Faith is trusting in God especially in bad situations. That’s exactly what I’m doing. I’m still struggling to provide for my two autistic children since losing my job over declining the vaccine. I declined due to my pre existing health condition (Lupus) and Heart disease. I was denied my medical/religious exemption from Forsyth Hospital. My husband passed away three years ago, so I’m all alone. Both of my sons are non verbal so things are more difficult for me. Every month I don’t know how we are going to make it through. Every month is a struggle, a battle to not end up on the streets. I’m so embarrassed by my situation. I’ve been put down and mocked over my circumstances. It’s hard to hold my head up at times BUT because of my faith God shows up every month and provides. Even as I face homelessness with two young children. I know that God will provide. He won’t leave me. Thank you Jesus.
Jesus was not God. By putting your faith in Jesus you put faith in a man; a dead man never risen; a dead man turned bones. Reject Jesus and put your faith in God.
My sister has lupus, heart condition, liver, and many more, and has had 3 Vaccines, moderna, the stongest one. Even combined the Moderna, w shingles and another one at one visit, And yes, she was strongly subdued, but it passed and she's OK.
Trusting God, he will provide, he won't leave me... I wouldn't count on it. not even the popes get any help from God in their health. they all died also, no exception. Even Jesus the man died and suffered. And the current debate of all suffering in the world. So expecting God to... Better, in addition to medics, have an almost perfect nutrition. Heavy into fruits and veggies. And if overweight, even more. A lean body is healthier. Good luck. Haven't had my sister really commit to food as a help. She's almost morbidly obese. Won't really try. And just like my dad, medicines did nothing. The more he was into following Dr's orders, the worst he/she became. Have you seen how fat medics are?
Speaking as an RN, if you have heart disease, it is a reason to have the vaccine. It may be a secondary target of Covid but lethal none the less. Easy to find stories particularly of young one experiencing cardiomyopathy from Covid. Risk of any reaction is so low (but still could happen) that imo is well worth the risk. It’s been a couple years now of having the vaccines and they have tested out. On the other hand it’s a shame your employer doesn’t consider your situation.
A fascinating talk by James Tabor, with lots of lines to consider! I think where he departs into his own suppositions is where he re-writes the story to the effect that Jesus, his disciples and followers were preparing to take over the governance of Jerusalem and the Temple. Bart Ehrman similarly creates his own 'gospel' in which he re-writes the story to follow his own ideas, thus leaving written texts and imagining an 'alternative director's script' for which there is no written foundation. ....what makes this surprising is that while Tabor and Ehrman are more than happy to use written sources to professionally present the points they find evidence for, when it comes to their re-writing of the gospels with their alternative unspiritual version, they present no evidence from any written sources to support their suppositions. I think both Ehrman and Tabor who are both talented men, would serve their readers much better if they kept to research for which they have reasonable evidence, instead of including diversions into their own preferred 'alternative stories'. In particular the alternative stories run into problems, when they are compared with the New Testament and early historical movement of the faith in Jesus as the Messiah - they don't fit and actually create problems and questions which show inconsistencies with the faith and history. In order for their alternative 'stories' to have credence, they would need to be consistent with the written sources of the NT and early history, but that is where they fail. For instance, how does James Tabor's alternative gospel explain spiritual conversions, if the movement was really only about a future physical government taking over? How does it account for some individuals being radically converted to Christ, when they were previously of a totally different mind - Paul for instance converted to Christ turning 180 degrees from being a known persecutor of Christians, to being a follower of the Christ who he only hours earlier hated with a vengeance? How does the alternative gospel explain many people following Jesus because they were being healed, drawing crowds of 5000 and 6000 men alone, if the gospel was only about a 'future' coming of the Son of Man as the Messiah to rule over Israel? If the 'alternative gospels' of Tabor and Ehrman are the true replacement for the written gospels we actually have, then how do Tabor and Ehrman explain the growth of the actual gospel movement from the 1st to the 4th centuries, during which there was phenomenal growth, if the Messiah had not returned as per the alternative gospels tend to propose? Not least, how indeed is the faith in the resurrected Jesus leading to thousands of conversions, with over 500 reported sightings of the resurrected Jesus, to explain the proposed immediacy of a replacement government of Israel? In general, the 'earthly alternative explanations', do not fit the process of the New Testament writings contents, at all and thus such alternative gospels create an unsolvable problem. Nevertheless, Tabor presents some interesting ideas and observations from the texts.
Yes, I agree here. I remember in the debate with Jimmy Akin, both brilliant, he tries to make it seem as though Mark did not think Jesus was divine in nature. He goes on to recount the gospel with the premise that Jesus was shocked at his crucifixion, and only the Roman guard recognized that Jesus was the Son of God. Then Akin pushed back on him, saying that Jesus did not just cry out 'Why have you forsaken me' out of pain, but in quoting Psalm 22, where the narrator triumphs despair and is united with God by the end of it. At the end of the debate Ehrman admitted that he thinks Mark wrote Jesus as divine. It's strange. Good scholars, but studies show that scholars have bigger blindspots than ordinary people.
I think, and I’m surmising here because I don’t think that he actually says this, is that the early Jesus movement was following a similar path to the Essene community, where there was a belief that the Apocalypse would occur about 40 years after the death of the Founder of the movement-the Teacher of Righteousness for the Essenes, and Jesus for the Jesus movement. What Paul does is open up the possibility that the Kingdom of God is spiritual and internal, rather than physical and external. He still believes in a physical Apocalypse, I think; but the Kingdom pre-exists the Apocalypse within the believer. As for the idea that someone could not completely reverse their life and beliefs without divine intervention, that really involves ignoring nearly all of human experience. It’s not at all unusual for someone to completely reevaluate their life after a near-death experience. And whether you think Paul had a stroke, an epileptic seizure, heatstroke, or an encounter with the divine, it’s without question that he took his experience as a sign that he had to change his life completely. Why? Because it was not that long before then that his master Gamaliel literally said not to persecute Jesus’ followers because if their belief was without merit it would go away by itself, and if it was from God it would withstand their persecution *and they would find themselves opposing God*. Fast forward a bit, and Paul has a vision where God says exactly that-“Why are you opposing me?” His master and mentor planted the idea in his mind, and it blossomed when he had his (literal) Damascus Road incident. The thing that I find most interesting about what Dr. Tabor teaches is that so much of what he says is consistent with what is within the Bible, but just not as we want to interpret it today. He’s really just saying that Christianity is always adjusting and adapting to meet people where they are throughout time.
@@DneilB007 You make interesting points, but notice carefully that in doing them, you are subtlety bending the scripture to your own design. Tabor does this also. You do this by carefully omitting both the context and the details that have been written in the text, so that you are producing only the extract which supports your narrative. Ehrman does similarIy. I don't mind you having an opinion or your own narrative, as long as you are honest in stating that not all the details and the context are consistent with or agree with your ideas and that therefore there are other interpretations which are closer to the actual text than your own extraction.
@@theonlyway5298 No, what I am doing is accepting the events as laid down in the Scriptures but not accepting the intentions that the writers ascribe to other people whom they would have had no access from which to learn what their intentions were.
I'm a catholic I have no trouble with this. The essentials dont change God is love. We are called to love. Through whatever spiritual practice you do , you receive the spirit to help you love.
To have a small sense of gaining knowledge and understanding is a profound experience. Much thanks Dr Tabor for all your studies and your sharing them with me/us in this way. Thanks to all those involved.
I’m confused by your statement that James would endorse Noahide laws, which are created by rabbinics. The Torah is clear that there is one Torah for the children of Israel and the stranger who lives among them (Num 15:16 and Ex 12:49). With regard to circumcision, even Abraham’s servants were circumcised (Gen 17:27). The whole of the Neviim is about returning to GOD and keeping his eternal Torah, so this bit has me somewhat perplexed about James, as i do believe he was Torah observant and would have welcomed "Gentiles" to adopt the ways of the Torah and receive a name "better than (natural born) sons" (Is 56).
He says Torah and not the law ( 10 commandments) because then people would equate him to such as messianic Jews , SDA, and SDB. and other Saturday Shabboth keepers.
@@Phillip-n3g According to the Torah in Exodus, anyone who keeps the whole of the 10 Words, the Covenant, is considered "a special treasure above all the peoples of the earth." When the Israelites left Egypt, they were a mixed multitude, and even Joseph's own sons (the sons who bear the name of Israel) were half Egyptian. The problem with Christianity and Judaism is that both groups routinely violate at least one commandment of The Covenant. Judaism will not speak His Name, in violation of the 3rd Command to never bring His Name to nothing. And Christians/SDA/Messianics violate any variety of the 10, but most importantly, they profane the Covenant by worshiping a god who is not YHWH.
I was watching a documentary where a statistician discussed the probability that all those names would be in there together and not be the Jesus family and he said the odds were infinitesimally low.
Love the work of Tabor and Eisenman. Their lifetimes of work I consider miraculous and inspiring…the family of Joseph and Mary deserves more inspection and serious study.
Just bought your book, Dr Tabor, and I'm starting it tonight. I'm really looking forward to it. Keep up the great work, I'm slowly catching up with your posts.
Dr. Tabor, you have somewhat convincingly shown that Jesus' brothers James, Simon, and Judas were included in the 12 apostles. However, in Mark chapter 3, Jesus chose the apostles but then in Mark 3:20-35 we read that Jesus' family including his brothers tried to restrain him from preaching. Does this not put in question your thesis?
Khalaf means progenitor a person or thing from which a person, animal, or plant is descended or originates; an ancestor or parent. "his sons and daughters were the progenitors of many of Scotland's leading noble families"
Jesus seemed to know this was a last opportunity for Israel which would be destroyed without a great awakening. Did he foresee all the death and destruction. Or the great falling away even after all he suffered for us? Yes, i suppose. He certainly understood the prophets--completely beyond me.
Years ago I was in Jerusalem visiting an antiquity shop, Venus gallery. While I was there, the owner introduced me to Mr. Ogden Golan. Mr. Golan asked if I thought the James ossuary was authentic? I replied if he knew of the Evangelist Oral Roberts? Mr. Golan, replied yes. I said well then Reverend Roberts saw a six-story Jesus. Which means to me the family would be much too large to fit in that small ossuary. 😮 This was during the Court trials. Later, the owner of Venus gallery stated, you know, Ogden hasn't laughed that hard in a long time...😊
Cleophas is mentioned as the husband of one of the Mary's at the foot of the cross in John but there was a Cleopas in Luke 24, who was one of the guys on the road to Emmaus. It is presumed that Cleopas was the surname of Simon Cleopas because Luke records Jesus appearing to Simon and it could not have been Simon Peter that he was referring to. Luke 24:34 - Saying, The Lord is risen indeed, and hath appeared to Simon. I mean, I'm just guessing but up to that verse, Jesus hadn't appeared to any of the apostles but He did appear to the two men on the road to Emmaus.
@@solomonlee4503 - And this is what I love about "scholars". I never heard the word "surname" until I started reading the King James Bible. (I was like 17-years old at the time.) Now the "scholars" (who are so much smarter than I am) are telling me that people didn't have surnames in those days. Gee, I wonder where the translators got their stupid information. The translators don't know as much as these brilliant "scholars". Trust me. That's not scholarship, that's bull ship.
There's so many James because it was actually one of the more common names, Jacob. The KJV translated all instances of Jacob except for the most famous, to James in honor of the king.
Was it done to honour the King, or was it because James as the Greek form of James? The New Testament was written in Greek "as she is spoke," with differences from the literary "koine."
@@douglaidlaw740 Yes and No. When "Jacob's Well" is mentioned in the NT, it is not called "James' Well" it is just called "Jacob's Well." But also, neoJacob was not translated as "James" in order to "honor the king of England"... it was translated as "James" because it was an already English sounding word that meant "Usurper" which is what "Jacob" means "Yah(weh) Usurps". The guy that translated the more original Latin version into the "pre-King James Version" said he didn't like how confusing the Latin version "Jacobus" confused people with thinking there was a deeper or mythical connection with the Old Testament. Thus he figured a "white lie" or "half truth" by changing only the "new jacobs" into "james" would only help Christianity and thus assure him theo-fascistic-monarchial immortality.
I think its enlightening that apart from James, many of the original apostles were sons of high priests and similar.as judaism/early Christian period was a theocracy, with titles like high priest handed down from father to son. So many of the apostles were wealthy and influential in Israel, which explains a bit why the pre Pauline Christians were considered dangerous.
Alecbrown66• where is the proof of what you are saying? If most of the apostles were rich, then why didn’t they just go buy the food to feed the multitude instead of relying on Jesus to produce a miracle. The Word does say that the apostles fed the people not Christ. If all the Apostles had all this power and influence, why were they all crucified, stoned, and beheaded?
