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Interesting interview w/ @plmanseau about Jefferson's editing of the Gospels to incl. only the moral teachings.
"Jefferson did not sufficiently account for the fact that the miraculous nature of Jesus’s ministry is integral to the Gospel narratives" 1/6 https://www.patheos.com/blogs/anxiousbench/2020/09/the-jefferson-bible-an-interview-with-peter-manseau/
"Jefferson did not sufficiently account for the fact that the miraculous nature of Jesus’s ministry is integral to the Gospel narratives" 1/6 https://www.patheos.com/blogs/anxiousbench/2020/09/the-jefferson-bible-an-interview-with-peter-manseau/
The other interesting thing to me is how, as a product of the Enlightenment, Jefferson attempted to reify Jesus' moral teachings apart from the person of Christ Himself.
That's very understandable and in one sense a noble project: find the ideas of the text which transcend. 2/6
That's very understandable and in one sense a noble project: find the ideas of the text which transcend. 2/6
So in seeking to "de-deify" Jesus, Jefferson, ironically, may have "deified" ideas and morals, if I can put it that way. We all have to worship something.
I am sympathetic, and I think the Reformed faith can be particularly susceptible to this. 3/6
I am sympathetic, and I think the Reformed faith can be particularly susceptible to this. 3/6
We love truth and often seek doctrinal clarity over mystery. So we look for the "point" of a text, rather than letting the story of the text affect us a whole.
And in the Gospels, the story IS Jesus. Not an idea, but a Person. God in the flesh, as Christians confess. 4/6
And in the Gospels, the story IS Jesus. Not an idea, but a Person. God in the flesh, as Christians confess. 4/6
As @plmanseau puts it: "Without such displays of otherworldly power (in the texts), there is no reason presented for worldly powers to find Jesus sufficiently threatening that he would be crucified. Without Jesus acting like the son of God, the story just falls apart." 5/6
Anyway, if you are interested in more, check out @plmanseau 's new book: "The Jefferson Bible: A Biography" 6/6 https://www.amazon.com/Jefferson-Bible-Biography-Lives-Religious/dp/0691205698/ref=sr_1_1?crid=39M3LR4RNLT37&dchild=1&keywords=the+jefferson+bible+a+biography&qid=1599763783&s=books&sprefix=The+Jefferson+Bible+%2Cstripbooks%2C162&sr=1-1
Also, a longer, more involved article here in The Smithsonian. I hope to read this one later. 7/6 https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smithsonian-institution/why-thomas-jefferson-created-his-own-bible-180975716/
