic letters of Paul of Tarsus are the earliest surviving Christian writings. However the epistles ascribed to Paul do not discuss Jesus' actual life and ministry in much detail, unlike the Gospels. There are a variety of explanations for this among those who believe in a historical Jesus, while proponents of the Jesus-myth theory regard it as evidence to support their position. A 19th century picture of Paul of Tarsus The Pauline epistles are those books in the New Testament that are traditionally attributed to Paul of Tarsus. ... Paul of Tarsus (b. ...

G. A. Wells suggests that the level of discussion of the historical Jesus in the Pauline epistles, except for the Pastorals, as well as in Hebrews, James, 1 Peter, the Johannine epistles and Revelation supports his position. In these works, Wells conjectures, references to Jesus is presented as "a basically supernatural personage only obscurely on Earth as a man at some unspecified period in the past".^[16] Wells considers this to be the original Christian view of Jesus, based not on the life of a historical figure but on the personified figure of Wisdom as portrayed in Jewish wisdom literature. George Albert Wells (born 1926) is an Emeritus Professor of German at Birkbeck College, but he is more widely known as a New Testament scholar. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... The three pastoral epistles are books of the canonical New Testament: the First Epistle to Timothy (1 Timothy) the Second Epistle to Timothy (2 Timothy), and the Epistle to Titus. ... Christians believe that Jesus is the mediator of the New Covenant (see Hebrews 8:6). ... The Epistle of James is a book in the Christian New Testament canon. ... In Christianity, the First Epistle of Peter is a book of the New Testament. ... Visions of John of Patmos, as depicted in the TrÃ¨s Riches Heures du Duc de Berry. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... Wisdom literature is the a genre of literature common in the Ancient Near East. ...

A more radical position is taken by Earl Doherty, who holds that these early authors did not believe that Jesus had been on Earth at all. He argues that the earliest Christians accepted a Platonic cosmology that distinguished a "higher" spiritual world from the Earthly world of matter, and that they viewed Jesus as having descended only into the "lower reaches of the spiritual world".^[17] Doherty also suggests that this view was accepted by the authors of the Pastoral epistles, 2 Peter, and various second-century Christian writings outside the New Testament. Doherty contends that apparent references in these writings to events on earth, and a physical historic Jesus, should in fact be regarded as allegorical metaphors.^[18] Opponents regard such interpretations as forced and erroneous.^[19] Earl Doherty, currently living in Canada, is the author of The Jesus Puzzle, a work published in 2000 by the Canadian Humanist Association arguing that Jesus never lived. ... Middle Platonism refers to the development of certain philosophical doctrines associated with Plato during the first and second centuries A.D. One of the outstanding thinkers of Middle Platonism was Philo Judeaus (Philo the Jew) who synthesized Platos philosophy with Jewish scripture largely through allegorical interpretation of the latter. ... The Second Epistle of Peter is a book of the New Testament of the Bible. ...

The influence of the Old Testament

A majority of scholars^{[attribution needed]} explain the similarities between the Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke using the two-source hypothesis, according to which, Matthew and Luke derived most of their content from Mark and from a lost collection of Jesus' sayings known as the Q document. In the small amount of additional material unique to Matthew, Jesus is presented with strong parallels to Old Testament figures, most noticeably Moses. Matthew appears to have used Moses' birth narrative and sojourn in the wilderness as the basis for the narrative of Jesus. The Gospel of Matthew (literally, according to Matthew; Greek, ÎšÎ±Ï„Î¬ ÎœÎ±Î¸Î¸Î±Î¯Î¿Î½ or ÎšÎ±Ï„Î¬ ÎœÎ±Ï„Î¸Î±Î¯Î¿Î½) is one of the four Gospel accounts of the New Testament. ... The Gospel of Mark (anonymous[1] but ascribed to Mark the Evangelist) is a Gospel of the New Testament. ... The Gospel of Luke is the third and longest of the four canonical Gospels of the New Testament, which tell the story of Jesus life, death, and resurrection. ... The Two-Source Hypothesis is the most commonly accepted solution to the synoptic problem among biblical scholars, which posits that there are two sources to Gospel of Matthew and Gospel of Luke: the Gospel of Mark and a lost, hypothetical sayings collection called Q. The Two-Source Hypothesis was first... The Q document or Q (from the German Quelle, source) is a postulated lost textual source for the Gospel of Matthew and Gospel of Luke. ... Moses with the Tablets, 1659, by Rembrandt This article is about the Biblical figure. ...

