ElvisReturns

Aww man, where do I begin with this one?   I’ll start with the designation “middle class.”  This designation is actually a 20thcentury description which first appeared in the year 1911 in a UK registry in which a statistician named T.H.C. Stevensen identified the “middle class” as falling between the upper class and working class.  You can’t really compare a “middle class” of today with any class of the ancient near east.  I will give you a breakdown of the classes in Jesus’ day using modern or contemporary designations for a 21stcentury understanding. 

 While it is true that there was a very large disparity between the rich and poor, there were what we would call “classes” of people.  What we would call the upper class consisted of the temple priests and the priestly aristocracy which including the Jewish sect known as the Sadducees.  What we would call the middle class was comprised of traders, merchants, artisans (stonecutters, masons, sculptors) and craftsman (metal, wood, cloth dyeing), the Pharisees, sages, scribes and Rabbi’s.  The lower class was made of laborers (day laborers who worked for a day and moved on) weavers, stone carries (not to be confused with stonecutters) slaves (this included gentiles taken into slavery because of debt), the unemployed (lepers, blind, lame, beggars, etc.)  The tax collectors were in a class all by themselves.  The Roman government taxed the people heavily and the tax collectors were employed locally and were considered outcasts and traitors but they were wealthy. 

Joseph was a “Tekton” which most English translations of the Bible translate into the word “carpenter.”  While Joseph may have worked with wood some, more than likely for someone like Luke to use the word Tekton, he was referring to Joseph as an artisan who worked with stone and could have been a number of things such as a mason, sculptor, stonecutter or all of the above).  Joseph as a “Tekton” would have been very much a part of this middle class of people.

While you are correct that Nazareth during the time of Jesus was a settlement of around 200 people and I would add that it was a familial settlement, to say that homes in Nazareth were crude and made of mud and straw, is not necessarily accurate.  A couple of years ago, a major discovery was made in Nazareth which was a home that dated back to the early first century, the time of Christ.  What makes this discovery significant is that this home was there when Jesus was there.  Before that discovery, only tombs in the area could be found that dated back to the time of Jesus.  This home was a modest Jewish home made out of stone and clay and chalk shards were found in the home.  Chalk was used to keep food and water pure, not for health reasons but for ritualistic purposes.  There is no historical or archeological evidence that Nazareth was a poverty-stricken town.  

What is historically and archeologically accurate is the proximity of Nazareth to the city of Sepphoris.  Sepphoris was the city that Herod Antipas designated as his capital city at one time.  He began rebuilding it in about the year 4 B.C.  Jesephus records that this city during the time of the revolt of 66 A.D. was the largest city in Galilee.  This city, during Jesus’ day, was only about an hour’s walk from Nazareth.  It may be a stretch to say that Joseph built “cities” but to say that Joseph helped build a city is about as accurate as one can be looking back 2000 years for a “Tekton” living in Nazareth an hours walk from Sepphoris.  My friend, before you call something “laughable” or “silly” please do your research.  Phrases like, “my research leads me to believe….” Or my research hasn’t lead me to believe…” would be more acceptable.  There are many biblical historians and archeologists who believe that both Joseph and Jesus helped build this city.  

Now, let’s look at John the Baptist.  The reason John wore what he wore and ate what he ate, looked the way he looked, was not because he was poor, it was because he was a Nazarite from birth.  John’s father was a priest and you are correct in the fact that Nowhere in the New Testament does it say Zachariah was a Sadducee.   And yes, Sadducees were the wealthiest of the 3 factions of the priestly caste that emerged under Hesmonean rule.  The Sadducees disappeared in about the year 70 A.D. along with all of their writings.  So what we know about the Sadducees comes mainly from their political and religious opponents, the Pharisees.  The Essenes were fed up with both the Sadducees and Pharisees and opted for the monastic life.  The Sadducees did not believe in the oral tradition but in a strict adherence to the written law found in the Torah.  As far as modern scholarship and the sacrifice goes, you need to research New Testament scholars such as the writings of Ben Witherington, Luke Johnson and others concerning sacrifice during the time of Jesus.  These scholars will give you a more up to date and accurate picture using the most modern biblical scholarship available of what was actually done during the time of Jesus.  

Let’s get back to Zachariah.  Zachariah was a temple priest.  There were 24 divisions among the priests.  Zachariah was of the division of Abijah.  There were about 50 priests on duty in the Temple.  In the early morning the priests were divided into two groups for a pre-dawn inspection of the temple courtyards.  After the inspection, their duties were assigned by lot to prevent their personal egos being involved in the selection.  The most honored duty was the offering of incense, which symbolized the prayers of the people being accepted by God.  A priest could perform this duty only once in his lifetime, after he was chosen for this task, he was to be called “rich.” This is the honored duty that Zacharias was chosen for in Luke 1.  

Oh, and by the way, a king riding on a donkey is not a symbol of poverty but is symbolic of peace after victory.  A King rides out to battle on a horse…after the battle is over and victory is won, he rides back into town on a donkey.  At Jesus’ first advent, He is the “Prince of Peace.”  At His Second Advent, He comes on a white horse.  

Ok, the Magi and Zoroastrianism….Where do I begin???  Magi, kings from the East, Persia, modern day Iran…Zoroastrianism began in Persia before the time of Christ, yes.  There are “Jesus-like” stories in Zoroastrianism….all I can say is “Close, but no cigar.” 

A Zoroastrian scholar notes, “The incorporation of certain motifs into the Zoroastrian tradition in the ninth century CE could indicate the conscious attempt of the priesthood to exalt their prophet in the eyes of the faithful who may have been tempted to turn to other religions.”  In other words, some of the Jesus like stories came about centuries after the time of Christ.  I’m not going to go through each Jesus-like story on your list but here is one.  Baptism – receiving a vision while praying in a river is not at all the same thing as Jesus’ baptism.  In each Jesus-like story, this is the kind of logic that is used to equate the two.  As I said, close, but no cigar.  

You are correct; Jesus did not instruct us to celebrate his birthday on December 25.  But we celebrate, not because it is the historical date in which Jesus was born (it was not) but because it is the birth of the most important figure in all of human history.  When Jesus drank the 3rdcup of wine at the Passover, the cup of Redemption, He said, “This is my blood of the New Covenant poured out for you and for many for the forgiveness of sins….do this in remembrance of me.”  So yes, we remember the redemptive work of Christ on the cross.  But Jesus also said, “I will not drink of the fruit of the vine from now on until I drink it anew with you in my father’s kingdom.”  The forth cup of wine was the cup of praise.  So we remember the mighty works of Christ on this earth, including His birth, His life, His teachings, His miracles, His death and resurrection, but we also look forward to that day when we get to drink the “cup of praise” together with Jesus face to face at what the Bible calls the “Marriage Supper of the Lamb.”  At that supper, it won’t matter whether or not Jesus was rich or poor, or what our financial status may have been, or if there are similarities with Christianity and Zoroastrianism.  The only thing that will matter is having a seat at that table.  

The only way I know of to have a seat at that table is to get to know that Tekton from Nazareth who came to preach good news to the poor, to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed and to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.  

I’m a seeker and will continue to be a seeker searching for truth until I meet face to face the one who is the way, the truth and the life.  God bless you on your journey as you search for the way, truth and life. 

And....Merry Christmas.