CHAPTER ONE

MYSTERY OF CHRIST
Introduction .................................................................................................................... 3
1.1 Jesus and His World ................................................................................................ 3
1.1.1 Geography of Galilee ........................................................................................ 3
1.1.2 Jesus‟ Home Town ............................................................................................ 4
1.1.3 Political Situation in Galilee ............................................................................. 5
1.1.4 Galilean Rebels ................................................................................................. 6
1.1.5 The Religious Environment in Galilee .............................................................. 6
1.1.6 Synagogue in the Time of Jesus ........................................................................ 7
1.1.6.1 Synagogue and Education .......................................................................... 8
1.1.7 Jerusalem at the Time of Jesus .......................................................................... 8
1.1.8 The Jewish Messianic Expectation in the Time of Jesus .................................. 9
 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

Gratitude is a memory of heart. Gratitude is the fairest blossom which springs from the soul.
There are many to whom I owe so much, who have helped me in one way or the other to work
out this dissertation. Here I acknowledge all of them. At the very outset, I sincerely thank God
for the necessary graces he showered on me all through my life, especially at this juncture to
finish this work successfully. I also thank our beloved Mother Mary for her constant love and
intercession. With enormous blessing, joy, and sincere gratitude I express my sincere thanks to
Rev. Fr Joseph Francis the dedicated and committed professor in communicating Systematic
Theology, for accepting to do my thesis. I submit my heartfelt gratitude of thanks to him for his
availability, creativity, giving different source and ideas, broad vision in thinking and meticulous
correction in order to complete my thesis successfully. I profoundly thank all my professors and
friends who have given me encouragement and support as well as the librarians for their
availability. I would like to express my sincere thanks to Dn. Maria Joseph and Dn. Sahaya Sunil
for having gone through my paper.

