The Gospel story of Christ. Gospel light. Stories about Jesus Christ for children. The meaning of the Resurrection, Easter of Christ for everyone

M.: Holy Trinity Sergius Lavra, 2010 - 448 p.

The gospel story covers biblical events from the Nativity of the Lord Jesus Christ to His Ascension. The great events described by the four evangelists - Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, are given in a single chronological sequence based on the interpretations of mainly the ancient holy fathers, and first of all, St. John Chrysostom. To illustrate the publication, a computer restoration of more than 150 mosaics and frescoes of the 11th–16th centuries was carried out. The publication is supplied with tables and an alphabetical index.

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Table of contents
SACRED HISTORY OF THE NEW TESTAMENT 3
Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ 3
Chapter 1. THE APPEARANCE OF THE LORD JESUS ​​CHRIST INTO THE WORLD 4
§ 1. Announcing the birth of the Forerunner to Zechariah 4
§ 2. Announcing the incarnation of the Son of God 5
§ 3. Meeting of the Blessed Virgin Mary with Righteous Elizabeth 10
§ 4. Nativity of John the Baptist 11
§ 5. The Archangel reveals to Joseph the secret of the Incarnation 12
§ 6. Nativity 14
§ 7. Circumcision and the Presentation of the Lord 16
§ 8. Adoration of the Magi 19
§ 9. Flight of the Holy Family to Egypt. Massacre of the Bethlehem Innocents 21
§ 10. The growth of Jesus Christ in Nazareth. Twelve-year-old Jesus in the Temple 23
Chapter 2. PUBLIC MINISTRY OF THE LORD JESUS ​​CHRIST 28
Chapter 2.1. Social narrowing of the Lord Jesus Christ from the beginning to the first Easter 28
§eleven. Sermon of John the Baptist 28
§ 12. The appearance of Jesus Christ to the people. Epiphany 32
§ 13. Forty-day fast and temptation from the devil 34
§ 14. Embassy of the Sanhedrin to John the Baptist. John's Testimony of Jesus as Redeemer 39
§ 15. The first disciples of Christ 41
§ 16. The first miracle of Jesus at the wedding in Cana of Galilee 43
Chapter 2.2. The first Easter of the public ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ 45
§ 17. Journey to Jerusalem and the first expulsion of traders from the temple 45
§ 18. Conversation of Jesus Christ with Nicodemus 47
§ 19. The preaching of Jesus Christ in Judea and the last testimony of John the Baptist about Him 49
§ 20. Imprisonment of John the Baptist 50
§ 21. The Lord’s departure to Galilee, His conversation with the Samaritan woman 52
§ 22. The coming of Jesus to Galilee and the beginning of the sermon 56
§ 23. Absentee healing of the son of a courtier 57
§ 24. The miraculous catch of fish and the call to the apostolic ministry of fishermen: Peter, Andrew, James and John 57
§ 25. Sermon in the Capernaum synagogue and healing of a demoniac 59
§ 26. Healing of Peter’s mother-in-law and many sick people 60
§ 27. Sermon in the Nazareth Synagogue 61
§ 28. Healing of a leper 63
§ 29. Return to Capernaum and healing of the paralytic lowered through the roof 65
§ 30. The calling of the Apostle Matthew 67
Chapter 2.3. Second Easter of the public ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ 70
§ 31. Healing of the paralytic during Sheep font 70
§ 32. The teaching of the Lord Jesus Christ about His equality with God the Father, about the general resurrection and judgment 72
§ 33. Harvesting and interpretation of the Sabbath Law 75
§ 34. Healing of a withered arm on Saturday 76
§ 35. Election of the twelve apostles 79
§ 36. Sermon on the Mount 82
§ 37. Absentee healing of the centurion’s servant in Capernaum 105
§ 38. Resurrection of the son of the Nain widow 107
§ 39. Embassy of John the Baptist from prison to Jesus Christ 108
§ 40. A terrible sentence over unrepentant cities and a call for the toilers to calm down 110
§ 41. Supper in the house of the Pharisee Simon, forgiveness of the sinner 112
§ 42. Healing of a blind and dumb demoniac. Convicting the Pharisees of blasphemy against the Holy Spirit 114
§ 43. The Lord's answer to those who sought from Him a sign from heaven. About carnal and spiritual kinship 116
§ 44. The teaching of the Lord Jesus Christ about the Kingdom of God in parables 119
§ 45. The Lord’s answers to those who wanted to follow Him 126
§ 46. Taming the sea storm 128
§ 47. Expulsion of the legion of demons in the country of the Gadarenes 129
§ 48. Healing of the bleeding woman and resurrection of Jairus’s daughter 131
§ 49. Healing of two blind people and a dumb demon possessed 133
§ 50. Unbelief of the inhabitants of Nazareth 135
§ 51. Jesus' preaching in Galilee and His sorrow for the lack of laborers in the harvest 136
§ 52. Letter of the twelve apostles for preaching 137
§ 53. Beheading of John the Baptist 142
§ 54. Feeding the five thousand with five loaves 145
§ 55. Walking of Jesus Christ on the waters 147
§ 56. Conversation of Jesus Christ about the Bread of Life 149
Chapter 2.4. Third Passover of the public ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ 155
§ 57. Convicting the Jews of violating the commandments of God for the sake of the traditions of the elders 155
§ 58. Absentee healing of the Canaanite daughter 157
§ 59. Healing of the deaf, tongue-tied and many sick people 159
§ 60. Feeding four thousand with seven loaves 160
§ 61. Answer to the Pharisees who demanded a sign from heaven, warning against the leaven of the Pharisees 161
§ 62. Healing a blind man by spitting 163
§ 63. Confession of Jesus by the apostles as the Son of God. The Promise of the Church 164
§ 64. Jesus' predictions about suffering, death, resurrection and the Second Coming. Teaching about bearing the cross 166
§ 65. Transfiguration of the Lord 168
§ 66. Healing of a youth who was possessed during the new moon 172
§ 67. Wonderful stater 175
§ 68. Conversation about who is greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven 176
§ 69. The doctrine of combating temptations 178
§ 70. Parables of the lost sheep and the lost coin. The Court of the Church and the Power of Conciliar Prayer 179
§ 71. Forgiveness of grievances. Parable of the Unmerciful Debtor 182
§ 72. Departure of Jesus from Galilee to Judea 184
§ 73. Message for the preaching of seventy disciples 186
§ 74. Jesus in Jerusalem at the Feast of Tabernacles 187
§ 75. Forgiveness of a sinner 192
§ 76. Conversation with the Jews in the Temple 194
§ 77. Healing of a man born blind 199
§ 78. Parable of the Good Shepherd 203
§ 79. The Lord Jesus Christ at the Feast of Renewal. The doctrine of the consubstantiality of the Son and the Father 206
§ 80. Return of seventy disciples from sermon 209
§ 81. Parable of the Good Samaritan 211
§ 82. Visit of Martha and Mary 213
§ 83. The parable of persistent petition 214
§ 84. Reproof of the scribes and Pharisees at a Pharisee’s dinner 215
§ 85. Parable of the foolish rich man 217
§ 86. Parables about the watchful servants and the prudent steward 219
§ 87. The Fire of Christ and division among people 221
§ 88. Call to repentance in connection with the murder of the Galileans by order of Pilate and the fall of the Tower of Siloam 221
§ 89. Parable of the barren fig tree 222
§ 90. Healing of a crumpled woman on Saturday 223
§ 91.0 narrow gates to the Kingdom of God 224
§ 92. Herod's intention to kill Christ. Jesus' Sorrow over Jerusalem 226
§ 93. Supper in the house of the ruler of the Pharisees 227
§ 94. The doctrine of self-sacrifice 230
§ 95. Parable of the Prodigal Son 231
§ 96. Parable of the unfaithful steward 234
§ 97. Parable of the rich man and Lazarus 237
§ 98. The doctrine of the sanctity of marriage and virginity. Blessing of children 239
§ 99. Instruction on the power of faith and the parable of the worthless slaves 243
§ 100. Healing of ten lepers 244
§ 101. Revelation about the advent of the Kingdom of God and the Second Coming 246
§ 102. Parable of the unjust judge 247
§ 103. Parable of the Publican and the Pharisee 248
§ 104. Advice to a rich young man 250
§ 105. Conversation with the apostles about retribution 252
§ 106. Parable of the vinedressers who received equal pay 253
§ 107. Departure to Judea, news of Lazarus’ illness 256
§ 108. Prediction of death and resurrection. Request of John and James Zebedee 258
§ 109. Healing of two blind men near Jericho 261
§ 110. Conversion of the tax collector Zacchaeus 262
§111. Parable of the Ten Minas 263
§ 112. Raising Lazarus 266
§ 113. The decision of the Sanhedrin to kill Jesus 269
§ 114. Supper in Bethany in the house of Lazarus 271
Chapter 3. THE LAST DAYS OF THE EARTH LIFE OF THE LORD JESUS ​​CHRIST 276
Chapter 3.1. Sunday afternoon 276
§ 115. Entry of the Lord into Jerusalem 276
§ 116. Messiah in the Jerusalem Temple, expulsion of traders 279
Chapter 3.2. Maundy Monday 282
§ 117. The curse of the barren fig tree 282
§ 118. Meeting with the Hellenes, speech about glorification and the voice of God from heaven 283
Chapter 3.3. Maundy Tuesday 288
§ 119. Withered fig tree, teaching on the power of faith 288
§ 120. Question of the Sanhedrin about the powers of Christ 289
§ 121. The parable of the two sons sent by their father into the vineyard 290
§ 122. Parable of the evil vinedressers 292
§ 123. Parable of those invited to the wedding feast of the king's son 295
§ 124. Question of the Pharisees about tribute to Caesar 298
§ 125. Question of the Sadducees about the resurrection 300
§ 126. Discourse on the greatest commandment in the Law and the question of the Messiah, Whose Son He is 301
§ 127. Reproof of the scribes and Pharisees, eightfold “woe” 304
§ 128. Widow's mite 308
§ 129. Conversation with the disciples on the Mount of Olives about the destruction of Jerusalem, the Second Coming and the end of the world 308
§ 130. Parable of the Ten Virgins 316
§ 131. Image of the Last Judgment 318
Chapter 3.4. Great Wednesday 322
§ 132. Secret meeting of the Sanhedrin on the murder of Christ 322
§ 133. Supper in the house of Simon the leper 323
§ 134. Agreement of Judas with the enemies of Christ 324
Chapter 3.5. Maundy Thursday 327
§ 135. Preparation for the Last Supper 327
§ 136. Last Supper 328
§ 137. Farewell conversation at the Last Supper 339
§ 138. Concluding the farewell conversation with the High Priestly Prayer 350
§ 139. Repeated prediction about Peter’s denial and the dispersion of the disciples 353
§ 140. Gethsemane feat: prayer for the cup 355
§ 141. Capture of the Lord by soldiers 359
§ 142. Court of the Sanhedrin 362
§ 143. Peter’s threefold denial 367
Chapter 3.6. Good Friday 370
§ 144. Final verdict of the Sanhedrin 3 70
§ 145. Pilate's Court 372
§ 146. Jesus before Herod 3 76
§ 147. End of Pilate's trial 377
§ 148. The death of Judas 385
§ 149. Procession of the cross to Golgotha ​​388
§ 150. Crucifixion 391
§ 151. Repentance of the thief 395
§ 152. Our Lady of the Cross 397
§ 153. Death of Jesus 398
§ 154. Burial of Christ 403
Chapter 3.7. Holy Saturday 406
§ 155. The Savior’s descent into hell 406
§ 156. Placement of guards at the tomb 408
Chapter 4. THE RESURRECTION OF THE LORD JESUS ​​CHRIST 412
§ 157. Resurrection of Christ 412
§ 158. The appearance of the Lord on Sunday morning to Mary Magdalene, the myrrh-bearing women and Peter 415
§ 159. Lies of the Sanhedrin and bribery of the guards 418
§ 160. The appearance of the Lord to two disciples on the way to Emmaus 422
§ 161. The appearance of the Lord to the apostles (without Thomas) on the day of the Resurrection 424
§ 162. The appearance of the Lord to the apostles on the eighth day. Assurance of Thomas 426
§ 163. The appearance of the Lord in Galilee on the Sea of ​​Tiberias. Restoration of Peter to the apostolic rank 428
§ 164. Appearance of Christ on a mountain in Galilee 433
§ 165. Ascension of the Lord 437
The teaching and miracles of the Lord Jesus Christ, prophetic predictions about Jesus Christ 440
Recommended reading 442
Alphabetical index 442

