| Part 1 The Theory of Faith | Hirohumi Hoshika |
This chapter will discuss the remaining issues of "Historical fact and Faith" that continue from the previous chapter. Of the points (1) to (4) listed in the Summary of the previous chapter, the following two points will be resolved.
(1) Difficulties of establishing faith posed by the fact that Jesus is a person from the past
(2) Difficulties of establishing faith posed by the dependence of the Christian faith on academia
Now, two thousand years have passed since the time of Jesus, the question of whether we can acquire the knowledge of Jesus is still a simple question, apart from its difficulty. The historical Jesus question as a single issue of "Quest for the Historical Jesus" is a "Historical fact" issue similar to the general historical issue, and can even be irrelevant to Christian theology.
However, the issue of the Historical Jesus which is not as a matter of "Historical fact" but as a matter of "Historical fact and Faith," is more complicated. This is because the Historical Jesus that is sought as the answer to the question of "Historical facts" and the Historical Jesus that must be obtained as the answer to the question of "Historical facts and Faith" are thought to belong to different realms.
The former is a Historical Jesus in order to ask whether the Jesus we believe in is correct from a purely historical perspective, and when considered in relation to the Christian faith, it is the Historical Jesus as the answer to the problem of "Faith Truth or Falsity."
In contrast, the latter asks whether we today can possess knowledge of the Historical Jesus that would enable us to have faith in Jesus, and what is sought here is the Historical Jesus as the answer to the problem of "Faith can be Established or Not."
From the perspective of academic disciplines, the former allows for the diversity of the Historical Jesus that is unique to historical studies, while the latter, by taking on theological tasks in addition to historical studies, only allows for only the Historical Jesus who has a responsibility to Christianity. As if the "Lifework" that people has a liking for, the study of the Historical Jesus, which in principle has no end, is not seen as a failure even if it is left incomplete.
However, the study of the Historical Jesus, which bears a responsibility to Christianity, requires the acquisition of the knowledge about the Historical Jesus necessary for the establishing orthodox Christian faith; this is, so to speak, a mission that must be completed. If the objective is not achieved, the attempt will be discarded as a failure. Alternatively, the only correct conclusion may be that it is impossible to obtain a Historical Jesus who can establish faith in modern times. However of course that is not the desired outcome.
In the previous chapter, we saw that no matter how much detailed knowledge one had of Jesus, including his appearance, faith does not necessarily result from that knowledge alone, and that the apostles overcame this and came to faith [point (3)]. In addition, even in our modern times, we have confirmed that even if merely knowing Jesus does not establish faith, knowing Jesus is essential for establishing faith [point (4)]. These two points about knowledge and faith made the problem of "Historical facts and Faith" even more complicated, but this was resolved in the previous chapter.
Then, what kind of knowledge of Jesus is necessary for faith to be established in the modern age? Can we have a knowledge of Jesus that can lead to faith? Furthermore, would such knowledge of Jesus not undermine the nature of Christian faith by making faith dependent on historical scholarship? Is it possible for us who live without Jesus today to have the same faith as the apostles who were with Jesus?
In this chapter, continuing from the previous chapter, we will deepen our analysis of the issue of "Historical facts and Faith" and attempt to resolve the incompatible issues of "obtaining historical facts about Jesus" and "independence of faith from scholarship", which are considered almost impossible to resolve in principle. Finally, based on the findings, the structure of the formation of Christian faith in both the apostolic age and the present day will be clarified.
Reading Difficulty Level ★★★☆☆ Word count 41,000 words