Was Jesus Resurrected?

Was Jesus Resurrected?

The Bible says Jesus’ closest disciples believed he was raised from the dead because the grave was empty and because he appeared to them after he was raised from the dead.

In addition, two of the Gospels say an angel told the women who went to the tomb that Jesus had been resurrected, one says two angels told the women this, and one Gospel says Mary Magdalene, who was alone at the empty tomb, saw two angels and spoke briefly with them before seeing the risen Jesus and speaking briefly with him.

I think it’s possible one or more female followers of Jesus saw an angel (or angels), but the fact that all of the accounts are different does make it feel like a rumor that changes with each telling. On the other hand, the two factors supporting the angel visitation stories are (1) they appear in some form in all four Gospels (2) if you were going to invent a story involving the supernatural, choosing to have a woman (or women) be the only witness in ancient times was not the best way to make a story convincing (1 Tim 2:8-15).

I do believe Jesus’ disciples discovered an empty tomb, and while that could be evidence for Jesus’ resurrection, it could also be evidence that his body was stolen (https://muddlingthroughtheuniverse.wordpress.com/2019/04/02/stolen-body-hypothesis/).

Three of the Gospels say the resurrected Jesus met with his disciples, and one alludes to a meeting. Paul said the resurrected Jesus appeared to him (1 Cor 15:8); however, it appears Paul’s claim is that he saw Jesus in a vision.

Ancient Jews who believed in resurrection, such as the Pharisees, believed resurrection necessarily involved the reanimation of the corpse, so the idea that a soul could depart from a body would have seemed pagan. Furthermore, the fourth Gospel says that after being resurrected, Jesus’ body still had holes from the nails and spear, and the Gospel of Luke implies this as well. Nevertheless, if Jesus is now in a heavenly realm with spiritual beings, it’s hard to see how he could have a physical body. Perhaps he simply appeared in a body to his disciples in the same way we read in the Torah of angels, who are described as spirits, taking on human forms and even eating food (Gen 19:3). (https://muddlingthroughtheuniverse.wordpress.com/2016/04/10/becoming-like-angels/)

Is it possible a handful of guys in the first century made up the story about the resurrection and subsequent appearances of Jesus?

I think it’s possible but unlikely. There have always been frauds, but you have to ask yourself “What did men like Peter and Paul stand to gain from preaching Jesus’ resurrection and imminent return?” They didn’t get rich. I suppose they upped their social status with some by taking on the title “apostle,” but this title also put a target on their backs. And after their deaths, they were viewed by the majority of their fellow Jews as foolish and misguided blasphemers. (Of course, the growing Gentile Christian church venerated them.)

I think you could make an argument that Peter and a few other close disciples made up the story of Jesus’ appearance(s) post resurrection because they honestly believed he’d been resurrected but felt their personal convictions wouldn’t be enough to convince their countrymen; however, I think that argument falls flat for someone like Paul. I can’t see a highly intelligent anti-Christian Pharisee like Paul becoming the staunchest advocate of the Way without miraculous intervention. It seems to me it would take something on the order of the Damascus road account.

In summary, while I suspect some of the details in the Gospels surrounding Jesus’ resurrection may have been embellished or fabricated, the words and actions of the Apostle Paul strongly suggest supernatural events took place after Jesus’ death convincing Paul beyond a shadow of a doubt that Jesus was raised from the dead.
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