It is widely accepted^{[attribution needed]} that the Gospel accounts were influenced by the Old Testament. Advocates of the Jesus-myth believe that the gospels are not history but a type of midrash: creative narratives based on the stories, prophecies, and quotes in the Hebrew Bible. Some advocates^{[attribution needed]} argue that there is no reason to assume that the sayings attributed to Q originated with Jesus. Advocates of the Jesus-myth theory claim that when the midrashic elements are removed, little to no content remains that could be used to demonstrate the existence of an historical Jesus.^[20] However, work done by prominent Q scholars such as John Kloppenborg identifies Q's genre as ancient Near-Eastern "instruction", which consistently attributes its wisdom to a human figure and not the personified Wisdom that one finds in the biblical book of Proverbs.^[21] Midrash (Hebrew: ×ž×“×¨×©; plural midrashim) is a Hebrew word referring to a method of exegesis of a Biblical text. ... The Book of Proverbs is one of the books of the Ketuvim of the Tanakh and of the Writings of the Old Testament. ...

Though conceding that the gospels may contain some creativity and midrash, opponents of the Jesus-myth theory argue that the gospels are more akin to ancient Greco-Roman biographies. Such works attempted to impart historical information about historical figures but were not comprehensive and could include legendary developments. In modern Olympic and amateur wrestling, Greco-Roman wrestling is a particular style and variation. ...

Although there are many types of midrash, the Toledot Yeshu jumps out as being the most similar to the proposal that characters and situations were invented wholesale according to religious dogma and Old Testament prophecy. However, opponents of the Jesus-myth theory have argued that the closest parallels to potential Moses-based embellishment do not apply to that of the Jesus narrative.^{[citation needed]} Moreover, there are many examples of ancient Jewish and Christian literature that shaped their stories and accounts according to Old Testament influence, but nevertheless provided some historical accounts;^[22] for example, in 1 Maccabees, Judas and his battles are described in terms which parallel those of Saul's and David's battles against the Philistines in 1 and 2 Samuel, but nevertheless 1 Maccabees has a degree of respect amongst historians as having a reasonable degree of historical reliability.^[23] This article is about references to the name Yeshu in classical Jewish rabbinic literature. ... 1 Maccabees is a deuterocanonical book of the Bible which was written by a Jewish (pre-Christian) author, probably about 100 BC, after the restoration of an independent Jewish kingdom. ... The Books of Samuel (Hebrew: Sefer Shmuel ×¡×¤×¨ ×©×ž×•××œ), are part of the Tanakh (part of Judaisms Hebrew Bible) and also of the Old Testament (of Christianity). ...

Parallels with Mediterranean mystery religions

Some advocates of the Jesus Myth theory have argued that many aspects of the Gospel stories of Jesus have remarkable parallels with life-death-rebirth gods in the widespread mystery religions prevalent in the hellenic culture amongst which Christianty was born. The central figure of one of the most widespread, Osiris-Dionysus, was consistently localised and deliberately merged with local deities in each area, since it was the mysteries which were imparted that were regarded as important, not the method by which they were taught. In the view of some advocates of the Jesus Myth theory, most prominently Freke and Gandy in The Jesus Mysteries, Jewish mystics adapted their form of Osiris-Dionysus to match prior Jewish heroes like Moses and Joshua, hence creating Jesus.^[4] The category life-death-rebirth deity also known as a dying-and-rising god is a convenient means of classifying the many divinities in world mythology who are born, suffer death or an eclipse or other death-like experience, pass a phase in the underworld among the dead, and are... This does not cite its references or sources. ... The term Osiris-Dionysus is used by some historians of religion to refer to a group of deities worshipped around the Mediterranean in the centuries prior to the birth of Jesus. ... Dr. Timothy Freke has an honours degree in philosophy and is an internationally respected authority on world mysticism. ... Peter Gandy is a scholar of Western religion and philosophy. ... The Jesus Mysteries: Was the Original Jesus a Pagan God? is a 1999 book by Timothy Freke and Peter Gandy that attempts to reconstruct the true origins of Christianity. ...

