Jesus' lost years

[The Silver Thong]

Moderators Note:

This thread originated in the Jesus' lost years thread within the Spirituality, Religion and Beliefs section and has been branched.

The original thread can be found here.

honeyavocado's original post:

The lost years of Jesus refer to his activities between the ages of 12 and 30, of which there is no mention in the bible. The church would have us believe that what transpired during these years is of no biblical importance, and thus omitted from the gospels. In the Gospels of Luke, in one extract Jesus is 12 and in the Temple at Jerusalem, in the following extract he is 30 and is being baptized in the river Jordan by John the Baptist. Many theories have surfaced regarding his whereabouts during these years, the most prominent being that Jesus joined a trade caravan and travelled to the Far East, following the silk route under the guidance of a cabal of merchants.

Referred to as St. Issa in Buddhist and Hindu lore and texts, it is said Jesus journeyed through modern day Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan and Pakistan, before traveling extensively through India and settling in Tibet. He studied and lived among the Buddhist monks for 6 years before returning to Jerusalem to preach. There is some evidence to support this. In 1887, Russian Explorer and Aristocrat Nicholas Notovich stayed at the Hemis Monastery in Ladakh, Northern India, while recuperating after a broken leg. He heard of a text within the monastery library called ‘The Life of St Issa, Best of the Sons of Men’ after the monks had spoke of an ‘Issa’ being a student at the monastery over a thousand years ago. Through a translator, the story was read to Notovich by the head lama, while Notovich furiously scribbled down what he could. His book on the subject, ‘The Secret Life of Jesus Christ’, can still be bought. Rumors persist of the text Notovich saw still existing in the Hemis Library. Perhaps the most irrefutable piece of evidence comes from the Bhavishya Maha Purana, a highly respected ancient Indian text. The King of Kashmir, in the early first century AD, records how he met a fair haired, fair complexioned teacher dressed in white robes who came from the west, described himself as being born of a virgin, persecuted by his people and being the son of God.

Tiggs

[Forum Mod Team]

Or Jesus was not a real person.

Edited September 29, 2010 by Tiggs

[norwood1026]

Or Jesus was not a real person.

Anything is possible even writers block....

[The Silver Thong]

Anything is possible even writers block....

It's funny, now anyone can capture the movements of Justin Beiber using many different methods of recording but back then no one knew how to document things with any accuracy. Seems it puts the entire bible into question including Jesus and his groupies.

[markprice]

Anything is possible even writers block....

HaHaHaHaha...

[markprice]

The answer is more likely a result of the relative expense of parchment in relation to the relative value in recording the information. This is a common theme in ancient Near East biographies of important figures. Kings and rulers, for example, will have their birth recorded, perhaps one or two accounts of special events that occurred as a child, and then skip to the important part of the King's life - when he actually takes the throne and governs the nation.

Jesus' childhood wasn't that important. His ministry to the Jews, however, was. It is not surprising that the gospels focus on his ministry and only very slightly touch on his childhood.

Just a thought,

~ PA

We know Jesus was literate, so where are all of his personal writings...in the Vatican? That to me does not add up...his diciples must have been able to save something...

[The Silver Thong]

I always thought late 20's to the early 30's was the most optimal time to do what he did. Not too young to be looked as a kid, not too old to overcome the hardships of his travels and teaching burden. But speculating of what he did before is always interesting.

If Christianity can't get his birth date right we need to question that, oh wait is Obama an American

[+Link of Hyrule]

It's funny, now anyone can capture the movements of Justin Beiber using many different methods of recording but back then no one knew how to document things with any accuracy. Seems it puts the entire bible into question including Jesus and his groupies.

This reasoning would also seem to put every ancient text (or at least biography) ever written under similar question.....

~ PA

[+Link of Hyrule]

We know Jesus was literate, so where are all of his personal writings...in the Vatican? That to me does not add up...his diciples must have been able to save something...

Jesus may or may not have been able to write. We only have one account of Jesus writing (John 8), and that comes from a passage known to be a later insertion. But I tend to think that Jesus was able to read and write. However, just because someone is literate does not mean they are going to keep memoirs of their life. It seems conjecture to assume that Jesus had stacks of writings of his own.

