Hinn stóíski Jesús

Heimspekileg stef í persónusköpun samstofna guðspjallanna

Abstract

The Gospels of the New Testament are literary products richly furnished with characteri-zation, applied, among other things, as a means of persuasion. The main purpose of this article is to analyze the person of Jesus as part of the characterization of the Gospels of Mark, Matthew, and Luke in light of contemporary descriptions of the ideal philosopher, particularly in Stoic sources. The following questions are posed: What characterized the Stoic wise man? How “Stoic” is Jesus in the Gospels, and what does that mean? Is there a difference between the Gospels in this respect? To answer these questions, two main motifs are addressed: on the one hand, the message among philosophers, especially Stoics, that a particular cause or way of life must always come before one’s family ties, and, on the other, the widespread idea in the Greco-Roman world that the wise man is perfectly self-con-trolled. The conclusion suggests that, in many ways, the Gospel authors wished to various extents to present a “Stoic Jesus” to their audience.