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PowerPoint
Jesus' Birth (alternately titled, "Christianity: The Three Pillars"), :38
Brief discussion of the timeline and location of Jesus' birth, and of his three-year ministry, with beautiful art work.
http://media.pearsoncmg.com/ph/hss/SSA_SHARED_MEDIA_1/religion/MRK/videos/myreligionkit/JesusBirth_MyLab.html
This video presents "The Three Pillars: Jesus Life Teachings." 1:39
http://media.pearsoncmg.com/ph/hss/SSA_SHARED_MEDIA_1/religion/MRK/videos/myreligionkit
/JesusLifeTeachings_MyLab.html
This video presents "The Three Pillars: Resurrection." 1:13
Easter story portrayed in religious art, voice-over narration, and a brief reading from the New Testament Gospel of Luke.
1 Corinthians 15:3-8 Revised Standard Version (RSV)
How many witnesses to the resurrection are there?
3 "For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the scriptures, 4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the scriptures, 5 and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. 6 Then he appeared to more than five hundred brethren at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have fallen asleep. 7 Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles. 8 Last of all, as to one untimely born, he appeared also to me."
The historicity of the resurrection is critical. For example, as the New American Standard Bible states: "and if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is vain, your faith also is vain" (1 Cor. 15:14). The context indicates that if there is no resurrection of the dead, not even Christ has been raised; and if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is vain, your faith also is vain. Moreover we are even found to be false witnesses of God, because we testified against God that He raised Christ, whom He did not raise, if in fact the dead are not raised.
Liberal Christianity, also known as liberal theology, covers diverse philosophically and biblically informed religious movements and ideas within Christianity from the late 18th century onward. Liberal does not refer to Progressive Christianity or to a political philosophy but to the philosophical and religious thought that developed as a consequence of the Enlightenment.
Liberal Christianity, broadly speaking, is a method of biblical hermeneutics, an undogmatic method of understanding God through the use of scripture by applying the same modern hermeneutics used to understand any ancient writings. Liberal Christianity did not originate as a belief structure, and as such was not dependent upon any Church dogma or creedal statements. Unlike conservative varieties of Christianity, or Orthodox Christianity (whether one speaks here of Catholicism, Protestantism, or the Eastern Churches), liberalism began with no unified set of propositional beliefs. Instead, "liberalism" from the start embraced the methodologies of Enlightenment science as the basis for interpreting the Bible, life, faith and theology.
The title "Acts of the Apostles" (Greek Πράξεις ἀποστόλων Praxeis Apostolon) was first used by Irenaeus in the late 2nd century. It is not known whether this was an existing title or one invented by Irenaeus; it does seem clear, however, that it was not given by the author.
The gospel of Luke and Acts make up a two-volume work which scholars call Luke-Acts. Together they account for 27.5% of the New Testament, the largest contribution attributed to a single author, providing the framework for both the Church's liturgical calendar and the historical outline into which later generations have fitted their idea of the story of Jesus and the early church.
Jesus: An Historian's Review of the Gospels by Michael Grant, Scribners (1977).
The author looks at the gospels with an historian's eye, in search of the authentic Jesus. He seeks to separate those portions of the gospels that refer to the true career and teachings of Jesus, from the subsequent additions or inventions by the evangelists. The gospels are studied in the same way as other ancient historical sources, endeavouring to reconstruct what really happened and to uncover the truth of the historical Jesus.
Jesus in history, an approach to the study of the Gospels by Howard Clark Kee, New York, Harcourt, Brace & World, [1970].
This text is a study of the historical Jesus. Specific literary sources are referenced - Roman and Jewish historians, the individual gospels, and other early Christian sources.
"Among Roman writers, the oldest reference to Jesus that has survived is found in one of the letters that Pliny the Younger (A.D. 62-113) wrote to Emperor Trajan. . . . The Roman historian Suetonius, a contemporary of Pliny, mentions in his Lives of the Twelve Caesars that under the reign of Claudius (A.D. 41-54), there was a disturbance among the Jews that reached such a peak of intensity that they had to be expelled from the city. . . . [from] some one named Chrestos" (pp. 45-46)."
Jesus of Nazareth by Gunther Bornkamm, Other authors: Fraser McLuskey (Translator), Irene McLuskey (Translator), Augsburg Fortress Publishers (1995).
Günther Bornkamm (1905-1990) was a German New Testament scholar. He was a student of Rudolf Bultmann, as well as other famous theologians. Bultmann was famous (or infamous, depending on one's point of view) for his proposal to "demythologize" the New Testament; that is, remove the legendary accretions to the story of Jesus added by the early Church. Bultmann said that "I do indeed think we can know almost nothing concerning the life and personality of Jesus."
However, in 1956 Bornkamm wrote this influential book, which begins by stating, "No one is any longer in a position to write a life of Jesus," not least because the gospel writers display "an incontestable loyalty and adherence to the word of Jesus, and at the same time an astonishing degree of freedom as to the original wording." Nevertheless, Bornkamm maintained that there was a layer of historical recollection that underlay the gospel accounts, which "do speak of history as occurrence and event."
