Jesus Mortal |
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logos The beloved disciple’s gospel includes a prologue, possibly a hymn, that declares Jesus to be the eternal, divine word (“logos”). Christians traditionally translate the first verse of the gospel as identifying the logos as “God,” but the translation “a god” works just as well and squares with the fact that no one would identify Jesus as God for over another hundred years. The logos, as a divine entity by which the universe was created, derives from Jewish religious writing and, eventually, from Greek philosophy, where the term originated. Philo, a first-century Jew, used the term to mean the divine creative principle that the perfect god uses to affect imperfect matter without getting his hands dirty. In this sense, the logos is something like the mechanical arms and grippers inside a sealed chamber, something that technicians outside the chamber use to manipulate dangerous substances without being contaminated by contact. In the 100s, Justin Martyr, the greatest apologist of the time, developed the logos doctrine. He wrote that the logos had sown the seed of truth in all people, allowing divine truth to exist universally, outside the Christian tradition. This sentiment might at first seem generous to those outside the church because it means they can know the truth, but it has a dark side, implying that outsiders can be held accountable for their errors even if they never heard the gospel. This logos, Justin said, had become a man, Jesus, in order to complete the divine truth and to rescue people from demons. Justin also used the logos doctrine to justify the worship of Christ because, as the logos incarnate, he was second only to God. The most common translation for logos is “word.” This term works only in the broadest sense of “word,” not merely in the sense of a single unit of language. For the meanings or implications of the term logos, think of the word of a king, a word that is also a judgment, an order, and a deed. Think of one’s word in the sense of one’s bond. Think of logos as a message or as information, as when you get word of a new event. Getting “intelligence” on a situation means getting the word on it. Think of articulation, the way you word a sentence. To help get a better feel, try swapping “logos” into stock phrases in place of the term “word” or “words.” You have my logos on that. My boss gave me the good logos on the project Do you have any last logos? Wait here until you get the logos. I support you, logos and deed.
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contents table of contents you're already looking at it introduction for the inquisitive reader biographical overview who he was and wasn't
afterlife not Jesus' concern animal sacrifice bloodless religion apocalypse did Jesus preach hellfire? baptism sin wash for Jesus and others beatitudes Jesus' words and others' words beloved disciple witness for the un-gospel bible scripture old and new bishop the unjesus body focus on the physical Buddha Jesus' close kin charity key Christian virtue and legacy of Jesus The Da Vinci Code secret (and false) messages divorce women's status dreams convenient literary device Elijah Jewish prophet with his own second coming equality ancient source of modern egalitarianism exorcist Jesus and demons failure reinterpreting Jesus as a failure faith from trust to blind belief father Jesus on titles of honor Francis of Assisi the most Christlike Christian Gandhi the 20th century's most Christly holy man Galilee Jesus' inauspicious homeland gentiles Jesus' inadvertent audience god how Jesus became god golden rule key to Jesus' success gospels competing accounts heaven from sky to spiritual home hell revenge fantasy humanism Jesus' legacy inerrant Christian treatment of scripture Thomas Jefferson ethics of Jesus Jewish guilt Christian libel John's gospel the un-gospel John the baptist, see John the washer John the washer Jesus' apocalyptic mentor Judaism libeled religion of Jesus kingdom of god what Jesus promised Lao Tzu poet of the cosmic way logos jesus as the word of god C. S. Lewis famous, flawed trilemma little drummer boy Luke beats Matthew logos Jesus as the divine word LORD Yahweh transitioning to the one god of all Luke's gospel the all-around best gospel Mark's gospel the gospel that lost its point Mary of Magdala women, visions, and sex massacre of the innocents bloodshed starts early Matthew's gospel best gospel for church reading Mormon, see Joseph Smith Moses Jewish lawgiver Muhammad a prophet who got it right mystery Orpheus and transubstantiation oppression origin of Jesus' compassion The Passion of the Christ Luke as buzzkill Paul revealer of the revealer private and public public Jesus and secret Christ relativism the secret power of the golden rule sacrifice Jesus' death and Christian sacrament Albert Schweitzer Jesus as a failure sheol dark pit of death show Jesus' deeds as put-ons slavery abolished by Jesus' efforts Joseph Smith flesh-and-blood Jesus Socrates secular Jesus son of god on close terms with the man upstairs soul, see body synoptics three gospels that agree temple center of Jewish religion trinity unifying and divisive doctrinre vision, see dreams Yahweh, see LORD Zoroaster Persian dualistic holy man
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