1

SANTACLARAUNIVERSITY•OSHERLIFELONGLEARNINGINSTITUTE

WHOWASTHEHISTORICALJESUS?WINTER2012

Instructor:Catherine(Kitty)Murphy ClassTime:W1:30–4:00p.m.Office:Kenna323B Dates:January11–February1Phone:(408)551‑1909 Classroom:LibraryViewing&TapingRoomAEmail:cmurphy@scu.edu

CourseDescriptionJesusofNazarethisapivotalfigureinworldhistory.Butwhatdowereallyknowaboutthemanandtheworldinwhichhelived?WhatdidJesusreallysayanddo?Howwouldwedescribehisdaily life? Whywasthis faithful JewexecutedbytheRomans? Howdorecent archaeological discoveries help us piece together his world? And are these“discoveries” legitimate? Wewill learn about the quests for Jesus, about sifting historyfromour sources, aboutarchaeological sites andartifacts associatedwithhim,andabouttheperspectivesofdifferentfaithsthatdevelopedaboutJesusafterhisdeath.ThefourclasssessionsarearrangedtoanswertwentybasicquestionsaboutthehistoricalJesusanddevelopingbeliefsabouthim. Yourquestionswillbean importantpartof theclassaswell.YouarewelcometobrowsethecourseWebsiteforthisclass,whichwillhavecopiesofslidepresentationsandotherresources:

http://www‑relg‑studies.scu.edu/facstaff/murphy/courses/olli/jesusSchedule

JANUARY11 SOURCES,METHODS,&QUESTS Questions

1.WhatsourcesdowehaveforreconstructingJesus’life?2.Howdoesanhistoriansiftthroughallthisevidence?3.WhathasthequestforthehistoricalJesusfound?4.WhatarethemajorviewstodayofwhoJesuswas?5.IsthequestforahistoricalJesusnecessaryforapersonoffaith?

SuggestedReadingsCatherineM.Murphy,TheHistoricalJesusforDummies(Hoboken,New

Jersey:Wiley,2007),chapters3‑5.GregoryW.Dawes,TheHistoricalJesusQuestion:TheChallengeof

HistorytoReligiousAuthority(Louisville:WestminsterJohnKnox,2001).

‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑,ed.,TheHistoricalJesusQuest:LandmarksintheSearchfortheJesusofHistory(Louisville:WestminsterJohnKnox,2000;original1999).

Amy‑JillLevine,DaleC.Allison,Jr.,andJohnDominicCrossan,eds.,TheHistoricalJesusinContext,PrincetonReadingsinReligions(Princeton,NewJersey:PrincetonUniversityPress,2000).

JonathanL.Reed,ArchaeologyandtheGalileanJesus:ARe‑examinationoftheEvidence(Harrisburg,Pennsylvania:TrinityPressInternational,2000).

RobertE.VanVoorst,JesusOutsidetheNewTestament:AnIntroductiontotheAncientEvidence(GrandRapids,Michigan:WilliamB.Eerdmans,2000).

2

JANUARY18 THEPOLITICAL,SOCIAL&ECONOMICCONTEXT,ANDJESUS’EARLYYEARS Questions

1.WhatwaslifelikeinRomanPalestineduringJesus’time?2.WhatdoweknowaboutJesus’childhood?3.Whatdoweknowabouthisfamily?4.WashemarriedtoMaryMagdalene?5.WhataretheseGnosticgospelsthatarealwaysinthenews?

SuggestedReadingsCatherineM.Murphy,TheHistoricalJesusforDummies(Hoboken,New

Jersey:Wiley,2007),chapters6‑9(MaryMagdaleneisdiscussedinchapter10).

InfancyStoriesRaymondE.Brown,TheBirthoftheMessiah:ACommentaryonthe

InfancyNarrativesinMatthewandLuke(NewYork:Image,1979).

RobertJ.Miller,BornDivine:TheBirthsofJesusandOtherSonsofGod(Sonoma,California:PolebridgePress,2003).

‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑,ed.,TheCompleteGospels:AnnotatedScholarsVersion(Sonoma,California:PolebridgePress,1994;original1992).

CharlesH.Talbert,“MiraculousConceptionsandBirthsinMediterraneanAntiquity,”inTheHistoricalJesusinContext(ed.Amy‑JillLevine,DaleC.Allison,Jr.,andJohnDominicCrossan;PrincetonReadingsinReligion;Princeton,NewJersey:PrincetonUniversityPress,2006)79‑86.

Jesus’FemaleCompanionsKathleenE.Corley,WomenandtheHistoricalJesus:FeministMythsof

ChristianOrigins(Sonoma,California:Polebridge,2002).BartD.Ehrman,TruthandFictioninTheDaVinciCode(NewYork:

OxfordUniversityPress,2004).GnosticGospelsElainePagelsandKarenL.King.TheGospelofJudasandtheShapingof

Christianity.NewYork:Viking,2007.JamesM.Robinson,ed.,TheNagHammadiLibrary,3rdrev.ed.(San

Francisco:HarperSanFrancisco1990;originalLeiden:E.J.Brill,1978).

3

JANUARY25 WHATJESUSDID&WHATITSIGNIFIEDINROMANPALESTINE Questions

1.WhatwastherelationshipbetweenJesusandJohntheBaptist?2.Howpopularwashe?3.Whatdidhereallysay?4.Didhereallyperformmiracles?5.WhatdidJesusmeanbythe“kingdomofGod”?