- 3809

Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk, at the opening of the International Symposium of New Testament Scholars on September 26, noted that numerous alternative biographies of Jesus Christ have a detrimental effect on the general public by undermining confidence in the gospels.

The most incredible versions are considered: that Jesus escaped death on the cross and died in Indian Kashmir at the age of 120, or that he was married to Mary Magdalene, or that he was the leader of militant Jewish nationalists, and many others.

Over the past ten years, such literature, which betrays outright falsifications under the guise of the ultimate truth, has simply flooded the Russian book market. In contrast to serious academic works on biblical studies, these populist expositions are very popular among the reading public, the priest said Alexey Andreev, graduate of the theological faculty of St. Tikhon's Orthodox Humanitarian University.

This is an honest call to separate the wheat from the chaff - the fiction of a sick imagination from real history.

Jesus Christ - radical extremist, rebel

The non-fiction sensation of 2013 was new biography Christ - "The Zealot: The Life and Times of Jesus of Nazareth" - written by Iranian-born religious scholar Reza Aslan. The book, originally called Zealot: The Life and Times of Jesus of Nazareth (Zealots are a socio-political, religious movement in Judea that arose in the second half of the 1st century BC), even surpassed the works of Joanne Rowling.

The producer of Potter and "Gravity", the Englishman David Heyman, is already preparing a film adaptation of the sensational bestseller Aslan. The script for the film will be written by James Seamus, known for his work on Brokeback Mountain, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon and The Ice Storm.

Aslan writes in his book that to understand the real historical Jesus, it is necessary to understand the turbulent era in which he lived. He paints a portrait of a fiery rebel, a Jewish nationalist, "a zealous revolutionary who, like all Jews of that era, was overwhelmed by the wave of religious and political confusion in first-century Palestine."

The author warns that this idea will come as a real shock to many Christian readers. The real Jesus, Aslan writes, “bears little resemblance to the image of the good shepherd cultivated by the early Christian community.”

Jesus was a charismatic leader who played on Jewish grievances to create a mass movement, the author says. However, as the leader of the rebel movement, he failed: the hated regime was not overthrown, but he himself was captured along with two other rebels and executed.

The new world order that he imagined in his imagination, writes Aslan, was so radical, dangerous and revolutionary that the only possible reaction from Rome could be the arrest and execution of [his followers] for inciting rebellion.

But soon after this, the followers of Jesus became convinced that their leader had risen from the dead and his work had not ended in failure after all. Unlike other Zealot movements, which ceased after the death of their leaders, the Jesus movement not only continued to exist despite strong opposition, but also flourished, soon including many non-Jews.

As noted by American CBS TV presenter John Dickerson, the book written by Aslan is not a historical description of the life of Jesus, but the opinion of an educated Muslim about the founder of Christianity.

"The Zealot is destructive of what Christianity has taught for 2,000 years about Jesus," Dickerson said emotionally. - For many centuries, there have been conclusions from supporters of Islam that Jesus was a fanatical prophet who was not God, that Christians did not understand him, that the Christian Gospels are not factual events, and the life of Jesus is just a myth.

In turn, world-famous American biblical scholar Craig Evans says that Reza Aslan’s book is “replete with errors, flaws and exaggerations.”

- Zealot: The Life and Times of Jesus of Nazareth resurrects the theory that Jesus' preaching and death are best explained by considering the contemporary Jewish Zealot movement at the turn of the century. There's not much new in this, writes Evans. - The most complete presentation of this idea was given by the British researcher Brandon in 1967. I seriously doubt that Aslan's fresh take on this idea will win significant support - at least not among researchers.

The book does generate a lot of debate regarding the author's various claims, such as that Jesus was not born in Bethlehem and was not the son of God.

However, Aslan is confident that, having a doctorate (Ph.D. - rather adequate to the Russian degree of Candidate of Sciences) degree in the sociology of religion, he has the necessary qualifications to write works on the topic of the history of religion.

“I am a scientist, a specialist in religion, who has been studying Christianity for two decades and who is also a Muslim,” says Aslan. - I am not a Muslim who writes about Jesus. I am an expert with a degree in the history of religion.

Jesus Christ was married to Mary Magdalene

Moreover, he allegedly had two children from this New Testament heroine. So says the book “The Lost Gospel” by English professor Barry Wilson and documentary director Simcha Yakubovich, published in England in 2014.

The authors of The Lost Gospel, seeking to repeat the success of one of the best-selling books last decade- "The Da Vinci Code" - they claim to have discovered evidence love relationship Christ and Mary Magdalene in an ancient manuscript from the British Library.

What the Vatican feared and what Dan Brown only suspected has come true, the book declares at the very beginning. - Jesus was married to Mary Magdalene and they had children together.

The Lost Gospel is based on an ancient manuscript in a Middle Eastern language related to Aramaic. The manuscript consists of 29 chapters and dates back to approximately 570 AD. The ancient document was kept in the archives of the British Library for about 170 years, where it came to be after the British Museum bought it in 1847 from a certain seller who claimed to have found the manuscript in the monastery of St. Macarius in Egypt.

The authors of the book assure that the manuscript, which tells about the life of the Old Testament Joseph the Beautiful and his wife Asenath, is actually talking about Jesus and Mary Magdalene. Coding under the Old Testament history was allegedly necessary in order to hide the “true Gospel” from the persecution of Christians at the beginning of our era.

To prove the idea that Mary Magdalene was the wife of Jesus, Jakubowicz refers to New Testament. He describes her decision to come to his body on the Sunday after the crucifixion.

The Gospels say that she went there to wash and anoint his body, he writes. “But she’s just one of his followers and she’s still going to work with his naked body?” Women did not wash rabbis or men's bodies in general. Only men did this, of women - only wives.

Two years before the book was written, Harvard University professor Karen King announced that she had found a small fragment of papyrus, presumably also from Egypt, called the “Gospel of the Wife of Jesus.” However, in 2016 it turned out that this document was a fake.

The London public greeted the book ambiguously, and the official Anglican Church also reacted to the publication.

Church representatives claim that this is nothing more than a cunning marketing ploy. In their opinion, by releasing the book on the eve of Christmas, the authors hope that it will repeat the success of the legendary “Da Vinci Code,” reports the online publication seeker.com. - The clergy of the Anglican Church have already rushed to call the “Lost Gospel” another source of misinformation about the chronicle of biblical events and the life of Jesus Christ.

Jesus Christ lived in India

The idea of ​​Christ’s wanderings to the East still attracts lovers of esotericism and mysticism of all stripes, including in our country. The German writer Holger Kersten is the most famous author of books on the Indian trace of Christ.

His book “Jesus Lived in India,” published in 1983 in Germany, was wildly popular not only in the author’s homeland, but also abroad. The Russian translation of the book was published in 2007, but interest in it is still alive, it can be found on the shelves of bookstores around the country.

Jesus Lived in India is a non-fiction book that presents an impressive (typical of the German school) study of the testimony of Christ's life in the Middle East before the crucifixion, as well as in India. The text contains many Christian apocrypha, references to the works of Helena Blavatsky and Nicholas Roerich (the creators of their own religious concept, which allegedly united all world religions and at the same time rejected them as having now lost their original knowledge).

The author relies on the “Tibetan Gospel” published at the beginning of the twentieth century by Russian journalist Nikolai Notovich, as well as on the book “Jesus in India” by the founder of the Ahmadiyya religious movement, Mirza Ghulam Ahmad (1835-1908). Ahmadism also claims to be a synthesis of Christianity and Islam, with Ghulam Ahmad himself declared the last and final prophet.

Holger Kersten largely repeats Ahmad's hypothesis that Jesus survived his execution due to a conspiracy between members of the Essenes, a Jewish sect with whom he was associated, and Pilate. It was dangerous for him to remain in Palestine, so he went east to the ten “lost” Jewish tribes (“tribes of Israel”), taken captive by the Assyrian king Sargon II in 722 BC. and then reached India. In a foreign land, many of them fell into idolatry, and Jesus allegedly had the task of restoring their faith in one God.

Having made his way from Judea through modern Syria, Persia, Afghanistan and Pakistan, Christ reached Indian Kashmir. Everywhere he visited, he visited Jewish communities, preaching and healing. Jesus was called the prophet Yuzhu Asaph, or “chief of the cleansed,” because he cured many lepers. After a long earthly life, he allegedly died in Kashmir as an ordinary person.

This statement is a serious challenge to both Christianity and Islam. Many Kashmiris and Ahmadis still believe that the tomb of Prophet Yuza, known as Roza Bal, is located in the Indian city of Srinagar.

The mausoleum is a small one-story brick building, topped with a pointed peak. On the fence hangs a wooden sign with the inscription: “Ziyarat of Saint Yuzu Asaf and Said Nasir-u-Din” (another righteous man buried in the same place), - Vlad Sokhin, a traveler and journalist who visited Srinagar, recently described this building.

Inside the mausoleum is divided into two rooms: a small porch and a large hall. Between them there is a grate and a door, locked with a large padlock,” writes Sokhin. - In the center of it is the tomb itself. It is surrounded by a wooden frame with windows through which a long tombstone covered with fabric can be seen. According to the testimony of scientists who studied the history of this burial, there is a stone slab under the shrine.

Repeated attempts by researchers to find out what was under the slab were unsuccessful. To this day, the authorities in Srinagar refuse their requests to open the grave and conduct DNA analysis on the buried remains.

In 1985, the German Indologist and Tibetologist Günther Grönbold published an extensive Scientific research"Jesus in India: the end of the legend", in which he criticized Kersten's position. He pointed out that he used Notovich’s work, which was already recognized as a forgery in 1894. Kersten also kept silent about the fact that Notovich’s Jesus was in Tibet and India before, and not after, the crucifixion.

