RE: Any Evidence For A Historical Jesus?
December 30, 2011 at 3:07 am
(December 29, 2011 at 11:44 pm)Minimalist Wrote: Read Origen, "Contra Celsus," and get back to me.
You can find it at http://www.earlychristianwritings.com
I'm tired of dealing with the same shit over and over again.
Hi, Minimalist,
I read Origen’s
Contra Celsus a number of years ago. It is a lot of material. Fortunately, I think I am aware of the passage you have in mind. This same testimony is what leads most scholars to conclude that the phrase, “he was the Christ” is one of the interpolations in
Antiquities 18—not that the entire section (
Antiq. 18.63-64) is a sheer fabrication by later Christians.
Ironically, Origen’s commentary on Josephus’s writings suggests that a copy of
Antiquities Origen is familiar with mentions Jesus in some way. Specifically, Origen explains that although Josephus did not believe Jesus was the Christ, he nevertheless claims that Josephus says, “the death of James the Just, who was a brother of Jesus (called Christ)” was the cause of the disasters that happened to the Jews.
Origen writes:
“For in the 18th book of his
Antiquities of the Jews,
Josephus bears witness to John as having been a Baptist, and as promising purification to those who underwent the rite. Now
this writer, although not believing in Jesus as the Christ, in seeking after the cause of the fall of Jerusalem and the destruction of the temple, whereas he ought to have said that the conspiracy against Jesus was the cause of these calamities befalling the people, since they put to death Christ, who was a prophet,
says nevertheless--being, although against his will, not far from the truth--
that these disasters happened to the Jews as a punishment for
the death of James the Just, who was a brother of Jesus (called Christ),--the Jews having put him to death, although he was a man most distinguished for his justice” (
, Book 1, Chapter 47).
More importantly, however, recall that I raise the following points in my original post:
“Also, contrary to the view commonly pontificated online,
most scholars conclude that the first century C.E. Jewish historian Flavius Josephus also refers to Jesus twice: once in a passage in
Antiquities of the Jews 18.63-64,
probably containing interpolations, and a second time in a rarely-disputed portion in
Antiquities of the Jews 20.200.”
In other words, I reference Josephus’s possible references to Jesus only in my discussion of how the majority of scholars perceive the issue. I do not cite
Antiquities 18 or
Antiquities 20 as evidence in favor of Jesus’s existence. Note that I write:
“None of this demonstrates that Josephus did, in fact, mention Jesus. Again, I only bring the research pertinent to these two Josephus passages to readers’ attention to correct the misconception that Christian apologists are the only individuals who deem these selections to be genuine.”
Lastly, in the final paragraph I specify what I mean when I say the scholars conclude the selections are "genuine": “Moreover, it is factually inaccurate to opine the view that only Christian apologists conclude Josephus mentioned Jesus
in some way.” Please observe that I do not insinuate that the majority of non-Christian scholars conclude Josephus mentioned Jesus in exactly the form his testimony in
Antiquities 18 currently appears. Most non-Christian scholars deduce that although
Antiquities 18 contains Christian interpolations, it still preserves some core commentary on Jesus’s life. Also, as the quote from Louis H. Feldman indicates, virtually no scholars have questioned the authenticity of the reference to Jesus in
Antiq. 20.
I merely present the scholarly research to expose the erroneous assertion that only Christian apologists think Josephus mentioned Jesus. This is why I initially asked you, “How, exactly, do I utilize information from Josephus in my post and how is my usage of Josephus in those cases problematic?” I hope this clarifies the confusion.
Kind regards,
Fpvpilot