Several parallels are frequently cited by these advocates, and often appear, mixed with other parallels, on internet sites. The most prominently cited parallels are with Horus and Mithras. Horus was one of the life-death-rebirth deities, and was connected and involved in the resurrection of Osiris, whose Egyptian name (Asar) is very similar to the root of Lazarus. This page is about the Egyptian deity. ... Mithras and the Bull: fresco from the mithraeum at Marino, Italy, (3rd century AD) Mithras was the central god of Mithraism, a syncretic Hellenistic mystery religion of male initiates that developed in the Eastern Mediterranean in the 2nd and 1st centuries BC and was practiced in the Roman Empire from... Typical depiction of Osiris Osiris (Greek language, also Usiris; the Egyptian language name is variously transliterated Asar, Aser, Ausar, Wesir, or Ausare) is the Egyptian god of life, death, and fertility. ... The root is the primary lexical unit of a word, which carries the most significant aspects of semantic content and cannot be reduced into smaller constituents. ... Resurrection of Lazarus by Juan de Flandes, around 1500 For other uses, see Lazarus (disambiguation). ...

In Egyptian myth, Horus gained his authority by being anointed by Anubis, who had his own cult, and was regarded as the main anointer; the anointing made Horus into Horus karast (a religious epithet written in Egyptian documents as HR KRST) - embalmed/anointed Horus - in parallel to Jesus becoming Christ by being baptised by John, who had his own followers, and was especially regarded as a baptiser. Worship of Isis, Horus' mother, was a prominent cult, and the proposal that this is the basis of veneration of Mary, and more particularly Marian Iconography, has some merit. An epithet (Greek - ÎµÏ€Î¹Î¸ÎµÏ„Î¿Î½ and Latin - epitheton; literally meaning imposed) is a descriptive word or phrase. ... This article discusses the ancient goddess. ... (Latin veneratio, Greek δουλια dulia) In traditional Christian churches (for example, Catholicism and Eastern Orthodoxy), veneration, or veneration of saints, is a special act of honoring a dead person who has been identified as singular in the traditions of the religion, and through them honoring... Saint Mary and Saint Mary the Virgin both redirect here. ... Our Lady redirects here. ...

The suggestion of parallels with such myths, however, has gained little traction in the academic community. Advocates of the Jesus Myth theory citing the parallels are frequently discovered to be citing dubious sources, and are accused of presenting implausible parallels, advocating particular theologies to replace Christianity, and using non standard terms (e.g. anup the baptiser rather than Anubis the anointer/embalmer) which others fail to recognize. In 1962, Judaism scholar Samuel Sandmel cautioned against this practice and adapted the term 'Parallelomania' to describe it. "We might for our purposes define parallelomania as that extravagance among scholars which first overdoes the supposed similarity in passages and then proceeds to describe source and derivation as if implying a literary connection flowing in an inevitable or predetermined direction."^[24].

Opponents of the Jesus Myth theory regularly accuse those who advocate the existence of such parallels of confusing the issue of who was borrowing from whom, a charge which was also made in ancient times by prominent early Christians.^[4]. More recently in the book Reinventing Jesus, the authors put forth the position that "Only after 100 A.D. did the mysteries begin to look very much like Christianity, precisely because their existence was threatened by this new religion. They had to compete to survive."^[25].

However, it is notable that, unlike modern opponents, several prominent early Christians, like Irenaeus, actually acknowledged the existence of many parallels, complaining that the earlier religions had copied Christian religion and practices, before Jesus was even born, as some form of diabolically inspired pre-cognitive mockery. Additionally, elements from Mystery Religions are completely absent from some very early Christian texts, such as the Q Document and the Gospel of Thomas. Irenaeus (Greek: Î•Î¹ÏÎ·Î½Î±Î¯Î¿Ï‚), ( 130â€“202) was bishop of Lugdunum in Gaul, which is now Lyon, France. ... Satan frozen at the center of Cocytus, the ninth circle of Hell in Dantes Inferno. ... This article or section seems to describe future events as if they have already occurred. ... The Q document or Q (from the German Quelle, source) is a postulated lost textual source for the Gospel of Matthew and Gospel of Luke. ... The Gospel of Thomas is a New Testament-era apocryphon completely preserved in a papyrus Coptic manuscript discovered in 1945 at Nag Hammadi, Egypt. ...