@@Tro349it might be because any types of a conceivable threat to the power of roman authority was instantly dealt with death. The temple worshipping was only allowed because it was an easy way to continue to keep the Hebrew people superstitiously emotionally pacified by allowing them to continue to worship their GODS EL and Yahweh in the temple. It's a much safer way to be able to control the Empires annexed province, and its people. As long as the priesthood didn't preach revolting against the roman occupation, then the Romans wouldn't have to pay the expenses for the military to have to put down the revolution against rome. The people were already paying taxes as a tribute to the power of rome for their protection from other invaders.
Through Dr. Tabor, I’ve recently discovered James, and I found this entire lecture riveting. I can tell already, I will listen to this over and over again. Thank you, thank you! ❤
@@PatriceBoivin I’ve heard he’s done a lot of work on James. I’ve been thinking about ordering his book - I’ve read it’s the best work on James thus far. You’ve convinced me. I’m going to order it today. 😊
@@PatriceBoivin I did it! I ordered (and received) Dr. Eisenman’s book on James. It’s absolutely fascinating and I’m enjoying it so much. Thank you again for your recommendation. ❤️
I was James, my people stoned me, i reincarnated, read my parables please, 👍👍How many parables Jesus gave us? 50-60? He was bigger than Jesus. Shlomi the Messiah from Israel gave us more than 200 parables. My favorite is called 'The poor farmer and the precious wine' 🙏🙏
Joseph did not die young. The false narrative - Mary as virgin; Jesus as God - required virginity and getting rid of Joseph and Jesus’ siblings. They even renamed Joseph as Joseph of Arimithea. Jesus was put in his father’s tomb.
Galatians 1:18 Paul stayed with Peter for 15 days in that time he he said he only saw James the Lord's brother. Im not sure where you're getting that Paul never went Peter.
If John Baptist said Jesus is the great one everybody was waiting for... then how come there were two separate groups; Jesus and his disciples while there was John and HIS disciples. How was it that John did not step down and hand over his followers to Jesus?
Seriously? They would've worshipped Moses' bones if they'd have found them, they were a very superstitious people, for lack of a better term, that would follow anyone exhibiting any type of Supernatural knowledge.
Actually, none of what you just said happened anyway because, hate to break it to you, Jebus wasn't real. He's made up, in your head, fake, fiction, created by man to control man, not a real person. It really is that simple.
@@termination9353 good for you. I just can't believe that in this day and age, with all the knowledge and experts we have, with how many times this stuff has been conclusively proven to be all lies, that people are still so gullible as to believe a 2000 + year old book, written by ancient, ignorant, uneducated primitives, to control more ignorant, uneducated primitives. That basically means that anyone that still believes this garbage is 10 X dumber than anyone that lived over 2000 years ago. Hardly something to be proud of. For the record, I was a Christian, until I was at an age where I was smart enough to figure out that it's all garbage, 10. Spent the next 30 studying the Buybull and now know more than any Christian ever will. Don't be a fool for life.
John the Baptist was pointing to the coming of the Messiah. He never said that he was the anointed one. Rather, his ministry was to remind the people that "one greatet than he" was coming. When Jesus came to John to be baptized, he said, "Behold, the Lamb of God." At that moment John understood that Jesus was now on the scene and that his duty to tell everyone about the coming Messiah was done. "He must increase and I must decrease. At this point, John's followers began following Jesus.
Not sure if this matters, James, but in the Hispanic culture, multiple children can have the same name. Within his family, several boys are named “Ruben”. My husband’s mother had 10 siblings; and of the girls were named “Maria.”
That appears to be a Catholic tradition. It is the same in Canada. It used to be all boys had the first name of Joseph and the girls all had the first name of Mary (Maria is Spanish, Marie in French, Moira in Irish) given on their birth certificate by the priest, then the parents would give the second given name which was usually the name used by the family, example Mary Lorraine, or Joseph Donald.
@@ChristopherCudworthPtolemy I named both of his sons Ptolemy. So this definitely happened at that time as well, especially in the Hellenistic world that the Moabites were rebelling against and thus were obviously contemporaneous with.
I have read the book; it was more sensible than some of these preachers, but it was unscientific. Right through the book, the author condemned John's Gospel as worthless -- until the last chapter, where John is the only Evangelist who supports him, and suddenly becomes the "fair-haired boy!" I am still wondering how an Unbeliever became the Head of a theological college.
Why is Professor Tabor still speaking as if the Talpiot tomb could possibly be related to the family of Jesus? This was conclusively disproved years ago.
Disproved? The "evidence" they use is the commonality of the names inscribed on the ossuaries and their faith that if Jesus was bodily resurrected, he wouldn't need an ossuary for his bones. But the constellation of all those names connected with Jesus in one tomb makes it statistically likely that this was indeed the tomb of Jesus of Nazareth and his family, and Tabor has spoken and written repeatedly about what the Biblical understanding of resurrection involved. It wasn't a reconstitution of the decayed flesh, but a spiritual resurrection.
Yeshua Stopped him on the road on his journey. He said I Am the Lord. The Lord is described throughout scripture as Jesus Christ/Yeshua...as The Lord God. I take it you dont believe the Holy Scripture but take a mans word/studies over the bible. Im asking..
Whew, at just two minutes into this video I am aghast by the creative assertions about John and James. Theories rivaling Q-anon! But, I do find fiction fascinating. Dr. Tabor, a rational historian, is interesting as a free thinker, but I pray he returns to his Messiah and His Church, before it's too late (death). I'll watch the rest of the video for my entertainment and the occasional gems he drops. Peace (from the Restoration and Unity Movement)!
While I respect James Tabor and believe he is doing valuable work when it comes to the study and teachings on the DSS and non-canonical writings, I feel compelled to argue against at least one point he makes in the video. And as well, share some information that he has not considered. Regarding John the Baptist. Christ said what he did about him because John was the Righteous Teacher that the Essenes were waiting for him. So he was indeed more than a prophet. Regarding James. It is true that we find in the Gospel According to Thomas that Christ named his half brother to be the head of the Church in Jerusalem. And this is important. But what Mr. Tabor failed neglected to mention is that all 3 are said to be priests. And this is very important. Because the DSS state the Yahad would be established by way of 3 priests and 12 laymen. This then is why Christ chose 12 laymen to be his inner circle. Then what we see is that all 3 priests come from the same family. For John the Baptist was the 1st priest that was the voice in the wilderness who ushered in the Messiah. Christ was the 2nd priest and the high priest in the order of Melchezedek. And James was the 3rd priest that was the head of the Church after Christ went to be with his Father in Heaven. Regarding the brothers and sisters of Christ. The Protevangelion (Gospel of James) tells us Joseph was an old many with children. And as a widower married Marry. So I will go with this very clear teaching from a writing that I consider to be inspired. Additionally, the prophecy of 3 priests and 12 laymen establishing the Yahad described in the DSS is based on a prophecy and vision described in the Book of the words of Gad the seer. For in that prophecy/vision we see Yahweh placing a crown on the head of a lamb, who we know today to be the Christ, and Son of God. That crown is then described as being made up of 3 shepherds that were connected by 12 chains made of gold and coated in silver. The 12 chains are clearly the 12 laymen chosen by the lamb to be his apostles. And the 3 shepherds are the 3 priests described in the Essene prophecy. And we now know the 3 shepherds/priests come from the same family (John the Baptist, Yahshua, and James the half/step brother of Christ).
It doesn't really matter. Xtianity is pure pagan idolatry created by the Romans. There is no eyewitness testimony of Jesus and no documents by Jesus either. There is 0 evidence of his existence or the whole scenario written in the xtian writings.
You were better to say "Israelitish" than "Jewish", inasmuch as most jews are not Israelites, but Kenites, nor were most of them Israelites in the first century. Even in Encyclopaedia Judaica is written "Much of Edom is in modern jewry". Edom took wives of the children of Cain, who, in either Targum or Apocrypha (I forgot which) was son of the Serpent, as affirmed by Jesus in his accusations against "the children of your father the devil, who was the first murderer". Mitochondrial (female side) DNA of Ashkenazim is not jewish but from four Mediterranean European women. Listen to Prem Rawat!
Would expect to have the date of the presentation. Looks like about 2002. Oh it's your channel - very good then. I find this super-duper important. So was this presentation timed with the publication in 2006?
Galatians 1:19 - Adelphos -- ETYMOLOGY: from Delphus, from the womb -- DEFINITION: BROTHER. James was from the same womb as Jesus, at least according to the author of Galatians.
They always say that celibacy is foreign to Judaism, but the Essenes were celibate and they were Jewish. I think it's only foreign to later Judaism, not to it as it was 2000 plus years ago.
Essenes were a Zoroastrian cult and Judaism was a created religion in 2Kings 17 by mixing Ashima/Hashem with the worship of Yahuah. The God Culture has excellent research that proves it out
Celibacy is certainly foreign to the Old Testament. It was only Later Judaism (such as sects called Essenes) that had mixed with Zoroastrian and Buddhist monastic ideas that wanted to "purify" themselves by "doing one better" than avoiding the wife during her "monthly unclean time" by avoiding a wife at all... many Greco-Roman priestesses already did this and remaining virgin was seen as a "superpower" to a lot of lusting dummies.
@@lisakimbrell1406 I doubt it is..... It seems more likely it's your burden. Try to be less suggestible...remember when you watch a screen you enter an alpha trance.... but remember to engage your discernment.... not everything on a screen is the truth.
Mr. Tabor's opening comment that Jesus' statement "but he who is least in the Kingdom is greater than he" is easily and plainly reconciled. And, yes: Jesus said it. Why? Jesus tells you: "The law and the prophets were until John" (Luke 16:6). John the Baptist may have been the greatest prophet in the Old Testament where the Holy Ghost was external to all men, but Jesus represents the New Testament where even the least person has the Holy Ghost dwelling in them, making even the smallest Christian greater than any Old Testament prophet bound to ritual, sacrifices, and waiting on God. Surely, this is not that hard to figure out.
Actually, I think it's possible Jesus might have said that, but the reason his follow-up is reconcilable is not because of the new covenant replacing he old one or that Christian interpretation is superior to the Jewish one as you seem to imply. That's Pauline doctrine, and would not reflect Jesus' own teaching, which are still very committed to the law of Moses (remember, Jesus said he came not to abolish the law but to fulfill it; that is, he wasn't trying to say, like Paul, the Old Testament is no longer important, so much as he was trying to redirect people to the spiritual basis for the law). The Holy Ghost has always dwelt among the righteous of Israel. It's an idea that goes back to the Old Testament called the Ru'ach hakodesh and has nothing to do with Trinitarianism which is definitely not Jewish. It can be understood as inspiration; God's inspiration, which John the Baptist and previous prophets would have been full of. You could say, in modern parlance, that it was the guiding consciousness that would see to it that God's will prevailed in the early (still entirely Jewish) Nazarene church. . Jesus was living at a time when many Jews of different sects (including the Pharisees and Essenes, but not the Sadducees) believed that God's Kingdom was an immanent historical event that would put an end to the corrupt age full of all kinds of evils and hardships people had faced, from the Roman occupation, to inequality, to death and disease. It was a dualistic paradigm that may go back to the Zoroastrians during the Babylonian and Persian periods, that surely had an influence on inter-testamental Jewish thought. The kingdom was essentially a restored Earth in which righteousness would prevail, and we would be given new bodies free from sickness and death..but only those who had shown themselves worthy of entrance would be given it; the rest would experience not life but eternal nonexistence - what is called the 'second death'. They would not be resurrected. When Jesus says that whoever is least in the kingdom is greater than John, this has nothing to do with righteousness, or judging John not worthy of entrance. If that were the case (and John is the greatest person who ever lived) of course no one else would be in the kingdom. The greatness would be that of the restored form that the all of the resurrected righteous would have, John included. Jesus was trying to inspire hope in how great things would soon be for those enduring the present hardships of the world. Following John, Jesus set out to prepare people for the kingdom. In order for them to enter heaven (which was not a celestial destination but an transformed Earth) heaven had to first enter them....hence the kingdom of heaven being within.
There is ,in later roman writings documentation that jesus family descendants,were still alive living in galillee,about 60 years on from the crucifixion they are questioned and released being poor farmers but later on they are again called and executed by the roman emperor ,so it was dangerous to be associated with Jesus's family and no doubt his family would have gone into hiding,rather than face death.
