the life of christ

The Life of Christ

The Life of Christ

What is the Life of Christ?

Triumphal Entry by Giotto di Bondone

What is the Life of Christ? (1)


The life of Christ is the life that the incarnate

Son of God lived upon earth from the time of

his conception

until his Ascension.

KEY DEFINITION



The dramatic entry of

Jesus into Jerusalem at

the end of his public ministry

reveals who Jesus is and

why he came.

Garments of the crowd are laid down before Jesus. Yet in a few days this same

crowd will call for his crucifixion and death.

Jesus

Apostles

The crowd recognise Jesus and hail him

as the Messiah with the words, “Hosanna to the Son of

David.”


The principal events of the life of Christ

The Ascension of Christ by Garofalo

The Annunciation by Fra Angelico

Christ on the Cross by Velazquez

The principal events of the life of Christ (1)


c. 6 BC Conception and birthHis miraculous conception in Nazareth and his birth in Bethlehem

to c. 24 AD

Hidden lifeHis thirty years living in Nazareth, known as the carpenter’s son

to c. 27 AD

Public ministryHis three year mission preaching the Kingdom of God, working signs and miracles and establishing his Church

c. 27 AD

Death, Resurrection, AscensionHis submission to a cruel execution on a cross as a sacrifice for sin; his Resurrection and Ascension into glory



The common timescale of all human history is now measured by the coming of Christ.

The words ‘before Christ’ (BC) refer to the years prior to his birth.

The words ‘anno Domini’ (AD), ‘in the year of the Lord’, acknowledge his continuing reign.


Jesus’ ministry: identity and mission

The Baptism of Christ by Piero della Francesca

Jesus’ ministry: identity and mission (1)


JESUS REVEALED HIS IDENTITYJesus witnessed to his unique relationship and oneness with ‘the Father’, referring to himself as the ‘beloved Son’ (Mt 11:27; Mk 12:6; Lk 20:13). He clearly asserted his eternal existence and divinity by applying to himself the name of God revealed to Moses, “Before Abraham was, I AM” (Jn

8:58, c.f. Exod 3:14). He witnessed to his divine power by great nature miracles, “he rose and rebuked the winds and the sea” (Mt 8:26), and by forgiving sins, “My son, your sins are forgiven” (Mk 2:5).



JESUS EXPLAINED HIS MISSIONJesus explained that he was to die for the salvation of the world (Luke 12:32) and to share with us the divine life of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, “This is my body which is given for you” (Luke 22:19).

His inaugurating of the Kingdom of God was shown by his victory over evil in forgiving sins, in casting out demons and by healing the sick, “I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly” (Jn 10:10).


Jesus’ ministry: doctrine and Church

Christ Teaches his Disciples by Duccio di Buoninsegna

Jesus’ ministry: doctrine and Church (1)


JESUS TAUGHT HIS NEW DOCTRINEJesus taught about the new life of grace through parables and especially the Sermon on the Mount (Mt 5). He showed that the greatest commandment of the law was love of God and neighbour (Mt 22:36-39).

Before his death he gave his disciples a new commandment to “love one another; even as I have loved you” (Jn 13:34), a love made possible only by sharing in his own divine love.



JESUS FOUNDED HIS CHURCHIn choosing twelve apostles, Jesus established a visible Church, a new Israel (Mt 10:2;

19:28). He gave authority to Peter and the other apostles to govern and to teach, “Whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven” (Mt

16:19). He also gave them sacramental rites, “Do this in remembrance of me” (Lk 22:19).

These superseded the ancient Jewish rites empowering us to be born again in Baptism and to live the new life of grace.


SummaryQuestions

to reinforcekey points

Discussionquestions

Practicalactivities

Presentation Part II

Summary Activities I

Please select an activity or go immediately to part II of the presentation

Summary Activities I

Summary

Activities Menu Presentation Part II

• The life of Christ is the life that the incarnate Son of God lived upon earth from the time of his conception until his Ascension.

• The principal events of the life of Christ are his: conception and birth; hidden life; public ministry; death, Resurrection and Ascension.

• In his public ministry, Jesus revealed his identity, explained his mission, taught his new doctrine and founded his Church.

• The common timescale of all human history is now measured by the coming of Christ.

Summary I

Questions to reinforce key points

Conception and birth

Hidden life

Public ministry

Death, Resurrection and Ascension

What are the principal stages of the life of Christ?


12

Click on a box to reveal one of the

answers

34

Questions to reinforce key points I

Discussion questions


• Read Mark 2:1-12 or John 8:51-59. Discuss what these passages tells us about Jesus’ identity and mission.

• Discuss the importance of each of the stages of the life of Christ.

Select one or more of the following:

Discussion questions I

Practical activities


• Read one of the parables of Jesus Christ or the account of one or more of his miracles in the gospels.

• Read the Compendium of the Catechism questions 103-111.

• Select one image of Jesus Christ in this course and note down how it expresses his identity and mission.


Practical activities I

Knowing Jesus Christ

The Calling of Saint Matthew by Caravaggio

Knowing Jesus Christ (1)


The three senses in which we

know Jesus Christ are through

reason, faith and

personally.

KEY DEFINITION



Matthew at his tax counting desk

A light illuminates his face as Christ enters.

