Historical Dictionary of Jesus (Historical Dictionaries of Religions, Philosophies, and Movements Series) by Harrington Daniel J. S.J

Author:Harrington, Daniel J., S.J. [Harrington, Daniel J., S.J.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Scarecrow Press
Published: 2010-08-06T00:00:00+00:00

– I –

“I Am” Sayings. The unique identity and authority of Jesus are brought out especially in John’s Gospel by the frequent use of the Greek formula ego eimi (“I am”), which occurs around 30 times. In some cases there is a clear predicate: “the bread of life” (6:35, 6:41, 6:48, 6:51), “the light of the world” (8:12, 9:5), “the good shepherd” (10:11, 10:14), and so forth. In other instances, the predicate is left uncertain (6:20, 18:5), and in still other passages “I am” seems to function as a title on its own (8:24, 8:28. 8:58, 13:19). These uses of the “I am” formula echo God’s self-revelation to Moses on Sinai (“I am who I am,” Exod 3:13–14) and God’s self-identifications in Isa 43:25, 51:12, and 52:6. The reaction of those arresting Jesus in John 18:6 (“When Jesus said to them, ‘I am he,’ they stepped back and fell to the ground”) suggests that to them the formula served to affirm Jesus’ status as divine.

Incarnation. The term in general refers to the embodiment of a deity or spirit in human form. When used with reference to Jesus, it concerns the preexistent Son of God or Word of God taking on human flesh and human nature as Jesus of Nazareth. The two most important NT witnesses are hymns about Christ in Phil 2:6–11 and John 1:1–18. According to the very early Christian hymn quoted by Paul in Phil 2:6–11, Jesus put aside his equality with God and “emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, being born in human likeness.” Moreover, Jesus so fully appropriated human nature that he suffered a shameful death, “even death on the cross.” Likewise, according to the prologue to John’s Gospel, Jesus the Word (or Wisdom) of God who was with God and was God and so existed before all the rest of creation “became flesh and lived among us” (1:14). Thus he was able to fulfill his role as the revealer and the revelation of God. For other NT passages about Jesus as the preexistent Wisdom of God, see Col 1:15–17 and Heb 1:3. These texts (especially John 1:1–18) figured prominently in early Christian reflection on and debate about the two natures of Christ (divine and human) and about relations among the persons of the Trinity. In some theological circles today, they provide the criteria of theological orthodoxy about Christ.

Infancy Gospels. Matthew and Luke preface their accounts of Jesus’ public ministry with narratives about his birth and infancy. They combine historical facts, biblical fulfillments and allusions, and theological statements about Jesus. It is often difficult, however, to distinguish one kind of element from another. The infancy narrative in Matt 1–2 emphasizes Jesus’ roots in Judaism, focuses on Joseph as a central character, describes the miraculous (virginal) conception of Jesus as fulfilling Isa 7:14, portrays the Magi as coming to pay homage to the infant Jesus, and traces the Holy Family’s escape from the murderous intent of Herod the Great by their journey from Bethlehem through Egypt to Nazareth.

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