Dr. Tabor, I've been following you for a couple of years now and your life's work fascinates me. Thank you for sharing what you know on this amazing topic! My question is this: What can we believe about Christ's Church now? Looks to me like the "Dynasty" failed and now I'm very suspicious of the Paulian legacy... Catholic Church?
James & John the Baptist is the two edged of the sword that comes out jesus's mouth metaphor , ? Makes more since then James& Jude, since Jesus considered him his Messiah , Jude got tossed n to finish there dynasty out ,& appears a fade out of ending story , getting these people mindset , & learning there's a 3rd major team involved wow ! Great job of searching with your soul earnestly,
The La Sagrada Familia in Barcelona, is the church related to the history of the Jesus family? I know family is different from a dynasty. But the name of the church is very unique.
Dear Mr. Tabor: I highly respect you first of all. My friend has verbally told me about all of your books in detail. It triggered my memories. I know about Jesus' sister Salome and I would like to speak with you somehow for a moment. Thank you. Blessings.
This man is like the Columbo of Christianity. . I would like some other opinions on this theory to speak up. Scholars not theologians. Theologians always back the church of Rome over the Jerusalem church on faith. Luke Acts is a cleaner theology than the slightly later ones of the four primary gospels that split up the early Church. Scholarship has less bias in my opinion. Even today it is not clear that Christianity has a unity, a consensus on doctrine. Even within say Baptist followers it is not uncommon for ministers to call each other out. Televangelists seem to be the biggest targets but authors, famous people except Trump oddly enough, tend to mix it up. Some of this war rages even here on UA-cam which I love to see!
If John Baptist said Jesus is the great one everybody was waiting for... then how come there were two separate groups; Jesus and his disciples while there was John and HIS disciples. How was it that John did not step down and hand over his followers to Jesus?
@@termination9353 Aside from Jesus, John is one of the most significant figure in the gospel. His birth parallels that of Jesus but was also such a momentous event similar to the birth of Isaac to Sarah and Abraham. John’s ministry was like those “The end is here” type ministers but I would imagine due to the events of those times the scenario makes since. So it’s like Jesus spoke of love where John spoke of the end but the message of both was the same, “the kingdom of heaven is upon us”. I don’t think the disciples of the 2 would have been able to commingle because the disciples followed based on the message or I guess delivery style of Jesus and John.
I'm not sure what you are asking. There are two gospels attributed to Thomas. The one is an obvious forgery that describes his early childhood. And in it he actually kills someone he didn't like. The other is called the Gospel According to Thomas and is made up entirely of the sayings and teachings of Christ. And it is in this one that he names James to be the one to head the Church in Jerusalem.
If Joseph had any living children when he died, levirate marriage would not have applied; in fact, Mary would have been forbidden to marry Joseph’s brother.
@@joycewambui4007 The Apostles were married .. except for one or two ..It would have been more a topic for them to have discussed with Jesus . In fact it would have been an advantage for married popes bishops and priests in the early church ..opt to marry like Jesus
@@jamesmaxwell9289 And the reason to hide the fact ? He could have asked Madgalen to care for his mother ..but at the foot of the cross he asked John .. If the Church had to censor this it is as l said doesn't make sense . It would have been better reason for popes bishops and priests of the Roman Clergy marry like the Eastern Orthodox Catholic Churches
Jesus accended to heaven and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. If you want to understand the Bible you should read it or listen to a audio version of it if you can't read and ask Jesus to help you understand it.
This is all very interesting. I'm beginning to put this together; it seems there are multiple sources that state Thomas, was "didymos," (twin) to the Lord. So apparently Jesus had a twin brother. I'm pulling this directly from Professor Hugh Montomery's book, The God-Kings of Outremer. He is citing the Abdius Manuscript, as well as Nag Hamadi books, i.e., The Gospel of Thomas. If the Gospel of Thomas can be trusted ("Thomas wrote it down"), it means Jesus' twin could write, which means they probably both received some education in their early years.
By claiming that Mary was "ever virgin," they are saying that sex, even within marriage, is somehow a sin. The Gospel of John never mentions Mary, the mother of Jesus, by her name. Interesting. SHe is described as Jesus' mother, but never by name. My cousin was born into a family where all the girls were named Mary and all the boys were named Joseph. They went by their middle names throughout life. Luke is guilty of revisionist history. Example, when Jesus is arrested, his disciples do NOT run away but "follow at a distance."
JESUS HAD A SON VIA MARY MAG John 19:25-27 25 Now there stood by the cross of Jesus his mother[Mary], and his mother's sister[in-law], Mary the wife of Cleophas[mother Mary's brother], and Mary Magdalene. 26 When Jesus therefore saw his mother, and the disciple standing by[Mary Magdalene], whom he loved, he saith unto his mother, Woman, behold thy [grand]son! [in Mary Mag's womb/pregnant.] 27 Then saith he to the disciple[Mary Mag], Behold thy mother[in-law/Jesus' mother Mary]! And from that hour that disciple[Mary Mag] took her[Jesus' mother] unto his[Jesus'] own home [The home of Jesus and his now pregnant wife Mary Magdalene] in a midwifing arrangement.
@@termination9353why do you miss read, John 19: 25-27. Christ is not talking about, Mary Magdalene as the Disciple he loved. But John is referring to himself. The evidence is that John never referred to himself as John, but always referred to himself as the disciple whom Christ loved. Christ is telling Mary his mother that John is now to be considered her son and telling John to take his mother, to his house and that he, John is responsible for her as a son would be to his mother. If Mary Magdalene was pregnant with Christ’s son, that would mean that Christ had sinned, unless he was married to her. If not, it would’ve been fortification. There is no evidence that Christ was married to Mary Magdalene. So how could Christ have died on the cross without sin, if he sinned? Don’t just tell a lie! Prove it though scriptures and not just what you say in brackets!
@@Tro349 John didn't write the book of John. Gospel says John wasn't at the crucifixion cause the Apostles were in hiding "for fear of the Jews." Gospel says Lazarus and Mary Magdalene are the disciples Jesus loved. There never was multiple Gospels by multiple authors. The Gospel was originally one book, written by Lazarus in consultation with the Apostles [John 21:24] and published soon after Jesus left them on their own. The religion was hijacked by Rome, the Gospel was broken up scrambled adulterated into a bunch of competing narratives. Later four of those adulterated gospels were canonized with falsely ascribed authorship and a Gnosticism cover-story. It was the finding of an original Gospel of Jesus scroll in Jerusalem that gained the Knights Templar power over the Church and their eventual undoing when the church finally retaliated against them Friday 13th. John 21:24 "This is the disciple[whom Jesus loved/ Lazarus] which testifieth of these things, AND WROTE THESE THINGS: and we[Apostles] know that his testimony is true." John 11:5 Now Jesus LOVED Martha, and her sister(MARYMAGDALENE), and LAZARUS John 11:3 Therefore his sisters sent unto him{Jesus], saying, Lord, behold, HE[Lazarus] WHOM THOU LOVEST is sick.. John11:36 Then said the Jews, Behold how he[Jesus] LOVED him[Lazarus]!
Hi Wasn’t ‘James’s’ real name Yacov? And it was only changed to ‘ James’ to coincide with king James who had the ‘ King James Bible’ translation get done? And I heard elsewhere that the Davidic family BRANCH ( Jesus’s near relatives)remaining in Bethlehem during the Hasmonean reign FLED to Nazareth ( Netzer/Branch)from Bethlehem BECAUSE THEY FELT THREATENED BY THE HASMONEAN ( Maccabean) Dynasty wanting to perpetuate their ruler ship into the future! Shalom to us only in Christ Yeshua returning soon to reign over the world government from Jerusalem.
I read The Jesus Dynasty the year it was first released, as well as book James the Brother of Jesus and The Lost Religion of Jesus. I had converted from Christianity to 12er Shi'ite Islam in 1999 at the age of 39, so I was very interested in the research done by Dr. James Tabor and others. There is the concept of 12 Imams which follower those Prophets who are also Messengers (i.e. bring a divine law). So, I personally believe the was a Jesus Dynasty. We name Peter, James, Simon, and Jude as the first four "Imams" after Prophet Jesus the Christ. Dr. Tabor's comments on the list by Eusebius is really helpful because we didn't know how to deal with the extra names in the list. I shared this video on Facebook for my Christian and Muslim friends interested in these things. We may draw different conclusions, but the knowledge also demonstrates what Jews, Christians, and Muslims do have in common.
Great and very ignored topic. Some have suggested that the family of Jesus only joined his movement after the crucifixion. All reference to his family/brothers in the canonical gospels is of their disbelief in the ministry of Jesus. Only in Acts 1 do we see his family participating in the movement, just in time for Pentecost. I understand that Prof Tabor would see the identical names of various disciples as unacknowledged family members. But one must then reconcile the repeated gospel reference to the disbelief and rejection of Jesus by his family. The simplest explanation is that Jesus's family did disbelieve in him but came around after his death. Why would they come to his ministry only after his death? The obvious explanation would be the encounter with the risen Jesus by James, his brother, testified to by Paul in 1 Corinthians 15:6-7.
Yes, Tabor is not a good scholae and "forgets" facts that shoot his silly theory to blazes. If Cleophus had married Mary, someone would have mentioned that. It would have to be after Jesus was 12 because Like 2 says Joseph was still alive then, so the half brothers and sisters would be teens or younger at the crucifixion. Tabor has Cleophus having sex with Mary but apparently either we are to believe Joseph got none.
Further follow-up. Tabor again cannot keep his facts straight. in 62AD he has Simeon the son of Cleophus taking James the Just's place. Tabor says Simeon is "in his 70s" BUT he still wants this Simeon to be Jesus' half brother and James brother. Since Jesus was born somewhere between 4 BC and 0 AD, Jesu would be 62-67 years old in 62 AD. How could his younger brother be in his 70s?? By Tabor's theory the Mary/Cleophus marriage came after Jesus' death and even the oldest brother James had to be at least 13 years YOUNGER than Jesus if Cleophus was the father. Means James would then have been no older than 54 in 62 AD and Simeon younger than that. Even if they both were sons of Joseph and Mary born right in line after Jesus , they could be no older than 66 and 65. Tabor is not a scholar.
Just think about what you said in the last sentence. You think the obvious explanation is an actual encounter. Today, we would say he had a hallucination. If you said anyone actually had an encounter with the spirit world, you would be looked on as an uneducated person. But you suspend your rational thinking process where religion comes into play. That is what these mass delusional movements do you, be it political, religious, or sports teams for that matter. There is something in the human mind that draws people to suspend their intellectual faculties, and overate on a totally emotional subconscious level, selectively. You can't do this about everything, you would get fired, you would get fired, people would stay away from you thinking you insane. But with religion, it is accepted crazy land, so you can tread that path..
Amazing that you can get all of this crap about a fictional character that was literally made up 2000 years ago, and there is not one piece of evidence anywhere on the planet to suggest that he was real, coz he wasn't. I truly feel sorry for all you people that have been stooged all of your life. Wow!!
@@douglaidlaw740 There are many multiple different "Bible" cannons. Not to mention the "editions" of each one which slightly twist the meaning of certain things as the publishers see fit.
The Merovingian kings were by tradition descended from the family of Christ (not from Christ). They held the title of Vicar of Christ until they were destroyed through an alliance between The Carolingina kings and the Vatican. The title Vicar of Christ was transferred to the pope. Previously the pope was called the Vicar iof Peter. Or so the legend goes.
JESUS HAD A SON VIA MARY MAG John 19:25-27 25 Now there stood by the cross of Jesus his mother[Mary], and his mother's sister[in-law], Mary the wife of Cleophas[mother Mary's brother], and Mary Magdalene. 26 When Jesus therefore saw his mother, and the disciple standing by[Mary Magdalene], whom he loved, he saith unto his mother, Woman, behold thy [grand]son! [in Mary Mag's womb/pregnant.] 27 Then saith he to the disciple[Mary Mag], Behold thy mother[in-law/Jesus' mother Mary]! And from that hour that disciple[Mary Mag] took her[Jesus' mother] unto his[Jesus'] own home [The home of Jesus and his now pregnant wife Mary Magdalene] in a midwifing arrangement.
@@termination9353 🤦♂️you’re inserting things that doesn’t exist in the text. It’s all speculation. You need to prove it to the same standards beyond reasonable doubt like in a court of law for anyone to give you passing consideration. You may have better chances of proving your speculations if you can find some trace of evidence in the mishna or any Christian writing before 135 ad
@@jperez7893 Since when has any theocratic claims been held to some court of law standard? I have the documentation proving I'm the King of Israel. What court in this world will hear this case? Spare me your bullshit... you have no court of law proven beyond reasonable doubt for any of YOUR claims either. Hypocrite holding others to a higher standard than yourself.
