He is one of the most revered figures in the world, but scholars and historians continue to grapple with and debate questions about who Jesus really was, what his life was like and how his followers spread his message. Two Yale scholars shed light on some of those questions in a two-part examination of the beginnings of Christianity on the program "Frontline," which will air "From Jesus to Christ: The First Christians" nationally on PBS stations Monday and Tuesday, April 6 and 7.
Wayne Meeks, the Woolsey Professor of Biblical Studies in the religious studies department, and Harold W. Attridge, the Lillian Claus Professor of the New Testament at the Divinity School, are among the 12 scholars featured in the four-hour, Easter-time series, which traces Jesus' life and how his early followers started a movement that drastically transformed the Roman Empire in the space of only 300 years.
Meeks and Attridge were filmed independently for about three hours in a castle north of Boston, answering questions about topics related to their own research. Meeks, a longtime member of the Yale faculty, is an authority on the social world of the apostle Paul and an expert in the origins of Christianity and the interpretation of the New Testament. Attridge, who joined the faculty last fall, is a leading scholar of Jewish and Greek literature in relation to the New Testament and early Christianity. He was interviewed for the "Frontline" series before coming to Yale, when he was dean of the College of Arts and Letters at the University of Notre Dame.
When initially invited to participate in the show, Meeks was very reluctant. One reason, he admits, is that he is camera-shy. But more importantly, he says, he "was very skeptical because there has been a lot of half-baked stuff on this subject in the media." He agreed to take part when "Frontline" producer Marilyn Mellowes took his advice and involved in the production New Testament scholar L. Michael White, one of Yale professor's former graduate students. White, who received his Ph.D. and M. Div. degrees from Yale and now directs the religious studies program at the University of Texas at Austin, is considered one of the nation's foremost scholars of religion. Meeks is impressed with White's serious scholarship on early Christianity, including his research at numerous archaeological sites of early Jewish and Christian meeting places in the Middle East.
Like Meeks, Attridge has also been displeased with previous media portrayals and accounts of Jesus' life. "Some of the things I've seen on television or in the popular media tend to be quite sensationalist or pietistic," he explains. "The 'Frontline' series, I think, tries to do a more responsible and credible job."
The two-evening series has four major themes. "From Jesus to Christ: The First Christians" explores Jesus' life and message, events that led to his crucifixion and the diverse ways in which his followers interpreted his message. It also traces the development and impact of the Gospels and examines the antagonisms between early Christians and Jews, documenting how Christianity grew from a small Jewish sect to become the official religion of the Roman Empire.
The series challenges some conventional notions about Jesus' life and early followers, according to David Fanning, senior executive producer of "Frontline." Rather than depicting Jesus as a carpenter in a remote village, for example, the series draws on archaeological discoveries to show that Jesus' Galilean hometown of Nazareth was only a short commute from the bustling urban center of Sepphoris. The series also portrays the rise of Christianity not as a uniform phenomenon but as a development that took place in an environment of discord and conflict. "It is not a story of a golden age of consensus, but a story of people in conflict -- wrestling with Judaism, confronting the authority of the Empire, and struggling among themselves to understand Jesus' message about the coming of God," Fanning says.
One of the merits of "From Jesus to Christ" is that the series emphasizes that there is not one point of view among historians and scholars about the historical Jesus and events following his death, says Meeks.
"One of the themes is that all history is interpretation," he notes. "There are very significant disagreements among some of us who participated that will be very apparent. A central theme is that there are still a lot of questions about what sort of person Jesus was and how he fit into Judaism within Roman Palestine."
Meeks contributes to this exploration in "From Jesus to Christ" by discussing the study of early Christian documents and the importance of examining those documents within the context of social history. He is the author of numerous books about early Christianity, including the award-winning "The First Urban Christians: The Social World of the Apostle Paul," which was published by Yale University Press.
Attridge, whose seven books include "Nag Hammadi
Codex I: The Jung Codex" and "Hebrews: A Commentary on the Epistle to the Hebrews," was interviewed by "Frontline" about some of the philosophical developments and sectarian movements in the late first and second centuries, particularly the role of Gnosticism in the early church.
According to the series' producers, "From Jesus to Christ" relies heavily on the expertise of Meeks and Attridge. But neither Yale faculty member has yet to view the series in full. "I look forward to seeing it in full," says Attridge. "But based on what I do know of it, I'm optimistic that it will be a meaningful contribution to the public's understanding of the subject."
"From Jesus to Christ: The First Christians" will air at 9 p.m. both evenings on PBS stations. More on the series and further research and discoveries about Jesus' life can be found on the "Frontline" web site at www.pbs.org/frontline.
-- By Susan Gonzalez
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