APPROVED FOR DISTRIBUTION BY THE PUBLISHING COUNCIL OF THE RUSSIAN ORTHODOX CHURCH

(Minutes of the meeting of the Collegium for Scientific and Theological Review and Expert Evaluation of the Publishing Council No. 6 dated April 5, 2017)

IS R17-706-0220

© Illustrations by Luvik Glazer-Naud?e from Die Bibel – 365 Geschichten by Dr. Martin Polster

© Design. Eksmo Publishing House LLC, 2017

* * *

Archangel Gabriel informs Zechariah of the birth of John the Baptist

A long time ago, more than two thousand years before our time, there lived a pious priest named Zechariah. His country was called Judea, and it was located in the eastern Mediterranean. It was ruled in those years by King Herod, nicknamed the Great.

Zechariah was already very old, like his wife Elizabeth. They lived peacefully and loved each other very much. In everything they tried to do as God commanded people in His commandments. But they had no children, and they were very sad about it.

In those days, spouses who could not have children were considered by the Jews to be punished by God for their sins. Zechariah prayed many times with tears that the merciful Lord would take pity on them and give them a son or daughter. However, his prayers remained unanswered for a long time.

And then one day Zechariah performed worship in the main and only temple of the Jews, which was located in Jerusalem. He had to pour and pour sacrificial incense - myrrh, frankincense and others - onto the burning coals of the altar of God. The fragrant smoke from them rose into the sky, and along with the smoke Zechariah’s prayer for the people ascended to the Lord.

All the priests of the temple performed such services one by one, by lot. This time it was Zechariah's turn. He had to consecrate the temple with his prayer and sacrificial incense. At this time, the people prayed outside the temple, as was customary among the Jews.

And then the trumpets sounded, Zechariah solemnly moved into the temple sanctuary. Two other priests walked near him: one carried a bowl of incense, and the other a brazier with hot coals. Approaching the altar, they placed the brazier and bowl on it and left. Zechariah was left alone in the temple.

Prayerfully, he tipped the bowl over the brazier. A cloud of thick bluish smoke rose into the air. Zechariah continued to pray at this time. He asked the Lord to bless the entire Jewish people, to give the Jews peace and His generous mercies.

Saying prayer words, Zechariah turned around and saw that someone was standing near the altar behind a cloud of smoke. He was a handsome young man in shining white clothes. Zechariah was embarrassed, his heart sank with sudden fear. But the bright young man reassured him:

- Don't be afraid, Zechariah. Your prayer is heard by the Lord. Your wife Elizabeth will give birth to a son, whom you will name John. And you will have joy and gladness. Many will rejoice at his birth. He will be great before God because the Holy Spirit will dwell in him while still in the womb.

He will turn many people from your people to the Lord, return them to the righteous path that your forefathers walked. He will prepare people for the coming of the Savior.

Zechariah listened and could not believe it.

- How do I know that you are telling the truth? - he was amazed. - I am old, and my wife is old. How can we have a son?

“I am Archangel Gabriel,” answered the young man. “I stand before the throne of God and was sent from God to tell you what will certainly come true.” But because you did not believe my words, you will become dumb. You will not be able to speak until everything said comes true.

The angel disappeared.

Meanwhile, the people stood at the entrance to the temple, waiting for Zechariah. People were surprised that the priest waited so long to come out.

- Why doesn’t he come? - some asked.

“Something must have happened,” others wondered.

Finally Zechariah left the temple. He could not speak, he only waved his hands and made signs, trying to explain what happened to him. People, in fear and confusion, realized that he had a vision in the temple.

After this day, Zechariah served in the temple for some time. And when the days of his priestly service ended, he returned to his home.

The Archangel brings the Good News to the Virgin Mary. Mary visits Elizabeth

Zechariah's wife had a young relative, Mary. Her parents made a vow to dedicate their only daughter to God. Therefore, from an early age, Mary lived at the temple of God in Jerusalem; her father and mother sent her there to be raised.

Quiet, meek and loving, Mary spent her days in prayer, doing handicrafts and thinking only about how to please the Lord.

Other girls were brought up with her at the temple. When one of them turned fourteen years old, the high priest announced that the girl should return home and get married. The Jews considered this age to be adulthood, and a fourteen-year-old girl to be ready for marriage.

But Maria refused the marriage. She told the priests that she wanted to stay at the temple for the rest of her life and devote herself to the Lord. By that time, Mary’s parents had already died, and the priests had to arrange Her fate themselves. By the inspiration of God, they decided to betroth Mary to the old widower Joseph, who was eighty years old.

Joseph was a distant relative of Mary. He, like Mary, descended from the ancient king and prophet David. Joseph was obliged to maintain Mary's chastity, protect Her and take care of her.

Submissive to the will of the priests, the girl went with the elder to Nazareth. It was a small, poor town in the Galilee region. Joseph's house was located there, where he worked as a carpenter all his life.

Having settled in Joseph's house, Mary led the same pure and secluded life as in the Jerusalem temple. She prayed, read the Holy Scriptures and worked - spinning, weaving, embroidering.

One day, when the girl was fervently praying to the Lord, Archangel Gabriel suddenly appeared before Her. The same one who appeared in the temple of Zechariah.

He said to Her lightly and affably:

- Rejoice, full of grace! The Lord is with you! God has blessed You above all virgins and wives.

Maria was very embarrassed by such a greeting. She guessed that the Angel of the Lord was in front of her, but did not understand what his strange words meant.

“Don’t be afraid, Mary,” the Angel continued. – With your meekness, humility and prayers, you attracted the grace of the Lord. A son will be born to You, whose name You will name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High God. He will inherit the throne of King David and will reign over the whole world. And His kingdom will have no end.

Mary was in awe and perplexed.

“How will this be,” she asked, “after all, I don’t even have a husband?”

“The Holy Spirit of the Lord will come upon you,” answered the Archangel, “and the power of the Most High will overshadow you.” Therefore Your son will also be called the Son of God. Your relative Elizabeth, who was childless until old age, will also soon have a son, because this is the will of the Lord. God promised her a son, and His word is never powerless or fruitless.

Maria bowed her head and said quietly:

- I am the servant of the Lord. Let it be done according to Your word, and His holy will be done!

A few days later she went to visit Elizabeth - in the city where she lived with her husband.

Maria entered their house and warmly greeted the hostess. Elizabeth was very happy about her guest. On a whim from above, she exclaimed:

- Maria! Blessed are You among women, and blessed is the Child that God gives You. And why am I so happy now that the Mother of my Lord came to me? When I heard Your voice, the baby leaped in my womb, and my heart was filled with joy. Blessed are You, who believed that everything predicted to You by God will be fulfilled.

Mary humbly accepted these prophetic words of old Elizabeth into Her heart. In joy She turned to God:

“My soul praises, thanks and magnifies the Lord, and rejoices in Him, My Savior. He saw My humility, His servants, and sent Me great honor, because from now on all nations will glorify Me. May the Lord's mercy always be upon those who love Him. May the name of Him be holy, Who by His power overthrows the arrogant from their thrones and lifts up the humble. He who gives grace to the meek, but lets those who boast of their riches go empty-handed...

Mary stayed with Elizabeth for about three months and then returned home to Nazareth.

Birth of John the Baptist

The time came, and old Elizabeth gave birth to a son. All her friends and relatives rejoiced with her at this mercy of the Lord.

On the eighth day from birth, Jewish custom prescribed to perform sacred rite and give it a name. The relatives gathered in the house and the priest wanted to name the baby in honor of his father Zacharias. But Elizabeth did not agree. She said that the child should be named John. Everyone was surprised and began to tell her that neither she nor her husband had anyone with that name in their family. Elizabeth stood her ground.

Then everyone went to the mute Zechariah to ask him. He asked with signs to give him a wax tablet on which they usually wrote, and inscribed the name on it - John. At that moment, the muteness left him and he was able to speak. From such an obvious miracle, all the guests were confused.

Zechariah, having regained the gift of speech, began to prophesy. The Holy Spirit Himself spoke through his lips:

- Blessed be the Lord God! He visited His people and gave them the salvation that He had announced through the ancient prophets. He kept the oath he made to our forefather Abraham that he would deliver us from all enemies and show us mercy. And you, Child of God, will become a prophet of the Most High. You will go ahead of the Lord and prepare His way. You will enlighten the dark and unreasonable. They will learn from you: their salvation lies in the fact that the Lord, in His mercy, forgives them all their sins...

For a long time after this day, rumors and conversations continued throughout Judea about what had happened in Zechariah’s house. People marveled and said:

Joseph and Mary go to Bethlehem for the census

Mary, meanwhile, told Joseph what the Archangel Gabriel had announced to Her. She said that She would have a son and that he would be an unusual Person. And at night the Angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream. He said:

- Joseph from the line of David! Your betrothed bride, Mary, will have a Son from the Holy Spirit. You will call Him Jesus, which means Savior. For He will save people from their sins. This is how the ancient prediction that the Lord spoke through the prophet will be fulfilled.

From that time on, Joseph began to protect Mary even more and began to treat Her with reverence. After all, She was destined to become the Mother of the Lord, the Son of God, the Savior of the entire human race.

At that time, Judea was one of the provinces of the vast Roman Empire and was subject to Roman rulers. And so the order of Emperor Augustus was announced throughout the state. He ordered a census of his subjects in all lands of the empire, including Judea.

Every Jew had to come to the city where his family came from. There you had to tell the scribes your name, as well as the names of all members of your family.

Joseph, like Mary, came from the family of King David. And David’s hometown was small, poor Bethlehem, located not far from Jerusalem. Joseph and Mary went there.

They reached the town at the end of the day and spent a long time looking for where to stay for the night. Bethlehem was crowded with people flocking from all over Judea for the census.

Only late in the evening did Joseph and Mary find shelter. They settled in a cave near the city, which served as a stable for livestock.

There were sheep bleating, cows sighing, and a little donkey stepping with its hooves. But Joseph and Mary were glad to have such a refuge. They knew that the Lord cared about them and sent them this warm cave. In it they found peace and relaxation.

Joseph laid his cloak on the floor of the cave. And Mary, having prayed to God and feeling the approach of childbirth, lay down.

Shepherds worship the newborn Son of God. The Magi approach Baby Jesus

At night, in a field outside the city of Bethlehem, shepherds sat around a fire, guarding their flock. Suddenly, an unearthly light shone before them, brighter than the flame, and in this radiance the Angel of the Lord appeared. The shepherds were so frightened that they fell to the ground out of fear and covered themselves with their hands and cloaks.

- Do not be afraid! - the Angel told them. “The Lord sent me to inform you of great joy for all people.” On this night, the Savior of the human race, the Lord Jesus Christ, was born in the city of David. Here is an indication for you: in a cave near the city you will find a swaddled Baby lying in a cattle feeder.

While the Angel was saying this, the radiance around him became brighter. The light rose up, illuminating the sky, and the shepherds saw countless other Angels there. The heavenly angelic army glorified God with sweet-sounding singing: “Glory to God in the highest, on earth peace and good will toward men.”