The brothers in Acts 1:14 could be a reference to brothers in the sense of being disciples. To be sure, Luke talks about a hundred brothers in the very next line of scripture.
I’m no expert, but Luke went to a great deal of effort to downplay James, and only mentioned him when it was necessary. It’s so hard to know exactly what is meant - but honestly, “hundreds of brothers” does indeed signify a brotherhood or group - a specific meaning. And yet he says “brother” right before? Why list both descriptions if he means only “brotherhood”? I think he’s talking about Jesus’ brother, and also a brotherhood of like minded individuals. I’m babbling, I know, and I’m being as clear as mud, but I’m trying to understand.
I just reread Acts 1:14, and Luke is definitely talking about Jesus’s actual brothers. He lists the disciples, then Mary, Jesus’s mother and then says Jesus’s brothers also - Jesus’s family. In the next verse he’s talking about speaking to a group of “brothers and sisters,” or a congregation. I think it’s very clear.
@@krbailess you can’t prove it’s his brothers. I can’t prove it’s not his brothers. And that’s why it’s still so mysterious and intriguing two thousand years later!
The LORD JESUS CHRIST is GOD!! Scholars believe themselves to be smarter than GOD but they know nothing....God sits in the Heavens and laughs at them because they teach things they know nothing about.
@@mehere337 I don't understand what you're asking. How do I know? I know because the Holy Scripture tells us that God sits in the heavens and laughs. We laugh, don't we? We are created in HIS image. Also, I believe and I know. I just assume you don't believe. Why else would you ask that question? Do you want PROOF that GOD exists? Repent from your heart to HIM/JESUS CHRIST and CALL out to HIM. Read the scripture, fast and pray...talk to the LORD and you WILL receive your proof. I don't know what else to tell you. Receiving the HOLY SPIRIT is a GIFT from the LORD GOD.
Ive seen agatha traslated into English as "just," so that first makes me wonder about whether James is just or good. Abd second, heaven and earth came into being for Adam and Eve in their first state as having a conversational relationship relationship with God. The whole point of the way is a return to that relationship.
Hi James, just a thought archelogists in Pompeii said they have found ancient scriptures dating back to around Yeshua (Jesus) time. They are hoping that there maybe information regarding the early Christians. Maybe you should find out more information. The archelogists are waiting for technology to develop further to unravel these scriptures. Due to the damage of the volcano erupting. If their is any scripture in there regarding the movement. This could be extremely interesting. Xx
Some people have made the comment that Thomas dydemus was Jesus ( Yasha's) brother, in fact that word means twin I believe in greek. And then Constantine changed it to make it look like his brother was a betrayer because his brother was in fact call Thomas Judah. Not Judas Iscariot. And isn't that what Rome was always doing betraying their brothers?
I was saying the brothers of Jesus were all disciples, way back in 1997. Seemed obvious to me. All royal and aristocratic families ran dynasties. And Jesus WAS a king. R
Have you ever thought of the possibility that Jude could be Jude, the son of Jesus and not James? If the talpiot tomb is actually what you think it is?
What is Joachim in Hebrew? If it is Heli -> Heliakim then this is probably Heli the father of Joseph in Luke’s genealogy. The father of Mary in the gospel of Matthew is a different Joseph, according to the Hebrew manuscripts of Matthew. The two Josephs are two different animals, and the two genealogies are completely independent of each other. Repeated names are merely coincidental common names but completely different people altogether. The whole mess of Joachim being identified as the father of Mary originated after AD 135 after the Jews were expelled and Hebrew was systematically eradicated. So all you are left with are the ambiguous Greek translations of the Gospels
And if the rediculousness of genealogy doesn't make your spirit say, Stay here, the Bible writers are trying to communicate. The entire Bible is based on astrology, Jesus the Sun, and the disciples represent the planets/luminaries. And they each correspond to a specific body area. There never was a Bible Jesus. No family of Jesus, No Virgin birth, No No No. Allegory and Parable. Dark sayings of old. Jesus even said, These are my brothers and mother, those that do the will of the Father. Listen, I believed for 40 years the Bible was literal, leaving too many unanswered questions with only You can't know Gods ways, and God can do anything... But he can't, and it is written. Because they had chariots of iron God could not defeat them. The chariot of iron is your hard head that can't see allegory... Not You, the readers
It wasn’t about the family it was about the message and the example of his life, and making the family royal would be about the human ego and worshiping the bloodline
Yep. And it was important so that the temple elders, who put great stock in that kind of thing, would recognize God's choice. They refused, and here we are.
Also if James, brother of Jesus, was part of Jesus' ministry why are we listening to Paul instead of James? Paul was not apart of Jesus' ministry or a disciple.
How about John the Baptizer being Jesus' cousin (their mother's are sisters). John the Baptizer is the messenger/prophet that announces the Christ/Messiah. (John quotes Elijah from the old testament, I believe it is something about a parallel with old testament prophecy and Christ/Messiah being announced)
The name 'Mary' (Miriam) is a title, as is Jesus (Joshua), that is why there are so many Mary's. Mary married to Joseph followed by Mary, married to Jesus when Joseph died and Mary Clopas, married to James when Jesus was crucified.
The Baptist WAS more than a prophet. He was a martyr, he was Jesus' cousin too. So I think the meaning is that John is not only a prophet, but 'IS ALSO '...Jesus says John is greater than others but there are also people greater than John. Makes sense. Depends on the translation I guess.
Praying about this for years, some mystery here did John bring the heart of a people the challenge of holiness? Maybe that was it, the heart of the matter is where is the truest value placed and once the collective body seeks righteousness can mountains move more than in hypothetical action? Does the hear of the Creator of heaven and earth still move in great swiftness to those that cry in lamentation? Why did Jesus say that, still asking?
Josephs brother dies and Joseph steps in to raise his brothers family. being an unmarried man he does what is expected. He marries her as required and now raises his brothers children. She was pregnant at the time and the Father deceased. Making her unwed, widowed, a virgin, a fatherless birth. Joseph dies early as well in Eashoa's life. The reason Joseph isn't present at the Crucifixion, did not pay for the burial. Mary was widowed twice. Eashoa may have traveled. Being Essene he was to become a man at 12 and begin his adeptship. He came forth out of Egypt says prophecy.. Alexandria area.. Mt. Carmel. His brother James in the south at Qumaran. James is not a healer, a theraputae as Eashoa was.. Brothers with different educations - 2 schools in different locations. One law/observence, the other Prophey/medi-physical. The meek Eashoa refers to are Ebionites. Like Nazara closely linked to Essene's. Enoch was the founder of the Essene school.
(46) Jesus said, "Among those born of women, from Adam until John the Baptist, there is no one so superior to John the Baptist that his eyes should not be lowered (before him). Yet I have said, whichever one of you comes to be a child will be acquainted with the kingdom and will become superior to John.". That's the lambdin translation of saying 46 in gospel of Thomas .
I commented on this before. Paul - as his Master did - freed people. "That one does not follow you with us!" "Leave him alone" was his response. How important should Paul have made that Dynasty of Brothers of Messiah to put every Jew or Pharisee (coming from James) in a position to lord it over the ones in Asia minor, Greece, on the islands, in Spain? Paul did not fight against James. Indeed, he is the one we know it from (in the NT writings) that he was brother of the Kyrios Iesous. Paul was not just a brilliant thinker. He was a good man, too. And he cared more for those afar for whom he had taken responsibility by being teacher and friend and father to them than he cared for his own stance with those in Jerusalem. Yet, he cared for them, too, and collected support in behalf of them among the nations. His letters are full of the value (ΑΓΑΠΗ agapē) of the fathers, of Moses, of Israel as a nation. The churches (from ΚΥΡΙΑΚΗ) are not of Paul's making. (He does not even embrace that term.) Paul is not responsible as John and Simon (Peter) as James are not responsible for the idolatrous mess and doctrinal hoax that has been called church. The path to the Dynasty (ΒΑΣΙΛΕΙΑ) is and always was the narrow one. And the door is not nation, nor blood, nor kinship.
You assumed Clophas was the brother of Joseph, earthly father of the Lord, but none of the Church Fathers write about this. The Tradition says that Mary of Clophas was the sister of the Virgin Mary and the holy brothers of the Lord were His cousins. Mary remained untouched for her entire life.
I am really enjoying this book it reads as well as any thriller and is so fascinating. I am learning so much and the insight on what is written in scripture is amazing. You are laying out what you have found with the evidence but without making absolute assertions leaving us to make up our own mind. Thanks Dr Tabor great read!
...and there for his Genealogy is well known from the Kings of England and France and Russia ie EUROPA going back to 500 AD. or zero, when they thought he was born but the only thing that was BORN Again was his prophecy of the Messiah who comes NOW, ..hence backwards. The Kings do NOT come from him YET, he comes from the ancient line of Kings.. hence King of Kings.
This was better than a murder mystery. Tabor really does a great job keeping it interesting.James is such a key to origins of the early movement.
Faith is trusting in God especially in bad situations. That’s exactly what I’m doing. I’m still struggling to provide for my two autistic children since losing my job over declining the vaccine. I declined due to my pre existing health condition (Lupus) and Heart disease. I was denied my medical/religious exemption from Forsyth Hospital. My husband passed away three years ago, so I’m all alone. Both of my sons are non verbal so things are more difficult for me. Every month I don’t know how we are going to make it through. Every month is a struggle, a battle to not end up on the streets.
I’m so embarrassed by my situation. I’ve been put down and mocked over my circumstances. It’s hard to hold my head up at times BUT because of my faith God shows up every month and provides. Even as I face homelessness with two young children. I know that God will provide. He won’t leave me. Thank you Jesus.
Jesus was not God. By putting your faith in Jesus you put faith in a man; a dead man never risen; a dead man turned bones. Reject Jesus and put your faith in God.
My sister has lupus, heart condition, liver, and many more, and has had 3 Vaccines, moderna, the stongest one.
Even combined the Moderna, w shingles and another one at one visit, And yes, she was strongly subdued, but it passed and she's OK.
Trusting God, he will provide, he won't leave me...
I wouldn't count on it.
not even the popes get any help from God in their health. they all died also, no exception. Even Jesus the man died and suffered.
And the current debate of all suffering in the world.
So expecting God to...
Better, in addition to medics, have an almost perfect nutrition.
Heavy into fruits and veggies.
And if overweight, even more. A lean body is healthier.
Good luck. Haven't had my sister really commit to food as a help. She's almost morbidly obese. Won't really try.
And just like my dad, medicines did nothing.
The more he was into following Dr's orders, the worst he/she became.
Have you seen how fat medics are?
You are a real life superhero, Jesus will help you, stay strong.
Speaking as an RN, if you have heart disease, it is a reason to have the vaccine. It may be a secondary target of Covid but lethal none the less. Easy to find stories particularly of young one experiencing cardiomyopathy from Covid. Risk of any reaction is so low (but still could happen) that imo is well worth the risk. It’s been a couple years now of having the vaccines and they have tested out. On the other hand it’s a shame your employer doesn’t consider your situation.
A fascinating talk by James Tabor, with lots of lines to consider! I think where he departs into his own suppositions is where he re-writes the story to the effect that Jesus, his disciples and followers were preparing to take over the governance of Jerusalem and the Temple. Bart Ehrman similarly creates his own 'gospel' in which he re-writes the story to follow his own ideas, thus leaving written texts and imagining an 'alternative director's script' for which there is no written foundation.
....what makes this surprising is that while Tabor and Ehrman are more than happy to use written sources to professionally present the points they find evidence for, when it comes to their re-writing of the gospels with their alternative unspiritual version, they present no evidence from any written sources to support their suppositions. I think both Ehrman and Tabor who are both talented men, would serve their readers much better if they kept to research for which they have reasonable evidence, instead of including diversions into their own preferred 'alternative stories'.
In particular the alternative stories run into problems, when they are compared with the New Testament and early historical movement of the faith in Jesus as the Messiah - they don't fit and actually create problems and questions which show inconsistencies with the faith and history. In order for their alternative 'stories' to have credence, they would need to be consistent with the written sources of the NT and early history, but that is where they fail. For instance, how does James Tabor's alternative gospel explain spiritual conversions, if the movement was really only about a future physical government taking over? How does it account for some individuals being radically converted to Christ, when they were previously of a totally different mind - Paul for instance converted to Christ turning 180 degrees from being a known persecutor of Christians, to being a follower of the Christ who he only hours earlier hated with a vengeance? How does the alternative gospel explain many people following Jesus because they were being healed, drawing crowds of 5000 and 6000 men alone, if the gospel was only about a 'future' coming of the Son of Man as the Messiah to rule over Israel? If the 'alternative gospels' of Tabor and Ehrman are the true replacement for the written gospels we actually have, then how do Tabor and Ehrman explain the growth of the actual gospel movement from the 1st to the 4th centuries, during which there was phenomenal growth, if the Messiah had not returned as per the alternative gospels tend to propose? Not least, how indeed is the faith in the resurrected Jesus leading to thousands of conversions, with over 500 reported sightings of the resurrected Jesus, to explain the proposed immediacy of a replacement government of Israel?
