Jesus Christ is one of the most mysterious and mysterious figures in world history. Despite the abundance of historical reports, books and scientific research, the life of the messiah is still largely unexplored. Is Jesus a historical person, or is he the fruit of a collective image?
The date of birth, the year of baptism, and even the time of death of Jesus Christ are the subject of a fierce debate. Some researchers put forward the version that the messiah was born in 12 BC. (year of passage of Halley's comet, which is associated with the star of Bethlehem). Others point to 4 BC. (the date of the death of King Herod, according to the Gospel, at that moment Jesus was still a baby). Still others consider dating between 7 and 5 BC.
Almost nothing is known about the boy's childhood, youth and maturity. So, in addition to the fact of birth, the Gospel tells about only one episode - the visit of 12-year-old Jesus, with his family, to the Jerusalem Temple. Then, again, silence until the age of 30. For that, the events of baptism, sermons, performed miracles, judgment and execution are described in great detail.
Whatever it was, but Jesus Christ really was an extraordinary person, traveled a lot and gained a lot of followers. True, the divinity of the Messiah was not appreciated by everyone.
Even by today's standards, Jesus preached revolutionary ideas: he declared himself the King of the Jews, denied the authority of the emperor and the existence of the Roman gods, violated many minor laws, provoked riots (for example, an attack on merchants in the temple). In addition, the first adepts were exclusively the lower classes - slaves, freedmen, the poor. This could not go on for long.
It is worth noting that the authorities almost did not react to Jesus Christ. In addition to him, there were other messiahs in Judea, and some, for example, John the Baptist or Simon the Magician, are even more popular than him. These people also worked miracles and gathered people around them.
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Between 30 and 33 A. D. Jesus was captured by the Jews and brought to trial by the prefect (governor) of Judea, Pontius Pilate. I must say that the prefect tried in every possible way to save the defendant. However, the crowd demanded blood. Together with two robbers, the messiah was crucified on Mount Calvary.
It is believed that the Hebrew leader Josephus Flavius, who lived in the 1st century AD, left the very first mentions of Jesus. In his manuscripts, he told a rather flattering account of the events that happened to Christ.
According to most scholars, the Flavius manuscript was completed in the IV century by Christian monks and cannot be reliable. However, the fact that Jesus was mentioned in the original manuscript is beyond doubt.
In addition, other historians wrote about the messiah in passing. For example, the Roman historian Tacitus, Gaius Suetonius, Pliny the Younger.
Historicity is also supported by some unsightly character traits of Jesus. For example, disrespect for their parents, irascibility. By the way, the family, except for brother Jacob, did not become followers of the Messiah.
Polish researcher Zeno Kosidovsky also notes that crucifixion in the Roman Empire was viewed as a very shameful form of execution. If a person's life was completely fictional, then his death would be more sublime and beautiful.
A number of researchers are perplexed why such an ambitious person, who led thousands of people, did not leave a single letter or handwritten work during his life, where the essence of his teachings would be revealed. Nobody bothered to make a bust, portrait or even a sketch of Jesus. On this basis, everything that is known about the Messiah is equated with fiction.
Thus, the German philologist and religious scholar Bruno Bauer, expressed the opinion that the image of the messiah is a collective image taken from different people, religious and mythological traditions.