Lately, I have been thinking and researching the idea of resurrection, you know, the Christian idea that Jesus returned to a living state after a number of days. All of the shows about Jesus are not simply contained in the gospels. Many stories developed in the counsels of the early church over a period of some 1000 years.
According to the gospels, there seems to be some disagreement as to the actual number of days before he returned to life. Check it out for yourself in all four gospels. There are other discrepancies that make me wonder exactly what physically happened if anything. So, was it a physical resusitation of a dead body. I mean the scripture says Jesus seemed to be real, a live person, with a real body. He ate with folks, walked with them, they touched him, etc; But, he told the ladies at the tomb NOT to touch him (John 20:17). However, in Matthew 28:9, he tells the same ladies to TOUCH him. At various times after the resurrection, Jesus APPEARS to the disciples, then VANISHES (John 20:19, Mark 16:12). Jesus asks his disciples to touch him, including Thomas, the doubter (Luke 24:39, John 20: 27). Jesus eats with the disciples (John 21:12, Luke 24:43). So, was this a real, physical body?
The early Christians were, of course, influenced by their Jewish heritage, and scriptures. In the Jewish scriptures, there are frequent mentions of a place called SHEOL. It is the abode of the dead; ALL the dead. The New Testament scriptures say Jesus descended to SHEOL while he was in the grave. On most occasions when Sheol is mentioned, when one goes to sheol, he remains there. There are rare occasions where a return from Sheol is mentioned (I Samuel 2:6). It says that God brings people down to Sheol and then lifts them up.This seems to be the idea that the early followers of Jesus believed. In early Christianity, to be lifted up was to be exalted. This is a term often used in regard to Jesus; that God exalted him, or lifted him up. Interesting. Somewhere along the way Jesus appears to have gone from being lifted up, ie; exalted, to being raised, ?; to being resurrected. Resurrection means- a return from the dead, a rising again, as from decay, disuse, etc.; revival. A physical resusitation of a body is quite different from being exalted. I tend to think of exaltation as being a spritual act.
So what happened on Easter? What was it that led the early church to believe that Jesus was physically resurrected back to life? Was there confusion on the part of the early believers? Did the early church then have to decide what really happened with Jesus on Easter? It seems they did. And, the decision they made has continued to this day.
I'm pretty much convinced by Crossan and others that neither Paul nor Mark, the Gospel that served as a template for the others, intended to portray a physical resurrection.
ReplyDeleteI tend to agree with you about what the early Christians believed. Philippians 2 and other proto-creeds testify to exaltation after death, rather than a bodily resurrection.
Thanks for commenting Paul. Please feel free to comment again.
DeleteFirst off, I'm glad to see you back at your blog! And what a great topic.
ReplyDeletePersonally, I'm partial to what is popularly called the "swoon theory." I've hinted at that as a possible solution a time or two on my blog, but haven't really fleshed out a full hypothesis. That might be fun to do, just to see how far one could get with it.
Hi Doug- As always I appreciate your contributions to my little blog. We do have a lot of background in common and it's amazing how our thought processes mesh at times. It's my friends, like you, Sam, Andrew, Mae, Dianne, Chris, and all the others who follow and who comment that keep me coming back for more.
DeleteVery interesting post, Don. The death and resurrection of Jesus as I had been taught was quite a sticking point on my journey. I really appreciate this perspective, the differentiations between “lifted,” “raised,” and “resurrected” is especially a big Wow! for me. It’s truly amazing to me how attempts to understand Jesus throughout the centuries have brought profound non-dual truths down to black-and-white terms. In my process of questioning death, resurrection, and eternal life, Buddhist teachings on impermanence have been very eye-opening for me. The Buddhist principle of impermanence teaches that individuals are like flowers that bloom for a brief time and then fade away. If I understand this principle correctly, all things are said to be in a constant state of change but also of interconnection and unity – a process of flux and flow from one form to another. The reality is NOTHING IS EVER TRULY LOST - merely changed from one form to another. In this way I think Jesus is indeed still with us and is very much a part of us, for we are all connected…I think maybe early Christians saw this but had no way to express it. In the language of the day, it came to be known as raised from the dead. That’s my present theory, anyway! :) And thank you, Don, for being such an encourager, mentor, fellow traveler, and friend. You keep me going, too.
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