Rediscovering Jesus

Jesus was, at the very least, a hugely influential character in human – and Quaker – history, but modern Quakers often shy away from talking about him. For some this is because of their own loss of traditional Christian faith; some fear alienating other Friends; some are simply unfamiliar with the Gospel material. This course gives an opportunity to discover or re-discover your relationship to the story of Jesus.

All are welcome, whatever your starting point. There will be no pressure to conform to any particular viewpoint. Instead, we hope that by the end you will have begun to form your own view of the personal relevance of the story of Jesus and have greater understanding of what can be known, or not, about someone whose life and teaching was central to Friends’ faith throughout most of Quaker history.

We will look at Jesus in his first century Jewish context, but acknowledge how little can be known for sure. We will consider the shaping of his story by the Gospel writers, each of whom presents their own theological portrait; and discover the wide range of ways in which scholars have reconstructed the ‘historical Jesus’. We will explore current scholarly debates, including the contributions being made by Jewish New Testament scholars. And we will share our questions and puzzlements as we ponder the relevance of Jesus for the twenty-first century.

The course will consist of six sessions:
• Beginnings
• Teachings
• Miracles
• Opposition
• Death
• Resurrection

Each week there will be some Gospel passages to read, and relevant online material to explore, reflecting the latest scholarship. Participants will be invited to share their initial responses on an online discussion forum, before we meet in a Zoom session.

There will be some material to look at before the first session. We will email you around one week prior to the course with information about accessing the course, including this material, on our online learning platform (Moodle).