Finally, God's messenger disappeared and the heavenly vision disappeared. When the shepherds recovered from their fear, they got up and went to look for a cave to worship the Child.

That night, Mary really gave birth to a Son - God gave Her and all people great joy. The baby Jesus was born in a cave, in a cattle shed - as a simple man. His mother wrapped Him in swaddling clothes and laid Him on hay in a manger, that is, in a trough from which cows usually ate. The child smiled quietly, and Joseph and Mary admired, looking at Him.

Suddenly, shepherds entered the cave. They looked at the Child and fell to their knees. In joyful emotion, the shepherds bowed to the ground to the born Lord.

At the same time, three more people were rushing to the newborn Son of God. These were sages from a distant eastern country. They had great knowledge, which they received from books. The sages learned about the world by exploring nature and watching the stars. People called them magi, that is, wizards, magicians, because they told fortunes and predicted by the stars.

One of the Magi - Melchior - was already a gray-haired old man. The other - with blond curls, beardless and rosy-cheeked - is the young man Kaspar. The third was named Balthazar. He was a middle-aged man, black-haired, thin and very dark.

By studying the movement of the stars, the Magi learned the fate of people and the world. And then one day a new, very large and bright star appeared in the eastern sky. The sages were amazed and began to look in books for what this could mean. It turned out that such an unusual star indicates the birth greatest man, King of the Jews.

“If at the birth of this Man,” the Magi reasoned, “a new, unprecedented star appeared, then He is truly great in the eyes of God.” Or maybe this one who was born is God Himself. We should go to Him with gifts and worship Him.

The wise men already knew that the King of the Jews was to be born in Judea, and the main city of Judea was Jerusalem. Therefore, quickly getting ready for the journey, the Magi went there.

“In Judea we will certainly find out in which city this Great King was born,” they said to each other.

The Magi bring gifts to Baby Jesus

Eastern sages came to Jerusalem and began to ask where the King of the Jews was born.

“We saw a new, extraordinary star in the east, which announces the birth of the King of the Jews,” they told everyone. “And that’s why they came to worship Him.”

King Herod, who ruled Judea at that time, was evil and cruel tyrant. Rumors reached him about what the Magi were asking about in the city, and he was terribly afraid. Herod thought that this unknown King of the Jews, born somewhere, would soon grow up and take the royal throne from him.

In great anxiety, Herod summoned the Jewish high priests and Jerusalem learned scribes to his palace. He asked them:

– Where should Christ, the King of the Jews, be born? What do the holy books say about this?

The chief priests and scribes showed him the place in the Holy Scriptures. The words of the prophet Micah were recorded there that the leader who would save the people of God would be born in Bethlehem.

Hearing this, Herod ordered the Magi to be called to him. He gave his order secretly so that the high priests would not find out. After all, they could accuse him of turning to foreign sages for advice. The Magi were from a pagan people who did not know the One God, but worshiped many false gods. God forbade the Jews to seek wisdom from the pagans.

Herod asked the wise men who came to him about the appearance of the star and what it foreshadowed. Then he sent them away to Bethlehem.

“When you learn everything about the born King,” he finally said to the sages, “return to Jerusalem to tell me.” I also want to go and worship Him.

The Magi believed Herod and that same day, in the evening, they went to Bethlehem. When they left the hotel, the first thing they did was look at the darkening sky. The star they had seen all this time in the east was still in its place. But when the Magi set off, the star moved. Now she hung in front of them and moved with them, showing the way. The three travelers were very surprised and delighted. Following the star, they headed to Bethlehem.

The star stopped over the house where the Baby Jesus was. By that time, Joseph and Mary and their Son had left the cave. People who came to the census were already leaving Bethlehem, and the inns in the city were being vacated.

The Magi entered the house and saw the Baby. A quiet light spread around Him. It was the light of the Lord's grace, the light of God's love for people. The born Son of God himself was the embodiment of this love for all living on earth.

The pagan sages knelt before Him. They worshiped the newborn Jesus as King and God, and then placed their gifts next to Him.

One of the wise men presented Jesus with myrrh, a precious fragrant oil. This was a gift to the Christ Child as a man who was born on earth and must die, like all people. At that time, the dead were anointed with fragrant oils in preparation for burial.

Another sorcerer brought gold as a gift to Jesus - as the true King of the Jews. The third placed incense in front of the Baby, which is used during divine services.

This was a gift to Jesus as God, because the smoke from burning incense rises to the Lord along with people's prayers.

With these gifts the Magi testified to their wisdom. But this wisdom was no longer pagan, because it came to them from God. It was the Holy Spirit who inspired them that the Son born to Mary is at the same time a man, and God, and a King over all people.

King Herod orders the killing of babies. Joseph and Mary with Jesus flee to Egypt

The Magi bowed to the Son of God and set off on their way back. That night, in a dream, they were warned by God: they should not say anything to Herod about the Child. Therefore, the wise men went to their own country, bypassing Jerusalem.

That same night, the Angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream:

- Get up, take the Child and run with His Mother to Egypt. King Herod will look for the Born One to kill Him. Stay in Egypt until I come to you again.

Joseph immediately began to fulfill this command of the Lord. In the morning he bought a donkey, put Mary and the Child on it and went with them to Egypt.

The path to this country was long and difficult. The fugitives were surrounded by a deserted sandy desert, in which there was nowhere to hide from the scorching sun and night cold. In addition, many mortal dangers awaited them on the road: predatory animals and robbers.

One evening, passing through the gorge, the fugitives came across a gang of sleeping robbers. Two of them woke up. One robber wanted to wake up everyone else, but another, named Titus, stopped him. In the dim light of the fire he saw the Baby and was amazed.

“If God Himself were incarnated on earth,” he whispered, “he would take the form of such a beautiful baby.” “I’ll give you forty coins,” he said to his comrade, “just don’t stop these travelers from going further.”

And he handed the second robber his belt, in which the money was sewn.

The fugitives quietly walked past the sleeping people. The Holy Virgin Mary said quietly, turning to Titus:

– The Lord God will protect you with His right hand and grant you remission of sins.

This journey to Egypt was predicted by the ancient prophets. The prophet Isaiah proclaimed that the idols, which were revered as gods in Egypt, would shake on their pedestals and collapse from the power of the Lord. And his prophecy was fulfilled exactly.

After a difficult journey through the desert, tired travelers finally reached the first Egyptian city - Hermopolis. There one could find shelter and rest from a tiring journey.

In the city there was a pagan temple with stone idols. One of these false Egyptian gods was considered the main one. lived in it evil spirit, who spoke to the priests.

When the travelers entered the city, a strange anxiety took possession of all its inhabitants. They asked the priest to find out from the idol what was the reason for their anxiety.

The idol was forced to tell the truth:

- A Deity unknown to you has come here. This God is true, and no one but Him is worthy of divine honors.

When Mary, Joseph and the Child passed by this pagan temple, all the idols in it fell from their pedestals and were broken.

The miracle was immediately reported to the ruler of the city, Aphrodite. All the priests were in great fear. They were awaiting punishment for the broken idols.

Aphroditius, without hesitation, came to the temple with a large retinue. He examined the broken idols, and then silently left. On the street, among the worried townspeople, he saw Mary with the Baby in her arms. Aphrodite came closer and looked at Jesus. The ruler of Hermopolis said to his retinue:

– If this Baby were not a Deity, then the idols would not have fallen and broken. Now they lie and silently testify that the true God is here.

Meanwhile, King Herod did not wait for the return of the Magi. The thought of the King of the Jews born in Bethlehem haunted him day and night. Every minute Herod waited for the Magi to return and finally tell them whether they had seen the Child.

Pedigree

The Gospels of Matthew and Luke indicate different genealogies of Jesus Christ. Of these, the list given in Matt. is considered to be the genealogy of Joseph. 1:1--16.

Eusebius of Caesarea explains the difference by the fact that in Judea generations were counted in two ways: “by nature” and “by law.”

The names of generations in Israel were calculated either by nature or by law: by nature, when there was a succession of legitimate sons; according to the law, when, after the death of a childless brother, his brother gave his child the name of the deceased. At that time there was still no clear hope for the resurrection, and the future promise was considered at the same time as the mortal resurrection: the name of the deceased was to be preserved forever. Therefore, of the persons mentioned in this genealogy, some were the legitimate heirs of their fathers by nature, while others were born by one fathers, but by name belonged to others. They mentioned both of them: both actual fathers and those who were, as it were, fathers. Thus, neither one nor the other Gospel is mistaken in numbering the names according to nature and according to law.

Since the Reformation, the view that Luke traces Jesus' ancestry through his mother's side (Luke 3:23-38), through Mary, has become widespread. A significant part of researchers explain the reproduction of the genealogy of Jesus Christ in the Gospels through the line of Joseph the Betrothed by the fact that the Jewish tradition recognized the greater significance of the fact of formal adoption than the fact of physical paternity and motherhood.

Christmas

According to Christian doctrine, the appearance of Jesus is the fulfillment of a long-standing prophecy about the Messiah - the Son of God; Jesus was born immaculately of the Holy Spirit by the Virgin Mary in the city of Bethlehem (Matthew 2:1), where three wise men came to worship him as the future king of the Jews. After his birth, Jesus was taken by his parents to Egypt (Matt. 2:14). After the death of King Herod, Jesus and his parents returned to Nazareth.

A number of alternative explanations for the story of Jesus' birth have been proposed at different times. In particular, the prediction of the prophet Isaiah, according to which the Messiah should be born of a virgin, was disputed (Jewish interpreters, as a rule, argue that the prophecy of Isaiah has nothing to do with the future of the Messiah and speaks of events contemporary to the moment of the prophecy; a number of secular researchers agree with this Bible).

In the ancient period and later, in anti-Christian polemics, a point of view was expressed about the birth of Jesus from an extramarital affair. Such a hypothesis is rejected by Christians as contrary to a number of circumstances, in particular, the New Testament account of Jesus and his family’s regular visits to the Jerusalem Temple, including the description of the twelve-year-old Jesus in the Temple (“sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions” (Luke 2). :46)). If such a hypothesis had existed during his lifetime, his presence in the Temple would have been impossible, since this would have been strictly prohibited by the law of Moses (Deut. 23:2).

However, this did not stop critics from questioning the authenticity of the New Testament, despite the fact that the Gospels were written during the lifetime of eyewitnesses of the events that took place, and two of the authors, Matthew and John, were disciples of Jesus who were constantly with him.

Most Christian denominations profess the virgin birth of Christ (from the Holy Spirit). Some consider it supernatural not only the conception, but also the birth of Jesus, completely painless, in which the virginity of the Virgin Mary was not broken. Thus, the Orthodox tribute says: “God will pass through your side” - just like through closed doors. This, in particular, was depicted by Andrei Rublev in the “Nativity” icon, where the Mother of God humbly looked away to the side, bowing her head.

The date of birth of Jesus Christ is determined very approximately. The earliest is usually said to be 12 BC. e. (the year of passage of Halley's comet, which, according to some assumptions, could be the so-called Star of Bethlehem), and the latest - 4 BC. e. (year of death of Herod the Great).