Bornkamm believed that there were certain events in the life of Jesus that were incontestably historical; for example, "The fact that Jesus let himself be baptised by John belongs to the data of his life which cannot be doubted." Also, that "Jesus had to reckon with the possibility of his own violent end, we have no reason to doubt." He is even willing to credit some historical truth to the gospel stories about Jesus' death, since "nothing would be more wrong than to deny that there is any historical truth in the story in the gospels about Jesus' suffering and death, simply because the church's faith was specially concerned with this piece of tradition.
The historical reliability of the Gospels refers to the reliability and historic character of the four New Testament gospels as historical documents. Although some claim that all four canonical gospels meet the five criteria for historical reliability, others say that little in the gospels is considered to be historically reliable.
Almost all scholars of antiquity agree that Jesus existed, but scholars differ on the historicity of specific episodes described in the Biblical accounts of Jesus, and the only two events subject to "almost universal assent" are that Jesus was baptized by John the Baptist and was crucified by the order of the Roman Prefect Pontius Pilate. Elements whose historical authenticity is disputed include the two accounts of the Nativity of Jesus, the miraculous events including the resurrection, and certain details about the crucifixion.
According to the majority viewpoint, the Synoptic Gospels are the primary sources of historical information about Jesus and of the religious movement he founded, if the gospels are considered to be historically reliable. These religious gospels—the Gospel of Matthew, the Gospel of Mark, and the Gospel of Luke—written in the Greek language, recount the life, ministry, crucifixion and resurrection of a Jew named Jesus, who spoke Aramaic. There are different hypotheses regarding the origin of the texts, for the gospels of the New Testament were written in Greek for Greek-speaking communities, that were later translated into Syriac, Latin and Coptic.
The fourth gospel, the Gospel of John, differs greatly from the first three gospels. Historians often study the historical reliability of the Acts of the Apostles when studying the reliability of the gospels, as Acts was seemingly written by the same author as the Gospel of Luke'.
Historians subject the gospels to critical analysis, attempting to differentiate rather authentic, reliable information from possible inventions, exaggerations, and alterations. Since there are more textual variants in the New Testament (200-400 thousand) than it has letters (c. 140 thousand), scholars use textual criticism to determine which gospel variants could theoretically be taken as 'original'. To answer this question, scholars have to ask who wrote the gospels, when they wrote them, what was their objective in writing them, what sources the authors used, how reliable these sources were, and how far removed in time the sources were from the stories they narrate, or if they were altered later. Scholars can also look into the internal evidence of the documents, to see if, for example, the document is misquoting texts from the Hebrew Tanakh, is making claims about geography that were incorrect, if the author appears to be hiding information, or if the author has made up a certain prophecy. Finally, scholars turn to external sources, including the testimony of early church leaders, writers outside the church (mainly Jewish and Greco-Roman historians) who would have been more likely to have criticized the early churches, and to archaeological evidence.
Historical criticism, also known as the historical-critical method or higher criticism, is a branch of literary criticism that investigates the origins of ancient text in order to understand "the world behind the text".
The primary goal of historical criticism is to ascertain the text's primitive or original meaning in its original historical context and its literal sense or sensus literalis historicus. The secondary goal seeks to establish a reconstruction of the historical situation of the author and recipients of the text. This may be accomplished by reconstructing the true nature of the events which the text describes. An ancient text may also serve as a document, record or source for reconstructing the ancient past which may also serve as a chief interest to the historical critic. In regard to Semitic biblical interpretation, the historical critic would be able to interpret the literature of Israel as well as the history of Israel.
In 18th century Biblical criticism, the term "higher criticism" was commonly used in mainstream scholarship in contrast with "lower criticism". In the 21st century, historical criticism is the more commonly used term for higher criticism, while textual criticism is more common than the loose expression "lower criticism".
Historical criticism began in the 17th century and gained popular recognition in the 19th and 20th centuries. The perspective of the early historical critic was rooted in Protestant reformation ideology, inasmuch as their approach to biblical studies were free from the influence of traditional interpretation. Where historical investigation was unavailable, historical criticism rested on philosophical and theological interpretation. With each passing century, historical criticism became refined into various methodologies used today: source criticism, form criticism, redaction criticism, tradition criticism, canonical criticism, and related methodologies.
The Nicene Creed (Greek: Σύμβολον τῆς Νίκαιας, Latin: Symbolum Nicaenum) is a profession of faith widely used in Christian liturgy.
It is called Nicene /ˈnaɪsiːn/ because originally adopted in the city of Nicaea (present day Iznik, Turkey) by the First Council of Nicaea in 325. In 381, it was amended at the First Council of Constantinople, and the amended form is referred to as the Nicene or the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Creed. The churches of Oriental Orthodoxy use this profession of faith with the verbs in the original plural ("we believe") form. The Eastern Orthodox Church and the Roman Catholic Church use it with the verbs of believing changed to the singular ("I believe") form. The Anglican Communion and many Protestant denominations also use it, sometimes with the verbs of believing in the plural form but generally in the singular.