GENERAL INTRODUCTION

Christology is not a finished product. Countless men and women over the past 2000 years have
devoted their lives to Jesus, found their joy in Him and experienced Him personally. Throughout
the centuries many studies were made on Jesus and many understood the person of Jesus in
various ways. Jesus himself asked a question “Who do people say that the Son of Man is? (Mt
16:13)” The question is not like a questionnaire with prefabricated and limited multiple choice
answers but it is an open invitation to all the believers to know Him. This is the first reason to
choose my thesis on Christology. The Second reason to choose this topic is my personal
experience with protestant pastor. Last year as I was travelling from Bangalore to Warangal, I
met one of the protestant pastors. We had long discussion on various aspects of faith. In our
discussion on Kingdom of God, Pastor expressed kingdom of God something which is outside of
this world. He expressed that God is going to destroy this world and establish his kingdom. I was
not convinced with his opinion and he even criticized the Catholic understanding of Kingdom of
God. With regard to miracles, he stressed more on the physical health rather than the holistic
approach. The conversation with him made me to do my thesis on the topic “Jesus, Prophet of
Kingdom of God and a Healer”. The work is divided into three chapters. Jesus, the Christ begins
his life in time and space. So in the first chapter we try to find out what and where is the world of
Jesus. Here we have dealt with the cultural, social, political and religious aspects of Jewish
society. After knowing the background of Jewish society, we try to explain how these conditions
influenced Jesus‟ life. Finally, the chapter ends with Jesus‟ understanding of his mission. Jesus‟
mission starts with proclaiming the kingdom of God. In the Second chapter, we have dealt with
the concept of kingdom of God. First part of the chapter tries to analyze Jesus‟ Prophetic
teachings on the kingdom of God and his unique presentation of Kingdom of God in parables. At
the end we have dealt with the Catholic understanding of Kingdom of God.
Jesus ministry is not only proclaiming the kingdom of God but healing the sick and needy too.
As German Theologian M. Kahler has said “In every tiny drop of 2
the dewy meadows the light of the sun is mirrored and reflected; so also in each little episode of
the Gospel the entire person of Jesus encounters us.”1 Every action of Jesus reveals his identity.
Today the post-scientific mentality may not accept the deeds of Christ. They try to dilute Jesus‟
work and his healing ministry. In this present context how can we interpret the miracles? One of
the basic beliefs of Christians is that Jesus still heals. If so, how healing is happening? Is Jesus
healing ministry merely a physical or something more? In Today‟s world we face many
environmental problems; in this context are there any signs to say that Jesus is healing? In the
third chapter we try to analyze answers for these questions.
1 L. Legrand, “Jesus‟ Mission Vision,” Proclaim 30, no. 2, 2009, p. 13.
2 Pope Francis, “Top 75 Pope Francis‟ Quotes,” https://www.aggiecatholicblog.org/2015/01/t
op-75-pope-francis-quotes/ , accessed 03-12-2018
His public ministry as a teacher and a healer ended with his execution as a criminal. Some
experienced him as Criminal whereas the others experienced him as a person who saved the
entire world. Pope Francis said “Jesus is the gate opening up to salvation, a gate open to
everyone.”2 Personal experience of Jesus is always possible when we relate with him. This paper
is all about my search for Jesus. O Lord! help me to find You.
 CHAPTER ONE
MYSTERY OF CHRIST
Introduction
We know that Jesus is the second person of the Holy Trinity and God the Father sent him to this
world for a particular mission. Thus, Jesus‟ incarnation took place in time and space. Thus, Jesus
is a historical person. This raises the question in his humanity whether Jesus knew his mission?
How did Jesus come to know the mission of the Father? This chapter tries to find out the answers
for these questions. This we can explain from two angles: first, we try to find out Jesus‟ world so
that we come to know how it influenced Jesus‟ life and his mission. Secondly, we try to analyze
Jesus‟ Faith and his understanding of God. We shall try to get to know Jesus better as a man so
that through his humanity, we will be able to know Father‟s love for all of us.
1.1 Jesus and His World
