"The Holy Family"
Rembrandt
c. 1640

 


REL 313:
The Search for Jesus
DSP, WP
Mon, Wed 2:00-3:20

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"The Last Supper"
Leonardo da Vinci
c. 1498

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"Ecce Homo"
Lovis Corinth
c. 1925

Instructor: Dr. Jeff Robbins
Office: Humanities, 307D
Office hours: Mon-Thur. 11:00-12:00, 1:00-2:00
Phone: x. 6720
Email: robbins@lvc.edu


"The Yellow Christ"
Paul Gauguin
c. 1889


"White Crucifixion"
Marc Chagall
c. 1938

Course Description:

As the central figure of the world’s largest religion, Jesus of Nazareth has inspired a rich and varied cultural and theological legacy.    As a figure in history, Jesus is the focus of intense public curiosity (for example, the media reports on the “Jesus Seminar”, the number of recent bestselling scholarly reconstructions of the historical Jesus, etc.) and widespread confusion (for example, the 1999 Rubert Wainwright film, Stigmata, which suggested a vast conspiracy to hide the actual documents that would reveal the true Jesus of history).  As a cultural icon, the artistic, literary, and theological depictions of Jesus provide insight into our collective psyche. 

This course will examine ancient texts, contemporary commentaries, historical reconstructions, and artistic depictions in its search for Jesus. Along the way, questions will be raised concerning biblical interpretation and hermeneutics, the relation between history and faith, the cultural framework for theological thinking, and the value of art in religious expression. Its goal will be to introduce the student broadly to the rich and varied tradition of thought that lives as the inspired cultural legacy of the life of Jesus of Nazareth.


"Crucifixion ('Hypercubic Body')"
Salvador Dali
c. 1954


 

Textbooks:

  • Beyond Belief: The Secret Gospel of Thomas, by Elaine Pagels
  • Jesus as a Figure in History, by Mark Allen Powell
  • Christ and Culture, by H. Richard Niebuhr
  • The Gospel According to Jesus Christ, by Jose Saramago
  • The Grand Inquisitor, by Fyodor Dostoevsky
  • The Anti-Christ, by Friedrich Nietzsche

Movies:

  • The King of Kings (1961)
  • The Gospel According to St. Matthew (1964)
  • Jesus Christ Superstar (1973)
  • Jesus of Montreal (1989)

 


"The Resurrection"
Matthias Grunewald
c. 1515