At the direction of the Angel of the Lord, almost immediately after his birth, Jesus was taken away by Mary and Joseph to Egypt (Flight into Egypt). The reason for the flight was the murder of infants in Bethlehem, planned by the Jewish king Herod the Great (in order to kill the future Jewish king among them). The parents and Jesus did not stay in Egypt for long: they returned to their homeland after the death of Herod, when Jesus was still a baby. (Matt. 2:19-21)

Meeting of Jesus

According to the Gospel of Luke, according to the Old Testament tradition, on the eighth day from birth the Baby was circumcised and given the name Jesus, named by the Angel before His conception in the womb. The 40-day-old baby Jesus was brought by his parents to the Jerusalem Temple to perform the rite of sacrifice of two turtle doves or two dove chicks, “signifying that every first-born male child is dedicated to the Lord” (Luke 2:22-24). An old man named Simeon came out to meet him, met Mary and Joseph with the baby Jesus in their arms, addressed them with prophetic words “and said to Mary His Mother: Behold, this one lies for the fall and for the rising of many in Israel and for the subject of controversy, - and a weapon will pierce your own soul, so that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed” (Luke 2:34-35).

After Simeon the God-Receiver pronounced blessings, Elder Anna, who was at the temple, “the daughter of Phanuel, from the tribe of Asher, who had reached a ripe old age, having lived with her husband for seven years from her virginity” (Luke 2:36), also “praised the Lord and said about Him to all who were looking for redemption in Jerusalem” (Luke 2:38).

The Gospels do not report further events in the life of Christ up to His Baptism as an adult, with the exception of the episode given in the Gospel of Luke (2:41-52), where the evangelist talks about the visit of the Holy Family to the Jerusalem Temple with 12-year-old Jesus.

Baptism

According to the Gospel story, at about the age of 30 (Luke 3:23), Jesus entered public ministry, which he began by receiving baptism from John the Baptist on the Jordan River. When Jesus came to John, who preached a lot about the imminent coming of the Messiah, the surprised John said: “I need to be baptized by You, and are You coming to me?” To this Jesus replied that “it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness” and received baptism from John. During baptism, “the heavens were opened, and the Holy Spirit descended on Him in bodily form like a dove, and there was a voice from heaven, saying: You are My Beloved Son; I am well pleased with you!” (Luke 3:21-22).

After his baptism (Mark in his Gospel emphasizes that this happened immediately after baptism), Jesus Christ, led by the Spirit, withdrew into the desert in order to prepare in solitude, prayer and fasting for the fulfillment of the mission with which he came to earth. At the end of forty days, Jesus “was tempted by the devil and did not eat anything during those days, but at the end of them he was hungry” (Luke 4:2). Then the devil approached Jesus and, with three deceptions, tried to tempt him into sin, like any other person. Having withstood all the temptations of the devil, Jesus began his preaching and public ministry.

Sermon

jesus christ baptism sermon

Jesus preached a message about repentance in the face of the coming of the Kingdom of God (Matt. 4:13). Jesus began to teach that the Son of God would suffer cruelly and die on the cross, and that His sacrifice was the food that everyone needed for eternal life. In addition, Christ confirmed and expanded the law of Moses: according to the commandment, first of all, to love God with all your being, Luke. 18:10--14)) and his neighbors (all people) as himself. At the same time, do not love the world and everything in the world (that is, do not become overly attached to the values ​​of the material world) and “do not be afraid of those who kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul” (Matthew 10:28).

Despite the fact that the center of Christ's preaching was the holy city of Jerusalem, He traveled the longest with His preaching in Galilee, where He was received more joyfully. Jesus also passed through Samaria, the Decapolis, and was within the boundaries of Tire and Sidon.

Many followers gathered around Christ, from whom He first chose 12 closest disciples - the apostles (Luke 6:13-16), then another 70 (Luke 10:1-17) less close ones, who are also called apostles, some of they, however, soon departed from Christ (John 6:66). The Apostle Paul reports that at the time of Christ's death on the cross and resurrection, He had more than 500 followers (1 Cor. 15:6).

Jesus supported his teaching with various miracles and is glorified as a prophet and healer of incurable diseases. He raised the dead, quelled a storm, turned water into wine, fed 5,000 people with five loaves of bread, and much more.

The Gospel of John indicates that Jesus was in Jerusalem 4 times for the annual celebration of Passover, from which it is concluded that Christ's public ministry lasted approximately three and a half years.

The Jewish high priests, having condemned Jesus Christ to death at the Sanhedrin, could not themselves carry out the sentence without the approval of the Roman governor. According to some researchers, the Sanhedrin recognized Jesus as a false prophet based on the words of Deuteronomy: “But the prophet who dares to speak in My name what I have not commanded him to say, and who speaks in the name of other gods, such a prophet shall you put to death” (Deut. 18: 20-22).

After unsuccessful attempts by the high priests to accuse Jesus of formally violating Jewish law (see Old Testament), Jesus was handed over to the Roman procurator of Judea, Pontius Pilate (25-36). At the trial, the procurator asked: “Are you the King of the Jews?” This question was due to the fact that the claim to power as King of the Jews, according to Roman law, was qualified as a dangerous crime against the Roman Empire. The answer to this question was the words of Christ: “You say that I am a King. For this purpose I was born and for this purpose I came into the world, to testify to the truth” (John 18:29-38). Pilate, finding no guilt in Jesus, was inclined to let him go and said to the chief priests: “I find no guilt in this man” (Luke 23:4).

Pontius Pilate's decision caused a stir among the Jewish crowd, directed by the elders and high priests. Trying to prevent unrest, Pilate addressed the crowd with a proposal to release Christ, following the long-standing custom of releasing one of the criminals on Easter. But the crowd shouted: “Let him be crucified” (Matthew 27:22). Seeing this, Pilate pronounced a death sentence - he sentenced Jesus to crucifixion, and he himself “washed his hands before the people and said: I am innocent of the blood of this Righteous One.” To which the people exclaimed: “His blood be on us and on our children” (Matthew 27:24-25).

Crucifixion

According to the verdict of Pontius Pilate, Jesus was crucified on Golgotha, where, according to the Gospel story, he himself carried his cross. Two robbers were crucified with him:

It was the third hour, and they crucified Him. And the inscription of His guilt was: King of the Jews. Two thieves were crucified with Him, one on His right and the other on His left. And the word of Scripture came true: he was numbered among the evildoers.

At the moment of Jesus' death in the Jerusalem temple, the veil that separated the Holy of Holies from the rest of the temple was torn.

After Jesus' death on the cross, his body was taken, with Pilate's permission, by Joseph of Arimathea for burial, which he performed together with several of Jesus' disciples in a previously unused tomb, which was hewn out of a rock that was on land owned by Joseph, near a garden close to Golgotha. .

According to Christian tradition, after burial, Jesus descended into hell and, having crushed its gates, brought his gospel sermon to the underworld, freed the souls imprisoned there and brought all the Old Testament righteous people, including Adam and Eve, out of hell.

Resurrection

The moment of discovery of the empty tomb of Christ is described with differences in different Gospels. According to John (John 20:1-15): Mary Magdalene alone (according to other versions, there were more myrrh-bearing women) came after the Sabbath to the tomb of Christ and saw that it was empty. She had visions of two angels and Jesus, whom she did not immediately recognize. In the evening, Christ appeared to his disciples (among whom Thomas the Twin was not). Thomas, having arrived, did not believe in the stories about his resurrection until he saw with his own eyes the wounds from the nails and the ribs of Christ pierced by a spear.

The Sunday stichera of the Octoechos indicates that the moment of Jesus’ resurrection (as well as the moment of his birth) was not seen not only by people, but even by angels. This emphasizes the incomprehensibility of the mystery of Christ.

After his resurrection, Christ gave the apostles the Great Commission to preach his teaching about salvation to all countries and peoples.

Ascension

Jesus gathered the apostles in Jerusalem and told them not to disperse, but to wait for the baptism of the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:2-11).

“Having said this, He was lifted up before their eyes, and a cloud took Him out of their sight” (Acts 1:9). The Ascension, which took place on the Mount of Olives, was accompanied by “two men clothed in white” (Acts 1:10), who announced the second coming “in the same way” (Acts 1:11).

Second coming

Jesus repeatedly spoke about His imminent second coming to earth (Matt. 16:27, 24:27, 25:31, Mark 8:38, Luke 12:40), and the apostles clearly teach about it (1 John 2:28 , 1 Cor. 4:5, 1 Thess. 5:2-6) and therefore it has been the general conviction of the Church at all times. The dogma of the second coming of Jesus Christ is recorded in the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed, in its 7th member:

And in one Lord Jesus Christ<…>who will come again with glory to judge the living and the dead, whose kingdom will have no end

During the Second Coming, the resurrection of the dead and the Rapture (ascension) of the Church into heaven to meet Christ will occur. Such ideas are based on the words of both Jesus Christ himself (John 14:1-4, Matt. 24:40-42, Luke 24:34-37) and the Apostle Paul:

Nationality of Jesus

Disputes about the nationality of Jesus are still ongoing. Christians may say that Jesus was born in Galilee, where the population was mixed, and therefore could not have been Jewish. But the Gospel of Matthew says that Jesus’ parents always lived in Bethlehem of Judea and only after his birth moved to Nazareth. In fact, Simon Hashmonai, who threw off the yoke of the Seleucids (1 Macc. 13:41), at the request of the Galileans, expelled the pagans from Ptolemais, Tire and Sidon from Galilee and brought “with great joy” to Judea those Jews who wished to move (1 Macc. 5: 14-23). The statement that Galilee was “abroad” for Judea is a clear exaggeration. Both were tributaries of Rome, both had the same culture, and both belonged to the temple community of Jerusalem. Herod the Great ruled Judea, Idumea, Samaria, Galilee, Perea, Gaulonitis, and Batanea - in short, all of Palestine. After his death in 4 BC. e. the country was divided into three regions: 1) Judea, Samaria, Idumea; 2) Gavlonitida and Batanea; and 3) Perea and Galilee. So Galilee supposedly became a “foreign country” for Judea only because Herod had three heirs, not one.

From the Gospels: When the Samaritan woman asked Jesus: why are you a Jewish Jew asking for menepiti? (From John, Conception BI = John 4:9) - He did not deny his belonging to the Jewish nation. In addition, the Gospels try to prove the Jewish origin of Jesus: according to genealogies, He was a Semite (Luke 3:36), an Israelite (Matt. 1:2; Luke 3:34) and a Jew (Matt. 1:2; Luke 3 :33).

Jesus as a historical figure

"Historical Jesus" is a concept used in Western science to describe the reconstruction of Jesus using modern historical methods. Historians study biblical texts, historical sources, and archaeological evidence in an attempt to reconstruct the life of Jesus in its historical and cultural context. The "historical Jesus" is an ahistorical figure who must be understood in the context of his own life in 1st century Roman Judea, rather than the Christian doctrine of later centuries.

Bishop Paul Barnett, an expert on early Christian history, noted that modern history and ancient history are two different disciplines, with various methods analysis and interpretation, and drew attention to the fact that “researchers ancient history have always recognized the 'subjective' factor in the sources available to them," but they "have so few sources available compared to their modern counterparts that they will readily seize on any scraps of information that are at hand."

