PHIL 202-3 Lecture Notes - Lecture 7: Synoptic Gospels, Pauline Epistles, Messiah In Judaism
PHIL 202
Ch. 4 Christian Traditions (pt. 1)
Chapter Outline
• Origins
• Relations between Church and Society
• Authority in the Early Church
• The Development of Orthodoxy
• Relations between East and West
• Practice
• Eastern Orthodoxy
• Medieval Christianity
• Saints
• The Early Modern Era
• The Modern Era
• The Church of Rome Today
• Recent Developments
Introduction
• Christians profess the faith commitment that Jesus of Nazareth was the Son of God, both
human and divine; that he died on a cross for the sins of all; and that he was resurrected
two days later, demonstrating the power of God over death
• What that faith commitment means and how it is expressed vary widely, depending on
time, place, socio-political context, theological perspective, and cultural–ethnic identity
Origins
The Life of Jesus
• We do not know very much about the life of Jesus until he begins his ministry around the
age of 30
o Born c. 3 BCE
o Jewish
o Lived in Palestine
o Itinerant teacher
o Arrested and crucified
• Main source of information
o The Gospels: Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John
o The Pauline Epistles: Letters written by Paul
The Gospels
• Synoptic Gospels (Greek: “Seen together”)
o Matthew, Mark, and Luke
o Named for followers of Jesus; we do not know the actual names of the authors
o Mark: probably written 30 years after Jesus’ death
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
• Source material for Matthew and Luke
o Not written as biographies, but in order to sustain Christian adherents
o Sayings, miracles, stories of Jesus
o Parables (stories with a moral or spiritual lesson)
The Gospels, cont’d
• John
o Theological essay
• Jesus is messiah and savior
• Jesus is the Logos: incarnation of the divine word
o “In the beginning was the logos, and the logos was with god, and
the logos was God; all things were made through him” (John 1:1)
o “The logos became flesh and dwelt among us, full of grace and
truth; we have beheld his glory, glory as of the only Son from the
Father” (John 1:14)
• For John, the true inheritors of Abraham’s faith are those who believe that
the Word became flesh in Jesus, that the risen Jesus lives among them, and
that it is their mission to declare those beliefs to the world
The Gospels, cont’d
• The Gospels’ authors selected certain teachings and events from the life of Jesus to give
the early Christian community a context in which to understand the events it professed to
have experienced
The Pauline Epistles
• Letters written by Paul to various Christian communities
• Theology, practice, discipline
• Not all letters attributed to Paul were written by him
o But he did write Romans, 1 and 2 Corinthians, Galatians, Philippians, 1
Thessalonians, Philemon
• Focused on Jesus as the Jewish Messiah and instructions for Christian life
Internal Conflicts in the Early Church
• 400 years to organize because of questions of identity, authority, belief, and
organizational structure
• Was the Jesus movement for Jews? Could Gentiles join?
• If Gentiles could join, should they follow Jewish customs?
o Predicated on Pauls’ idea that Gentiles did not need to follow Jewish customs
(Rom. 3:21–31)
• Eventually Gentiles were forbidden to adopt the markers of Jewish identity
Relations between Church and Society
• Greco-Roman world: Imperial cult
• Christians and Jews refused to participate in sacrifices
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Document Summary
The life of jesus: we do not know very much about the life of jesus until he begins his ministry around the. Origins age of 30: born c. 3 bce, jewish, lived in palestine, itinerant teacher, arrested and crucified, main source of information, the gospels: matthew, mark, luke, and john, the pauline epistles: letters written by paul. The gospels, cont"d: the gospels" authors selected certain teachings and events from the life of jesus to give the early christian community a context in which to understand the events it professed to have experienced. The pauline epistles: letters written by paul to various christian communities, theology, practice, discipline, not all letters attributed to paul were written by him, but he did write romans, 1 and 2 corinthians, galatians, philippians, 1. Thessalonians, philemon: focused on jesus as the jewish messiah and instructions for christian life.