The worship of Mithras was widespread in much of the Roman Empire from the mid-2nd century CE,^[26]^[27] and mainstream historians regard it as possible that many Christian practices derived originally from Mithraism through a process known as christianization, including 25th December being Jesus' birth-date,^[28] and Sunday being the dedicated day of worship.^{[citation needed]} Mithras was a solar deity, and so was seen as being born just after the winter solstice, and the day each week officially dedicated to him by the Roman empire was later renamed the day of the invincible sun, in turn being renamed Sunday.^{[citation needed]} Parallels between Mithras and the birth-narrative of Luke are also proposed by some advocates of the Jesus myth, since Mithras, as a sun god, was born under the zodiac sign that at that time was known as the stable of Augeas, though these latter parallels are not so supported in the academic community. It is however, agreed that according to inscriprions at the Seleucid temple at Kangavar in western Iran which is dated around 200 b.c.e, contains passage that state it's dedication to ""Anahita, the Immaculate Virgin Mother of the Lord Mithras".^{[citation needed]} There are many other examples of virgin births in ancient myths.^{[citation needed]} St Francis Xavier converting the Paravas: a 19th-century image of the docile heathen The historical phenomenon of Christianization, the conversion of individuals to Christianity or the conversion of entire peoples at once, also includes the practice of converting pagan practices, pagan religious imagery, pagan sites and the pagan calendar... Illumination of Earth by Sun on the day of the northern hemisphere winter solstice Illumination of Earth by Sun on the day of the southern hemisphere winter solstice In astronomy, the winter solstice is the moment when the earth is at a point in its orbit where one hemisphere is...

Supporters of Jesus' historicity point out that even Christian sources acknowledge that the public celebration of Jesus' birth was adopted from the date of the festival of Sol Invictus,^{[citation needed]} and that this has no bearing on the reliability of the Gospels, since they make no claims about the date.^[29] In fact, references in Luke and Matthew point to Jesus being more likely to have been born in April or September.^{[citation needed]} Neither do any Christian churches claim that the date for the celebration is anything other than symbolic. Coin of Emperor Probus, circa 280, with Sol Invictus riding a quadriga, with legend SOLI INVICTO, to the undefeated Sun. Note how the Emperor (on the left) wears a radiated solar crown, worn also by the god (to the right). ...

Historiography and methodology

Earl Doherty argues that the gospels are inconsistent concerning "such things as the baptism and nativity stories, the finding of the empty tomb and Jesus’ post-resurrection appearances" and contain numerous "contradictions and disagreements in the accounts of Jesus' words and deeds". He concludes that the evangelists freely altered their sources and invented material, and therefore could not have been concerned to preserve historical information.^[17] Earl Doherty, currently living in Canada, is the author of The Jesus Puzzle, a work published in 2000 by the Canadian Humanist Association arguing that Jesus never lived. ...

Although seldom remarked on by New Testament scholars, some advocates of the Jesus Myth theory argue that historians lack any reliable and widely accepted methodology for determining what is historical and what is not. As J. D. Crossan, a well respected scholar of early Christianity, comments, "I do not think, after two hundred years of experimentation, that there is any way acceptable in public discourse or scholarly debate, by which you can go directly into the great mound of the Jesus tradition and separate out the historical Jesus layer from all later strata".^{[cite this quote]} While this is not an argument that Jesus did not exist any more than it is an argument that the Paul described in Acts, or even Napoleon, did not exist, advocates of the Jesus Myth theory believe it does call into question the results of historical inquiry into Jesus of Nazareth.^{[citation needed]} John Dominic Crossan (born Nenagh, Co. ...

Opponents of the theory, including skeptical commentators such as the Jesus Seminar, argue that some reliable information can be extracted from the Gospels if consistent critical methodology is used.^{[citation needed]} The Jesus Seminar is a research team of about two hundred New Testament scholars founded in 1985 by the late Robert Funk under the auspices of the Westar Institute. ...

Mainstream scholarly reception

The idea of Jesus as a myth has received strong criticism from a number of biblical scholars and historians. The points below highlight some of these criticisms.

