Was Jesus a Jewish Religious Bigot?

The most harden and reveling position Jesus takes in this context is over his love and protection of the exclusive truth of the faith of Israel and its God. As hinted at else where in the Gospels, we see a dark side of Jesus in his cruel and venomous attack on a mother simply requesting his mercy for her possessed daughter (Matt. 15: 21-28)... The Gospel of Mark simply calls her “…a Gentile, of Syrophoenician race.” (Mark 7:26). However, when this verse is redacted in Matt. 15:22, she is call “…a Canaanite woman…” a term used in the time of Jesus equivalent today to an African American being called a “N****r”. Here Jesus is referenced to the “New Moses” (a theme used by the writer of Matthew) in confronting a non-Jew (Israelite) or a pagan Canaanite woman. His disciples know Jesus’ position on Gentiles; his basic hate for them, but are unable to get rid of her and are forced to file their complaint with Jesus himself who has, up until now ignored her. Now the Jewish Jesus must confront someone his faith and history requires him to hate. Matthew’s Jesus has some cruel fun with her and her sick daughter: “It is not proper to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs.” Dogs (κυναριοις) is Jesus’ Jewish hate term for Gentiles ( Matt. 7:6 “κυσιν “). Finally Jesus heals her daughter, but only after he extracts from her a verbal confirmation before his disciples and the people watching that only the Jews have God’s blessing and she and her daughter are indeed dogs (notice the play on words here θυγατηρ (young girl) with κυναριοις (small dog)).

Although Jesus warns against adults harming any Jewish child’s faith (Matt. 18:1-6), he has (as expressed in the above pericope) no concern about Gentile children since any faith they may have is non-Jewish and pagan. In short, for Jesus, Gentile dogs have no true faith.

Jesus studied Kabbalah, as well as Moses and most other "prophets with gods powers". He did not believe in religion per say, because he saw religion stopped the growth of Man.

reply to post by Hemlocks

The introductory forum isn't the place for this thread. It's for introductions. Scope out the boards, find a topic that interests you, and get the twenty posts that you need and then we can discuss this further.

The short answer is, no, he wasn't a religious bigot". Jesus originally sought to address the failings of the Jewish "religious right" of that time. These arrogant priests where taking advantage of ordinary Jews, forcing them to pay burdensome fees for the various rituals, imposing severe penances, and otherwise abusing these people.

Jesus widened his ministry to include non-Jewish people as well. This is not the behafvior of a bigot. The Canaanite woman may have been called an insulting name, but re4member that it was Matthew who used the word, not Jesus.

In fact, in one of Jesus's parables, he speaks of the "Good Samaritan". Samaritans were regarded as scum, the dregs of society. This parable tells of "righteous" people ignoring a wounded person, but this "Samaritan" - this scumbag - stops to help him. Jesus is saying, in effect, that all these fine, upstanding citizens weren't as righteous as the person everyone looked down on. Again, not the behavior of a bigot.

Originally posted by octotom
reply to post by Hemlocks

 

The introductory forum isn't the place for this thread. It's for introductions. Scope out the boards, find a topic that interests you, and get the twenty posts that you need and then we can discuss this further.

C'mon dude give the guy a break that's some bloody good questions there , tell you what if he can't post it and nobody minds I'll re-post it for him in a suitable slot.

reply to post by moocowman


I never denied that he had good questions. I just think that board rules should be followed.

reply to post by Hemlocks

Well if "Jesus was a Jewish Religious Bigot" then so was the Prophet Ezekiel...

Thus saith the Lord GOD unto Jerusalem; Thy birth and thy nativity is of the land of Canaan; thy father was an Amorite, and thy mother an Hittite. (Eze 16:3)

Oh, wait.... Ezekiel was speaking to the Hebrews.

Hmmmmm..... you sure you know enough about "Jesus and Scripture" to interpret Matt. 15: 21-28 as proof that Jesus is a.... "bigot"?????

You'll fit in nicely here on ATS....