Jesus

Jesus (Greek: Ἰησοῦς Iēsoûs), also known as Jesus of Nazareth or Jesus Christ, is Christianity's central figure, both as Messiah and, for most Christians, as God incarnate. In Islam he is regarded as a very important prophet.

Cultural and historical background

Main article: Cultural and historical background of Jesus

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The world in which Jesus lived was volatile, marked by cultural and political dilemmas. Culturally, Jews had to grapple with the values and philosophy of Hellenism, and the imperialism of Rome, together with the paradox that their Torah applied only to them, but revealed universal truths. This situation led to new interpretations of the Torah, influenced by Hellenic thought and in response to Gentile interest in Judaism.

Related Topics:
Jew - Hellenism - Rome - Torah

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All of the land of Israel belonged to the Roman Empire at the time of Jesus' birth. It was directly ruled by the Idumaean Herod the Great who was appointed King of the Jews in Rome in 39 BC/BCE by Mark Antony and Caesar Augustus (earlier known as Octavian). In 6 AD/CE the Roman emperor Augustus deposed Herod's son Herod Archelaus. He combined Judea, Samaria, and Idumea into Iudaea Province which was placed under direct Roman administration and supervision by a Roman prefect who appointed a Jewish High Priest for Herod's Temple in Jerusalem. This situation existed, more or less, till 64 and the start of the Great Jewish Revolt. Galilee, where Jesus grew up according to the Gospels, remained under the jurisdiction of another of Herod's sons, Herod Antipas, Tetrarch of Galilee and Perea, from 4 BC/BCE to 39 AD/CE.

Related Topics:
Land of Israel - Roman Empire - Idumaean - Herod the Great - Rome - 39 BC/BCE - Mark Antony - Caesar Augustus - Octavian - 6 AD/CE - Herod Archelaus - Judea - Samaria - Iudaea Province - Prefect - Herod's Temple - 64 - Great Jewish Revolt - Galilee - Herod Antipas - Tetrarch - Perea - 4 BC/BCE - 39 AD/CE

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At this time Jesus' childhood hometown of Nazareth (Hebrew, Natserath) was, as revealed by archaeology, a tiny hamlet of a few hundred inhabitants. It had no synagogue, nor any public buildings. No gold, silver or imported goods have been found in it by archaeological excavation.

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According to Josephus, within 1st-century Judaism there were several sects, primarily the Sadducees, closely connected with the priesthood and the Temple, and the Pharisees, who were teachers and leaders of the synagogues. They resented Roman occupation, but, according to historian Shaye Cohen (1988), were in Jesus' time relatively apolitical. In addition, isolated in small communities from these main groups, by choice, some even taking to remote desert caves in anticipation of the end times, lived the Essenes, whose theology and philosophy are thought, by some scholars, to have influenced Jesus and/or John the Baptist.

Related Topics:
Josephus - Sadducees - Pharisees - Synagogue - End times - Essenes - John the Baptist

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Many Jews hoped that the Romans would be replaced by a Jewish king (or Messiah) of the line of King David—in their view the last legitimate Jewish regime. Most people at that time believed that their history was governed by God, meaning that even the conquest of Judea by the Romans was a divine act. Therefore the Romans would be replaced by a Jewish king only through divine intervention. Some, like John the Baptist in the first half of the century, and Yehoshua ben Ananias in the second half, claimed that a messianic age was at hand. Josephus' Jewish Antiquities book 18 states there was a "fourth sect", in addition to Sadducees, Pharisees and Essenes, which scholars associate with those he called Zealots. They were founded by Judas of Galilee and Zadok the Pharisee in the year 6 against Quirinius' tax reform and "agree in all other things with the Pharisaic notions; but they have an inviolable attachment to liberty, and say that God is to be their only Ruler and Lord." (18.1.6) They believed that the kingdom should be restored immediately, even through violent human action, and advocated direct action against the Romans. Roman reaction to the Zealots eventually led to the destruction of Herod's Temple by Vespasian in August of 70 , and the subsequent decline of the Zealots, Sadducees and Essenes.

Related Topics:
Messiah - King David - Yehoshua ben Ananias - Messianic age - Jewish Antiquities - Zealots - Judas of Galilee - Quirinius - Herod's Temple - Vespasian - 70

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Some scholars have asserted that, despite the depictions of him as antagonistic towards the Pharisees, Jesus was a member of that group. {{ref|EPSaunders}}

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See also Pharisees and Christianity

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Jesus' language was most probably Aramaic; see Aramaic of Jesus. He may also have spoken other languages of the time, such as the Jewish liturgical language Hebrew, and the administrative language, Greek.

Related Topics:
Aramaic of Jesus - Liturgical language - Hebrew - Greek

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