Volume 45 - No. 51
December 24, 2015
by Frederick Gomez
The time-worn adage: “Easier said than done,” always seems to apply to someone else and never to ourselves. This is a common inclination born of human egotism. It’s easy to say we would’ve followed Jesus in his rebellious behavior over two thousand years ago, but in reality, we may not have! His loyal disciples who ate, slept, and believed him to be the Hebrew Messiah, still scattered and deserted him during his greatest moments of need. Would you have fared any better? Would your faith have been mightier than that of his loyal disciple, Simon Peter, whom Jesus called “The Rock”?
If Jesus were here today, and beckoned you to leave your family, your wife, your husband, your children, and cherished loved ones – would you deny yourself, and follow him? Suddenly, the time-worn phrase, “Easier said than done,” takes on new meaning. The phrase suddenly challenges us into a deeply profound discussion of who we are today, and how – if any – we have changed as human beings, over the course of twenty-one centuries. But first, it is incumbent that we establish a reasonable foundation that this man we call Jesus (Yeshua), even existed. Otherwise, all related discussion would be rendered moot and, therefore, irrelevant for the purpose outlined in this article. (Whether we believe the historical figure named Jesus to be divine or mortal, is not an issue in this article.)
The fact that he actually existed is a corroborated fact so overwhelming that it is a shared consensus among the most established antiquity scholars, both Christian and secular. Even his detractors grant him historical reality; rather they position themselves as doubtful regarding his claim to divinity. The rule-breaker, Jesus, is a true historical figure whose existence is well established even outside the boundaries of Christian bias. This revolutionary Jew called Jesus is cited in too many non-Christian sources to enumerate here. However, the most salient examples in which he is recorded, are by historian and Pharisee, Flavius Josephus (A.D. c. 37 to c. 100); Roman writer and scholar, Pliny the Younger (Gaius Plinius Caecilius Secundas, (A.D. c. 62 to c. 114)); Roman governor and historian, Publius Cornelius Tacitus (A.D. c. 55 to c. 120); and Roman biographer and antiquarian,
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Gaius Suetonius Tranquillus (A.D. c. 69 to c. 140). As modern Jewish author, scholar, and professor, Rabbi Lewis D. Soloman states: “Two thousand years ago Jesus walked the face of the earth, of that there is no doubt.” (The esteemed Rabbi Solomon, however, does not subscribe to Jesus being the true Messiah (Mashiach).)
Whether Jesus existed or not is no longer a cogent query, though there will always be those who will persist in that regard, usually outside the realm of serious scholarship credentials. As such, these elements are not attributed sober consideration.
Is this the Image of Jesus?
A team of forensic scientists have come up with what is now believed to be the most accurate portrayal yet of the Christian Messiah. And, perhaps not really that unsurprisingly, considering where he originated from, Jesus has a much darker appearance than we are used to.
Using a new scientific field known as forensic anthropology used in crime fighting, British scientists teamed up with Israeli archaeologists to create a computer generated photo fit of Jesus to show what he probably really looked like. The Bible gives little clues as to his actual appearance, so how did they do it? The team worked on the description given by evangelist Matthew that it was hard to tell Jesus apart from his disciples during his arrest in the Garden of Gethsemane.
This led to the conclusion that Christ would have had the typical features of the Galilean Semites of the time. http://www.express.co.uk/news/science/626779/JESUS-CHRIST-Is-thatwhat-he-really-looked-like
The Biblical Jesus Continued on Page 2