In general, the 'earthly alternative explanations', do not fit the process of the New Testament writings contents, at all and thus such alternative gospels create an unsolvable problem.
Nevertheless, Tabor presents some interesting ideas and observations from the texts.
Yes, I agree here. I remember in the debate with Jimmy Akin, both brilliant, he tries to make it seem as though Mark did not think Jesus was divine in nature. He goes on to recount the gospel with the premise that Jesus was shocked at his crucifixion, and only the Roman guard recognized that Jesus was the Son of God. Then Akin pushed back on him, saying that Jesus did not just cry out 'Why have you forsaken me' out of pain, but in quoting Psalm 22, where the narrator triumphs despair and is united with God by the end of it. At the end of the debate Ehrman admitted that he thinks Mark wrote Jesus as divine. It's strange. Good scholars, but studies show that scholars have bigger blindspots than ordinary people.
Yes, isn't the free will grand in it's myriad of applications within the concept of perspective alone? It's wonderful to be human.
I think, and I’m surmising here because I don’t think that he actually says this, is that the early Jesus movement was following a similar path to the Essene community, where there was a belief that the Apocalypse would occur about 40 years after the death of the Founder of the movement-the Teacher of Righteousness for the Essenes, and Jesus for the Jesus movement.
What Paul does is open up the possibility that the Kingdom of God is spiritual and internal, rather than physical and external. He still believes in a physical Apocalypse, I think; but the Kingdom pre-exists the Apocalypse within the believer.
As for the idea that someone could not completely reverse their life and beliefs without divine intervention, that really involves ignoring nearly all of human experience. It’s not at all unusual for someone to completely reevaluate their life after a near-death experience. And whether you think Paul had a stroke, an epileptic seizure, heatstroke, or an encounter with the divine, it’s without question that he took his experience as a sign that he had to change his life completely.
Why?
Because it was not that long before then that his master Gamaliel literally said not to persecute Jesus’ followers because if their belief was without merit it would go away by itself, and if it was from God it would withstand their persecution *and they would find themselves opposing God*. Fast forward a bit, and Paul has a vision where God says exactly that-“Why are you opposing me?”
His master and mentor planted the idea in his mind, and it blossomed when he had his (literal) Damascus Road incident.
The thing that I find most interesting about what Dr. Tabor teaches is that so much of what he says is consistent with what is within the Bible, but just not as we want to interpret it today. He’s really just saying that Christianity is always adjusting and adapting to meet people where they are throughout time.
@@DneilB007 You make interesting points, but notice carefully that in doing them, you are subtlety bending the scripture to your own design. Tabor does this also.
You do this by carefully omitting both the context and the details that have been written in the text, so that you are producing only the extract which supports your narrative. Ehrman does similarIy. I don't mind you having an opinion or your own narrative, as long as you are honest in stating that not all the details and the context are consistent with or agree with your ideas and that therefore there are other interpretations which are closer to the actual text than your own extraction.
@@theonlyway5298 No, what I am doing is accepting the events as laid down in the Scriptures but not accepting the intentions that the writers ascribe to other people whom they would have had no access from which to learn what their intentions were.
I'm a catholic
I have no trouble with this. The essentials dont change
God is love. We are called to love. Through whatever spiritual practice you do , you receive the spirit to help you love.
To have a small sense of gaining knowledge and understanding is a profound experience.
Much thanks Dr Tabor for all your studies and your sharing them with me/us in this way. Thanks to all those involved.
I’m confused by your statement that James would endorse Noahide laws, which are created by rabbinics. The Torah is clear that there is one Torah for the children of Israel and the stranger who lives among them (Num 15:16 and Ex 12:49). With regard to circumcision, even Abraham’s servants were circumcised (Gen 17:27). The whole of the Neviim is about returning to GOD and keeping his eternal Torah, so this bit has me somewhat perplexed about James, as i do believe he was Torah observant and would have welcomed "Gentiles" to adopt the ways of the Torah and receive a name "better than (natural born) sons" (Is 56).
He says Torah and not the law ( 10 commandments) because then people would equate him to such as messianic Jews , SDA, and SDB. and other Saturday Shabboth keepers.
@@Phillip-n3g According to the Torah in Exodus, anyone who keeps the whole of the 10 Words, the Covenant, is considered "a special treasure above all the peoples of the earth." When the Israelites left Egypt, they were a mixed multitude, and even Joseph's own sons (the sons who bear the name of Israel) were half Egyptian. The problem with Christianity and Judaism is that both groups routinely violate at least one commandment of The Covenant. Judaism will not speak His Name, in violation of the 3rd Command to never bring His Name to nothing. And Christians/SDA/Messianics violate any variety of the 10, but most importantly, they profane the Covenant by worshiping a god who is not YHWH.
I agree with you 100%. I posted but i think it got gobbled up .by the rat traps.
been hooked on Dr. Tabor's lectures... so much interesting stuff, can't stop watching
This is a very interesting perspective on this topic, hoping to see more on it.
Bless you Dr. James Tabor.
There are a lot of references to the handout. It might be useful to provide the handout in pdf form.
Indeed
I think the Talpiot tomb is legit. When we put the ossuaries inside in combination with the James ossuary we have the entire family.
I was watching a documentary where a statistician discussed the probability that all those names would be in there together and not be the Jesus family and he said the odds were infinitesimally low.
Love the work of Tabor and Eisenman. Their lifetimes of work I consider miraculous and inspiring…the family of Joseph and Mary deserves more inspection and serious study.
Just bought your book, Dr Tabor, and I'm starting it tonight. I'm really looking forward to it. Keep up the great work, I'm slowly catching up with your posts.
Dr. Tabor, you have somewhat convincingly shown that Jesus' brothers James, Simon, and Judas were included in the 12 apostles. However, in Mark chapter 3, Jesus chose the apostles but then in Mark 3:20-35 we read that Jesus' family including his brothers tried to restrain him from preaching. Does this not put in question your thesis?
Khalaf means progenitor a person or thing from which a person, animal, or plant is descended or originates; an ancestor or parent.
"his sons and daughters were the progenitors of many of Scotland's leading noble families"
Jesus seemed to know this was a last opportunity for Israel which would be destroyed without a great awakening. Did he foresee all the death and destruction. Or the great falling away even after all he suffered for us? Yes, i suppose. He certainly understood the prophets--completely beyond me.
At 23:00 I believe this word is also related to the Arabic caliph which I think is of Aramaic origin.
Interesting. Also, not a coincidence that Christians are called Al-Nasaara in Arabic. Same as the Nazarenes.
@@ahmedopone4080the real followers of Christ followed the Thora
Years ago I was in Jerusalem visiting an antiquity shop, Venus gallery. While I was there, the owner introduced me to Mr. Ogden Golan. Mr. Golan asked if I thought the James ossuary was authentic? I replied if he knew of the Evangelist Oral Roberts? Mr. Golan, replied yes. I said well then Reverend Roberts saw a six-story Jesus. Which means to me the family would be much too large to fit in that small ossuary. 😮 This was during the Court trials. Later, the owner of Venus gallery stated, you know, Ogden hasn't laughed that hard in a long time...😊
Cleophas is mentioned as the husband of one of the Mary's at the foot of the cross in John but there was a Cleopas in Luke 24, who was one of the guys on the road to Emmaus.
It is presumed that Cleopas was the surname of Simon Cleopas because Luke records Jesus appearing to Simon and it could not have been Simon Peter that he was referring to.
Luke 24:34 - Saying, The Lord is risen indeed, and hath appeared to Simon.
I mean, I'm just guessing but up to that verse, Jesus hadn't appeared to any of the apostles but He did appear to the two men on the road to Emmaus.
But scholars said that in those day people had no surname.
@@solomonlee4503 - And this is what I love about "scholars". I never heard the word "surname" until I started reading the King James Bible. (I was like 17-years old at the time.)
Now the "scholars" (who are so much smarter than I am) are telling me that people didn't have surnames in those days. Gee, I wonder where the translators got their stupid information. The translators don't know as much as these brilliant "scholars".
Trust me. That's not scholarship, that's bull ship.
I think Occam's Razor leads us to BROTHER MEANS BROTHER.
There's so many James because it was actually one of the more common names, Jacob. The KJV translated all instances of Jacob except for the most famous, to James in honor of the king.
That's correct and that's why in my Complete Jewish Bible translation it is Ya'akov (Jacob) Thanks so much for reminding me !
Was it done to honour the King, or was it because James as the Greek form of James? The New Testament was written in Greek "as she is spoke," with differences from the literary "koine."
@@douglaidlaw740 Iakobos is the Greek form of the name, not James
@@douglaidlaw740 Yes and No. When "Jacob's Well" is mentioned in the NT, it is not called "James' Well" it is just called "Jacob's Well." But also, neoJacob was not translated as "James" in order to "honor the king of England"... it was translated as "James" because it was an already English sounding word that meant "Usurper" which is what "Jacob" means "Yah(weh) Usurps". The guy that translated the more original Latin version into the "pre-King James Version" said he didn't like how confusing the Latin version "Jacobus" confused people with thinking there was a deeper or mythical connection with the Old Testament. Thus he figured a "white lie" or "half truth" by changing only the "new jacobs" into "james" would only help Christianity and thus assure him theo-fascistic-monarchial immortality.
I think its enlightening that apart from James, many of the original apostles were sons of high priests and similar.as judaism/early Christian period was a theocracy, with titles like high priest handed down from father to son. So many of the apostles were wealthy and influential in Israel, which explains a bit why the pre Pauline Christians were considered dangerous.
Alecbrown66• where is the proof of what you are saying? If most of the apostles were rich, then why didn’t they just go buy the food to feed the multitude instead of relying on Jesus to produce a miracle.
The Word does say that the apostles fed the people not Christ.
If all the Apostles had all this power and influence, why were they all crucified, stoned, and beheaded?
@@Tro349it might be because any types of a conceivable threat to the power of roman authority was instantly dealt with death. The temple worshipping was only allowed because it was an easy way to continue to keep the Hebrew people superstitiously emotionally pacified by allowing them to continue to worship their GODS EL and Yahweh in the temple. It's a much safer way to be able to control the Empires annexed province, and its people. As long as the priesthood didn't preach revolting against the roman occupation, then the Romans wouldn't have to pay the expenses for the military to have to put down the revolution against rome. The people were already paying taxes as a tribute to the power of rome for their protection from other invaders.
We Are Still Here ❤ , AB negative
Where is the rest of the video?
??
Through Dr. Tabor, I’ve recently discovered James, and I found this entire lecture riveting. I can tell already, I will listen to this over and over again. Thank you, thank you! ❤
check out Robert Eisenman on James
@@PatriceBoivin I’ve heard he’s done a lot of work on James. I’ve been thinking about ordering his book - I’ve read it’s the best work on James thus far. You’ve convinced me. I’m going to order it today. 😊
@@PatriceBoivin I did it! I ordered (and received) Dr. Eisenman’s book on James. It’s absolutely fascinating and I’m enjoying it so much. Thank you again for your recommendation. ❤️
Me too!!!!!
I was James, my people stoned me, i reincarnated, read my parables please, 👍👍How many parables Jesus gave us? 50-60? He was bigger than Jesus. Shlomi the Messiah from Israel gave us more than 200 parables. My favorite is called 'The poor farmer and the precious wine' 🙏🙏
Matthew 13:55
55 "Isn't this the carpenter's son? Isn't his mother's name Mary, and aren't his brothers James, Joseph, Simon and Judas?
Joseph did not die young. The false narrative - Mary as virgin; Jesus as God - required virginity and getting rid of Joseph and Jesus’ siblings. They even renamed Joseph as Joseph of Arimithea. Jesus was put in his father’s tomb.
Yeah this dude was overcomplicating things when there are other texts giving evidence that they're all Joseph's children
Galatians 1:18 Paul stayed with Peter for 15 days in that time he he said he only saw James the Lord's brother.
Im not sure where you're getting that Paul never went Peter.
James Tabor is a great intelectual and communicator.
🤡
If John Baptist said Jesus is the great one everybody was waiting for... then how come there were two separate groups; Jesus and his disciples while there was John and HIS disciples. How was it that John did not step down and hand over his followers to Jesus?