Overall, the unhistoricity theory is regarded as effectively refuted by almost all Biblical scholars and historians. Michael Grant (21 November 1914 â€“ 9 August 2004) was a trained classicist who was one of the few classical historians to win respect from academics and a lay readership. ... Motto Senatus Populusque Romanus (SPQR) The Roman Empire at its greatest extent, c. ... There are two famous persons named Pliny: Pliny the Elder, a Roman nobleman, scientist and historian who died in the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD The great-nephew of the former, Pliny the Younger, a statesman, orator, and writer who lived between 62 AD and 113 AD. This... A fanciful representation of Flavius Josephus, in an engraving in William Whistons translation of his works Josephus (years 37 â€“ shortly after 100 AD)[1], who became known, in his capacity as a Roman citizen, as Flavius Josephus[2], was a 1st-century Jewish historian and apologist of priestly and... Christianity is a monotheistic[1] religion centered on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as presented in the New Testament. ... A mystery religion is any religion with an arcanum, or body of secret wisdom. ... Cultural diffusion refers to the spread of ideas and material culture, especially if this diffusion occurs independently of population movement. ... This article is about Jesus of Nazareth. ... Epicureanism is a system of philosophy based upon the teachings of Epicurus (c. ... A restored Stoa in Athens. ... This article or section is in need of attention from an expert on the subject. ... A mystery religion is any religion with an arcanum, or body of secret wisdom. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... This article is about Jesus of Nazareth. ... Note: Judaism commonly uses the term Tanakh. ... Apocrypha (from the Greek word Î±Ï€ÏŒÎºÏÏ…Ï†Î± meaning those having been hidden away[1]) are texts of uncertain authenticity or writings where the authorship is questioned. ... A 19th century picture of Paul of Tarsus Paul of Tarsus (originally Saul of Tarsus) or Saint Paul the Apostle (fl. ... This article is about Jesus of Nazareth. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... This article is about Jesus of Nazareth. ... The word epistle is from the Greek word epistolos which means a written letter addressed to a recipient or recipients, perhaps part of exchanged correspondence. ... Christians believe that Jesus is the mediator of the New Covenant (see Hebrews 8:6). ... An epistle (Greek ÎµÏ€Î¹ÏƒÏ„Î¿Î»Î·, epistolÄ“, letter) is a writing directed or sent to a person or group of persons, usually a letter and a very formal, often didactic and elegant one. ... A sheep is led to the altar, 6th century BC Corinthian fresco. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ...

Jesus in non-Christian sources

There are no extant contemporaneous documents that mention Jesus. Two passages by the Jewish historian Josephus refer to Jesus, although scholars generally hold that the longer is at least partly interpolated. Celsus, a second century critic of Christianity, accused Jesus of being a bastard child and a sorcerer. He never questions Jesus' historicity even though he hated Christianity and Jesus.^[41] He is quoted as saying that Jesus was a "mere man."^[42] Furthermore, there is debate whether Suetonius, who wrote in the second century, made reference to Christianity having existed in 41 AD, though the majority of scholars believe that the reference cannot be interpreted in this fashion.^{[citation needed]} Lastly, there are passages from the historian Tacitus and from the satirist Lucian of Samosata^[43], both of whom credit "Christ" as the founder of Christianity. The historicity of Jesus concerns the historical authenticity of Jesus of Nazareth. ... A fanciful representation of Flavius Josephus, in an engraving in William Whistons translation of his works Josephus (years 37 â€“ shortly after 100 AD)[1], who became known, in his capacity as a Roman citizen, as Flavius Josephus[2], was a 1st-century Jewish historian and apologist of priestly and... Ancient texts come down to us mostly in late handwritten copies, themselves copied from early copies. ... Celsus (Greek: ) was a 2nd century Greek philosopher and opponent of Christianity. ... Christianity is a monotheistic[1] religion centered on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as presented in the New Testament. ... This article is about Jesus of Nazareth. ... Christianity is a monotheistic[1] religion centered on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as presented in the New Testament. ... This article is about Jesus of Nazareth. ... Gaius Suetonius Tranquillus ( 69/75 - after 130), also known as Suetonius, was a prominent Roman historian and biographer. ... Christianity is a monotheistic[1] religion centered on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as presented in the New Testament. ... Gaius Cornelius Tacitus Publius (or Gaius) Cornelius Tacitus (c. ... Lucian of Samosata (c. ... Christianity is a monotheistic[1] religion centered on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as presented in the New Testament. ...