The Apostles' Creed is also used in the Latin West, but not in the Eastern liturgies. On Sundays and some other days, one or other of these two creeds is recited in the Roman Rite Mass after the homily. The Nicene Creed is also part of the profession of faith required of those undertaking important functions within the Catholic Church. In the Byzantine Rite, the Nicene Creed is sung or recited at the Divine Liturgy, immediately preceding the Anaphora (Eucharistic Prayer), and is also recited daily at compline.
The following is a literal translation of the Greek text of the Constantinopolitan form:
"I believe in one God, the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth, and of all things visible and invisible. And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son of God, and born of the Father before all ages. God of God, light of light, true God of true God. Begotten not made, consubstantial to the Father, by whom all things were made. Who for us men and for our salvation came down from heaven. And was incarnate of the Holy Ghost and of the Virgin Mary and was made man; was crucified also for us under Pontius Pilate, suffered and was buried; and the third day rose again according to the Scriptures. And ascended into heaven, sits at the right hand of the Father, and shall come again with glory to judge the living and the dead, of whose Kingdom there shall be no end. And I believe in the Holy Ghost, the Lord and Giver of life, who proceeds from the Father and the Son, who together with the Father and the Son is to be adored and glorified, who spoke by the Prophets. And one holy, catholic, and apostolic Church. I confess one baptism for the remission of sins. And I look for the resurrection of the dead and the life of the world to come. Amen."
APA citation. (1911). The Nicene Creed. In The Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company. Retrieved February 13, 2015 from New Advent: http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/11049a.htm
http://media.pearsoncmg.com/ph/hss/SSA_SHARED_MEDIA_1/religion/MRK/videos/myreligionkit/ResurrectionStory_MyLab.html
This video presents "Eucharist." :58
http://media.pearsoncmg.com/ph/hss/SSA_SHARED_MEDIA_1/religion/MRK/videos/myreligionkit/Eucharist_MyLab.html
This video presents "Sacred Journey: Baptism ." :12
Visual depiction of different baptism rituals, with no verbal explanation.
http://media.pearsoncmg.com/ph/hss/SSA_SHARED_MEDIA_1/religion/MRK/videos/myreligionkit/Baptism_MyLab.html
Map illustrating the spread of Christianity 300 C.E.
"Mapspreadofxity" by Agur - http://www.usu.edu/markdamen/1320Hist&Civ/slides/13xity/mapspreadofxity.jpg. Licensed under CC BY 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons - http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mapspreadofxity.jpg#mediaviewer/File:Mapspreadofxity.jpg
Augustine (354-430 C.E.) stands as the most influential theologian in the Western Christian tradition. After a period of wandering, seeking after religious truth, he was baptized as a Christian in 387 after a conversion experience in 386. He later became bishop of the city of Hippo in North Africa (around 395), and he spent part of the next few years writing the Confessions (used to denote both confession in the biblical sense, that is, as praise of God, and also in the sense of a declaration of fault or sin). One of the classics of Western literature, it is a spiritual autobiography that details his search for God while also previewing, in a way, the trajectory of his thought on issues such as the knowledge of God, the role of the Church, and the nature of humanity as essentially sinful and completely reliant upon God's grace for salvation.
Hand-out
In the first two sections of Book I (the first part of the reading selection), what is the problem that Augustine presents to the reader?
The material from Book II focuses on the problem of sin as seen from the perspective of the so-called pear garden incident. His musings on the psychology of sin leads him to come to two conclusions: one about the nature of sin, and the second having to do with the context for committing individual acts of sin. Identify those two conclusions that provides an overview of Augustine's understanding of sin in the Confessions.
The Great Schism
The Global Mission of the Jesuits (Thomas Taylor), 4:43
http://media.pearsoncmg.com/ph/hss/SSA_SHARED_MEDIA_1/history/MHL/WORLD/author_podcasts/jesuits.html
Debate/discuss any of the following assertions:
a. If you try to follow the ethical teachings of Christianity, but do not believe that Jesus was born of a virgin, died in order to atone for human sins, and rose physically from the dead you should not call yourself a Christian.
b. Christian missionaries have done more harm than good. Christians should stop trying to push their religion on others and respect other people’s different religions.
c. All the major churches (Catholic, Orthodox, Protestant) have corrupted the teachings of Jesus.
d. We are born sinful.
e. Christianity has traditionally put too much emphasis on “life after death” and not enough on life before death.
Questions for Class Discussion
1. Most Christians believe the New Testament’s Gospels and Epistles tell us the basic facts about Jesus. Would it be worthwhile or necessary for Christianity to find more information about Jesus from sources other than the New Testament?
2. The vast number of Christian denominations and traditions has prompted some to ask what the essence of Christianity might be. Many people over the centuries have tried to boil Christianity down to a single essence. Do you think there is a single essence to Christianity? If so, what is it? If not, why not?
3. Christians generally claim that Jesus is unique, the “messiah” (anointed one) sent by the Creator God to the human race. What specifically is unique about him? Why, in you opinion, has the religion centered on Jesus dominated Western civilization, gained more members than any other world religion, and become the fastest growing religion in the world?
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