In The Historical Image of Jesus, theologian and church historian EdParishSanders used the figure of Alexander the Great as a paradigm: the available sources tell us much about Alexander's actions, but nothing about his way of thinking. “The sources about Jesus [appear] better than those we have about Alexander,” and “the superiority of the evidence about Jesus becomes clear when we ask what he thought.”

Researchers like Sanders, namely the British theologian, a recognized expert on the Dead Sea Scrolls Geza Vermes, the American theologian, priest John P. Meier, the Jewish religious scholar David Flusser, the American philologist James H. Charlesworth, the American historian, priest Raymond E. Brown, American historian and religious scholar Paula Fredriksen, and American historian and former priest John Dominic Crossan have variously proven that the gospel accounts of Jesus' baptism , his preaching activities and the crucifixion can be considered in general terms as historically reliable, while the two stories about the birth of Jesus, as well as some details describing his crucifixion and resurrection, are considered unreliable.

In his book “Jesus,” the French historian Charles Guignebert argued that “the conclusions that are supported by the facts can be summarized as follows: Jesus was born somewhere in Galilee during the time of the Emperor Augustus, in a simple family where, in addition to he had six or more children." Elsewhere he adds: "There is no reason to believe that he did not exist."

The latest research is related to the analysis of the Jewish roots of the historical Jesus. A re-evaluation of Jesus' family, especially the role played by brother James after his death, has led scholars such as the Swiss theologian and priest Hans Küng to suggest that there was an early form of non-Hellenistic "Jewish Christianity" similar to the Ebionites, who did not recognize the divinity of Jesus and were persecuted as Romans. , and by Christian authorities. Küng believes that these Judaizing Christians settled in Arabia, and it is possible that they influenced the story of Christ as depicted in the Koran.

Russian historian, Hermitage employee Boris Sapunov is the author of an original theory-study of the life of Christ. He subjected the canonical texts of the Gospels to analysis using the theory of eyewitness testimony used by modern criminologists. According to his conclusions, “all four Gospels were indeed written by different people; the discrepancies that occur are not mutually exclusive, but basically complement and clarify the information; the texts of the Gospels were not edited.” His main conclusion is that “the events described in the New Testament actually took place,” as for Christ, Sapunov is sure that “we are talking about a real person.”

Map of the Decapolis, or Decapolis, showing the location of the cities of Nazareth and Gadara on both sides of the Jordan River. According to the American theologian Graham Stanton, most historians have no doubt about the existence of Jesus, but some gospel stories require critical assessment: “Nowadays, almost all historians, Christian or not, accept that Jesus existed and that the gospels contain much valuable evidence that must be critically weighed and evaluated.”

Teachings of Jesus Christ

The teachings of Jesus in the New Testament are presented in the form of separate sayings, sermons and parables. His deeds (miracles, healings, resurrections) and lifestyle are also seen as expressing teaching through deeds rather than words.

Key Features:

Faith in One God: “Worship the Lord your God and serve Him alone” (Matthew 4:10)

First of all - Love for God and love for all people (Matthew 22:37-40)

The rescue

The need for repentance: “From that time Jesus began to preach and say: repent” (Matthew 4:17)

Necessity of being born again (born of water and the Spirit): “Unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God” (John 3:5)

The Necessity of Baptism: “Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved; and whoever does not believe will be condemned” (Mark 16:16)

The necessity of faith: “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.” (Luke 7:50)

The need to partake of the body and blood of Christ in the sacrament of communion (John 6:48-58)

To accept the gift of salvation, personal will is also required from a person, which is manifested in the application of one’s own efforts in following God (Matthew 11:12)

The need for patience: “Through your patience save your souls” (Luke 21:19), (Luke 16:25)

The need to show mercy to neighbors: “as you did it to one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did it to me.” (Matt. 25:40).

Personal piety

Love for your neighbor: “In everything therefore, whatever you want people to do to you, do so to them, for this is the law and the prophets” (Matthew 7:12)

Condemnation of hypocrisy: “Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy” (Luke 12:1)

The need to renounce oneself (self-sacrifice).

Benevolence: “love your enemies” (Matt. 5:44), (Mark 8:34)

Divorce for the purpose of entering into a new marriage union and marriage to divorced people is a violation of the commandment “Thou shalt not commit adultery.” “Whoever divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery, and whoever marries one divorced from her husband commits adultery” (Luke 16:18)

Lord's Prayer

According to the books of the New Testament, Jesus Christ taught his disciples the Lord's Prayer, which to this day remains probably the main prayer of Christianity. The text of the prayer is given in the Gospels of Matthew (6:9-13) and Luke (11:2-4). Variant of the prayer in the Synodal translation: Our Father who art in heaven! Hallowed be Thy name; Thy kingdom come; Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven; Give us this day our daily bread; and forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors; and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen. (Matt. 6:9-13)

The Teachings of Jesus and Christianity

As a result of the preaching of Jesus Christ in Palestine, a new religious movement called Christianity arose.

In 2008, there were more than 1 billion people in the world who call themselves Christians. There are various Christian denominations that differ from each other in their views on certain issues of doctrine.

Conclusion

Based on the above, we can answer the question: how can we form a Christian character in ourselves as a person created by the Creator? And the answer: first of all, realize that your spiritual nature requires changes.

The formation of a Christian character begins with the moment of repentance, when a person presents himself and his life to God in order to change it under His guidance.

No one can change through their own efforts. A Christian can curb his flesh with the help of Scripture, the Holy Spirit and the appropriate environment, leaving behind the former.

It is possible to change one's character only if a Christian strives to live a holy life. No matter how much he works on himself, if there is sin in his life, there will be no result.

If a Christian is reprimanded about his character, this often causes dissatisfaction, resentment, and sometimes even aggression.

Accepting reproof is not easy, but it is another weapon that God uses to clothe his chosen one with holiness.

In conclusion, it is necessary to emphasize the relationship between the actions of the Holy Spirit and the formation of Christian character: if a Christian does not form his character, then the fruit of his life does not correspond to the Word of God.

The main version of the life and work of Jesus Christ emerged from the depths of Christianity itself. It is presented primarily in the original testimonies about Jesus Christ - a special genre of early Christian literature called “gospels” (“good news”). Some of them (the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John) are recognized by the official church as authentic (canonical), and they therefore form the core of the New Testament; others (the Gospel of Nicodemus, Peter, Thomas, the First Gospel of James, the Gospel of Pseudo-Matthew, the Gospel of Childhood) are classified as apocrypha (“secret texts”), i.e. inauthentic.

The name “Jesus Christ” reflects the essence of its bearer. "Jesus" is the Greek variant of the common Hebrew name "Yeshua" (Joshua), meaning "God help/salvation." “Christ” is a translation into Greek of the Aramaic word “meshiya” (messiah, i.e. “anointed one”).

The Gospels present Jesus Christ as an extraordinary person throughout his life's journey - from his miraculous birth to the amazing end of his earthly life. Jesus Christ is born (Nativity of Christ) during the reign of the Roman emperor Augustus (30 BC - 14 AD) in the Palestinian city of Bethlehem in the family of Joseph the Carpenter, a descendant of King David, and his wife Mary. This answered the Old Testament prophecies about the birth of the coming messianic king from the line of David and in the “city of David” (Bethlehem). The appearance of Jesus Christ is predicted by the angel of the Lord to his mother (Annunciation) and her husband Joseph.

The child is born miraculously - not as a result of the carnal union of Mary with Joseph, but thanks to the descent of the Holy Spirit on her (immaculate conception). The setting of the birth emphasizes the exclusivity of this event - the baby Jesus, born in a stable, is glorified by a host of angels, and a bright star lights up in the east. Shepherds come to worship him; the wise men, whose path to his home is indicated by the star of Bethlehem moving across the sky, bring him gifts. Eight days after his birth, Jesus undergoes the rite of circumcision (Circumcision of the Lord), and on the fortieth day in the Jerusalem temple - the rite of purification and dedication to God, during which the righteous Simeon and the prophetess Anna glorify him (The Presentation of the Lord). Having learned about the appearance of the Messiah, the wicked Jewish king Herod the Great, in fear for his power, orders the extermination of all babies in Bethlehem and its environs, but Joseph and Mary, warned by an angel, flee with Jesus to Egypt. The Apocrypha tells of numerous miracles performed by two-year-old Jesus Christ on his way to Egypt. After a three-year stay in Egypt, Joseph and Mary, learning of the death of Herod, return to their hometown of Nazareth in Galilee (Northern Palestine). Then, according to the testimony of the apocrypha, over the course of seven years, Jesus’ parents moved with him from city to city, and the glory of the miracles he performed followed him everywhere: at his word, people were healed, died and were resurrected, inanimate objects came to life, wild animals were humbled, waters The Jordan parted. The child, showing extraordinary wisdom, baffles his mentors. As a twelve-year-old boy, he amazes with unusually deep questions and answers from the teachers of the Law (the laws of Moses), with whom he enters into conversation in the Jerusalem Temple. However, then, as the Arabic Gospel of Childhood reports (“He began to hide His miracles, His secrets and sacraments, until He was thirty years old.”

When Jesus Christ reaches this age, he is baptized in the Jordan River by John the Baptist (Luke dates this event to the “fifteenth year of the reign of Emperor Tiberius,” i.e., 30 AD), and the Holy Spirit descends on him, which leads him into the desert. There for forty days he fights the devil, rejecting three temptations one after another - hunger, power and faith. Upon returning from the desert, Jesus Christ begins preaching work. He calls his disciples to him and, wandering with them throughout Palestine, proclaims his teaching, interprets the Old Testament Law and performs miracles. The activities of Jesus Christ unfold mainly in the territory of Galilee, in the vicinity of Lake Gennesaret (Tiberias), but every Easter he goes to Jerusalem.

The meaning of the preaching of Jesus Christ is the good news of the Kingdom of God, which is already close and which is already being realized among people through the activity of the messiah. The acquisition of the Kingdom of God is salvation, which became possible with the coming of Christ to earth. The path to salvation is open to all who reject earthly goods for spiritual ones and who love God more than themselves. The preaching activity of Jesus Christ takes place in constant disputes and conflicts with representatives of the Jewish religious elite - the Pharisees, Sadducees, “teachers of the Law”, during which the Messiah rebels against the literal understanding of the Old Testament moral and religious precepts and calls for comprehending their true spirit.

The glory of Jesus Christ grows not only through his preaching, but also through the miracles he performs. In addition to numerous healings and even resurrections of the dead (the son of a widow in Nain, the daughter of Jairus in Capernaum, Lazarus in Bethany), this is the transformation of water into wine at a wedding in Cana in Galilee, miraculous fishing and taming of a storm on Lake Gennesaret, feeding five thousand with five loaves man, walking on water, feeding four thousand people with seven loaves of bread, discovering the divine essence of Jesus during prayer on Mount Tabor (Transfiguration of the Lord), etc.