Notes and references

^ ^a ^b Van Voorst, Robert E (2000). Jesus Outside the New Testament: An Introduction to the Ancient Evidence (Studying the Historical Jesus). Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 16. ISBN 978-0802843685.
^ ^a ^b Frazer, JG (2005). The Golden Bough - A Study in Magic and Religion. Cosimo. ISBN 978-1596056855.
^ Allegro, JM (1973). The Sacred Mushroom and the Cross. UK: Prometheus Books. ISBN 0879757574.
^ ^a ^b ^c Freke, T; Gandy, P (2001). The Jesus Mysteries: Was the "Original Jesus" a Pagan God?. Three Rivers Press. ISBN 978-0609807989.
^ Elwell, WA (2001). Evangelical Dictionary of Theology. Baker Academic. ISBN 978-0801020759.
^ Duling, DC; Perrin,N (1993). The New Testament: Proclamation and Parenesis, Myth and History. Harcourt. ISBN 978-0155003781.
^ Docetism. Encyclopedia Britannica Online. Retrieved on 2007-03-18.
^ Kelly, J.N.D (1978). Early Christian Doctrines: Revised Edition. HarperSanFrancisco. ISBN 978-0060643348.
^ Phillips, JB. Book 24 - John's Second Letter. Retrieved on 2007-03-18.
^ Carrier, R (2002). Did Jesus Exist? Earl Doherty and the Argument to Ahistoricity. The Secular Web. Retrieved on 2007-03-05.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g France, RT (1986). Evidence for Jesus (Jesus Library). Trafalgar Square Publishing, 19-20. ISBN 0340381728.
^ Price, C (2004). Did Josephus Refer to Jesus? A Thorough Review of the Testimonium Flavianum. Retrieved on 2007-03-18.
^ Tacitus, Cornelius (2005). The Annals of Imperial Rome. Digireads.com. ISBN 978-1420926682.
^ For the exchange of letters between Pliny and Trajan, see Pliny, Letters 10.96-97. Retrieved on 2007-03-18.
^ Photius (1920). "33: Justus of Tiberias, Chronicle of the Kings of the Jews", The library of Photius, trans. J. H. Freese, London: SPCK. Retrieved on 2007-01-03.
^ Wells, GA (September 1999). "Earliest Christianity". New Humanist 114 (3): 13-18. Retrieved on 2007-01-11.
^ ^a ^b Doherty, E (Fall 1997). "The Jesus Puzzle: Pieces in a Puzzle of Christian Origins". Journal of Higher Criticism 4 (2). Retrieved on 2007-01-09.
^ Doherty, E. Christ as "Man": Does Paul Speak of Jesus as an Historical Person?. The Jesus Puzzle: Was There No Historical Jesus?. Retrieved on 2007-01-11.
^ Price, C (2005-05-20). Earl Doherty use of the phrase "According to the Flesh" (sic). Bede's Library. Retrieved on 2007-01-11.
^ Doherty, E. THE JESUS PUZZLE Was There No Historical Jesus?. Retrieved on 2007-03-18.
^ Kloppenborg, John (1987). The Formation of Q: Trajectories in Ancient Wisdom Collections (Studies in Antiquity and Christianity). Trinity Press International, 263-316. ISBN 978-1563383069.
^ Price, C (2003). Earl Doherty on Christian Use of the Hebrew Bible. Retrieved on 2007-03-18.
^ Bartlett, JR (1998). 1 Maccabees (Guide to the Apocrypha and Pseudepigrapha, 5). Sheffield Academic Press. ISBN 978-1850757634.
^ Sandmel, S (1962). "Parallelomania". Journal of Biblical Literature 81 (1): 1-13. DOI:10.2307/3264821.
^ Komoszewski, JE; Sawyer, MJ & Wallace, DB (2006). Reinventing Jesus. Kregel Publications, 237. ISBN 978-0825429828.
^ Beard, M; North, J and Price, S (1998). Religions of Rome Volume 1: A History. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 266, 301. ISBN 0-521-30401-6.
^ Beck, RL. (2003). "Mithras". The Oxford Classical Dictionary (revised 3rd edition): 991–992. Ed. Simon Hornblower and Antony Spawforth. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
^ Martindale, Cyril. (1908). "Christmas". Catholic Encyclopaedia. Retrieved on 2007-03-18.
^ It has been argued that the Christian celebration on the 25th December predates the pagan practice. See Tighe, WJ (2003). Calculating Christmas. Fellowship of St. James.
^ Grant, Michael (1995). Jesus: An Historian's Review of the Gospels. Scribner, 199. ISBN 978-0684818672.
^ Martin, WC (1966). These Were God's People: A Bible History. Southwestern Company, 392, 432-440.
^ Romans 1:3
^ Galatians 4:4.
^ 1 Corinthians 15:21.
^ Philippians 2:7-8
^ Romans14:14, 1 Corinthians 7:10 and 9:14, and 1 Thessalonians 4:15.
^ See Epistle to the Hebrews.
^ Hebrews 5:7, 7:14, and 12:3.
^ Hebrews 10:5-9
^ Doherty, E. Responses to Critiques of the Mythicist Case. Retrieved on 2007-01-09.
^ Smith, M (1998). Jesus the Magician: Charlatan or Son of God. Ulysses Press, 78-79. ISBN 978-1569751558.
^ Bertonneau, TF (1997). "Celsus, the First Nietzsche: Resentment and the Case Against Christianity". Anthropoetics III 1. Retrieved on 2007-03-18.
^ Lucian, The Death of Peregrine, 1113 see Slick, MJ (2007). Non biblical accounts of New Testament events and/or people. Retrieved on 2007-04-17.

