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Revision as of 05:36, 31 December 2001 by Wesley (talk | contribs) (Things unique about the Christian resurrection story, as compared with others)(diff) ← Previous revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff)According to the New Testament, God miraculously raised Jesus Christ from the dead three days after his crucifixion, and this is generally referred to as the resurrection of Jesus Christ; this is commemorated and celebrated by Christians each year at Easter.
Most Christians accept the New Testament account as an accurate historical account of an event that is central to their theology, although there is significant dissent.
For very many self-identifying Christians, the Resurrection is one of the foundational beliefs of Christianity: the belief that Jesus Christ died for the sins of humanity and was resurrected to live with God the Father is regarded by many as the cornerstone of Christianity. Saint Paul said that if the resurrection did not really happen, then Christians were to be pitied above all men (I Corinthians 15:19). Christians have lived and died the death of martyrs in hope of the resurrection, both in hope of Christ's resurrection in the past and in hope of their own in the future.
Non-Christians generally view the New Testament account of the resurrection of Jesus as fictional. Some people who call themselves Christians regard the resurrection as a myth; but since some Christians view belief in the resurrection as essential to Christianity itself, the latter would not regard the former as bona fide Christians. See Christianity.
The Biblical account
Some New Testament references that describe this event are:
- Acts 4:10 Be it known unto you all, and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom ye crucified, whom God raised from the dead, even by him doth this man stand here before you whole.
- 1 Cor 6:14 And God hath both raised up the Lord, and will also raise up us by his own power.
- Gal 1:1 Paul, an apostle, (not of men, neither by man, but by Jesus Christ, and God the Father, who raised him from the dead;)
- 1 Pet 1:21 Who by him do believe in God, that raised him up from the dead, and gave him glory; that your faith and hope might be in God
Non-Biblical records
Some of the earliest records of the resurrection outside the New Testament are found in the writings of Josephus (37 - 110), Ignatius (50 - 115), Polycarp (69 - 155) Justin Martyr (100 - 165), and Tertullian (160 - 220).
The historicity of the resurrection
As with all historical events which occurred beyond a few hundred years ago, the issue of historicity is an important aspect of any person's belief in the actual occurrence of the event. In contrast with scientific phenomenon for which reproducibility and falsifiability is important, historical phenomena depend on different criteria, such as uniqueness of occurrence, plausibility of circumstances, and testimony of witnesses.
Some historians have questioned the historicity of the events related by the New Testament. One of the first to do so was Edward Gibbon (1737 - 1794). See The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire for an extensive quote from that work in which Gibbon wonders why no contemporary historians noticed three hours of darkness in the middle of the Roman Empire. Other historians have explained this darkness as an eclipse local to the Jerusalem area.
The Resurrection of Jesus compared with accounts of resurrection in other cultures
While the Resurrection of Jesus Christ is one of the foundational beliefs of Christianity, accounts of other resurrections also figure in religion, myth, and fable.
Some Christians hold that the stories are significantly different and that the similarities are superficial and that therefore no special significant need be attached to the similarities. Other Christians would observe that while many believers in the various "mystery religions" in the first and second centuries of the Roman Empire freely borrowed from each other, Christianity was not founded by any of these, but by Jews, a people who were generally adamant about maintaining the purity of their faith. Paul of Tarsus, who authored much of the New Testament, was himself a Jew, a Pharisee who had been trained by Gamaliel, one of the leading Jewish theologians of the time. In each town that Paul visited, he preached in the Jewish synagogues before preaching to the Gentiles or non-Jews. Thus, Christians think it unlikely that the resurrection story would be invented or borrowed in order to appeal to Gentiles.
On a similar note, many stories in the Torah, held sacred by both Jews and Christians, also are noted by historians to have close parallels to earlier pagan myths and stories. Liberal Jewish and Christian denominations agree that this is likely the case, and have theologies that do not depend on this finding. Traditional Christians and Orthodox Jews reject any similarities.
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