CFS-WB-CH07

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St. Peter Preaching in the Presence of St. Mark, by Fra Angelico. had to make up a new term to describe the idea of a spiritual and glorified body; they literally didn’t have a word for it!). Combine the novelty of the doctrine with how uniquely controversial it was — again, it was the only area where Christians opposed the prevailing Jewish doctrine, Christians knew that the negative consequences would be significant, and yet they fearlessly separated themselves from the doctrine and endured its consequences, including expulsion from the Synagogue. Thus, we are forced to ask, where did this conviction come from, if not from the gloriously resurrected Jesus witnessed by the early Christians? The early Church sought to maintain continuity with the broader Jewish community when possible, but the Resurrection necessitated radical new changes in doctrine. 4. The Empty Tomb The empty tomb does not in and of itself give direct evidence of the Resurrection, of course, but does provide indirect corroboration. When the Apostles began gaining converts by preaching the Resurrection, it was in the interests of the Jewish authorities to © Sophia Institute for Teachers Unit 3, Chapter 7: Evidence for Jesus’ Divinity 137
Jesus’ Resurrection shows us His divine power, and also reveals the new life we are destined for as His disciples. undermine this claim by producing the body of Jesus, which they were unable to do. This fact points to the likelihood that the body really was not in the tomb. Even more, in the Gospels, the Jewish authorities charge that the Apostles stole Jesus’ body (an accusation that would not be necessary unless there was an identifiable burial site that was now empty). We are quite sure about the historical reliability of this charge because it is unthinkable that the Christians would have reported such a damaging claim to their own credibility in the Gospel (Matthew 28:13) unless it were really true. The empty tomb also indicates continuity between Jesus’ original body and the glorified body of the Resurrection — i.e. His same body that was buried was later raised and left the tomb transformed in glory. Supper at Emmaus, by Matthias Stom. 138 Apologetics I: The Catholic Faith and Science © Magis Center
Page 1 and 2: UNIT 3 CHAPTER 7 Evidence for Jesus
Page 3 and 4: Chapter 7 Follow the Evidence Thus
Page 5 and 6: St. Paul and the Apostles faced ali
Page 7 and 8: Resurrected Jesus Christ with Thoma
Page 9 and 10: Soma Pneumatikon: Phrase coined by
Page 11 and 12: The unprecedented growth of the ear
Page 13: From Judaism to Christianity The te
Page 17 and 18: an unprecedented teaching not found
Page 19 and 20: Straight to the Source ADDITIONAL R
Page 21: and persuasion was addressed not to

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