In my readings I've come to the conclusion that this myth was created because they needed it to be true. The flash point for the Christian faith are the big four gospels. Everything else flows from this. You can see that Luke and Matthew are full of nonsense and lies. They say Christ was born in Bethlehem when most everywhere else he is referred to as Jesus of Nazareth or the Nazarene. The reason they stopped in Bethlehem was because Joseph was on his way to Bethlehem to take part in a Census that never happened during the governorship of Quirinius who didn't take such a position until 10 YEARS after Herod's death who supposedly tried to kill baby Jesus. None of this matches up at all. So it is clearly a work of fiction. But why?
The answer is because Jesus (the man) failed at the task of being Messiah as it was understood by the Jews (The people that invented the concept of Messiah). Messiah was supposed to save Israel and her people. Not figuratively but in real life. He was supposed to be another King David. A ruler that would free the Jews from foreign rule, reestablish the 12 tribes, and be King of Israel and rule by the law of God. Christ did none of this. Israel and their temple were shortly thereafter destroyed. Their people all but exterminated. And their culture nearly pounded and lost in the sand forever. So in ever sense of the word Messiah... Jesus failed. So a new concept of Messiah was created. One where this kingdom wouldn't be one of this world but in heaven. Where he would save our souls... not our flesh. And Messiah could not be defeated because he could not be killed. To quote Obi Wan Kenobi " If you strike me down, I shall become more powerful than you can possibly imagine."
Throughout time... people claiming to be Messiah (King of the Jews) were killed by more powerful folks like the Romans or even the Jews themselves. So they needed a bullet proof messiah. One that existed on a plain that couldn't be reached by swords and bows. Being brought back from the dead was a pretty common tale back then. There were other street preachers like Jesus that claimed to be able to raise the dead... and people just took it as a matter of fact because it was a time when people believed in magic and sorcery. Wasn't that impressive of a claim to make back then. It'd be like someone now saying they saw a ghost. People just believe that stuff.
The answer is because Jesus (the man) failed at the task of being Messiah as it was understood by the Jews (The people that invented the concept of Messiah). Messiah was supposed to save Israel and her people. Not figuratively but in real life. He was supposed to be another King David. A ruler that would free the Jews from foreign rule, reestablish the 12 tribes, and be King of Israel and rule by the law of God. Christ did none of this. Israel and their temple were shortly thereafter destroyed. Their people all but exterminated. And their culture nearly pounded and lost in the sand forever. So in ever sense of the word Messiah... Jesus failed. So a new concept of Messiah was created. One where this kingdom wouldn't be one of this world but in heaven. Where he would save our souls... not our flesh. And Messiah could not be defeated because he could not be killed. To quote Obi Wan Kenobi " If you strike me down, I shall become more powerful than you can possibly imagine."
Throughout time... people claiming to be Messiah (King of the Jews) were killed by more powerful folks like the Romans or even the Jews themselves. So they needed a bullet proof messiah. One that existed on a plain that couldn't be reached by swords and bows. Being brought back from the dead was a pretty common tale back then. There were other street preachers like Jesus that claimed to be able to raise the dead... and people just took it as a matter of fact because it was a time when people believed in magic and sorcery. Wasn't that impressive of a claim to make back then. It'd be like someone now saying they saw a ghost. People just believe that stuff.