Jesus was born in Palestine, in Bethlehem of Judea probably in the year 6-7 B.C.E. and was
given the name of in Aramaic Yeshua, etymologically the name means “Yahweh saves.”3
Synoptic Gospels say Jesus‟ family was settled in Nazareth and he was the son of a Carpenter
(Mt 2:23; Mt 13:55). Let us look into the geographical, political and religious environment of the
Galilee and Jerusalem. This will help us to find how these situations influenced Jesus.
3 S. Athappilly, Christology Today: Mystery and History of Jesus Christ, vol. 1, Bangalore,
Dharmaram Publications, 2007, p. 7.
1.1.1 Geography of Galilee
Galilee was in the Northern Kingdom of Israel that is just above Samaria, and it significantly
separated from Judea by the hostile Samaritan territory. Sea of Galilee divided the area into
upper and lower Galilee. Upper Galilee in the north was the border region, sparsely inhabited,
with elevations up to 1200 meters. The mountains were higher, rain more plentiful, land more
fertile. Commercially, upper Galilee was oriented towards the seaports of Tyre and Sidon. Lower
Galilee was land of low hills overlooking the great plain of Jezreel, one of the richest areas of the
whole country, which is punctuated by two solitary mountains, Tabor and Hermon. Lower
Galilee was oriented towards the port at Ptolemais. Numerous villages were scattered across 4
the area. The territory of Galilee covered some 20,000 square kilometers. The village Nazareth
was in the center of Lower Galilee.4 Sea of Galilee was heart shaped lake streamed in the lower
Galilee. Capernaum, Magdala and Tiberias were the main cities on the seashore.5 Galilee was an
agrarian society and near the Sea of Galilee there was fishing. According to Josephus “the whole
region of Galilee was devoted to farming, and there were no idle lands.”6
4 B.J. Lee, The Galilean Jewish of Jesus: Retrieving the Jewish Origins of Christianity, vol. 1,
New York, A Stimulus Book, 1988, p. 60. 5 M. Race, “Galilee‟s Influence on Jesus,” The
Bible Today 41, no. 2, 2003, p. 73. 6 J.A. Pagola, Jesus: An Historical Approximation,
Bangalore, TPI, 2012, p. 39. 7 Pagola, Jesus, p. 56. 8 J.J. Rousseau and R. Arav,
“Nazareth,” Jesus & His World: An Archaeological and Cultural Dictionary, Minneapolis,
Fortress Press, 1995, p. 214. 9 B. Hill, Jesus the Christ: Contemporary Perspectives, Mystic,
CT, Twenty-Third Publications, 1994, p. 12. 10 Pagola, Jesus, pp. 56-57.
1.1.2 Jesus’ Home Town
Nazareth was a small agricultural village in the very heart of rural Galilee. Nazareth was about
340 meters above the sea level, on hillside of Lower Galilee, far from the big highways, in the
region of the tribe of Zebulun. Nazareth was not mentioned in the sacred texts of the Jewish
people, not even in the list of Towns of the tribe of Zebulun.7 Etymologically the word Nazareth
was derived from the Hebrew root nsr, meaning “to watch” or “to guard”.8 Nazareth Could not
be described as isolated. Sepphoris, the capital city of Galilee, was only four to five miles from
Nazareth and always visible from hillsides. Nazareth was Jewish enclave where life style was
extremely simple. Some of the inhabitants lived in caves built in the hillside; the majority had
small, primitive houses, with dark walls of adobe or stone, roofs thatched of dry branches and
clay, and floors of tamped-down dirt. Many had subterranean cavities for water or grain storage.
In general they had only one room in which whole family lived and slept. Jesus lived in one of
these humble homes, and knew smallest details of everyday life.9 Life in Nazareth was a rural
life. Jesus grew up surrounded by nature, with eyes open to the world around him.10
In Nazareth, family was everything: one‟s birth place, life school and job security. Outside the
family an individual was unprotected and unsafe. One‟s true identity comes from the family (Lk
4: 22). Such a family was more than the small circle formed by parents and children. It included
the whole family clan, presided 5
over by a patriarchal authority and formed by all who were linked to it by blood or by marriage.
The social, religious and customs binds an extended family. They owned their tools and olive oil
mills in common. Jesus belonged to such a family.11 The dark side of Nazareth was the high
frequency of disease and a short life expectancy. Resources were often limited in the villages like
Nazareth. Water was scarce and had to be brought daily from cisterns. In times of Drought, both
food and water would be short in supply.12Most of the people in Galilean villages worked in the