He points to himself in disbelief.

Jesus

Peter

The Hand of Christ the same shape as the hand

of God in Michelangelo’s Creation of Adam.

The picture emphasises the individual nature of conversion and how each one of us is called to

know and follow Christ personally.


Knowing Jesus Christ through reason

Saint Jerome in his Study by Antonello da Messina

Knowing Jesus Christ through reason (1)

Knowing Jesus Christ through reason

We know Jesus Christ though reason, that is, we know of his existence, the world in which he lived, the events of his life and his teaching.

We know these things principally by means of the twenty-seven documents known as the New Testament. These constitute the largest volume of written evidence in the ancient world about any one person. Non-Christian historians of that period also refer to him, in particular Josephus and Tacitus.


Knowing Jesus Christ through reasonThe New Testament documents were all written some twenty to seventy years after the public ministry of Jesus Christ. They were commonly accepted in the early Church as having been written under the authority of the apostles.

The four gospels provide mutual corroboration of the events of Jesus’ life. While they use a variety of styles, details and arrangements, a single clear personality emerges from the texts.

He who saw it has borne witness, his testimony is true,

and he knows that he tells the truth, that you also may believe.

Jn 19:35


Knowing Jesus Christ through faith

Saint Matthew writing his Gospel by Caravaggio

Knowing Jesus Christ through faith (1)


We also know Jesus Christ through the gift of faith.

This gift is like an illumination of the mind that God gives us.

This gift enables us to recognise and trust in Christ and to accept everything he has revealed.

No one can say “Jesus is Lord”

except by the Holy Spirit.1 Cor 12:3



Faith enables us to know that Jesus Christ is truly:

• God, the second person of the Trinity, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God” (Mt 16:16).

• The ‘Lamb of God’ (Jn 1:36), the sacrifice that takes away the sins of the world.

• The only way to our salvation, “I am the way, the truth and the life” (Jn 14:6).



We can give a human assent to these teachings if we judge Jesus Christ to be trustworthy. Indeed, given the perfection of Jesus’ moral character, the depth of his teaching and the evidence of his miracles, his claims have a strong rational credibility.

It is only with the supernatural gift and assent of faith, however, that we can know Jesus and all that he has revealed with a kind of inner illumination of mind and heart.


Knowing Jesus Christ personally

The Light of the World by Holman Hunt

Christ knocks personally at the door of the soul.

Knowing Jesus Christ personally (1)


By personal knowledge, we are enabled to encounter Jesus, not merely as an historical figure to be studied or agreed with, but rather as the living Lord who said “I am with you always” (Mt

28:20).

This encounter is made possible through prayer, the sacraments and by conforming our lives to the pattern of his life.



The Christian is part of Christ’s own mystical body through grace, which means being united spiritually to Christ.

In all the sacraments we come to know Jesus intimately. Through the Eucharist, in particular, we receive him, body, blood, soul and divinity. In reading the Scriptures we meet the character of Jesus and are led into conversation with him.

In prayer we speak directly to Jesus as a friend and come to an awareness of his presence.



“No longer do I call you servants, for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you.”

Jn 15:15


SummaryQuestions

to reinforcekey points

Discussionquestions

Practicalactivities

Summary Activities II

Please select an activity or go immediately to the concluding prayer

Concluding Prayer

Summary Activities II

Summary

Activities Menu

• The three senses in which we know Jesus Christ are through reason, faith and personally.

• We know Jesus Christ though reason, in that we know of his existence, the world in which he lived, the events of his life and his teaching.

• We know Jesus Christ though faith, in that, by means of this gift, we recognise and trust in him and accept everything he has revealed.

• We also know Jesus Christ personally through prayer, the sacraments and by conforming our lives to the pattern of his life.

Concluding Prayer

Summary II

Questions to reinforce key points

Through reason

Through faith

Personally

What are the three ways in which we can know Jesus Christ?

Activities Menu Concluding Prayer

12

Click on a box to reveal one of the

answers

3

Questions to reinforce key points II

Discussion questions

Activities Menu

• Discuss how we can grow in our knowledge of Jesus Christ in each of the three ways: reason, faith and personally.

• Discuss some personal experiences of knowing Jesus Christ in one’s own life.


Concluding Prayer

Discussion questions II

Practical activities

Activities Menu Concluding Prayer

• Choose one chapter from one of the gospels about the public ministry of Jesus Christ. Read out the passage and think prayerfully about how it reveals Jesus to us.

• Pray one decade from the ‘Mysteries of Light’ of the Rosary, which cover the public ministry of Jesus Christ.

• Pray to Jesus personally by visiting the Blessed Sacrament in a church.


Practical activities II

Final Prayer

From ‘St Patrick’s Breastplate’ Christ be with me, Christ within me, Christ behind me, Christ before me, Christ beside me, Christ to win me, Christ to comfort and

restore me. Christ beneath me, Christ above me, Christ in quiet, Christ in danger,

Christ in hearts of all that love me, Christ in mouth of friend and stranger.I bind unto myself the name, the strong name of the Trinity, by invocation of the

same, the Three in One and One in Three. By whom all nature hath creation, Eternal Father, Spirit, Word: praise to the Lord of

my salvation, salvation is of Christ the Lord.Amen.

Final Prayer

the life of christ

Spiritual