Jesus the Magician

Jesus the Magician: Charlatan or Son of God? is a 1978 book by Morton Smith arguing that the historical Jesus was a magician who "sprang from a Galilean strain of Semitic paganism" (p. 68).

Jesus the Magician
AuthorMorton Smith
SubjectHistorical Jesus
PublisherHarper & Row
Publication date
1978
Pages222 pp.
ISBN978-0-06-067412-0
OCLC3273846

Background

The idea that Jesus was a magician did not originate with Morton Smith. It was previously voiced by the philosopher and critic Celsus (The True Word c. 200 CE) as we know from the rebuttal authored by the Christian apologist/scholar Origen: “It was by magic that he was able to do the miracles” (Contra Celsum 1.6). Hans Dieter Betz (1994) observes that "from early on even Jesus of Nazareth was implicated in that he was said to be mad or a magician possessed by Satan" and R. Joseph Hoffmann writes (1987) that it is well attested that "the early Christian mission was advanced by the use of magic."

Smith was featured discussing his theories in the controversial television documentary series, Jesus: The Evidence (1984: LWT for Channel 4).[1]

Reviews

The relationship between magic and religion is hotly contested in scholarly circles. With regards to this theory about Jesus, H.S. Versnel makes the observation (1991) that "Once again magic is not always magic, depending as it does upon the authority of the person who is using the term." Archaeologist William G. Dever argues (2005) that magic is "precisely what religion is, or at least was, however much that may offend modern sensibilities."

Barry Crawford (Ph.D Vanderbilt University), currently Co-Chair of the Society of Biblical Literature's Consultation on Redescribing Christian Origins, in his 1979 review states that "Smith exhibits an intricate knowledge of the magical papyri, but his ignorance of current Gospel research is abysmal", concluding that the work has traits of a conspiracy theory.

Kirkus Reviews describes the book as "carefully researched, elegantly written, and thoroughly prejudiced."[2]

Editions
  • Harper & Row (1978), ISBN 978-0-06-067412-0.
  • Barnes & Noble Books (1993), ISBN 1-56619-285-4.
  • Ulysses Press (1998), ISBN 978-1-56975-155-8.
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References
  1. Wallis, Richard (2016-01-27). "Channel 4 and the declining influence of organized religion on UK television. The case of Jesus: The Evidence" (PDF). Historical Journal of Film, Radio and Television. 36 (4): 668–688. doi:10.1080/01439685.2015.1132821. ISSN 0143-9685.
  2. "Jesus the Magician", Kirkus Reviews, April 26th, 1978

Sources
  • Hans Dieter Betz, "The Birth of Christianity as a Hellenistic Religion: Three Theories of Origin," The Journal of Religion 74 (1994), pp. 1–25
  • Barry Crawford, Journal of the American Academy of Religion (1979), 321–322.
  • Celsus, On the True Doctrine. A Discourse Against the Christians tr. by R. Joseph Hoffmann (1987), p. 53 n3.
  • William G. Dever, Did God Have a Wife? Archaeology and Folk Religion in Ancient Israel (2005), 4.
  • H.S. Versnel, "Some Reflections on the Relationship Magic-Religion," Numen 38 (1991), pp. 177–197.
  • Jennifer Viegas, "Earliest reference describes Christ as 'magician'" October 1, 2008. http://www.nbcnews.com/id/26972493 Accessed November 2, 2009.


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