Way of Disciples Lenses for Re-constructing the Jesus of

-​ gradual process which the early History

followers came to identify Jesus. 1.​ The gospels as developing
-​ Salvation is looking at the way of traditions
disciples. -​ How we understand Jesus depends
on the extent how we use our
3 STEPS OF THE WAY OF DISCIPLES sources (New Testament, Gospels
- historical narratives).
1.​ Meeting Jesus of Nazareth -​ If the sources are read literally, we
-​ Christianity started with this search might fail to respect the true nature
for well-being. The disciples met a of the text.
young man from Nazareth who had -​ Exegesis - the objective process of
begun to teach and heal. drawing the original, intended
-​ Inspired the disciples who had been meaning out of a text based on
victims themselves of discrimination context, grammar, and history.
and oppression in the Jewish -​ Eisegesis - selective reading and
society. interpretation based on gut feeling.
-​ Sinners - poor, outcasts, subject to -​ Gospels are fate testimony, not
discrimination and oppression. detailed narrative.
-​ Evangelist - author/writer of gospels
2.​ Jesus is interpreted -​ Jesus - Jew /Jewish 30 AD (33 yrs
-​ Future generation of Christians will old)
come in contact with Jesus by -​ Mark - 60-65 AD
recalling the experience of the -​ Matthew & Luke - 70 AD
disciples, which they will then have -​ John - 90 AD
to relate to their own search for
meaning and salvation Two Kinds of Material in Gospels
-​ St. Paul of Gentiles ●​ History Remembered - some go
-​ St. Peter - crucified upside down in back to Jesus. Things reported really
Rome (Vatican) took place.
●​ History Interpreted - some are the
3.​ Re-appropriating Jesus in the products of the early Christians
Filipino situation interpreting Jesus after he died.
-​ Need for constant re-interpretation
because times and situations are 2.​ The Study of Judaism
changing. -​ Affected by the issue of his society
-​ To make the Christian message and generally responded to these as
relevant for our times. a typical Jew of his time.
-​ Re-interpretation within Filipino
Culture. 3.​ The Study of Social World of Jews
-​ Social World - total social
environment of people at a particular
time in history.
-​ Material & Nonmaterial World
 -​ Established by Herod the Great
4.​ The Cross-Cultural Study of -​ Judah - central of Israel/Palestine
Religion and our Worldview -​ Moses - Joshua
-​ examines how religious beliefs, -​ Judges - tribes leader (Promise
practices, and institutions vary and Land)
interact across different societies, -​ Prophet Samuel - Saul - Hebrew
profoundly shaping global King
worldviews, moral systems, and
social behaviors. Political Situation
Eastern (Eastern Asia, Minor Syria,
Palestine, Egypt,) - controlled by Roman
Empire through Client/Puppet Kings or
A Jewish Society in Jesus’ Times Governors
1.​ A small Country
2.​ Farming Community Herod the Great - King of Judaea,
3.​ Part of the Roman Empire Palestine (Fertile Crescent).
4.​ Protest and Renewal Movements 5 parts - Gentile and Jewish Areas
5.​ Common Inspiration, “God will
intervene to free Israel.” Herod Archelaus - Judaea, Idumaea, and
Samaria (Non-Jewish)
Topography (Landscape) -​ Direct Roman Rule - Procurator -
1.​ Planes Pontius Pilate
2.​ Hill Country Herod Antipas - Galilee and Peraea
3.​ Desert
4.​ Jordan Valley
5.​ Mountains of Transjordan
Social Situation
Provinces ●​ Most Palestinian Jewish farmers and
1.​ Judea - Jerusalem herdsmen, however, earned enough
2.​ Samaria to support their families, pay their
3.​ Galilee - Nazareth taxes, offer sacrifices during one or
4.​ Perea more annual festivals, and let their
5.​ Nazareth - flower land lie fallow in the sabbatical
●​ Farming - primary occupation years, when cultivation was
●​ John 1:46 : Nothing good prohibited.
comes out of Nazareth ●​ Galilee in particular was relatively
prosperous, since the land and
Jewish Society During Jesus Time climate permitted abundant harvests
and supported many sheep.
Palestine Although it is doubtful that Galilee
-​ narrow strip of land by the was as affluent in the 1st century as
Mediterranean Sea it was during the late Roman and
-​ Agricultural and Rural society Byzantine periods, archaeological
(farmers) remains from the 3rd, 4th, and 5th
 centuries nevertheless confirm the soon intervene to free Israel from
plausibility of 1st-century references oppression and foreign domination. The
to the region's prosperity. Jews believed that God involved Himself in
●​ There were, of course, landless all aspects of life whether political, social,
people, but the Herodian dynasty economic, or religious. However, these
was careful to organize large public groups interpreted this expectation with
works projects that employed some differences.
thousands of men.
●​ Desperate poverty was present too We have to see Jesus against this
but never reached a socially background of turmoil and conflict. JESUS
dangerous level. had to give answers to the problems of
●​ At the other end of the economic human life in a dehumanizing situation of
spectrum, few if any Palestinian poverty and injustice.
Jews had the vast fortunes that
successful merchants in port cities 1.​ Zealots (Simon, the Zealot)
could accumulate. However, there -​ The members of this group were
were Jewish aristocrats with large violently against the Roman Empire.
estates and grand houses, and the -​ They were the ones who staged a
