Legendary Times Books :: Religion & Philosophy :: Jesus: God, Man or Myth? An Examination of the Evidence
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Jesus: God, Man or Myth? An Examination of the Evidence

Jesus: God, Man or Myth? An Examination of the Evidence
Did pagan mythologies represent Christ’s “miracles” in an effort to convince them to accept the Christian faith? Beyond these miracles is there enough evidence to prove there was a Jesus? Cutner says no. He also says that the Apostle Paul never portrayed Jesus as a man, but as a spiritual being. To Paul, Christ is found in a spiritual sense within oneself, as opposed to being an actual historical personage. When the Church accepted Paul, this inner reflection was outwardly projected by the Church into an actual man—a savior, according to Cutner. This might be why Paul was almost rejected by the Church—his views posed a “danger” to those who might rely on their own spiritual knowledge, rather than the authority of the Church. Whether Jesus lived or not, we still have a lot to learn about ourselves and our true place in the universe. This book, although critical, may be useful in that respect.

The author asserts that those who believe that Jesus had lived are holding on to "primitive and childish fantasies." He claims that in following the life of Christ, we find a mythological story throughout that effectively destroys the idea that Jesus ever lived. An interesting point he makes is that the evidence continually found always refers to Jesus as the Christ - a divine savior figure, and thus a myth. Not a man, but elements from a story (or stories) that came before the time of Christ. Cutner is seeking references to a man and man alone, not a mythological, godly figurehead. And in this respect, he finds the evidence sorely lacking.

A fascinating area of the hook and the key to it may be found in areas of Gnosticism and the Apostle Paul. Cutner does not rule out the Gnostic views of Christ. The Gnostic Christ is often found within oneself, as opposed to being an historical personage. Paul, according to Cutner, never portrayed Jesus as a man, but as a spiritual being - exactly as the Gnostics had portrayed him. With the Church's acceptance of Paul, Cutner asserts that this inner Gnostic reflection was outwardly projected by the Church into an actual man - a savior. This was probably why Paul was almost rejected - his views posed a great "danger" to those who might rely on their own spiritual knowledge, or gnosis, rather than the authority of the Church. One thing is clear from this highly interesting and informative book, Whether Jesus really lived or not, we still have a great deal to learn about ourselves and our true place in the Universe.
Details
Author Herbert Cutner
Type Quality Paperback
Year 1950, 2000 Original reprint
Pages 310
Illustrated no
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