Free Project J by Sean Brandywine Page A

that sense, he was definitely what we would call an Apocalyptic Jew.   He was a Jew first and foremost, and never intended to be otherwise.   In addition, as did many of the Jews of his time, he firmly believed with all his heart and mind that very soon there would be the coming of the Kingdom of God to this earth, and that the power of God would bring justice and peace to a world ravaged by injustice and oppression.   And that this Kingdom would be signaled by the arrival of the ‘Son of Man’, a Messiah.   The literal translation of the Hebrew word moshiach is ‘anointed’, which refers to the ritual of consecrating someone by anointing his head with oil.   This Messiah would be the man designated by God as an agent for his imminent apocalyptic judgment on an evil world.”
     
    He paused and pursed his lips.   “Perhaps a little more background, my dear.
     
    “At that time, the Jewish people were under the rule of the Roman Empire.   It was not an overly harsh rule, for the Romans were willing to let the Jews believe as they wished and run their own affairs, so long as they paid taxes to Rome and allowed the Romans pretty much free rein.   The Roman soldiers could, and did, conscript Jews to work on roads and other projects without pay.   But to the Jewish people, with their long history of oppression, this was not acceptable.   This was their land, given to them by a covenant with God.   They wanted very much to kick the Romans out but lacked the military strength to do it.   This was proven in 70 BCE when an open revolt was smashed, the Temple destroyed and thousands of Jews killed.   And in other revolts before that big one.
     
    “It was a common belief, and had been for a long time, that God would come to Earth, overthrow the oppressors and restore the Jews to their rightful place.   There were even some who believed that in this apocalyptic vision the Jewish people would rule the entire world.
     
    “You should understand that this was the world Jesus was born into.   His people were under what they considered a harsh foreign rule; the times were rough and violent, with people often barely eking out an existence.   Add to that mix the fact that these were a highly religious people whose worldview did not separate reality from religion.   Theirs was a hard world dominated by a dissatisfaction that often spilled over into rebellion.
     
    “Jesus, from the beginning of his life, was taught obedience to God in all things and that God would come to save his chosen people.   The Hebrew bible contained many passages that proclaim such, even describing the one who would come to initiate God’s Kingdom.
     
    “Am I telling you that which you already know?” he paused to ask.
     
    “Pretty much.   That is the picture I had gotten from my readings.”
     
    “Well, then, back to your original question.
     
    “From an early age, Jesus was different.   He was and is an intelligent person.   Very probably irritated his elders with questions that were hard to answer – you know the type.   He was also on the quiet, shy side.   To understand why, you have to understand the circumstances of his birth.
     
    “First off, to correct a common misconception.   Jesus was not born of a virgin.   In the first place, the use of the term virgin in the Bible is incorrect.   The Greek word ‘ parthenos ’ means ‘maiden’ not virgin.   It was translated into ‘virgin’ by those who rewrote the gospels, to imply that Jesus had a miraculous birth rather than the old, common method.   Second, Jesus himself told me that his mother, Miriam in Aramaic, had told him that she was not a virgin and that Yosef (aka Joseph) was, indeed, his father.
     
    “As a side note, he also told me that he had an older brother by his father with a prior wife, Leah, and three younger brothers and two sisters by Mary.   The oldest was James.   After Jesus came Jose.   The next younger brothers were Judas and Simon.