SuggestedReadingsCatherineM.Murphy,TheHistoricalJesusforDummies(Hoboken,New

Jersey:Wiley,2007),chapters10‑12.AnImportantResourceKurtAland,ed.,SynopsisoftheFourGospels,9thed.(Stuttgart:Germal

BibleSociety,1989).JohntheBaptistCatherineM.Murphy,JohntheBaptist:ProphetofPurityforaNewAge,

Interfaces(Collegeville,Minnesota:LiturgicalPress/MichaelGlazier,2003).

Jesus’SayingsandMiraclesRobertW.Funk,RoyW.Hoover,andtheJesusSeminar,TheFive

Gospels:TheSearchfortheAuthenticWordsofJesus(NewYork:Macmillan[aPolebridgePressBook],1993).

RobertW.FunkandtheJesusSeminar,TheActsofJesus:TheSearchfortheAuthenticDeedsofJesus(SanFrancisco:HarperSanFrancisco[aPolebridgePressBook],1998).

JohnJ.Pilch,HealingintheNewTestament:InsightsfromMedicalandMediterraneanAnthropology(Minneapolis:Fortress,2000).

GalileeintheTimeofJesusMarkChancey,Greco‑RomanCultureandtheGalileeofJesus,SNTSMS

134(NewYork:CambridgeUniversityPress,2006).WilliamHorbury,HerodianJudaismandNewTestamentStudy,WUNT

193(Tübingen:MohrSiebeck,2006).MortenHørningJensen,HerodAntipasinGalilee:TheLiteraryand

ArchaeologicalSourcesontheReignofHerodAntipasandItsSocio‑economicImpactonGalilee,WUNT2/215(Tübingen:MohrSiebeck,2006).

JonathanL.Reed,“ArchaeologicalContributionstotheStudyofJesusandtheGospels,”inTheHistoricalJesusinContext(ed.Amy‑JillLevine,DaleC.Allison,Jr.,andJohnDominicCrossan;PrincetonReadingsinReligion;Princeton,NewJersey:PrincetonUniversityPress,2006)40‑54.

4

FEBRUARY1 THEDEATH&AFTERLIFEOFJESUS Questions

1.WhowereJesus’enemies,andwhokilledhim?2.WhywasJesuskilled?3.Didherisefromthedead?4.ArethereanylegitimatearchaeologicalartifactsrelatedtoJesus’life,

deathorresurrection?5.Howdidlaterbeliefsabouthimdevelop?

SuggestedReadingsCatherineM.Murphy,TheHistoricalJesusforDummies(Hoboken,New

Jersey:Wiley,2007),chapters13‑15.MessianicBeliefinJesus’TimeJohnJ.Collins,TheScepterandtheStar:TheMessiahsoftheDeadSea

ScrollsandOtherAncientLiterature,AnchorBibleReferenceLibrary(NewYork:Doubleday,1995).

DeathandResurrectionMarkusBockmuehl,“Resurrection,”inTheCambridgeCompanionto

Jesus(ed.MarkusBockmuehl;NewYork:CambridgeUniversityPress,2001).

RaymondE.Brown,DeathoftheMessiah:FromGethsemanetotheGrave,AnchorBible(NewYork:Doubleday,1994).

PaulaFredriksen,JesusofNazareth,KingoftheJews:AJewishLifeandtheEmergenceofChristianity(NewYork:Vintage,1999).

JoelB.Green,“Crucifixion,”inTheCambridgeCompaniontoJesus(ed.MarkusBockmuehl;NewYork:CambridgeUniversityPress,2001)87‑101.

GerardS.Sloyan,“TheCrucifixionofJesus:How,Why,andbyWhom?”inWhyJesusDied(ed.MarshallD.Johnson;Facets;Minneapolis:Fortress,2004;editedexcerptofTheCrucifixionofJesus[Minneapolis:Fortress,1995])11‑61,135‑40.

DevelopingBeliefsaboutJesusLarryW.Hurtado,HowonEarthDidJesusBecomeaGod?Historical

QuestionsaboutEarliestDevotiontoJesus(GrandRapids:Eerdmans,2005).

TarifKhalidi,ed.andtrans.,TheMuslimJesus:SayingsandStoriesinIslamicLiterature(Cambridge,Massachusetts:HarvardUniversityPress,2001).

RowanWilliams,“AHistoryofFaithinJesus,”inTheCambridgeCompaniontoJesus(ed.MarkusBockmuehl;NewYork:CambridgeUniversityPress,2001)220‑36.

5

JesusinArt&FilmLloydBaugh,ImagingtheDivine:JesusandChrist‑FiguresinFilm

(Lanham,Maryland:Sheed&Ward,1997).PaulC.Burns,JesusinTwentiethCenturyLiterature,Art,andMovies,

StudiesinReligion(NewYork:Continuum,2007).KathleenE.CorleyandRobertL.Webb,eds.,JesusandMelGibson’s

ThePassionoftheChrist:TheFilm,theGospelsandtheClaimsofHistory(NewYork:Continuum,2004).

ThomasF.Mathews,TheClashofGods:AReinterpretationofEarlyChristianArt,rev.ed.(Princeton,NewJersey:PrincetonUniversityPress,1999;original,1993).

JaroslavPelikan,TheIllustratedJesusthroughtheCenturies(NewHaven,Connecticut:YaleUniversityPress,1997).

AdeleReinhartz,JesusofHollywood(NewYork:OxfordUniversityPress,2006).

W.BarnesTatum,JesusattheMovies:AGuidetotheFirstHundredYears(Sonoma,California:Polebridge,2004).

RichardWalsh,ReadingtheGospelsintheDark:PortrayalsofJesusinFilm(Harrisburg,Pennsylvania:TrinityPressInternational,2003).