The Crucifixion - Editor's Note

Editor 's Note

All of the words of God and Jesus that are used in this essay are printed in italics. Furthermore, those sayings which have become famous and are used as proverbs are underlined. Certain words and expressions which deserve the reader's special attention, are explained either in the text or in the Notes. There are many versions in English of the Bible. The one chosen for this essay employs modern English rather than older versions which use archaic spellings and grammar.

The Bible is the only source of the events as well as words of both Jesus and Moses. Modern scholarship and archaeological research are making attempts to clarify as many points as possible. However, it is the Bible which has been the foundation of Judaic-Christian belief for over 3,000 years in the case of the Judaism, and for 2,000 years in the case of the Christianity. So, this essay gives some attention to the development of the New Testament. There is no mistaking the fact that the Bible has been considered to be the absolute truth, the Word of God, for much of its existence. And in consideration of this history, the present essay has been written as if this were the case. That is, regardless of the doubts and problems raised by modern scholarship and one's own personal faith, this essay treats the Bible as if it were the truth.

There are times when the beliefs and dogmas of Christianity need to be explained. Although the basic theology of all of Christianity is based on the Nicene Creed, each sect of Christianity interprets the Bible somewhat differently. The present essay does its best to avoid any interpretation and discusses only the actual passages, descriptions and sayings of Jesus and Moses found in the Bible. For this reason, although the term "Christ" is explained, Jesus himself is only referred to as "Jesus" throughout the essay. The focus of this essay is God's Love for humanity as it is found in both the Old and New Testaments, and particularly as it is brought forth by the sacrifice of Jesus on the Cross, that is, the Crucifixion.

Bible used

The Revised Standard Version of the Bible is copyrighted by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America as follows: the Old Testament section, Copyright 1952; New Testament Section, First Edition, Copyright 1946; Second Edition, Copyright 1971. The address of the copyright holder is 475 Riverside Drive, New York, NY 10115-0050. These materials are provided with the permission of the Division of Education and Ministry. It is expected that, in accord with normal scholarly etiquette, use of such materials in publications, etc., will be acknowledged appropriately.

Richard L. Goerwitz

Richard_Goerwitz@Brown.EDU

http://etext.virginia.edu/rsv.browse.html for the entire RSV as etext.