Jesus Christ

Jesus of Nazareth
Biographic Information
Full name	Jesus ben Joseph of Nazareth
Born	c. 6-4 BCE
Died	c. 30-33 CE
Buried	N/A
Parent(s)	Mary Joseph
Spouse(s)	N/A
Children	N/A
Nationality	Jewish
Religion	Judaism
Profession	Carpentry Preaching
Career Information
Military Information

Jesus' Sermon on the Mount by Carl Bloch, 1877

Jesus (Aramaic: ישוע) also known as Jesus of Nazareth or Jesus Christ, is the traditional founder of Christianity and a major prophet in Islam. Although once debated, his historical existence is accepted by most reputable scholars. He is arguably the most famous person to have ever existed, being a major component in the religions of more than half of the World Population as of 2024.

Biography

Jesus is believed to have lived from about 4 BCE to 30/33 CE Jesus was recorded in the New Testament to have been born in Bethlehem near Jerusalem but he grew up in Nazareth in the Galilean district of Israel (or Roman Judea) in the Roman Empire. Jesus was not Roman, he was categorized as "Jewish". Based on the Jewish naming system at the time, his legal name would've been Jesus ben Joseph, or, more literally, Yehoshua ben Yosef.

According to the New Testament, when Jesus was born, Herod The Great, was the ruler of Galilee at this time. When Herod had heard claims of a new-born king in Bethlehem, he ordered all male infants under the age of 2-years-old to be killed. Mary and Joseph (Jesus' parents) then moved into Egypt until Herod died in 4 BCE when they moved back to Galilee except in Nazareth this time.

When Jesus was 7-years-old, he amazed the Jewish scholars with his wisdom at that time, especially given Jesus' poor background. Jesus' father, Joseph, was a carpenter which was an occupation that was frowned upon in Jewish society. Like most boys in this time, he grew up and did what his father did: carpentry. Jesus was a carpenter until sometime in his early to mid 30s when he began to preach.

Ministry

Jesus was a preacher of a reformation amongst the Jewish population (sometime around the year 26 CE), gaining a small, dedicated following. His criticisms of those with power earned him the ire of the religious leaders in Judea at this time, so much so, they hated him and conspired to trap him on multiple occasions. In one example, Jesus used his charismatic ability to escape a trap set by the religious authorities when they attempted to trick him into saying that taxes to Caesar should not be paid.

Among many other things he did, Jesus appointed the first pope, St. Peter, who was a disciple of Jesus. The Papacy still exists to this day. In addition, Jesus also claimed to be the long-awaited Jewish Messiah and that he has never sinned against their God.

Prior to Jesus' death, he claimed to be the "Son of God" which would have him tried for blasphemy against the Jewish God. This led the religious authorities paying one of Jesus' diciples, Judas Iscariot, to lead a detachment of soldiers to Jesus to arrest him. The next day, Jesus was tried for his crime under Roman governor Pontius Pilate. Pilate initially did not want to crucify Jesus because he did not care about Jesus' blasphemy and Jesus denied being an earthly king (a claim that would've certainly been enough to execute him for attempting to incite a rebellion). Pilate announced that Jesus would not be charged but Pilate also feared a Jewish rebellion and gave into their demands. Jesus was crucified on the eve of Passover. His last words are disputed, but were either "It is finished" or “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit!”

Jesus in Religion

Many religions place value on the figure of Jesus, however, none as much as the Abrahamic faiths.

Christians believe that Jesus raised 3 days after his death as was recorded in the New Testament (where most information on Jesus has been recorded). They also believe that Jesus was God incarnated as a man and God only did so because His people were too stubborn and lost in their sins. The faith was very consistent for the first 1,000 years of the early church. In 1054, Europe Great Schism split the church into 2 separate churches, the Eastern Orthodox Church and the Catholic Church. In 1517, Martin Luther even further divided the faith by establishing Protestantism with the Protestant Reformation which fragmented into hundreds of denominations: all of whom claim to be in line with the original church that Jesus established during his ministry.

Muslims usually believe he was the second-to-last prophet of God, rejecting the claim of his resurrection and even his crucifixion entirely. Muslims believe a look-alike of Jesus was crucified while Jesus actually ascended into Jannah. They hold that it was made-up at a later point in time which is why Muhammad came to reform the alleged religious discrepancies of the Christians.

Atheists believe that Jesus' resurrection was made-up out of humility for following a man who was crucified. Some atheists even believe Jesus didn't exist at all, a view which most scholars disagree with.

Historicity of Jesus

Two main contemporary sources mention Jesus. Josephus mentions him twice, once when mentioning James, Jesus brothers' death and a second time in what is called the Testimonium Flavianum, which is questioned on its authenticity. Tacitus mentions Jesus as well, calling his Christus. However, these references are minor and only verify Jesus was a real person. Secular scholars generally believe in the most broad beliefs of Jesus, those that he was born, a minister, and crucified.

Most details about his actions must be drawn from the history present in the Gospels, especially the Synoptic Gospels found in the Bible. The New Testament is generally viewed as historically reliable for most events of Jesus' life but not all.