fields. The peasant diet was limited. Peasants had two main concerns: Survival and Honor. In the
Galilean villages, children were the weakest and most vulnerable members, the first to suffer the
effects of hunger, malnutrition and disease. Infant mortality was very high. Moreover, very few
reached adolescence without having lost a father or mother. Many scholars believed that Jesus
also lost his father before his adolescence.13
11 Pagola, Jesus, p. 58. 12 Hill, Jesus the Christ, pp. 12-13. 13 Pagola, Jesus, pp. 60-61. 14
J.N.M. Wijngaards, Background to the Gospels, Bangalore, TPI, 2014, pp. 93-94.
1.1.3 Political Situation in Galilee
During Jesus‟ earthly life many political changes took place in Palestine. In 65 B.C.E., Romans
conquered all Asia Minor and Herod the Great was eventually made as King by Romans. Till 4
B.C.E. Herod the great was king over all Palestine. He was under the Roman Emperor, but
possessed a good deal of independent power. After death of Herod, Roman Emperor Augustus
stepped in and divided the territory. Archelaus received Idumea, Judea and Samaria (capital city
is Jerusalem) and he ruled from 4 B.C.E to 6 C.E. Herod Antipas received Galilee and Perea
(capital city is Tibberias) and He ruled from 4 BCE to 39 C.E. Philip received Iturea and some
other regions. Philip ruled from 4 B.C.E. to 34 C.E. Jesus was born in the reign of Emperor
Augustus (23 B.C.E. -14 C.E.; Lk 2:1) and his ministry was in the reign of Emperor Tiberius
(14-37 C.E.).14
Taxes were imposed on the people both by vassal king as well as Roman Empire. The first
tribute payment was required by Rome: the tributum soli corresponding to cultivated land and
the tributum capitis or per capita tax paid by every adult member of the household. It was paid in
kind or in coin: the administrators liked to receive their tribute in grain so as to avoid the food
shortages that often occurred in Rome. It is estimated that in Antipas‟ time, it might have been 6
12% to 13% of total production. According to the Roman Historian Tactius, Tax was a very
heavy burden on the peasants. Antipas had his own tax system. He usually contracted with
collectors who set out to extract the maximum benefit from everyone. Herod Antipas rebuilt the
city of Sepphoris and built new capital at Tiberius. The Galilean farmers must have paid extra
taxes for these developmental works. It was calculated half of the amount of Galilean farmer‟s
income was paid as taxes. It was very hard for the Galilean farmers to pay taxes.15
15 Pagola, Jesus, pp. 42-43. 16 G. Vermes, Jesus the Jew: A Historian’s Reading of the Gospels,
Fontana, William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd., 1976, pp. 46-47.
1.1.4 Galilean Rebels
Many revolutionary movements against Roman Empire were born at Galilee. Jesus was well
aware of several incidents of rebellion during his infancy and youth. Around the time of Jesus
birth, the emperor Augustus sent his general Sabinus to arrange for a successor for the deceased
Herod the Great. The Jews perceived that Sabinus was intimidated by them, and some of the
more aggressive ones attacked his forces in Jerusalem. In the north, a famous rebel called Judah,
the Galilean, broke into the royal arsenal in Sepphoris. He had stolen the weapons and led an
uprising. The Romans hit back by burning Sepphoris to the ground, sold the inhabitants into
slavery, and crucified thousands of rebels. When Jesus was about ten, Judah led another
rebellion, this time against the census ordered by the Roman Quirinus, because many believed
that the census would only result in heavier unjust taxes. Although matters were rather quiet in
Galilee throughout Jesus teen years and Young adult life, the spirit of rebellion seemed to fester
within, and forty years after Jesus‟ death another Galilean, Manachem, a descendant of rebel
Judah, rebelled against Roman Empire in 66 A.D. Jesus grew up in a province known for
rebellion, but that does not mean that he himself encouraged violence. Even though Jesus himself
was not an advocate of violence, he carries the reputation of being from Galilee i.e. Anti-Roman
feeling in the eyes of Emperor.16
1.1.5 The Religious Environment in Galilee
In the Book of Isaiah, Prophet Isaiah mentioned that “Galilee of Gentiles” (Isaiah 9:1). Is Galilee
a gentile nation or a Jewish nation? We do not know exactly what had happened to the northern
tribes after the Assyrians conquered the territory 7
and turned Galilee into an Assyrian province. We know almost nothing of these Galileans who
lived far from Jerusalem, in a territory that was invaded for six centuries by Assyrians,
