FREE CHRISTIAN BEGINNINGS: FROM NAZARETH TO NICAEA, AD 30-325 PDF Geza Vermes | 288 pages | 27 Dec 2016 | Penguin Books Ltd | 9780141037998 | English | London, United Kingdom Christian Beginnings: From Nazareth to Nicaea, AD 30– by Géza Vermes By Geza Vermes. New Haven: Yale University Press. ISBN Geza Vermes, who passed away in Mayfocused most of his scholarly attention on the Dead Sea Scrolls and on the historical Jesus. Christian Beginnings: From Nazareth to Nicaea was his final book, and in it Vermes endeavors to build upon his work on the historical Jesus through an assessment of how Jesus went from Galilean holy man to the second person of the Trinity at Nicaea in Vermes argues Ad 30-325 this metamorphosis developed over two unequal phases. The first phase was the short Jewish phase that lasted from AD 30 towith the Synoptic Gospels, the first twelve chapters of Acts, and the Didache being the texts that correspond to this phase. These texts demonstrate that early Jewish-Christian followers did not Ad 30-325 him as divine, but understood Jesus simply to teach total surrender to God in expectation of the imminent arrival of the Kingdom of God. Paul and John, however, definitively alter perceptions of Jesus. Paul, whose writings were addressed to Gentile rather than Jewish audiences, draws attention to Jesus himself rather than to his message, elevating Jesus to the triumphant Son of Ad 30-325 who is the source of universal salvation. One finds in both Paul and John a harbinger of things to come, for it is during the second phase the Gentile phase from the early-second century to the Council of Nicaea in that we find Jesus and his religion fundamentally transformed to become that which would have been unrecognizable by Christian Beginnings: From Nazareth to Nicaea and his first followers. With reference [End Page ] to an array of Christian texts from the second through the fourth centuries, Vermes traces the progressive elevation of the figure of Jesus by Gentile Christians, an elevation that corresponded to the influx of Ad 30-325 ideas and modes of thinking foreign to Judaism. Christian Beginnings: From Nazareth to Nicaea one finds Justin Martyr, for example, initiate and explicate a Christology deeply imbued with Greek philosophical thought, and later thinkers develop an understanding of the identity of Jesus Christ along these lines. Christian Beginnings: From Nazareth to Nicaea notes in particular the contributions of St. Irenaeus of Lyons, Tertullian, and Origen, the latter representing the summit of pre-Nicene Christian thought. In short, Jesus comes to look less and less like himself, the charismatic Jewish teacher. This leads Vermes to a discussion of Nicaea. Throughout his account of second- and third-century Christian thought, Vermes consistently emphasizes that, although thinkers elevated the figure of Jesus prior to Nicaea, all of them were thoroughly subordinationist in their Christologies. The most detrimental consequence of Nicaea was that adherence to dogma thereafter gained precedence over spiritual transformation, thus further distancing Christian religion away from the charismatic religion of Jesus by elevating the person rather than his message. Vermes is at his Ad 30-325 in this book when dealing with the first century and particularly when recounting the charismatic religion of Jesus; his work on the historical Jesus throughout his scholarly career continues to be important and influential even if it is not wholly convincing. 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Project MUSE Mission Project MUSE promotes the creation and dissemination of essential humanities and social science resources through collaboration with libraries, publishers, and scholars worldwide. Eliot Prose. Contact Contact Us Help. Geza Vermes - Christian Beginnings: From Nazareth to Nicaea, AD Geza Vermes, translator and editor of The Complete Dead Sea Scrolls and worldwide expert on the life and times of Jesus, tells the enthralling story of early Christianity and the origins of a religion. The creation of the Christian Church is one of the most important stories in the development Christian Beginnings: From Nazareth to Nicaea the world's history, yet one of the least understood. With a forensic, brilliant re-examination of all the key surviving texts of early Christianity, Geza Vermes illuminates the origins of a faith and traces the evolution Ad 30-325 the figure of Jesus from Ad 30-325 man he was - a prophet in the tradition of other Jewish holy men of the Old Testament - to what he came to represent: a mysterious, otherworldly being at the heart of the official state religion of the Roman Empire. Christian Beginnings pulls apart myths and misunderstandings to focus on the true figure of Jesus, and the birth of one of the world's major religions. The subject is not exactly the Christian Church, which makes an appearance effectively only half way through the text; it is Jesus - what he was, what he said he was, and what Christians said about him after his crucifixion. For anyone puzzling over such questions, this is an exciting and challenging port of call, sweeping aside much of Christian Beginnings: From Nazareth to Nicaea fuzzy thinking and special pleading that bedevils the study of sacred scripture This book represents the summation of [Vermes's] thinking about the early history of Christianity. It is a challenging and engaging book that sets out Ad 30-325 retrace the route by which a Jewish preacher in 1st-century Israel came to be declared as consubstantial and co-equal with the omnipotent, omniscient only God. A major contribution to our understanding of the historical Jesus. A magnum opus of early Christian history and one of the year's most significant titles. Geza Vermes was born in Hungary in From to Ad 30-325 taught at the Universities of Newcastle and Oxford. He lives in Oxford. For the latest books, recommendations, offers and more. By Christian Beginnings: From Nazareth to Nicaea up, I confirm that I'm over View all newsletter. 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Reviews: 'A beautiful and magisterial book' Rowan Williams, Archbishop of Canterbury, Guardian 'An exciting and challenging port of call, sweeping aside much of the fuzzy thinking and special pleading that bedevils the study of sacred scripture Share at. More from this Author. Jesus Geza Vermes. The Story Christian Beginnings: From Nazareth to Nicaea the Scrolls Geza Vermes. The Resurrection Geza Vermes. The Nativity Geza Vermes. Ad 30-325 Passion Geza Vermes. About the Author. Geza Vermes Geza Vermes was born in Hungary in Sign up to the Penguin Newsletter For the latest books, recommendations, offers and more. Please enter an email. Please enter a valid email address. Thank you for signing up to the Penguin Newsletter Keep an eye out in your inbox. Subscription failed, please try again. Strictly Christian Beginnings: From Nazareth to Nicaea Strictly Necessary cookies enable core functionality such as security, network management, and accessibility. Christian Beginnings The creation of the Christian Church Christian Beginnings: From Nazareth to Nicaea one of the most important stories in the development of the world's history, but also one of the most enigmatic and little understood, Ad 30-325 in mystery and misunderstanding.