merchants who served the Temple revolt to fight for freedom from the
(supplying, for example, incense and Romans. That is why they were
fabric) could become very called bandits.
prosperous. -​ They were an underground
movement, loosely organized, and
The gap between rich and poor in Palestine sometimes breaking into factions
was obvious and distressing to the poor, and sometimes joining other groups
but, compared with that of the rest of the such as the Sicarii (expert in
world, it was not especially wide. Those who assassination).
suffered much deprivation were the workers -​ Taxation was the only issue they
and day- labourers, the unemployed, and had but it had a religious purpose.
the slaves. The sick (skin- diseases, For them, there was only one King,
so-called leprosy) and the infirm depended i.e Yahweh. They were faithful Jews
on the alms that other people gave; who fought for the sovereignty and
alms-giving was a religious duty. One of kingship of Yahweh.
the issues then was taxation which caused
rebellion. The Romans started it with a 2.​ Pharisee
census of the population and to draw up an -​ Their primary concern was the
inventory of the resources of the country. reform of Israel. They believed that
The Jews objected on religious grounds. God abandoned them because of
the unfaithfulness of Israel to the
Different Movements in Judaism Torah and the traditions of the
The abuses of the Romans and the fathers.
Jewish elite gave rise to protest and -​ Their name means "the separate
renewal movements. They shared one thing ones", i.e. holy ones and the true
in common: the expectation that God will community of Israel.
-​ Their morality and spirituality were -​ They were just as warlike as the
very legalistic in nature and Zealots but for them the time was
bourgeois, a matter of reward and not yet ripe.
punishment.
-​ They believed in an after-life, in the 5.​ Baptist
resurrection of the dead and in a -​ John the Baptist -- leader
future Messiah whom God would -​ The chief characteristics were the
send to liberate them from the importance attached to baptism as
Romans. an initiation rite or token of
forgiveness, and a hostile attitude to
3.​ Sadducees the temple and to sacrifice.
-​ They were also conservative -​ The leader of this movement was
movement for they clung to the most John the Baptist. He was considered
ancient Hebrew traditions and as a prophet of doom or
rejected all novelties of beliefs and destruction.
rituals. -​ He was calling for repentance and
-​ They collaborated with the Romans asking forgiveness of people. If not,
and endeavoured to maintain the Israel was towards destruction.
status quo.
-​ This group came from the wealthy
members of aristocracy (upper 1. Jesus' Alignment with the Baptist
class of the society): chief priests Movement
(offered sacrifices and responsible -​ The five movements in Judaism
for the organization and were more that just movements for
administration of the temple), elders Jesus. They were options of Jesus
(lay nobility old aristocratic families in life. He was already thirty years
who owned most of the land), and old and yet he had done nothing yet
scribes/rabbis (men of learning). with his life. Among the five
movements, he opted to align
4.​ Essenes himself to the Baptist movement. In
-​ Many of them separated themselves Mark's gospel, he was baptized by
physically from the society and lived John the Baptist in the River
a life of asceticism and celibacy in Jordan.
camps in the desert for them to
strive for perfection. 2. Baptism by John
-​ They were concerned with ritual -​ John the Baptist was different
impurity and contamination by the because he was a prophet of
wicked and the unclean world. They doom/judgement, like so many of his
believed that the end of the world predecessors of old. He prophesied
was near. They were preparing for the destruction of Israel.
the coming of the Messiah and for -​ There had been no prophet in Israel
the great war in which they, as the for a very long time. God was so
sons of light, would destroy the sons silent. However, this silence was
of darkness, the armies of Satan.
 broken by the voice of John the
Baptist in the wilderness.
-​ John's message was very simple ie.
God was so angry with his people
and he planned to punish them.
John pictured this destruction as a
great forest fire before which the
vipers flee (Mt. 3:8), in which trees
and chaff are burnt (Mt. 3:10), and in
which people will be engulfed as in
baptism of fire (Mt. 3:11). He also
made use of the metaphors of axe
and the winnowing fan.
-​ The fiery judgment of God upon
Israel would be executed, according
to John.
-​ The prophet would warn Israel about
God's judgment and the promise of
salvation. Both the warning and the
promise are conditional.
-​ If Israel would not change,
destruction would be inevitable, if
Israel would repent and change
there would be a blessing.
-​ John appealed to almost everyone
(sinners, scribes, Pharisees and
others). Everyone must change.
-​ It was in this context that John
offered baptism. He offered
repentance to everybody through
baptism.

3. Reason of Jesus' Alignment

-​ Jesus may not have agreed with
John in every detail. But the fact
Jesus was baptized by him, he
accepted John's prophecy: Israel is
towards for an unprecedented
catastrophe. Thus, this was Jesus'
point of departure. There is a plenty
of proofs to show that Jesus
repeated this prophecy again and
again (Lk. 21:20-23; Lk. 23:28; Lk.
13: 1-3).