Seriously? They would've worshipped Moses' bones if they'd have found them, they were a very superstitious people, for lack of a better term, that would follow anyone exhibiting any type of Supernatural knowledge.
Actually, none of what you just said happened anyway because, hate to break it to you, Jebus wasn't real. He's made up, in your head, fake, fiction, created by man to control man, not a real person.
It really is that simple.
@@Fred-hk7wk Nobody cares what you don't believe.
@@termination9353 good for you. I just can't believe that in this day and age, with all the knowledge and experts we have, with how many times this stuff has been conclusively proven to be all lies, that people are still so gullible as to believe a 2000 + year old book, written by ancient, ignorant, uneducated primitives, to control more ignorant, uneducated primitives.
That basically means that anyone that still believes this garbage is 10 X dumber than anyone that lived over 2000 years ago. Hardly something to be proud of.
For the record, I was a Christian, until I was at an age where I was smart enough to figure out that it's all garbage, 10.
Spent the next 30 studying the Buybull and now know more than any Christian ever will.
Don't be a fool for life.
John the Baptist was pointing to the coming of the Messiah. He never said that he was the anointed one. Rather, his ministry was to remind the people that "one greatet than he" was coming. When Jesus came to John to be baptized, he said, "Behold, the Lamb of God." At that moment John understood that Jesus was now on the scene and that his duty to tell everyone about the coming Messiah was done. "He must increase and I must decrease. At this point, John's followers began following Jesus.
Not sure if this matters, James, but in the Hispanic culture, multiple children can have the same name. Within his family, several boys are named “Ruben”. My husband’s mother had 10 siblings; and of the girls were named “Maria.”
That appears to be a Catholic tradition. It is the same in Canada. It used to be all boys had the first name of Joseph and the girls all had the first name of Mary (Maria is Spanish, Marie in French, Moira in Irish) given on their birth certificate by the priest, then the parents would give the second given name which was usually the name used by the family, example Mary Lorraine, or Joseph Donald.
George Foreman named all his kids George I think
@@ChristopherCudworth I was going to write: "George Foreman would." But you beat me to it.
What the hell is wrong with this grammar in your sentences?
@@ChristopherCudworthPtolemy I named both of his sons Ptolemy. So this definitely happened at that time as well, especially in the Hellenistic world that the Moabites were rebelling against and thus were obviously contemporaneous with.
I have read the book; it was more sensible than some of these preachers, but it was unscientific. Right through the book, the author condemned John's Gospel as worthless -- until the last chapter, where John is the only Evangelist who supports him, and suddenly becomes the "fair-haired boy!" I am still wondering how an Unbeliever became the Head of a theological college.
It is mind opening to hear this hypothesis, it does has convincing evidence if we were to dig more deeply. Thank you James.
Why is Professor Tabor still speaking as if the Talpiot tomb could possibly be related to the family of Jesus? This was conclusively disproved years ago.
Disproved? The "evidence" they use is the commonality of the names inscribed on the ossuaries and their faith that if Jesus was bodily resurrected, he wouldn't need an ossuary for his bones. But the constellation of all those names connected with Jesus in one tomb makes it statistically likely that this was indeed the tomb of Jesus of Nazareth and his family, and Tabor has spoken and written repeatedly about what the Biblical understanding of resurrection involved. It wasn't a reconstitution of the decayed flesh, but a spiritual resurrection.
if james was the leader it could have been redundant to say to the particular audience luke was writing for because it was known.
Enjoying your research. When you or anyone else can prove Paul knew Yeshua please let it be known. Blessings to all.
Yeshua Stopped him on the road on his journey. He said I Am the Lord. The Lord is described throughout scripture as Jesus Christ/Yeshua...as The Lord God. I take it you dont believe the Holy Scripture but take a mans word/studies over the bible. Im asking..
I came for the Ebionites & was fulfilled somewhat. To the victors goes the spoils of war. Hence why we'll never know the truth.
Does this say anything about Jesus sisters and where did they ever go?
Why does Jesus say to Peter that he will be the rock that he builds his tempel on and suddenly he's not mentioned at all?
Whew, at just two minutes into this video I am aghast by the creative assertions about John and James. Theories rivaling Q-anon! But, I do find fiction fascinating. Dr. Tabor, a rational historian, is interesting as a free thinker, but I pray he returns to his Messiah and His Church, before it's too late (death). I'll watch the rest of the video for my entertainment and the occasional gems he drops. Peace (from the Restoration and Unity Movement)!
Thanks for posting this -
While I respect James Tabor and believe he is doing valuable work when it comes to the study and teachings on the DSS and non-canonical writings, I feel compelled to argue against at least one point he makes in the video. And as well, share some information that he has not considered.
Regarding John the Baptist. Christ said what he did about him because John was the Righteous Teacher that the Essenes were waiting for him. So he was indeed more than a prophet.
Regarding James. It is true that we find in the Gospel According to Thomas that Christ named his half brother to be the head of the Church in Jerusalem. And this is important. But what Mr. Tabor failed neglected to mention is that all 3 are said to be priests. And this is very important. Because the DSS state the Yahad would be established by way of 3 priests and 12 laymen.
This then is why Christ chose 12 laymen to be his inner circle. Then what we see is that all 3 priests come from the same family.
For John the Baptist was the 1st priest that was the voice in the wilderness who ushered in the Messiah.
Christ was the 2nd priest and the high priest in the order of Melchezedek. And James was the 3rd priest that was the head of the Church after Christ went to be with his Father in Heaven.
Regarding the brothers and sisters of Christ. The Protevangelion (Gospel of James) tells us Joseph was an old many with children. And as a widower married Marry. So I will go with this very clear teaching from a writing that I consider to be inspired.
Additionally, the prophecy of 3 priests and 12 laymen establishing the Yahad described in the DSS is based on a prophecy and vision described in the Book of the words of Gad the seer. For in that prophecy/vision we see Yahweh placing a crown on the head of a lamb, who we know today to be the Christ, and Son of God. That crown is then described as being made up of 3 shepherds that were connected by 12 chains made of gold and coated in silver.
The 12 chains are clearly the 12 laymen chosen by the lamb to be his apostles. And the 3 shepherds are the 3 priests described in the Essene prophecy. And we now know the 3 shepherds/priests come from the same family (John the Baptist, Yahshua, and James the half/step brother of Christ).
It doesn't really matter. Xtianity is pure pagan idolatry created by the Romans. There is no eyewitness testimony of Jesus and no documents by Jesus either. There is 0 evidence of his existence or the whole scenario written in the xtian writings.
If simon is in his 70s in the year 62 ce would'nt that make him older than jesus?
Dr. Tabor is fantastic bringing Jesus to the masses but, the sound quality is not good for older folks.
You were better to say "Israelitish" than "Jewish", inasmuch as most jews are not Israelites, but Kenites, nor were most of them Israelites in the first century. Even in Encyclopaedia Judaica is written "Much of Edom is in modern jewry". Edom took wives of the children of Cain, who, in either Targum or Apocrypha (I forgot which) was son of the Serpent, as affirmed by Jesus in his accusations against "the children of your father the devil, who was the first murderer". Mitochondrial (female side) DNA of Ashkenazim is not jewish but from four Mediterranean European women.
Listen to Prem Rawat!
Would expect to have the date of the presentation. Looks like about 2002.
Oh it's your channel - very good then. I find this super-duper important. So was this presentation timed with the publication in 2006?
Galatians 1:19 - Adelphos -- ETYMOLOGY: from Delphus, from the womb -- DEFINITION: BROTHER. James was from the same womb as Jesus, at least according to the author of Galatians.
Would the Apostles mention the re marriage of Mary if she did?
Having a meditative experience of Christ makes you a brother of Christ.
" Khalaf " in Arabic means the substitute , the heir or the descendant.
Always wondered what "Caliphate" referred/alluded to, in place of some word that would directly translate to "kingdom."
They always say that celibacy is foreign to Judaism, but the Essenes were celibate and they were Jewish. I think it's only foreign to later Judaism, not to it as it was 2000 plus years ago.
Essenes were a Zoroastrian cult and Judaism was a created religion in 2Kings 17 by mixing Ashima/Hashem with the worship of Yahuah.
The God Culture has excellent research that proves it out
Celibacy is certainly foreign to the Old Testament. It was only Later Judaism (such as sects called Essenes) that had mixed with Zoroastrian and Buddhist monastic ideas that wanted to "purify" themselves by "doing one better" than avoiding the wife during her "monthly unclean time" by avoiding a wife at all... many Greco-Roman priestesses already did this and remaining virgin was seen as a "superpower" to a lot of lusting dummies.
@@lisakimbrell1406checked them out and he's claiming the garden of eden was in the Philippines. No surprise he has a Philippina wife. Pass
@@Baccanaso they don't "claim" anything. They literally PROVE IT.
Your loss ...
@@lisakimbrell1406 I doubt it is..... It seems more likely it's your burden. Try to be less suggestible...remember when you watch a screen you enter an alpha trance.... but remember to engage your discernment.... not everything on a screen is the truth.
Mr. Tabor's opening comment that Jesus' statement "but he who is least in the Kingdom is greater than he" is easily and plainly reconciled. And, yes: Jesus said it. Why? Jesus tells you: "The law and the prophets were until John" (Luke 16:6). John the Baptist may have been the greatest prophet in the Old Testament where the Holy Ghost was external to all men, but Jesus represents the New Testament where even the least person has the Holy Ghost dwelling in them, making even the smallest Christian greater than any Old Testament prophet bound to ritual, sacrifices, and waiting on God. Surely, this is not that hard to figure out.
Actually, I think it's possible Jesus might have said that, but the reason his follow-up is reconcilable is not because of the new covenant replacing he old one or that Christian interpretation is superior to the Jewish one as you seem to imply. That's Pauline doctrine, and would not reflect Jesus' own teaching, which are still very committed to the law of Moses (remember, Jesus said he came not to abolish the law but to fulfill it; that is, he wasn't trying to say, like Paul, the Old Testament is no longer important, so much as he was trying to redirect people to the spiritual basis for the law).
The Holy Ghost has always dwelt among the righteous of Israel. It's an idea that goes back to the Old Testament called the Ru'ach hakodesh and has nothing to do with Trinitarianism which is definitely not Jewish. It can be understood as inspiration; God's inspiration, which John the Baptist and previous prophets would have been full of. You could say, in modern parlance, that it was the guiding consciousness that would see to it that God's will prevailed in the early (still entirely Jewish) Nazarene church.
. Jesus was living at a time when many Jews of different sects (including the Pharisees and Essenes, but not the Sadducees) believed that God's Kingdom was an immanent historical event that would put an end to the corrupt age full of all kinds of evils and hardships people had faced, from the Roman occupation, to inequality, to death and disease. It was a dualistic paradigm that may go back to the Zoroastrians during the Babylonian and Persian periods, that surely had an influence on inter-testamental Jewish thought.
The kingdom was essentially a restored Earth in which righteousness would prevail, and we would be given new bodies free from sickness and death..but only those who had shown themselves worthy of entrance would be given it; the rest would experience not life but eternal nonexistence - what is called the 'second death'. They would not be resurrected.
When Jesus says that whoever is least in the kingdom is greater than John, this has nothing to do with righteousness, or judging John not worthy of entrance. If that were the case (and John is the greatest person who ever lived) of course no one else would be in the kingdom. The greatness would be that of the restored form that the all of the resurrected righteous would have, John included.
Jesus was trying to inspire hope in how great things would soon be for those enduring the present hardships of the world. Following John, Jesus set out to prepare people for the kingdom. In order for them to enter heaven (which was not a celestial destination but an transformed Earth) heaven had to first enter them....hence the kingdom of heaven being within.
There is ,in later roman writings documentation that jesus family descendants,were still alive living in galillee,about 60 years on from the crucifixion they are questioned and released being poor farmers but later on they are again called and executed by the roman emperor ,so it was dangerous to be associated with Jesus's family and no doubt his family would have gone into hiding,rather than face death.
Or did they go to Spain. James was tricked into returning to Jerusalem and was murdered by the high priest.
fascinating and riveting! Thank you.
Dr. Tabor, I've been following you for a couple of years now and your life's work fascinates me. Thank you for sharing what you know on this amazing topic! My question is this: What can we believe about Christ's Church now? Looks to me like the "Dynasty" failed and now I'm very suspicious of the Paulian legacy... Catholic Church?
isn’t the RCC the Petrine legacy?
robart graves spells out a very similar story in his book 'King Jesus'. recommended.
Thank you Dr Tabor. You bring to life the history of ancient times.
