Jesus is one of the most well known religious figures in today's world. He preached the word of God, healed the sick, raised the dead, was crucified and then three days later rose from the dead. But how much of this actually occured? Most of the information available on Jesus is written in the Gospels of the New Testament. But one must ask, how much of these gospels are actual historical fact? Are they true to the historical Jesus, or do they contain extrapolations of the truth designed to make Jesus appear greater than he was?The Gospel of Matthew is considered by some to be the most important of the four Gospels. Believed to have been written between 80 and 90 AD by an unknown author, ...view middle of the document...
Little is known of Jesus' life up until his baptism by John the Baptist. It is most likely that Jesus grew up like any other child of the time and learnt his father's trade, be it stone working or carpentry. John the Baptist was something of a radical prophet who lived in the wilds. He foretold the coming of one who is greater than he, which is taken as being Jesus. After his baptism Jesus embarks on sojourn into the desert for forty days and nights where he is tempted by the Devil. The length of this time spent in the desert, forty days, is most likely a later addition, intended as a link between Jesus and Moses.Jesus then began his ministry, preaching throughout Galilee, appointing twelve disciples and attracting a large following after the famous Sermon on the Mount, where he preaches humility, obedience, love of one's neighbour, proper method of prayer and trust in God.The Gospel of Matthew relates ten of Jesus' miracles - the healing of a paralytic, a leper; the exorcism of demons and the raising of the dead. Whether the miracles of Jesus are later additions, historical fact or misinterpretation is difficult to ascertain, as there are no non-Christian historical accounts of these events.Jesus travels to Jerusalem where he is met by cheering crowds. He expels money changers from the Jewish temple and defies the priests and elders. The Last Supper is held, in which Jesus initiates the ceremony of the breaking of bread. Later that night he is betrayed by one of his disciples and is arrested. He is brought before Pontius Pilate, the fifth Roman procurator of Judea, who places the judgement of Jesus in the hands of the crowd who choose to have a notorious prisoner freed and Jesus crucified in his place.Pontius Pilate reigned from 26 to 36 AD, meaning that these events must have taken place somewhere between that time. There are references made to Jes...
