In history, there is, perhaps, no other historical person, causing as much controversial controversy as the person of Jesus. Of course, conspiracy theorists, putting forward a variety of ideas, are trying to understand the world, and therefore you should not judge them harshly. But sometimes they put forward really crazy versions. In our review, some of them.
1. Jesus is the UK tin merchant
The most fruitful part of Jesus' life for conspiracy theorists is the so-called "missing years." The Bible is mysteriously silent about about 18 years between Jesus' childhood and the time he began to preach. Several theories link Jesus to a certain Joseph of Arimathea who visited Britain to trade in tin.
Today, it may seem that in ancient times, long distance travel was impossible. But for many centuries, tin from Cornwall was transported to the Mediterranean Sea, and the Romans transported it across Europe all the way to the English Channel.
2. Jesus was a mushroom
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The Incredible Mushroom Theory John Allegro
In 1970, archaeologist John Allegro published a book entitled The Sacred Mushroom and the Cross. In it, he argued that scholars traced the origins of elements of the New Testament to more ancient sources in Sumer and Babylon. After decades of careful study, he came to the conclusion that the New Testament was a way of perpetuating old fertility rites.
According to his version, "Jesus" was a metaphor for a hallucinogenic mushroom, for example, a fly agaric. Amanita muscaria was used quite often in religious rites, so he believes that it is quite possible that Christianity was no exception.
3. Jesus was an alien
Not the Son of God, but an alien from heaven
There have always been attempts to rationalize the miraculous events described in the Bible. True, among them were frankly extravagant. For example, one such theory claims that Jesus was not a man or a god, but in fact was a hybrid of an alien and a man. Those who advocate the alien origins of Jesus claim that the angels who visited Mary were in fact aliens, and the star over Bethlehem was nothing more than a UFO. Jesus' ascension to heaven was simply his return to an alien ship.
4. Jesus was a woman
Women's theory
In ancient times in the Middle East, an unmarried man was, rather, an exception to the rule. Therefore, some conspiracy theorists claim that Jesus was actually a woman. There is even a fragment of a papyrus that allegedly proves that Jesus was addressed as a woman. Further evidence, from the point of view of the adherents of this theory, is that Jesus has been portrayed as effeminate in art throughout history.
5. The Chinese younger brother of Jesus
Younger brother from China
One of the doctrines of the Christian church is the virginity of Mary. When the Bible speaks of Jesus' brothers and sisters, it is usually explained as the fact that they were in fact his distant relatives or like-minded people. In China, however, there is a more mystical theory.
In the 19th century, Hong Xiuquan had a vision. He ascended to heaven, where he saw a bearded man who told him that he needed to destroy the demons. Later, when Hong Xiuquan became acquainted with Christianity, he came to the conclusion that this man was the younger brother of Jesus, and the demons are in fact the ruling elite. While this may seem rather absurd, it led Hong to lead a peasant uprising known as the Taiping Rebellion, which killed 30 million people.
6. Jesus was a time traveler
The first famous time traveler
Throughout history, people periodically claim that Jesus appeared to them. Some consider this a manifestation of deep faith, while others attribute the appearance of Jesus to his ability to travel in time. These even explain the resurrection of the Son of God.
If Jesus came from the future, then his miracles of healing could be explained by the ordinary application of the methods of medicine of the future. Another justification for this theory is an icon depicting Jesus, dating from 1595, on which a modern satellite can be seen.
7. Jesus was a Buddhist
Jesus buddhist
Jesus lived in a multicultural world. At that time, most of the world was ruled by the Romans, Greek was used as the language of science and business, and trade was actively conducted between different countries. Is it possible that his teaching was developed under the influence of oriental beliefs?
It is claimed that Jesus spent part of the notorious "missing years" in Kashmir, and that this is where his grave is located. Even if Buddhism did not reach the ancient Middle East, Jesus' journey to Kashmir could explain a lot. Indeed, in fact, these two religions have a lot in common. Some even note the similarities between Jesus and Buddha: both were teachers who were born in an unusual way, both used parables to spread their faith, both started preaching at the age of 30 and both had followers.
8. Jesus did not exist at all
Was he there?
Attempts to rationalize a number of New Testament traditions culminate in the claim that there has never been a historical figure named Jesus. There are no historical documents during the life of Jesus in which he was mentioned. The canonical Gospels, which were written 40 to 60 years after his death, may have been written by people who never met him.
The earliest texts of the New Testament are the letters of the apostle Paul, who never met Jesus. The fact that Jesus performed miracles in the Roman province during one of the most documented periods of antiquity makes one wonder why there is no mention of this in Roman documents.
9. Jesus in Japan
Jesus did not die on the cross … at least according to one Japanese tradition. His burial mound can be found in Shingo. Adherents of this faith claim that Jesus' lesser known brother Isukiri took his place on the cross so that Jesus could escape. Jesus then moved to Japan, became a farmer and worked in the rice fields … He married and lived a sedate life until he died at the age of 106.
Naturally, the question immediately arose: why did Jesus choose Japan for "retirement." It turns out that the very "missing years" in the Bible can once again explain this theory. During the undocumented years of his life, Jesus allegedly actually studied with a master at the foot of Mount Fuji. When a threat to his life arose in the West, he fled back to his spiritual home.
10. Drugs in the sponge
So was there vinegar?
Disagreements in the various Gospels regarding the life of Jesus are often used by skeptics to question all Christian teachings. For example, in the Gospels of Matthew, Mark and John, one curious detail is mentioned: on the cross, Jesus was moistened with a sponge soaked in vinegar, after which he died. Another theory is that the sponge was soaked not with vinegar, but with some kind of drugs in order to fake an artificial coma. Accordingly, Jesus did not die on the cross, and there is nothing surprising in his resurrection three days later.