James & John the Baptist is the two edged of the sword that comes out jesus's mouth metaphor , ? Makes more since then James& Jude, since Jesus considered him his Messiah , Jude got tossed n to finish there dynasty out ,& appears a fade out of ending story , getting these people mindset , & learning there's a 3rd major team involved wow ! Great job of searching with your soul earnestly,
The La Sagrada Familia in Barcelona, is the church related to the history of the Jesus family? I know family is different from a dynasty. But the name of the church is very unique.
I love this stuff! What a font of information you are!
Dear Mr. Tabor: I highly respect you first of all. My friend has verbally told me about all of your books in detail. It triggered my memories. I know about Jesus' sister Salome and I would like to speak with you somehow for a moment. Thank you. Blessings.
This man is like the Columbo of Christianity. . I would like some other opinions on this theory to speak up. Scholars not theologians. Theologians always back the church of Rome over the Jerusalem church on faith. Luke Acts is a cleaner theology than the slightly later ones of the four primary gospels that split up the early Church. Scholarship has less bias in my opinion. Even today it is not clear that Christianity has a unity, a consensus on doctrine. Even within say Baptist followers it is not uncommon for ministers to call each other out. Televangelists seem to be the biggest targets but authors, famous people except Trump oddly enough, tend to mix it up. Some of this war rages even here on UA-cam which I love to see!
another great lecture by Professor Tabor. No student loans needed!
If John Baptist said Jesus is the great one everybody was waiting for... then how come there were two separate groups; Jesus and his disciples while there was John and HIS disciples. How was it that John did not step down and hand over his followers to Jesus?
I love your channel. Thank you for your hard work!
@@termination9353 Aside from Jesus, John is one of the most significant figure in the gospel. His birth parallels that of Jesus but was also such a momentous event similar to the birth of Isaac to Sarah and Abraham. John’s ministry was like those “The end is here” type ministers but I would imagine due to the events of those times the scenario makes since. So it’s like Jesus spoke of love where John spoke of the end but the message of both was the same, “the kingdom of heaven is upon us”. I don’t think the disciples of the 2 would have been able to commingle because the disciples followed based on the message or I guess delivery style of Jesus and John.
@@ImaginaryWear John is "least in the kingdom of heaven'.
@@termination9353did you not watch this video? Dr Tabor addresses that quote in the first 15-20 minutes.
Can someone please reply to this with the name of the book on the gospel of Thomas by April
I'm not sure what you are asking.
There are two gospels attributed to Thomas. The one is an obvious forgery that describes his early childhood. And in it he actually kills someone he didn't like.
The other is called the Gospel According to Thomas and is made up entirely of the sayings and teachings of Christ. And it is in this one that he names James to be the one to head the Church in Jerusalem.
Brilliant as usual. Thanks
Virgin, that time-period, mean's unzzwed not untouched.
If Joseph had any living children when he died, levirate marriage would not have applied; in fact, Mary would have been forbidden to marry Joseph’s brother.
We also need to ask a simple question. What do the apostles or disciples gain of not reporting the marriage of Jesus to Madgalen ?
I have always thought about this
@@joycewambui4007 The Apostles were married .. except for one or two ..It would have been more a topic for them to have discussed with Jesus . In fact it would have been an advantage for married popes bishops and priests in the early church ..opt to marry like Jesus
@@tommyjones2708 I highly suspect that they DID report of the marriage.
@@jamesmaxwell9289 And the reason to hide the fact ? He could have asked Madgalen to care for his mother ..but at the foot of the cross he asked John ..
If the Church had to censor this it is as l said doesn't make sense . It would have been better reason for popes bishops and priests of the Roman Clergy marry like the Eastern Orthodox Catholic Churches
i highly doubt jesus would marry when jesus asks his followers to give up everything to follow him. Eveb their family
Jesus accended to heaven and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. If you want to understand the Bible you should read it or listen to a audio version of it if you can't read and ask Jesus to help you understand it.
During his time on earth, Jesus would have asked to state or write the year he was born.
What would be his responce?
This is all very interesting. I'm beginning to put this together; it seems there are multiple sources that state Thomas, was "didymos," (twin) to the Lord. So apparently Jesus had a twin brother. I'm pulling this directly from Professor Hugh Montomery's book, The God-Kings of Outremer. He is citing the Abdius Manuscript, as well as Nag Hamadi books, i.e., The Gospel of Thomas. If the Gospel of Thomas can be trusted ("Thomas wrote it down"), it means Jesus' twin could write, which means they probably both received some education in their early years.
I’ve never heard of that theory before.
By claiming that Mary was "ever virgin," they are saying that sex, even within marriage, is somehow a sin.
The Gospel of John never mentions Mary, the mother of Jesus, by her name. Interesting. SHe is described as Jesus' mother, but never by name.
My cousin was born into a family where all the girls were named Mary and all the boys were named Joseph. They went by their middle names throughout life.
Luke is guilty of revisionist history. Example, when Jesus is arrested, his disciples do NOT run away but "follow at a distance."
So when Joseph died she married [ mary) married his brother????
That's according to ancient Hebrew custom.
Thank you Mr Tabor for this lecture. I really enjoyed it.
JESUS HAD A SON VIA MARY MAG John 19:25-27
25 Now there stood by the cross of Jesus his mother[Mary], and his mother's sister[in-law], Mary the wife of Cleophas[mother Mary's brother], and Mary Magdalene.
26 When Jesus therefore saw his mother, and the disciple standing by[Mary Magdalene], whom he loved, he saith unto his mother, Woman, behold thy [grand]son! [in Mary Mag's womb/pregnant.]
27 Then saith he to the disciple[Mary Mag], Behold thy mother[in-law/Jesus' mother Mary]! And from that hour that disciple[Mary Mag] took her[Jesus' mother] unto his[Jesus'] own home [The home of Jesus and his now pregnant wife Mary Magdalene] in a midwifing arrangement.
@@termination9353why do you miss read, John 19: 25-27. Christ is not talking about, Mary Magdalene as the Disciple he loved.
But John is referring to himself. The evidence is that John never referred to himself as John, but always referred to himself as the disciple whom Christ loved.
Christ is telling Mary his mother that John is now to be considered her son and telling John to take his mother, to his house and that he, John is responsible for her as a son would be to his mother.
If Mary Magdalene was pregnant with Christ’s son, that would mean that Christ had sinned, unless he was married to her. If not, it would’ve been fortification. There is no evidence that Christ was married to Mary Magdalene. So how could Christ have died on the cross without sin, if he sinned?
Don’t just tell a lie! Prove it though scriptures and not just what you say in brackets!
@@Tro349 John didn't write the book of John. Gospel says John wasn't at the crucifixion cause the Apostles were in hiding "for fear of the Jews." Gospel says Lazarus and Mary Magdalene are the disciples Jesus loved. There never was multiple Gospels by multiple authors. The Gospel was originally one book, written by Lazarus in consultation with the Apostles [John 21:24] and published soon after Jesus left them on their own. The religion was hijacked by Rome, the Gospel was broken up scrambled adulterated into a bunch of competing narratives. Later four of those adulterated gospels were canonized with falsely ascribed authorship and a Gnosticism cover-story. It was the finding of an original Gospel of Jesus scroll in Jerusalem that gained the Knights Templar power over the Church and their eventual undoing when the church finally retaliated against them Friday 13th.
John 21:24 "This is the disciple[whom Jesus loved/ Lazarus] which testifieth of these things, AND WROTE THESE THINGS: and we[Apostles] know that his testimony is true."
John 11:5
Now Jesus LOVED Martha, and her sister(MARYMAGDALENE), and LAZARUS
John 11:3
Therefore his sisters sent unto him{Jesus], saying, Lord, behold, HE[Lazarus] WHOM THOU LOVEST is sick..
John11:36 Then said the Jews, Behold how he[Jesus] LOVED him[Lazarus]!
@@Tro349 How is Jesus having a child a sin?
@@Tro349 why would Jesus mother go live in a strange man's home when she was not a widow, Joseph is not dead or gone, and she was not destitute?
Hi
Wasn’t ‘James’s’ real name Yacov? And it was only changed to ‘ James’ to coincide with king James who had the ‘ King James Bible’ translation get done?
And I heard elsewhere that the Davidic family BRANCH ( Jesus’s near relatives)remaining in Bethlehem during the Hasmonean reign FLED to Nazareth ( Netzer/Branch)from Bethlehem BECAUSE THEY FELT THREATENED BY THE HASMONEAN ( Maccabean) Dynasty wanting to perpetuate their ruler ship into the future!
Shalom to us only in Christ Yeshua returning soon to reign over the world government from Jerusalem.
This is correct, in Hebrew and Arabic James is Yakoov/b
I read The Jesus Dynasty the year it was first released, as well as book James the Brother of Jesus and The Lost Religion of Jesus. I had converted from Christianity to 12er Shi'ite Islam in 1999 at the age of 39, so I was very interested in the research done by Dr. James Tabor and others. There is the concept of 12 Imams which follower those Prophets who are also Messengers (i.e. bring a divine law). So, I personally believe the was a Jesus Dynasty. We name Peter, James, Simon, and Jude as the first four "Imams" after Prophet Jesus the Christ.
Dr. Tabor's comments on the list by Eusebius is really helpful because we didn't know how to deal with the extra names in the list.
I shared this video on Facebook for my Christian and Muslim friends interested in these things. We may draw different conclusions, but the knowledge also demonstrates what Jews, Christians, and Muslims do have in common.
Peter Voerding Very interesting! Can you give a source for the first 4 Imams being Peter, James, Simon and Jude? I'd like to look it up.
Are you a Muslim now?!!! ua-cam.com/video/DR7_YQ53lfI/v-deo.html
Hope these videos will help you further...
Salamunalaykum wa rahmatollahi wa barakatu
Can you let me know if you find aprils book on the gospel of Thomas
They all think they are correct, and none can prove it. That is what they have "in common".
Good riddance... don't come back.
More solid Awesome from Dr. Tabor.
Great and very ignored topic. Some have suggested that the family of Jesus only joined his movement after the crucifixion. All reference to his family/brothers in the canonical gospels is of their disbelief in the ministry of Jesus. Only in Acts 1 do we see his family participating in the movement, just in time for Pentecost. I understand that Prof Tabor would see the identical names of various disciples as unacknowledged family members. But one must then reconcile the repeated gospel reference to the disbelief and rejection of Jesus by his family.
The simplest explanation is that Jesus's family did disbelieve in him but came around after his death. Why would they come to his ministry only after his death? The obvious explanation would be the encounter with the risen Jesus by James, his brother, testified to by Paul in 1 Corinthians 15:6-7.
Yes, Tabor is not a good scholae and "forgets" facts that shoot his silly theory to blazes. If Cleophus had married Mary, someone would have mentioned that. It would have to be after Jesus was 12 because Like 2 says Joseph was still alive then, so the half brothers and sisters would be teens or younger at the crucifixion. Tabor has Cleophus having sex with Mary but apparently either we are to believe Joseph got none.
Further follow-up. Tabor again cannot keep his facts straight. in 62AD he has Simeon the son of Cleophus taking James the Just's place. Tabor says Simeon is "in his 70s" BUT he still wants this Simeon to be Jesus' half brother and James brother. Since Jesus was born somewhere between 4 BC and 0 AD, Jesu would be 62-67 years old in 62 AD. How could his younger brother be in his 70s?? By Tabor's theory the Mary/Cleophus marriage came after Jesus' death and even the oldest brother James had to be at least 13 years YOUNGER than Jesus if Cleophus was the father. Means James would then have been no older than 54 in 62 AD and Simeon younger than that. Even if they both were sons of Joseph and Mary born right in line after Jesus , they could be no older than 66 and 65. Tabor is not a scholar.
Just think about what you said in the last sentence. You think the obvious explanation is an actual encounter. Today, we would say he had a hallucination. If you said anyone actually had an encounter with the spirit world, you would be looked on as an uneducated person. But you suspend your rational thinking process where religion comes into play. That is what these mass delusional movements do you, be it political, religious, or sports teams for that matter. There is something in the human mind that draws people to suspend their intellectual faculties, and overate on a totally emotional subconscious level, selectively. You can't do this about everything, you would get fired, you would get fired, people would stay away from you thinking you insane. But with religion, it is accepted crazy land, so you can tread that path..
@@PraiseDog Fair point. I was speaking from the narrative logic of the scripture.
Amazing that you can get all of this crap about a fictional character that was literally made up 2000 years ago, and there is not one piece of evidence anywhere on the planet to suggest that he was real, coz he wasn't.
