What Did Jesus Really Say?

What Did Jesus Really Say

Consider what was happening during Jesus’ time. It was shortly after figures like Cleopatra and all the spectacle of the coliseums and Rome’s rising power. During Jesus’ ministry and, ultimately, his death (27-35 CE), contemporary historians such as Philo of Alexandria and other Roman chroniclers didn’t even mention him. Despite modern depictions of the passion play and how dramatic we imagine it to be, most writings from the Jesus era did not focus on itinerant preachers.

Paul’s epistles (letters), which likely shape our current understanding of Christianity more than the gospels, were written between 50 and 60 CE. Paul focused on some of the theological discussions of the time and on the challenges he faced in the churches he helped establish. He did not necessarily record historical facts as much as his personal view of Jesus, even though he never met him.

Even the Gospels were written 40 to 70 years after the crucifixion. Recent research suggests that these accounts were probably written in a different country and that the authors might not have been eyewitnesses to what happened during Jesus’ ministry. Most of the stories were preserved through oral tradition, which we now know is inherently unreliable and prone to changes.

In the Antiquities of the Jews, the Jewish historian Josephus mentioned “Jesus who was called the Christ” about 60 years after his death. A few other references, like Tacitus (a Roman historian), mentioned the crucifixion and that Jesus was executed by Pontius Pilate during the reign of Tiberius, even later in history.

All of this raises some initial questions and assumptions, even though we’re just starting the discussion. It’s not good storytelling to make a modern play about Jesus’ life and then, when it ends, to record decades of silence as people quietly discuss what happened. The news media of that time, along with historians and everyone recording history, failed to mention him for decades.

What else occurred during this time to impact the authenticity of recording Jesus’s actual words and actions? Was it influenced by personal ambitions? Is there any chance that, 2000 years later, we have the exact words Jesus spoke, and can we even trust the writings of Paul, which were penned decades after Jesus’s death? Is it possible that the holy book and the words of Jesus we have today are more of a retrofit by the early Christian church that were later revised as various groups, individuals, and organizations gained power?

All these questions require careful thought, and they won’t be answered in a simple blog post. But if we want to make bold claims about what Jesus said, we must thoroughly trace the path from Jerusalem and Rome to our current understanding and appreciation of the holy book we sometimes call the Logos (the Word). Before we say, “Jesus said,” we need to consider how likely it is that these are actually his words.

Over the next 200 years, Christian scriptures evolved from a diverse collection of oral traditions and scattered letters into a more organized codex. The main conflicts involved Orthodox, Gnostic, and Marcionite influences. Other gospels were written but not included because they did not fit with the more common theological views.

This period also saw the development of many beliefs in modern Christian and Catholic churches, which were often based on opinions that were widely accepted at the time rather than on reliable source documents. Some of the more well-known gospels that were excluded included the Gospel of Thomas, the Gospel of Philip, the Gospel of Mary, and the Gospel of Truth.

I would much rather have all these documents so I could make my own decision than have someone from the second or third century do it for me. As I’ve said before, when we adopt a belief, we tend to stop questioning and start defending what we’ve set as the standard, whether that standard has any rational basis other than a stubborn determination to make it seem true and acceptable.

The next major development in the evolution of the Christian scriptures occurred around 300 CE. Before the reign of the Roman emperor Constantine, Christians faced persecutions where authorities often confiscated and burned their sacred texts. When Constantine united the empire and Church under his rule, Christianity gained some protection, which also helped him maintain power as the various councils quickly moved toward establishing an official Canon of scripture and accepted books.

He did not personally choose the books, but the sequence of events provided some unity and protection as they moved forward and started meeting in cathedrals instead of gathering in homes and caves. What appeared to be a win-win at the time was actually a compromise that still impacts us today and significantly influences the reliability of what is recorded in what we call the Bible.

So I find myself in the 21st century with all kinds of pressure to accept what Jesus said even though it’s almost impossible to prove that he said anything that’s attributed to him. I can make assumptions, but it’s exactly like quoting Cleopatra or Mark Antony especially if nobody wrote it down right when he said it.

I accept things like “love your neighbor” because it’s a good idea no matter who said it or when they said it. But, it makes no sense to me to determine any hard fast rules just because they’re in an old book that a Roman Emperor condoned in the 3rd or 4th Century. I don’t murder or kill because I love my neighbor, and I don’t trust books like the Bible that give contradictory information on the subject.

I believe we are capable of discernment without a magic book. They certainly give us insight but they don’t necessarily prove anything.

What did Jesus actually say? We don’t really know for sure, and assuming we do only pools our ignorance and keeps us stuck where we are.

Be where you are,

Be who you are,

Be at peace.

Karl Forehand