Christianity and the Loss of the Messiah
This article deals with the fundamental changes that happened to become real within the first three centuries of Christianity and turned the self-description of Christianity as a Messianic movement and community inconsistent. The main reason, as I argue, was because the Messianic confessions and exp...
| Main Author: | |
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| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | Drawer...
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| Interlibrary Loan: | Interlibrary Loan for the Fachinformationsdienste (Specialized Information Services in Germany) |
| Published: |
2017
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| In: |
Cultural and religious studies
Year: 2017, Volume: 5, Issue: 7, Pages: 432-451 |
| Further subjects: | B
Christology
B Religion B Messiah B Didache B Paul B Jewish-Christian movements |
| Online Access: |
Presumably Free Access Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) |
| Summary: | This article deals with the fundamental changes that happened to become real within the first three centuries of Christianity and turned the self-description of Christianity as a Messianic movement and community inconsistent. The main reason, as I argue, was because the Messianic confessions and expectations witnessed by early Jewish-Christian writings such as Paul’s letters (esp. to the Romans) and the so-called Didache, a rule of a Jewish-Christian community, did not come true, since time went on, the Messiah did not reappear and, most of all, the Roman Empire remained solid. This gave way to a fundamental change caused by two historical developments and their theological effects: the slow, but steady slide of Messianic hopes as times went on and the Messiah Jesus did not reappear or change history; and the development of pagan-Christian communities approaching Jesus by the means of pagan interpretations of Jesus Christ. Eventually, these pagan interpretations made it in the 4th cent. to set up a creed that did not only suspend anything Messianic in respect of Jesus, but replace these Christian-Jewish ideas and hopes by declaring Jesus being God-man. This declaration was the end of any real Messianic hope and the end of the Jewish Jesus for many centuries. Christianity has lost its Messiah and was turned into a dogmatic religion. Facing this development it is evident that Christianity has to exceed its own dogmatic limits in respect of Jesus. |
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| ISSN: | 2328-2177 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: Cultural and religious studies
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.17265/2328-2177/2017.07.005 |