ACK-037: Jesus Christ

May this Christmas end the present year on a cheerful note and make way for a fresh and bright new year.
Here’s wishing you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Major Religions of the World
Ranked by Number of Adherents

(Sizes shown are approximate estimates, and are here mainly for the purpose of ordering the groups, not providing a definitive number. This list is sociological/statistical in perspective.)

1. Christianity: 2.1 billion
2. Islam: 1.5 billion
3. Secular/Nonreligious/Agnostic/Atheist: 1.1 billion
4. Hinduism: 900 million
5. Chinese traditional religion: 394 million
6. Buddhism: 376 million
7. primal-indigenous: 300 million
8. African Traditional & Diasporic: 100 million
9. Sikhism: 23 million
10. Juche: 19 million
11. Spiritism: 15 million
12. Judaism: 14 million
13. Baha'i: 7 million
14. Jainism: 4.2 million
15. Shinto: 4 million
16. Cao Dai: 4 million
17. Zoroastrianism: 2.6 million
18. Tenrikyo: 2 million
19. Neo-Paganism: 1 million
20. Unitarian-Universalism: 800 thousand
21. Rastafarianism: 600 thousand
22. Scientology: 500 thousand

(~ http://www.adherents.com/Religions_By_Adherents.html)

Jesus Christ is the central figure of Christianity, one of the world’s largest religions, and is revered by most Christian churches as the Son of God and the incarnation* of God. Islam considers Jesus a prophet, and he is an important figure in several other religions. His teachings and deeds are recorded in the New Testament, which is essentially a theological document that makes discovery of the “historical Jesus” difficult. The basic outlines of his career and message, however, can be characterized when considered in the context of 1st-century Judaism and, especially, Jewish eschatology.

Name and title

Ancient Jews usually had only one name, and, when greater specificity was needed, it was customary to add the father’s name or the place of origin. Thus, in his lifetime Jesus was called Jesus son of Joseph (Luke 4:22; John 1:45; 6:42), Jesus of Nazareth (Acts 10:38), or Jesus the Nazarene (Mark 1:24; Luke 24:19). After his death, he came to be called Jesus Christ. Christ was not originally a name but a title derived from the Greek word christos, which translates the Hebrew term meshiah (Messiah), meaning “the anointed one.” This title indicates that Jesus’ followers believed him to be the anointed son of King David, whom some Jews expected to restore the fortunes of Israel. Passages such as Acts of the Apostles 2:36 show that some early Christian writers knew that the Christ was properly a title, but in many passages of the New Testament, including those in Paul’s letters, the name and the title are combined and used together as Jesus’ name: Jesus Christ or Christ Jesus (Romans 1:1; 3:24). Paul sometimes simply used Christ as Jesus’ name (e.g., Romans 5:6).

Summary of Jesus’ life

Although born in Bethlehem, according to Matthew and Luke, Jesus was a Galilean from Nazareth, a village near Sepphoris, one of the two major cities of Galilee (Tiberias was the other). He was born to Joseph and Mary shortly before the death of Herod the Great (Matthew 2; Luke 1:5) in 4 bc.

Joseph took her to Bethlehem to register for a census. While there, Mary gave birth to Jesus. She laid him in a manger because there was no room at the inn. Shepherds visited Jesus in Bethlehem. Later the "Wise Men" or "Magi" bring gifts to the infant Jesus after following a star which they believe was a sign that the King of the Jews had been born (Matthew 2:1–12). King Herod hears of Jesus' birth from the Wise Men and tries to kill him by massacring all the male children in Bethlehem under the age of two (the "massacre of the innocents"). The family flees to Egypt and remains there until Herod's death, whereupon they settle in Nazareth to avoid living under the authority of Herod's son and successor Archelaus (Matthew 2:19–23).

According to Matthew and Luke, however, Joseph was only his father legally. They report that Mary was a virgin when Jesus was conceived and that she “was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit” (Matthew 1:18; cf. Luke 1:35). Joseph is said to have been a carpenter (Matthew 13:55), that is, a craftsman who worked with his hands, and, according to Mark 6:3, Jesus also became a carpenter.

Luke (2:41–52) states that as a child Jesus was precociously learned, but there is no other evidence of his childhood or early life. As a young adult, he went to be baptized by the prophet John the Baptist and shortly thereafter became an itinerant preacher and healer (Mark 1:2–28). In his mid-30s, Jesus had a short public career, lasting perhaps less than one year, during which he attracted considerable attention. Some time between ad 29 and 33—possibly AD 30—he went to observe Passover in Jerusalem, where his entrance, according to the Gospels, was triumphant and infused with eschatological significance.

Jewish leaders wanted to kill Jesus. They accused him of blasphemy, and had Jesus arrested. Pontius Pilate ( the Prefect of the Roman Judaea province from the year AD 26 until AD 36) is best known as the man who was the judge at the trial of Jesus and ordered his crucifixion. He wanted to release Jesus. In his last attempt to spare Jesus' life, Pilate offers the mob a chance to free him, but they choose Barabbas (a thief).

Death

In Mark, Jesus is stripped, flogged, mocked, and crowned with thorns. He is crucified between two thieves, and his cross states that he is being executed for aspiring to be the king of the Jews. He begins to recite Psalm 22, "My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me." He utters a loud cry and dies. According to all four Gospels, Jesus died before late afternoon at Calvary or Golgotha. In Luke, Jesus faces his crucifixion stolidly. He asks God to forgive those who are crucifying him, possibly the Romans and possibly the Jews. One of the thieves states that Jesus has done nothing wrong and asks Jesus to remember him in the Kingdom, and Jesus replies that the thief will be with him in Paradise.

Burial

His body was placed in the new tomb of a rich man named Joseph of Arimathea. Jesus had promised the disciples he would come back after he died. His enemies knew this. So, to prevent anyone from stealing the body, they had soldiers guard the tomb of Jesus.

Resurrection

On the third day after Jesus died, an angel descended, and the soldiers fled. The disciples came and found an empty tomb. Jesus had risen from the dead! He later appeared to many believers, commanding them to teach and baptize others.

His disciples became convinced that he still lived and had appeared to them. They converted others to belief in him, which eventually led to a new religion, Christianity.

(~based on info from http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/303091/Jesus-Christ )

Recommend to read about:

Jesus Christ In Bible & Quran:

1. http://www.jamaat.net/cis/ChristInIslam.html

2. http://www.christianity-islam.com/jesus.html

Jesus:

1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jesus

2. http://www.christiananswers.net/jesus/home.html

3. http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/08377a.htm

Mary (mother of Jesus):

1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_(mother_of_Jesus)

2. http://www.christiananswers.net/dictionary/mary-motherofjesus.html

Herod the Great:

1. http://www.livius.org/he-hg/herodians/herod_the_great01.html

2. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herod_the_Great

Pontius Pilate:

1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pontius_Pilate

2. http://www.123exp-biographies.com/t/00034101277/

3. http://www.livius.org/pi-pm/pilate/pilate01.htm

4. http://www.allaboutarchaeology.org/pontius-pilate-faq.htm

Many many thanks to “Ajnaabi” for providing ACK scan.