When considering ancient stories of miracles, we have to keep in mind the problem of translation and revision. For instance, many scholars believe that the word people have translated through the ages as “carpenter” may have been mistranslated. “Laborer” is probably more accurate. (See, for one, Gospel Truth by Russell Shorto). For all we know, Jesus and his pa, Joseph, were stone-masons, which is an equally likely interpretation. In a desert region where stone was a primary building material, this makes as much sense as carpenter. These are not abstract terms, and yet their interpretation is far from clear. Carpenter, stone-mason; resurrected, remembered — what’s the difference?

The alleged resurrection of Jesus is of course the essential Christian miracle story. It alone propelled the character of Jesus into godhood. Without the resurrection, there is no Christianity, no Easter chocolates.  Well, maybe we’d still have the colorful, edible treats borrowed from pagan springtime fertility rituals.  But crucifix sales would certainly be much different today.

As for the “truth” of the resurrection of Jesus, how do we know it really happened? Any video footage? Any unbiased observers? Nope. People today claim to know it through the years-after-the-facts writings of few loyal followers. That was how the faith gained a foothold and grew. One gospel version of the resurrection story tells of this experience of Mary Magdalene: At this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not realize that it was Jesus (John, 20:14).

Maybe Jesus was neither a carpenter nor a stone-mason, but a UPS driver, and the uniform threw her off. We’ll never know.

Is an ancient collection of stories variously translated (and in many instances mistranslated, no doubt), a good source for basing one’s understand of reality upon?

I, for one, don’t think so.

Related Posts:

1. Book Review – Jesus Interrupted: Revealing the Hidden Contradictions in the Bible (and Why We Don’t Know About Them)
2. Jesus in the Football Huddle
3. Faith: Religion’s Achilles Heel

Tags | Bible, christianity