I truly feel sorry for all you people that have been stooged all of your life. Wow!!
Awesome analysis! So how is it that after 2,000 years we haven't convened a group of scholars to straighten out the Holy Writ?
If the Bible was written with God's finger, interfering with the received text is not allowed.
@@douglaidlaw740 There are many multiple different "Bible" cannons. Not to mention the "editions" of each one which slightly twist the meaning of certain things as the publishers see fit.
One word; one place; the reason it was obfuscated to begin with; Rome.
@@douglaidlaw740I would agree with that if you were only speaking of the TaNaKh...
I’m not Catholic, yet he brought children into the marriage, he was Holy..but a very righteous man. I love Joseph as a man.
The Merovingian kings were by tradition descended from the family of Christ (not from Christ). They held the title of Vicar of Christ until they were destroyed through an alliance between The Carolingina kings and the Vatican. The title Vicar of Christ was transferred to the pope. Previously the pope was called the Vicar iof Peter. Or so the legend goes.
That came from the imagination of dan brown 😂
Whaaaaat ???? Some proof about ???????????
JESUS HAD A SON VIA MARY MAG John 19:25-27
25 Now there stood by the cross of Jesus his mother[Mary], and his mother's sister[in-law], Mary the wife of Cleophas[mother Mary's brother], and Mary Magdalene.
26 When Jesus therefore saw his mother, and the disciple standing by[Mary Magdalene], whom he loved, he saith unto his mother, Woman, behold thy [grand]son! [in Mary Mag's womb/pregnant.]
27 Then saith he to the disciple[Mary Mag], Behold thy mother[in-law/Jesus' mother Mary]! And from that hour that disciple[Mary Mag] took her[Jesus' mother] unto his[Jesus'] own home [The home of Jesus and his now pregnant wife Mary Magdalene] in a midwifing arrangement.
@@termination9353 🤦♂️you’re inserting things that doesn’t exist in the text. It’s all speculation. You need to prove it to the same standards beyond reasonable doubt like in a court of law for anyone to give you passing consideration. You may have better chances of proving your speculations if you can find some trace of evidence in the mishna or any Christian writing before 135 ad
@@jperez7893 Since when has any theocratic claims been held to some court of law standard?
I have the documentation proving I'm the King of Israel. What court in this world will hear this case?
Spare me your bullshit... you have no court of law proven beyond reasonable doubt for any of YOUR claims either. Hypocrite holding others to a higher standard than yourself.
The brothers in Acts 1:14 could be a reference to brothers in the sense of being disciples. To be sure, Luke talks about a hundred brothers in the very next line of scripture.
yeah i agree
this is why many scholars discredit tabor. he sometimes glosses over things that should be noted, like your example
I’m no expert, but Luke went to a great deal of effort to downplay James, and only mentioned him when it was necessary. It’s so hard to know exactly what is meant - but honestly, “hundreds of brothers” does indeed signify a brotherhood or group - a specific meaning. And yet he says “brother” right before? Why list both descriptions if he means only “brotherhood”? I think he’s talking about Jesus’ brother, and also a brotherhood of like minded individuals. I’m babbling, I know, and I’m being as clear as mud, but I’m trying to understand.
I just reread Acts 1:14, and Luke is definitely talking about Jesus’s actual brothers. He lists the disciples, then Mary, Jesus’s mother and then says Jesus’s brothers also - Jesus’s family. In the next verse he’s talking about speaking to a group of “brothers and sisters,” or a congregation. I think it’s very clear.
@@krbailess you can’t prove it’s his brothers. I can’t prove it’s not his brothers. And that’s why it’s still so mysterious and intriguing two thousand years later!
“Mary” Was a title for a priestess
No, it was the name for a human sacrifice. Meriah.
"mary" means _to rebel_
Nonsense. All of the Marys in antiquity couldn't have been priestesses.
More important than knowing who is the brother of who is knowing that Jesus was 100% human and never claimed he was more than that.
The LORD JESUS CHRIST is GOD!! Scholars believe themselves to be smarter than GOD but they know nothing....God sits in the Heavens and laughs at them because they teach things they know nothing about.
@@SometimeAgo65You speak like you're God. How do you know God sits and laughs at anything?
@@mehere337 BECAUSE THE HOLY SCRIPTURE TELLS US THAT HE SITS IN THE HEAVENS AND LAUGHS 😁
@@SometimeAgo65 So... you're just repeating. It's not what you actually know.
@@mehere337 I don't understand what you're asking. How do I know? I know because the Holy Scripture tells us that God sits in the heavens and laughs. We laugh, don't we? We are created in HIS image. Also, I believe and I know. I just assume you don't believe. Why else would you ask that question? Do you want PROOF that GOD exists? Repent from your heart to HIM/JESUS CHRIST and CALL out to HIM. Read the scripture, fast and pray...talk to the LORD and you WILL receive your proof. I don't know what else to tell you. Receiving the HOLY SPIRIT is a GIFT from the LORD GOD.
Ive seen agatha traslated into English as "just," so that first makes me wonder about whether James is just or good. Abd second, heaven and earth came into being for Adam and Eve in their first state as having a conversational relationship relationship with God. The whole point of the way is a return to that relationship.
Hi James, just a thought archelogists in Pompeii said they have found ancient scriptures dating back to around Yeshua (Jesus) time. They are hoping that there maybe information regarding the early Christians. Maybe you should find out more information. The archelogists are waiting for technology to develop further to unravel these scriptures. Due to the damage of the volcano erupting. If their is any scripture in there regarding the movement. This could be extremely interesting. Xx
Some people have made the comment that Thomas dydemus was Jesus ( Yasha's) brother, in fact that word means twin I believe in greek. And then Constantine changed it to make it look like his brother was a betrayer because his brother was in fact call Thomas Judah. Not Judas Iscariot. And isn't that what Rome was always doing betraying their brothers?
I was saying the brothers of Jesus were all disciples, way back in 1997.
Seemed obvious to me.
All royal and aristocratic families ran dynasties.
And Jesus WAS a king.
R
Have you ever thought of the possibility that Jude could be Jude, the son of Jesus and not James? If the talpiot tomb is actually what you think it is?
What is Joachim in Hebrew? If it is Heli -> Heliakim then this is probably Heli the father of Joseph in Luke’s genealogy. The father of Mary in the gospel of Matthew is a different Joseph, according to the Hebrew manuscripts of Matthew. The two Josephs are two different animals, and the two genealogies are completely independent of each other. Repeated names are merely coincidental common names but completely different people altogether. The whole mess of Joachim being identified as the father of Mary originated after AD 135 after the Jews were expelled and Hebrew was systematically eradicated. So all you are left with are the ambiguous Greek translations of the Gospels
And if the rediculousness of genealogy doesn't make your spirit say, Stay here, the Bible writers are trying to communicate.
The entire Bible is based on astrology, Jesus the Sun, and the disciples represent the planets/luminaries. And they each correspond to a specific body area.
There never was a Bible Jesus. No family of Jesus, No Virgin birth, No No No. Allegory and Parable. Dark sayings of old. Jesus even said, These are my brothers and mother, those that do the will of the Father.
Listen, I believed for 40 years the Bible was literal, leaving too many unanswered questions with only You can't know Gods ways, and God can do anything... But he can't, and it is written. Because they had chariots of iron God could not defeat them. The chariot of iron is your hard head that can't see allegory...
Not You, the readers
yeah
poor folk jewish people, could not afford many different names.
@@gottfriedmayrock1967 i know right! Just like the arabs use only 10 other names aside from Muhammad
James was not a Hebrew or Jewish name. Yakov is the word that English uses as its equivalent.
It wasn’t about the family it was about the message and the example of his life, and making the family royal would be about the human ego and worshiping the bloodline
Yep. And it was important so that the temple elders, who put great stock in that kind of thing, would recognize God's choice. They refused, and here we are.
The family line is important as the family lines of Christ are mentioned in prophecies in the old testament
Also if James, brother of Jesus, was part of Jesus' ministry why are we listening to Paul instead of James? Paul was not apart of Jesus' ministry or a disciple.
How about John the Baptizer being Jesus' cousin (their mother's are sisters). John the Baptizer is the messenger/prophet that announces the Christ/Messiah. (John quotes Elijah from the old testament, I believe it is something about a parallel with old testament prophecy and Christ/Messiah being announced)
Are Jesus' family members reflecting Jesus' teachings? We can learn to be more like Christ through history and Jesus' teachings.
The name 'Mary' (Miriam) is a title, as is Jesus (Joshua), that is why there are so many Mary's. Mary married to Joseph followed by Mary, married to Jesus when Joseph died and Mary Clopas, married to James when Jesus was crucified.
The Baptist WAS more than a prophet. He was a martyr, he was Jesus' cousin too. So I think the meaning is that John is not only a prophet, but 'IS ALSO '...Jesus says John is greater than others but there are also people greater than John. Makes sense. Depends on the translation I guess.
Praying about this for years, some mystery here did John bring the heart of a people the challenge of holiness?
Maybe that was it, the heart of the matter is where is the truest value placed and once the collective body seeks righteousness can mountains move more than in hypothetical action?
Does the hear of the Creator of heaven and earth still move in great swiftness to those that cry in lamentation?
Why did Jesus say that, still asking?
Josephs brother dies and Joseph steps in to raise his brothers family. being an unmarried man he does what is expected. He marries her as required and now raises his brothers children. She was pregnant at the time and the Father deceased. Making her unwed, widowed, a virgin, a fatherless birth. Joseph dies early as well in Eashoa's life. The reason Joseph isn't present at the Crucifixion, did not pay for the burial. Mary was widowed twice. Eashoa may have traveled. Being Essene he was to become a man at 12 and begin his adeptship. He came forth out of Egypt says prophecy.. Alexandria area.. Mt. Carmel. His brother James in the south at Qumaran. James is not a healer, a theraputae as Eashoa was.. Brothers with different educations - 2 schools in different locations. One law/observence, the other Prophey/medi-physical. The meek Eashoa refers to are Ebionites. Like Nazara closely linked to Essene's. Enoch was the founder of the Essene school.
What if the bones were removed and cloned?
Wow! if this is true then it's because of Paul that we have anything at all truly truly profound
(46) Jesus said, "Among those born of women, from Adam until John the Baptist, there is no one so superior to John the Baptist that his eyes should not be lowered (before him). Yet I have said, whichever one of you comes to be a child will be acquainted with the kingdom and will become superior to John.".
That's the lambdin translation of saying 46 in gospel of Thomas .
I commented on this before. Paul - as his Master did - freed people.
"That one does not follow you with us!" "Leave him alone" was his response.
How important should Paul have made that Dynasty of Brothers of Messiah to put every Jew or Pharisee (coming from James) in a position to lord it over the ones in Asia minor, Greece, on the islands, in Spain?
Paul did not fight against James. Indeed, he is the one we know it from (in the NT writings) that he was brother of the Kyrios Iesous.
Paul was not just a brilliant thinker. He was a good man, too.
And he cared more for those afar for whom he had taken responsibility by being teacher and friend and father to them than he cared for his own stance with those in Jerusalem. Yet, he cared for them, too, and collected support in behalf of them among the nations. His letters are full of the value (ΑΓΑΠΗ agapē) of the fathers, of Moses, of Israel as a nation.
The churches (from ΚΥΡΙΑΚΗ) are not of Paul's making. (He does not even embrace that term.)
Paul is not responsible as John and Simon (Peter) as James are not responsible for the idolatrous mess and doctrinal hoax that has been called church.
The path to the Dynasty (ΒΑΣΙΛΕΙΑ) is and always was the narrow one. And the door is not nation, nor blood, nor kinship.
You assumed Clophas was the brother of Joseph, earthly father of the Lord, but none of the Church Fathers write about this.
The Tradition says that Mary of Clophas was the sister of the Virgin Mary and the holy brothers of the Lord were His cousins.
Mary remained untouched for her entire life.
Ive never heard that Jesus' brothers were cousins, or of doppleganger Mary, before.
I am really enjoying this book it reads as well as any thriller and is so fascinating. I am learning so much and the insight on what is written in scripture is amazing. You are laying out what you have found with the evidence but without making absolute assertions leaving us to make up our own mind. Thanks Dr Tabor great read!
...and there for his Genealogy is well known from the Kings of England and France and Russia ie EUROPA going back to 500 AD. or zero, when they thought he was born but the only thing that was BORN Again was his prophecy of the Messiah who comes NOW, ..hence backwards. The Kings do NOT come from him YET, he comes from the ancient line of Kings.. hence King of Kings.
I am not a huge studied man, just a Question..... are you teaching that John the baptizer is LORD?? Remember im not smart so im asking.