The earthly mission of Jesus Christ is inevitably moving towards its tragic outcome, which is predicted in the Old Testament and which he himself foresees. The popularity of the preaching of Jesus Christ, the growth in the number of his followers, the crowds of people following him along the roads of Palestine, his constant victories over the zealots of the Law of Moses arouse hatred among the religious leaders of Judea and the intention to deal with him. The Jerusalem finale of the story of Jesus - the Last Supper, the night in the Garden of Gethsemane, the arrest, trial and execution - is by far the most heartfelt and most dramatic part of the Gospels. The Jewish high priests, “teachers of the Law” and elders form a conspiracy against Jesus Christ, who arrived in Jerusalem for Easter; Judas Iscariot, one of the disciples of Jesus Christ, agrees to sell his teacher for thirty pieces of silver. At the Easter meal in the circle of the twelve apostles (Last Supper), Jesus Christ predicts that one of them will betray him. The farewell of Jesus Christ to his disciples takes on a universally symbolic meaning: “And he took the bread and gave thanks, broke it and gave it to them, saying: This is my body, which is given for you; do this in remembrance of Me. Likewise the cup after supper, saying, “This cup is the New Testament in My blood, which is shed for you” (Luke 22:19-20); This is how the rite of communion is introduced. In the Garden of Gethsemane at the foot of the Mount of Olives, in sorrow and anguish, Jesus Christ prays to God to deliver him from the fate that threatens him: “My Father! if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me” (Matthew 26:39). At this fateful hour, Jesus Christ remains alone - even his closest disciples, despite his requests to stay with him, indulge in sleep. Judas comes with a crowd of Jews and kisses Jesus Christ, thereby betraying his teacher to the enemies. Jesus is grabbed and, showered with insults and beatings, taken to the Sanhedrin (a meeting of Jewish high priests and elders). He is found guilty and handed over to the Roman authorities. However, the Roman procurator of Judea, Pontius Pilate, finds no guilt behind him and offers to pardon him on the occasion of Easter. But the crowd of Jews raises a terrible cry, and then Pilate orders water to be brought and washes his hands in it, saying: “I am innocent of the blood of this righteous man” (Matthew 27:24). At the demand of the people, he condemns Jesus Christ to crucifixion and releases the rebel and murderer Barabbas in his place. Together with two thieves, he is crucified on the cross. The crucifixion of Jesus Christ lasts six hours. When he finally gives up the ghost, the whole earth is plunged into darkness and shakes, the curtain in the Jerusalem temple is torn in two, and the righteous rise from their graves. At the request of Joseph of Arimathea, a member of the Sanhedrin, Pilate gives him the body of Jesus Christ, which he, wrapped in a shroud, buries in a tomb carved into the rock. On the third day after the execution, Jesus Christ resurrects in the flesh and appears to his disciples (Resurrection of the Lord). He entrusts them with the mission of spreading his teachings among all nations, and he himself ascends to heaven (the Ascension of the Lord). At the end of time, Jesus Christ is destined to return to earth to carry out the Last Judgment (Second Coming).

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As soon as it arose, the doctrine of Christ (Christology) immediately gave rise to complex questions, the main ones of which were the question of the nature of the messianic feat of Jesus Christ (supernatural power and the agony of the cross) and the question of the nature of Jesus Christ (divine and human).

In most New Testament texts, Jesus Christ appears as the messiah - the long-awaited savior of the people of Israel and the whole world, a messenger of God who works miracles with the help of the Holy Spirit, an eschatological prophet and teacher, a divine husband. The idea of ​​the Messiah itself undoubtedly has Old Testament origins, but in Christianity it acquired a special meaning. Early Christian consciousness faced a difficult dilemma - how to reconcile the Old Testament image of the messiah as a theocratic king and the Gospel idea of ​​the messianic power of Jesus Christ as the son of God with the fact of his death on the cross (the image of the suffering messiah)? This contradiction was partly resolved by the idea of ​​the resurrection of Jesus and the idea of ​​his future Second Coming, during which he would appear in all his power and glory and establish the thousand-year reign of Truth. Thus, Christianity, offering the concept of two Comings, significantly departed from the Old Testament, which promised only one Coming. However, the early Christians were faced with a question: if the Messiah was destined to come to people in power and glory, why did he come to people in humiliation? Why do we need a suffering messiah? And what then is the meaning of the First Coming?

Trying to resolve this contradiction, early Christianity began to develop the idea of ​​the redemptive nature of the suffering and death of Jesus Christ - by submitting himself to torment, the Savior makes the necessary sacrifice to cleanse all humanity mired in sins from the curse imposed on it. However, the grand task of universal redemption requires that the one who solves this task must be more than a man, more than just an earthly agent of the will of God. Already in the messages of St. Paul places particular emphasis on the definition of “son of God”; thus the messianic dignity of Jesus Christ is associated with his special supernatural nature. On the other hand, the Gospel of John, influenced by Judeo-Hellenistic philosophy (Philo of Alexandria), formulates the idea of ​​Jesus Christ as the Logos (Word of God), the eternal mediator between God and people; The Logos was with God from the very beginning, through it all living things came into being, and it is consubstantial with God; at a predetermined time, he was destined to be incarnated for the sake of atonement for human sins, and then return to God. Thus, Christianity began to gradually master the idea of ​​​​the divinity of Jesus Christ, and Christology from the doctrine of the Messiah turned into component theology.

However, recognition of the divine nature of Jesus Christ could call into question the monotheistic nature of Christianity (monotheism): speaking about the divinity of the Savior, Christians risked coming to the recognition of the existence of two gods, i.e. to pagan polytheism (polytheism). All subsequent development of the teaching about Jesus Christ followed the path of resolving this conflict: some theologians leaned towards the apostle. Paul, who strictly distinguished between God and his Son, others were guided by the concept of St. John, who closely connected God and Jesus Christ as his Word. Accordingly, some denied the essential unity of God and Jesus Christ and emphasized the subordinate position of the second in relation to the first (modalist-dynamists, subordinationists, Arians, Nestorians), while others argued that the human nature of Jesus Christ was completely absorbed by the divine nature (Apollinarians, Monophysites), and there were even those who saw in him a simple manifestation of God the Father (modalist monarchians). The official church chose a middle path between these directions, combining both opposing positions into one: Jesus Christ is both god and man, but not a lower god, not a demigod, and not a half-man; he is one of the three persons of the one God (the dogma of the Trinity), equal to the other two persons (God the Father and the Holy Spirit); he is not without beginning, like God the Father, but also not created, like everything in this world; he was born of the Father before all ages, as true God from true God. The Incarnation of the Son meant the true union of the divine nature with the human (Jesus Christ had two natures and two wills). This form of Christology was established after the fierce struggle of church parties in the 4th–5th centuries. and was recorded in the decisions of the first ecumenical councils (Nicaea 325, Constantinople 381, Ephesus 431 and Chalcedon 451).

This is the Christian, certainly apologetic, point of view of Jesus Christ. It is based on the gospel story about the life and work of Jesus Christ, which for Christians is beyond doubt. Are there, however, documents independent of the Christian tradition that can confirm or refute its historical authenticity?

Unfortunately, Roman and Judeo-Hellenistic literature of the 1st century. AD practically did not convey to us information about Jesus Christ. The few pieces of evidence include fragments from the Antiquities of Josephus (37–c. 100), the Annals of Cornelius Tacitus (c. 58–117), the Letters of Pliny the Younger (61–114), and the Lives of the Twelve Caesars by Suetonius Tranquillus (c. 70–140). ). The last two authors say nothing about Jesus Christ himself, mentioning only groups of his followers. Tacitus, reporting on the persecution of the Emperor Nero against the Christian sect, notes only that the name of this sect comes “from Christ, who was betrayed during the reign of Tiberius death penalty procurator Pontius Pilate" (Annals. XV. 44). The most unusual is the famous “testimony of Josephus,” which speaks of Jesus Christ, who lived under Pontius Pilate, performed miracles, had many followers among Jews and Greeks, was crucified following the denunciation of the “first men” of Israel, and was resurrected on the third day after his execution (Jewish Antiquities. XVIII. 3. 3). However, the value of this very meager evidence remains questionable. The fact is that they came to us not in the originals, but in copies of Christian scribes, who could well have made additions and corrections to the text in a pro-Christian spirit. On this basis, many researchers have considered and continue to view the messages of Tacitus and especially Josephus as a late Christian forgery.

Judaic and Islamic religious literature shows much more interest in the figure of Jesus Christ than Roman and Judeo-Hellenistic writers. Judaism's attention to Jesus Christ is determined by the harsh ideological confrontation between two related religions, challenging each other's Old Testament heritage. This attention is growing in parallel with the strengthening of Christianity: if in Jewish texts of the second half of the 1st - beginning of the 3rd centuries. we find only scattered messages about various heresiarchs, including Jesus Christ, then in texts of later times they gradually merge into a single and coherent story about Jesus of Nazareth as worst enemy true faith.

In the early layers of the Talmud, Jesus Christ appears under the name Yeshua ben (bar) Pantira (“Jesus, son of Pantira”). Note that in Jewish texts full name"Yeshua" is mentioned only twice. In other cases, his name is shortened to “Yeshu” - a sign of extreme disdain towards him. In the Tosefta (3rd century) and the Jerusalem Talmud (3rd–4th centuries), Yeshu ben Pantira is presented as the head of a heretical sect, whom his followers considered a god and in whose name they healed. In the later Babylonian Talmud (III–V centuries), Jesus Christ is also called Yeshu ha-Nozri (“Jesus of Nazareth”): it is reported that this sorcerer and “seducer of Israel,” “close to the royal court,” was tried in compliance with all legal norms (within forty days they called witnesses in his defense, but they were never found), and then he was put to death (on the eve of Easter he was stoned and his body was hanged); in hell he suffers terrible punishment for his wickedness - he is boiled in boiling feces. In the Babylonian Talmud there is also a tendency to identify Jesus Christ with the heresiarch Ben Stada (Soteda), who stole magical art from the Egyptians by carving mysterious signs on his body, and with the false teacher Biliam (Balaam). This trend is also recorded in the Midrashim (Judaic interpretations of the Old Testament), where Balaam (= Yeshu) is spoken of as the son of a harlot and a false teacher who pretended to be God and claimed that he would leave, but would return at the end of time.

A holistic Jewish version of the life and work of Jesus Christ is presented in the famous Toldot Yeshu (5th century) - a real Jewish anti-gospel: here all the main events of the gospel story are consistently discredited.