Babylonians, Persians, Ptolemids and Selucids. They probably remained faithful to Yahweh. On
one hand, they had no worship center like Jerusalem. On the other, they did not have a native
priestly aristocracy to guard and cultivate the Israelite traditions. Thus local traditions, customs
and practices developed differently in Galilee than in Judea. After the Maccabean revolt time, the
Hasmonean royals of Judea subjected Galilee to the State-Temple at Jerusalem and obligated its
inhabitants to live according to the Jewish laws. Because of integration made by the Hasmonean
rulers many Jewish families went from Judea to farm Galilean lands. The inhabitants of Galilee
in Jesus‟ time can properly he called “Jews” because their religious roots were in Judea. Indeed
Roman Empire, Herod the Great and Antipas treated them as Jews.17
17 Pagola, Jesus, pp. 47-48. 18 Ibid., p. 49. 19 Ibid., pp. 62-64.
Galilee was not like Judea. The holy city of Jerusalem was a long way away. There was certainly
a geographic and spiritual distance. The Galileans never felt the religious influence as intently as
did the people of Jerusalem. There was not a very active presence of scribes or teachers of the
law. We know from Flavius Josephus that Galileans made pilgrimage to Jerusalem. Probably
many of the Galileans had grandparents in Jerusalem and also pilgrimages were not only
religious phenomenon but a very important social event. The pilgrims participated in religious
festivals, but they also went to eat, drink, sing and went to buy things together.18 In the hill
country village like Nazareth, religious life did not revolve around the temple and its sacrifice.
Probably the great teachers of Law did not come to Nazareth. Many of the Galilean villages had
synagogue where the people gather for prayer on the Sabbath day.19
1.1.6 Synagogue in the time of Jesus
The Hebrew word for Synagogue was betha-knesset, a place of Gathering or meeting. The
Synagogue was the center of Jewish life and worship, common throughout Palestine and
throughout the Diaspora. In the time of Jesus, the synagogue was frequented only on the Sabbath
and on feasts. The Chief administrative person was the head of the Synagogue (Jairus was one
such - Mk 5:21–43, Mt 9:18–26, Lk 8
8:40–56). His assistant, the Hazzan, in effect the synagogue and was a sort of Master of
Ceremonies. The reading of the Scripture was the center of the synagogue service. The Torah
was read in its entirety through a cycle of readings. The scriptures were on scrolls which were
kept in a place of honor (Lk 4:17-18). By the time of Jesus, readings were taken from the
prophets as well, after reading of the Torah. It was read in Hebrew and immediately translated
into Aramaic. Any adult male was invited to read the scriptures.20
20 Lee, The Galilean Jewish of Jesus, pp. 120-122. 21 Ibid., p. 123. 22 Rousseau and R. Arav,
“Synagogues,” p. 272.
1.1.6.1 Synagogue and Education
The Synagogue usually had a school connected with it. The Palestinian Talmud indicates that
before 70 C.E. in Jerusalem there were 480 Synagogues. Each Synagogue had “a House of
Reading” (bet Sefer) and “a House of Learning” (bet Talmud) the House of reading was for the
study of Torah, the written tradition, and the prophets were read as well. The House of learning
was for the study of the oral pharisaic tradition. Most of the male children in Palestine of Jesus‟
time attended the school. A child began in the bet sefer at about the age of five or six, and learns
to read the scriptures, the written law. At about age eleven students move to the bet Talmud
where they study the Mishnah, the oral law. Safari said that “The study of Torah was a holy duty,
the fulfillment of a religious experience. It brought the student closer to God.”21 The language
of schools would have been Aramaic. In Nazareth Synagogue existed and the fact that Jesus was
authorized to read the prophets (Lk 4:16) shows that he would not have been an illiterate but a
Jew who attended the bet Sefer.22
1.1.7 Jerusalem at the Time of Jesus
In the days of Jesus, Jerusalem was mid-point of the civilized world, the crossroads where
nations converged. Jerusalem was heart of Judaism, rich in symbolism and meaning. For the
Jews, this was the Holy city, where Yahweh dwelt in the temple. Jerusalem was the center of
Hebrew worship, authority and education. The Roman eagle dominated Jerusalem more than
Galilee, because the province of Judea was under the direct control of the procurator. The troops