class="preview" id="pv352"> John Marco Allegro is a controversial archaeologist and Dead Sea Scrolls scholar. ... 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the Anno Domini (common) era. ... March 18 is the 77th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (78th in leap years). ... 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the Anno Domini (common) era. ... March 18 is the 77th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (78th in leap years). ... 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the Anno Domini (common) era. ... March 5 is the 64th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (65th in leap years). ... Richard T France, MA BD PhD is a New Testament scholar and Anglican Rector. ... 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the Anno Domini (common) era. ... March 18 is the 77th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (78th in leap years). ... Gayus Plinius Colonoscopy Caecilius Secundus (63 - ca. ... Template:Infobox boobies the Roman emperor This article is about the Roman Emperor. ... 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the Anno Domini (common) era. ... March 18 is the 77th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (78th in leap years). ... Icon of Photius Photios I or Photius I (in Greek: Î¦ÏŽÏ„Î¹Î¿Ï‚, PhÅtios), (Constantinople c. ... 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the Anno Domini (common) era. ... January 3 is the 3rd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the Anno Domini (common) era. ... 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March 18 is the 77th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (78th in leap years). ... 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the Anno Domini (common) era. ... March 18 is the 77th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (78th in leap years). ... A digital object identifier (or DOI) is a standard for persistently identifying a piece of intellectual property on a digital network and associating it with related data, the metadata, in a structured extensible way. ... Mary Beard is Professor in Classics at the University of Cambridge and a fellow of Newnham College. ... 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the Anno Domini (common) era. ... March 18 is the 77th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (78th in leap years). ... The Epistle to the Romans is one of the letters of the New Testament canon of the Christian Bible. ... The Epistle to Galatians is a book of the New Testament. ... The First Epistle to the Corinthians is a book of the Bible in the New Testament. ... Philippians redirects here. ... The Epistle to the Romans is one of the letters of the New Testament canon of the Christian Bible. ... The First Epistle to the Corinthians is a book of the Bible in the New Testament. ... The First Epistle to the Thessalonians, also known as the First Letter to the Thessalonians, is a book from the New Testament of the Christian Bible. ... Christians believe that Jesus is the mediator of the New Covenant (see Hebrews 8:6). ... Christians believe that Jesus is the mediator of the New Covenant (see Hebrews 8:6). ... Christians believe that Jesus is the mediator of the New Covenant (see Hebrews 8:6). ... 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the Anno Domini (common) era. ... January 9 is the 9th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the Anno Domini (common) era. ... March 18 is the 77th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (78th in leap years). ... 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the Anno Domini (common) era. ... April 17 is the 107th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (108th in leap years). ...

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