Introduction:
The Series “From Jesus to Christ:
The First Christians” is a historical documentary series that tells the epic story of the rise of Christianity. The four-hour program explores the life of Jesus, his death, and the men and women whose belief, conviction, and martyrdom created the religion we now know as Christianity.
Drawing upon historical evidence that has created a revolution in New Testament scholarship, the series challenges familiar assumptions and conventional notions about Christian origins. Archaeological finds have yielded new understandings of Jesus’ class and social status; fresh interpretations have transformed earlier ideas about the identity of the early Christians and their communities. Through engaging, on-camera interviews with twelve cholars-New Testament theologians, archaeologists, and historians-the series presents their contributions to this
intellectual revolution. Together they represent a range of viewpoints, a diversity of faiths, and a shared commitment to bring new ways of thinking about Christianity to a public audience.
“From Jesus to Christ” reveals that Christianity did not arise as a single, uniform, and coherent movement, but as one marked by diversity of opinion, practice, and belief. From the beginning, the movement was forged by conflict as the early Christians wrestled with their Jewish heritage, collided with paganism, challenged the authority of the Roman Empire, and clashed with each other. The series conveys the early Christians’ struggle to understand Jesus and the meaning of his message and suggests that their ancient world of 2,000 years ago may not be so very different
from our own. No matter what your faith, or what you believe, this series will ask you to reconsider what you think you know about a story that has so decisively shaped Western civilization.
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- Part I: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kZPKCDOeyMg
- Part II: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NB1WXhoEA0o
- Part III: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S0pfQ2ZBe2Q
- Part IV: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-_jY2E8I_mA
Questions:
Part I:
Program 1 examines how Judaism and Roman rule, Pax Romana or “Roman peace,” shaped Jesus’ life. Jesus was an ordinary Jewish resident of this time, but new archaeological findings show that he was probably not the humble village peasant often portrayed. Nazareth, where he was born and raised, was a suburb of the major city Sepphoris. As a Jew, Jesus was influenced by the diversity and the tensions characteristic of Judaism at that time.
Jesus was most likely arrested and executed by Roman authorities whose principal concern was to keep the peace. The Romans had little tolerance for those it judged disruptive of the Pax Romana, punishing them in many ways, including crucifixion. The death of Jesus was a Roman act; there was little if any notice taken by Jewish people. Jesus was another victim of the Pax Romana. It is a stark ending, and it leaves some important questions. Jesus was born before 4 b.c.e. and died around 30 c.e. (“of the common era,” the equivalent of a.d.). The timeline is short, but the historical scale is large.
- What was most surprising about the historical information of the program?
- What difference does it make who really killed Jesus? (Prompt: Think about how
traditional stories contributed to the rise of antisemitism, anti-Judaism, the Holocaust.)
Part II:
Program 2 explores the period after the crucifixion of Jesus and traces the beginnings of the Jesus Movement, in those early years before it was called Christianity. It began as a sect within Judaism. Along the way, the early Christians began to branch out and to spread their message to non-Jews or gentiles (meaning “nations”). Around 50 c.e., the Apostle Paul travelled away from the traditional centers of the Jesus Movement and began to found new churches in Greek cities. His letters to these fledgling congregations mark the first writings of the New Testament.
Meanwhile, expectations about the coming of the Kingdom of God would culminate in a catastrophic Jewish revolt against Rome from 66-70 c.e., ending in the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple-the center of Jewish spiritual life.
The traumatic failure of this revolt would dramatically affect the future for Jews and Christians.
- Why do the scholars refer to this emerging religion as the Jesus Movement instead of
Christianity in its early years?
- How did the early followers of Jesus spread his message? How do their messages and
methods compare to those used by fledgling religions today?
- What conditions allowed Christianity to grow as quickly as it did?