of the empire were visible throughout the city. We do not know how many times Jesus went to
Jerusalem. According to Synoptics, it was only once by Jesus, and Matthew and Luke speak 9
about a visit with his family when Jesus was twelve. Gospel of John indicates three visits. It was
possible, however, that Jesus, a devout Jew, made the trip numerous times during his life.
Jerusalem was about one hundred winding miles from Nazareth, a trip that would require three or
four days. Such a trip always had its dangers. Robbers lived in the hills, waiting to pounce on
unsuspecting pilgrims bringing their tithes to Jerusalem (Ex: Good Samaritan Story – Lk 10:25-
37), danger while passing from hostile territory of Samaria and the presence of wild animals who
roamed around the deserts. For the Jews, Jerusalem was also the place of Sanhedrin, “the
supreme court”, who make edicts and enforce sanctions that often deeply affected their lives.
Jerusalem was a center of trade and commerce. The Central attraction of Jerusalem was the
Temple. This was the cultic center of Judaism. Jews came from all over the world to worship at
the temple and offer sacrifices through the priests. The temple that Jesus visited in his life was
called the second temple. Temple tax was existing. High priest lived extravagantly in the
luxurious home and had huge number of slaves and servants.23
23 Hill, Jesus the Christ, pp. 15-17. 24 Ibid., pp. 20-30.
In Jerusalem, the priestly classes were divided into High priest, Priests and Levites. Major
religious groups at the time of Jesus were Sadducees (Priestly class – Restricted their faith to
Torah, did not believe in life after death - Mark 12:18-27); Pharisees (separated ones – Strict
observances of the Laws and Traditions (Lk 18:10-12); Believed in the resurrection of the dead
(Acts 23:1-8)); Scribes ( The Teachers of the Law); Essence (a smaller group that lived a
communal monastic lifestyle at Qumran); Zealots (Revolutionary group who opposed the Roman
occupation of Israel).24
1.1.8 The Jewish Messianic Expectation in the Time of Jesus
From the above analysis of our reading of Geographical, religious and political context in Galilee
and Jerusalem depicts the main problems in Palestine such as foreign rule, internal political
conflicts, high taxation, poverty, sickness and religious domination. In such situations, any
person will hope for better conditions. So Jews also expected for Messiah, the one who comes
and redeems from all these problems. The Hebrew word Messiah means anointed one and the
corresponding Greek word is Christos. The Term Messiah was probably derived from the custom
of anointing of 10
Kings and High priests in Judaism. Judaism had no single fixed concept of the Messiah. At the
time of Jesus, there was an enormous range of expectations concerning the Messiah. Some had
the concept of Royal Messiah i.e. the anointed one will come from the line of king David (cf. 2
Sam 7:12ff) and would liberate them from the foreign rule. This hope was strong in Zealots.
Some had the concept of Priestly Messiah i.e. the anointed one will come in the line of the high
priest Aaron. Some had the concept of Prophetical Messiah i.e. the anointed will come in the line
of Prophets, like Moses (Deut 18:15,18) and he would defend the poor from their oppressors,
establish justice and fulfill the law.25 Qumran or Essence community had the concept of Double
messianic expectation. They expected for two messiahs i.e. one a royal messiah and the other one
a priestly messiah.26Some of them had opinion that the messiah would come from an unknown
place. He would drop from heaven. Jesus knows all these Expectations of Jews. 27
11 Pagola, Jesus, p. 58. 12 Hill, Jesus the Christ, pp. 12-13. 13 Pagola, Jesus, pp. 60-61. 14 J.N.M. Wijngaards,
Background to the Gospels, Bangalore, TPI, 2014, pp. 93-94.

3 S. Athappilly, Christology Today: Mystery and History of Jesus Christ, vol. 1, Bangalore, Dharmaram
Publications, 2007, p. 7.

4 B.J. Lee, The Galilean Jewish of Jesus: Retrieving the Jewish Origins of Christianity, vol. 1, New York, A
Stimulus Book, 1988, p. 60.

5 M. Race, “Galilee‟s Influence on Jesus,” The Bible Today 41, no. 2, 2003, p. 73.

6 J.A. Pagola, Jesus: An Historical Approximation, Bangalore, TPI, 2012, p. 39.

7 Pagola, Jesus, p. 56.

8 J.J. Rousseau and R. Arav, “Nazareth,” Jesus & His World: An Archaeological and Cultural Dictionary,
Minneapolis, Fortress Press, 1995, p. 214.

9 B. Hill, Jesus the Christ: Contemporary Perspectives, Mystic, CT, Twenty-Third Publications, 1994, p. 12. 10

Pagola, Jesus, pp. 56-57.