According to Toldot, Yeshu’s mother was Miriam, the wife of the teacher of the law Johanan from a royal family known for its piety. One Saturday, the criminal and libertine Joseph ben Pandira deceived Miriam, and even during her menstruation. Thus, Yeshu was conceived in a triple sin: adultery was committed, menstrual abstinence was violated, and the Sabbath was profaned. Out of shame, Johanan leaves Miriam and goes to Babylon. Yeshu is sent to study as teachers of the Law. The boy, with his extraordinary intelligence and diligence, shows disrespect for his mentors and utters wicked speeches. After the truth about Yeshu’s birth is discovered, he flees to Jerusalem and there he steals the secret name of God from the temple, with the help of which he is able to perform miracles. He proclaims himself the messiah and gathers 310 disciples. The Jewish sages bring Yeshu to Queen Helen for trial, but she lets him go, amazed by his abilities as a miracle worker. This causes confusion among the Jews. Yeshu goes to Upper Galilee. The wise men convince the queen to send a military detachment after him, but the Galileans refuse to hand him over and, having seen two miracles (the revival of clay birds and swimming on the reins of a millstone), they worship him. To expose Yesha, the Jewish sages encourage Judas Iscariot to also steal the secret name of God from the temple. When Yeshu is brought before the queen, he rises into the air as proof of his messianic dignity; then Judas flies over him and urinates on him. The defiled Yeshu falls to the ground. The sorcerer, who has lost his power, is arrested and tied to a column as a laughing stock, but his followers free him and take him to Antioch. Yeshu goes to Egypt, where he masters the local magical art. Then he returns to Jerusalem to again steal the secret name of God. He enters the city on the Friday before Easter and enters the temple along with his disciples, but one of them, named Gaisa, betrays him to the Jews after bowing to him. Yesha is arrested and sentenced to hang. However, he manages to make all the trees speak; then he is hanged on a huge “cabbage trunk”. On Sunday he is buried, but soon Yeshu's grave is empty: the body is stolen by Yeshu's supporters, who spread the rumor that he had ascended to heaven and that he was therefore undoubtedly the messiah. Confused by this, the queen orders the body to be found. In the end, the gardener Judas finds out where the remains of Yeshu are, kidnaps them and gives them to the Jews for thirty pieces of silver. The body is dragged through the streets of Jerusalem, showing the queen and the people “the one who was about to ascend to heaven.” The followers of Yeshu are scattered throughout all countries and spread everywhere the slanderous rumor that the Jews crucified the true Messiah.

In the future, this version is supplemented with various and incredible details and facts. So, for example, in the Aramaic “History of Yeshu bar Pandira,” which has come down to us in a 14th-century transcription, it is told that Yeshu is brought to court before the Emperor Tiberius, where with one word he makes the emperor’s daughter pregnant. When he is led to execution, he rises into the sky and is transported first to Mount Carmel, and then to the cave of the prophet Elijah, which he locks from the inside. However, Rabbi Judah Ganiba (“Gardener”), who is pursuing him, orders the cave to open, and when Yeshu tries to fly away again, he catches him by the hem of his clothing and takes him to the place of execution.

Thus, in the Jewish tradition, Jesus Christ is not a god, not a messiah, but an impostor and a sorcerer who performed miracles with the help of magic. His birth and death were not of a supernatural nature, but, on the contrary, were associated with sin and shame. He whom Christians honor as the Son of God is not just an ordinary man, but the worst of men.

The Muslim (Koranic) interpretation of the life and work of Jesus (Isa) appears completely different. It occupies an intermediate position between the Christian and Judaic versions. On the one hand, the Koran denies Jesus Christ divinity; he is not god and not the son of god; on the other hand, he is in no way a sorcerer or a charlatan. Isa is a man, a messenger and prophet of Allah, similar to other prophets, whose mission is addressed exclusively to the Jews. He acts as a preacher, miracle worker and religious reformer, establishing monotheism, calling people to worship Allah and changing some religious precepts.

The Koranic texts do not provide a coherent biography of Isa, dwelling only on individual moments of his life (birth, miracles, death). The Koran borrows from the Christians the idea of ​​the virgin birth: “And We breathed into her [Maryam] from Our spirit and made her and her son a sign for the worlds” (21:91); “When Maryam was seventeen years old, Allah sent Gabriel (Gabriel) to her, who breathed into her, and she conceived the messiah, Isa ben Maryam” (Al-Masudi. Golden Meadows. V). The Koran reports some of the miracles of Isa - he heals and resurrects the dead, revives clay birds, and brings down a meal from heaven to earth. At the same time, the Koran gives a different interpretation of the death of Jesus from the Gospels: it denies the reality of the crucifixion (it was only imagined by the Jews; in fact, Jesus was taken alive into heaven) and the resurrection of Jesus Christ on the third day (Isa will rise only on last days peace together with all other people), as well as the possibility of the Second Coming of Jesus Christ: in the Koran, Isa foreshadows not his imminent return, but the coming of the main prophet - Muhammad, thereby acting as his forerunner: “I am the messenger of Allah, confirming the truth of what what was revealed before me in the Torah, and the good news of a messenger who will come after me, whose name is Ahmad” (6:6). True, in the later Muslim tradition, under the influence of Christianity, the motive of the future return of Isa arises for the sake of establishing the kingdom of justice.

Jesus Christ as an object of Christian cult belongs to theology. And this is a matter of faith, which excludes any doubt and does not require investigation. Nevertheless, attempts to penetrate into the spirit of the Gospels and understand the true essence of Jesus Christ never stopped. The entire history of the Christian Church is full of fierce battles for the right to possess the truth about Jesus Christ, as evidenced by ecumenical councils, and the separation of heretical sects, and the division of Catholic and Orthodox Churches, and the Reformation. But, in addition to purely theological disputes, the figure of Jesus Christ became the subject of discussion in historical science, which was and continues to be interested primarily in two problems: 1). the question of the real content of the gospel story, i.e. whether Jesus Christ was a historical figure; 2). question about the image of Jesus Christ in early Christian consciousness (what is the meaning of this image and what are its origins?). These problems were at the center of discussions of two scientific directions that arose back in the 18th century - mythological and historical.

The mythological direction (C. Dupuis, C. Volney, A. Dreve, etc.) completely denied the reality of Jesus Christ as a historical figure and considered him exclusively as a fact of mythology. In Jesus they saw the personification of either the solar or lunar deity, or the Old Testament Yahweh, or the Qumranite Teacher of Righteousness. Trying to identify the origins of the image of Jesus Christ and “decipher” the symbolic content of the Gospel events, representatives of this trend did a great job of searching for analogies between the motives and plots of the New Testament and earlier mythological systems. For example, they associated the idea of ​​​​the resurrection of Jesus with ideas about a dying and resurrecting deity in Sumerian, ancient Egyptian, West Semitic and ancient Greek mythologies. They also tried to give a solar-astral interpretation of the Gospel story, which was very common in ancient cultures (the path of Jesus Christ with the 12 apostles was represented, in particular, as the annual path of the sun through 12 constellations). The image of Jesus Christ, according to adherents of the mythological school, gradually evolved from the initial image of a pure deity to the later image of a god-man. The merit of mythologists is that they were able to consider the image of Jesus Christ in the broad context of ancient Eastern and ancient culture and show its dependence on previous mythological development.

The historical school (G. Reimarus, E. Renan, F. Bauer, D. Strauss and others) believed that the gospel story has a certain real basis, which over time, however, became increasingly mythologized, and Jesus Christ from real person(preacher and religious teacher) gradually turned into a supernatural personality. Supporters of this trend set the task of liberating the truly historical in the Gospels from later mythological processing. For this purpose, at the end of the 19th century. it was proposed to use the method of rationalistic criticism, which meant the reconstruction of the “true” biography of Jesus Christ by excluding everything that cannot be rationally explained, i.e. in fact, a “rewriting” of the Gospels in a rationalistic spirit (Tübingen School). This method caused serious criticism (F. Bradley) and was soon rejected by most scientists.

The cornerstone thesis of mythologists about the “silence” of sources of the 1st century. about Jesus Christ, which they believed proved the mythical character of this figure, prompted many supporters of the historical school to shift their attention to a careful study of the New Testament texts in search of the original Christian tradition. In the first quarter of the 20th century. a school of studying the “history of forms” (M. Dibelius, R. Bultmann) emerged, the goal of which was to reconstruct the history of the development of the tradition about Jesus Christ - from oral origins to literary design - and to determine the original basis, clearing it of the layers of subsequent editions. Textual studies have led representatives of this school to the conclusion that even the original Christian version of the mid-1st century isolated from the Gospels. does not make it possible to recreate the real biography of Jesus Christ: here he also remains only a symbolic character; The historical Jesus Christ may have existed, but the question of the true events of his life is hardly resolvable. The followers of the school of studying the “history of forms” still constitute one of the leading trends in modern biblical studies.

Due to the lack of fundamentally new documents and given the limited informational content of archaeological material, it is still difficult to expect any significant breakthrough in solving the problem of the historical Jesus Christ.

The Truth of Christ as the Savior of the World
Ruslan 24.12.2007 05:15:30

You are asking for an opinion.. I’ll try.. It’s probably not surprising that I used to think like the author of this article about God. The fact is that I was uninitiated in the word of God, I did not know that many prophets of the Old Testament spoke about the appearance of the Messiah.. And probably the most important thing is that I was not born again and was later baptized by the Holy Spirit.. If you type these words in a search engine, you will probably come across similar words. Jesus himself in his Word speaks to Nicodemus about being born again and that only one born again can see the kingdom of heaven. John chapter 3. More words from Scripture - the New Testament about the Comforter - who will come after Jesus’ ascension to heaven after His crucifixion. .It is the Spirit of Truth - the Third part of the Holy Trinity .. - the Holy Spirit is sent and! attention settles in man (quote from Scripture: From those who believe in Me (Jesus) rivers of living water will flow from their bellies, this He spoke about the Spirit which those who believe in Because the Holy Spirit had not yet been on them, for Jesus had not yet been glorified).. you probably haven’t heard that there is such a holiday as the day of Pentecost.. What kind of holiday is this? This is the feast of the descent of the Holy Spirit onto the earth and onto the apostles... Accompanied by these signs about which Jesus spoke: these signs will accompany those who believe in Me - in My Name they will cast out demons, heal and speak in new tongues... In general, anyone interested will read this in the Gospel of John. .if, of course, he puts his pride far away and worldly knowledge which, as a person thinks, is true. As it is written, he who is from the earth is and speaks as he is from the earth.. Also about this worldly knowledge, Jesus tells people the phrase - to deny yourself and follow Him ..What does it mean? This means precisely renouncing your knowledge... because it is darkness, for a person not enlightened by God lives in darkness... And pride and much more will have to be renounced and abandoned.. Of course, I understand you, the author of the article.. your questions are appropriate and doubts are popular ..It remains to wish you to come and repent before God and accept Jesus as your personal Savior..This means admitting yourself as a sinner to see the darkness in your life in the form of lust or other manifestations of the evil human heart..And find salvation..Or it also remains to wish you applying to you lines from Scripture: No one can come to me unless it is given to him from My Father.. (He spoke about unbelievers - not elect to salvation and not drawn by the grace of God to Christ) Goodbye my dears. AMEN

Adonai
Ruslan 24.12.2007 07:39:17

Jesus is the Son of God. It will be a pity for you when after death you go to hell. Without accepting His sacrifice... because He took your sins upon Himself. By the way, God has death for sin - the Old Testament... so without Christ you are doomed to destruction.

Very interesting!
Philip 26.07.2017 08:42:45

If you need details about Jesus and his time, they can be found in abundance in the book The Party of Jesus (I found it on Ozone and Amazon). Who Jesus was, what He sought, what kind of relationships He had with others, what is known about His messianic status - all this can be found in this book.