Just a thought,

[The Silver Thong]

This reasoning would also seem to put every ancient text (or at least biography) ever written under similar question.....

~ PA

No it does not, Jesus was the Elvis of his time. Do you think the Romans were bad at record keeping? Anything written by man was really truly written by man and the lack of such documentation speaks volumes.

[+Link of Hyrule]

No it does not, Jesus was the Elvis of his time. Do you think the Romans were bad at record keeping? Anything written by man was really truly written by man and the lack of such documentation speaks volumes.

Actually, until the early Christian movement actually kicked off (after Jesus' death), Jesus was a bit of a nobody. Just another wandering preacher giving a message about the kingdom of God. The claims of miracles that followed him were only done in the latter part of his ministry - his early ministry was preaching and teaching. It is hard to think of it this way considering how popular Jesus is now, but back when he was alive, he was just not that well known outside of the areas he walked and talked and lived and breathed. Nothing like the Elvis of his time.

[The Silver Thong]

Actually, until the early Christian movement actually kicked off (after Jesus' death), Jesus was a bit of a nobody. Just another wandering preacher giving a message about the kingdom of God. The claims of miracles that followed him were only done in the latter part of his ministry - his early ministry was preaching and teaching. It is hard to think of it this way considering how popular Jesus is now, but back when he was alive, he was just not that well known outside of the areas he walked and talked and lived and breathed. Nothing like the Elvis of his time.

So Jesus in his time was not important enough to write about, and his message was lost on most?

[+Link of Hyrule]

So Jesus in his time was not important enough to write about, and his message was lost on most?

In a nutshell, that's not too far from the truth. Jesus wasn't important enough during his life to have the historians hanging off his every word, and his message was indeed lost on most. Then when he died (and reportedly) rose again, his followers began to grow. At first, the stories about Jesus circulated only in oral form, much like the teaching of the Jewish Rabbi's (most of the early followers of Christianity were Jews, after all). Then when churches began to sprout distances apart, communications had to be sent from church to church via letters and other writings.

[The Silver Thong]

In a nutshell, that's not too far from the truth. Jesus wasn't important enough during his life to have the historians hanging off his every word, and his message was indeed lost on most. Then when he died (and reportedly) rose again, his followers began to grow. At first, the stories about Jesus circulated only in oral form, much like the teaching of the Jewish Rabbi's (most of the early followers of Christianity were Jews, after all). Then when churches began to sprout distances apart, communications had to be sent from church to church via letters and other writings.

You do see what you posted right and if you meant to, good on ya mate.

"At first, the stories about Jesus circulated only in oral form, much like the teachin"

[+Link of Hyrule]

You do see what you posted right and if you meant to, good on ya mate.

"At first, the stories about Jesus circulated only in oral form, much like the teachin"

Heh, you really want to highlight one word as if I "stories" somehow equates to "fiction stories". Seriously, I could tell you stories about my brother also, but that doesn't mean they are made up fictional pieces. Seriously, I was pointing out that the account of Jesus' life was circulated orally just as the teachings of Jewish Rabbi's were circulated orally. He just wasn't important enough at the time of his life and death to be written about by historians.

~ Regards,

[The Silver Thong]

Heh, you really want to highlight one word as if I "stories" somehow equates to "fiction stories". Seriously, I could tell you stories about my brother also, but that doesn't mean they are made up fictional pieces. Seriously, I was pointing out that the account of Jesus' life was circulated orally just as the teachings of Jewish Rabbi's were circulated orally. He just wasn't important enough at the time of his life and death to be written about by historians.

~ Regards,

The term "stories" PA is a term that has an extreme significance. I don't care in what context because I could say I once fished with Jesus and we caught a fish this big <--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------->

It's not relevant because we base our lives on stories not factual composites.

[+Link of Hyrule]

The term "stories" PA is a term that has an extreme significance. I don't care in what context because I could say I once fished with Jesus and we caught a fish this big <--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------->

It's not relevant because we base our lives on stories not factual composites.

