LIBS 133: Jesus and the Gospels

Course Description

Who is Jesus of Nazareth? For centuries people seeking and answer have turned to the four gospels of the New Testament. But how reliable are these texts? Were they written as biographies, histories, or to fulfill other purposes? This course will address these and other questions associated with the quest for the historical Jesus. Students will be introduced to a variety of approaches involved in the literary-historical study of the gospels and New Testament backgrounds, and learn about the methods scholars employ to move from these texts and contexts to an historical portrait of Jesus. Attention will also turn to wide range of gospels not found in the New Testament to see what light they can shed on the Jesus’ identity.