And yet stories can be factual recounts of factual events, correct?!?

[Tiggs]

He just wasn't important enough at the time of his life and death to be written about by historians.

Nor, apparently, was three solid hours of darkness, earthquakes, rocks splitting asunder and the dead rising from their graves.

I expect during those days, all unimportant Jewish rebels regularly stormed the Jewish Temple, performed miracles and attracted (and miraculously fed) crowds of ten thousand or so (about a fifth of the entire population of Jerusalem) without a single historian so much as blinking.

[The Silver Thong]

And yet stories can be factual recounts of factual events, correct?!?

If we want to include stories of Bigfoot,vampires,zombies and the Easter bunny sure. Hell let's throw that in there as well. Factual?

[cluey]

The term "stories" PA is a term that has an extreme significance. I don't care in what context because I could say I once fished with Jesus and we caught a fish this big <--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------->

It's not relevant because we base our lives on stories not factual composites.

but that's just it!!!!....we base our lives on stories....and factual events.........it's the way we personally evolve during our lives that helps the way we ultimately interpret this knowledge.......

[Slorri]

My thoughts on this topic:

The birth of christ is a myth, almost the same as the birth of Moses.

Christ's acting in the temple at 12 is taken directly from the life of Josephus. See below.

The life of christ at 30 is just inside Saulus head; there never was any live person.

And these stories are compiled, probably by Josephus himself, under the Romans.

The lacking years in the story only comes down to that no one made up anything about those years.

Also we see that if this character, Jesus, was anything near what he is held to be, he would for sure have been able to come up with anything worth while. He did not. He held no knowledge of any kind, no wisdom, he was dead wrong in all his doings and sayings.

[cluey]

oh...ok...*he was not important enough*

*so jesus in his time was not important enough to write about*

ok....Paranoid Anroid....

so then explain......why these answers could possible be referring to the son of god............

[fullywired]

<br />Heh, you really want to highlight one word as if I "stories"  He just wasn't important enough at the time of his life and death to be written about by historians.<br /><br />~ Regards,<br />

<br /><br /><br />

Here was a man who raised the dead ,cured the blind ,healed leprosy ,turned water into wine .fed 5000 with five loaves and five fish

Yes I think we can safely say he wasn't very noteworthy to an historian.Now if he had done something outstanding he might have got noticed

fullywired

[SlimJim22]

There may be little physical evidence that Jesus did really exist but there is significant evidence that Thomas Didymus did. Exactly whose twin was he? John just does not seem to fit on first examination. I prefer to think of the story as intemately entwined with that of the Essenes and the ancient mystery school community. If there is any truth to the story of the birth e.g. following star, three gifts etc then chances are he would have been protected and schooled for those missing years. However, the gospel of Mark I think it is fits almost perfectly with astrology. I'll reread my sources on it anyway.

[The Silver Thong]

but that's just it!!!!....we base our lives on stories....and factual events.........it's the way we personally evolve during our lives that helps the way we ultimately interpret this knowledge.......

Yes stories are great in that they can reach us lessons however to teach "stories" as truth is being dishonest to yourself and others. For example a talking snake, living in the belly of a whale, zombies and the such should not be approached as history or fact.

[Maizer]

Nor, apparently, was three solid hours of darkness, earthquakes, rocks splitting asunder and the dead rising from their graves.

I expect during those days, all unimportant Jewish rebels regularly stormed the Jewish Temple, performed miracles and attracted (and miraculously fed) crowds of ten thousand or so (about a fifth of the entire population of Jerusalem) without a single historian so much as blinking.

To be fair, with the lack of journalists, newspaper, media, and even writing materials of that period, it wouldn't be easy to write the above stuff down without being laughed at. Very few would have actually witnessed the actual creating bread out of nothing, the wine, and the resurrection. The hours of darkness, and earthquakes: "Jesus did it!" "Riiiiight". Even if you were a neutral historian and wrote it down, would not the very kind and accommodating Roman authorities, along with the Pharisees pay a nice visit to chat? Not to mention you couldn't prove it happened, which is still true today.