Jesus' Awareness That He Was God

Paper Summary:

This paper explain that the question of when, or even whether, Jesus knew that he was God has been debated by theologians since Christ's crucifixion. The author reviews the questions surrounding this issue by reflecting upon the distinction between the ascent and descent theological approaches to the nature of Jesus. The paper concludes that, while it is clear that Jesus had some perceptions concerning his special relationship with God, there is very little in the New Testament that indicates any full awareness of his role and purpose in life before his baptism; however, during his public ministry, Jesus demonstrated a clear understanding of who he was. The paper contains many quotations.

Table of Contents:
Introduction
The Descending and Ascending Logos
Conclusion

From the Paper:

"Although humankind has always believed infancy and early childhood to be uniquely significant, it was not until the early half of the twentieth century that consistent research was conducted into the way in which children emotionally develop. Freud (1949), who was the foremost major theorist to highlight the importance of infancy and young childhood, strongly believed that "the ways babies are treated establish lifelong orientations and personality traits", while other behaviorists, including the Swiss psychologist Jean Piaget, explored children's cognitive growth."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Catholic.net. Online Article: Ask Father Hardon: When Did Jesus Know He Was the Son of God? 1996. Information retrieved 08/31/2007.< http://www.catholic.net/rcc/Periodicals/Faith/0506-96/articl11.html>
• Albert Schweitzer - author, Walter Lowrie - transltr. The Mystery of the Kingdom of God: The Secret of Jesus' Messiahship and Passion. Publisher: Macmillan. Place of Publication: New York. Publication Year: 1950. Page Number: 160.
• Elgin L. Hushbeck Jr. Online Article: Did Jesus Know He Was God? 2006. Information retrieved 08/31/2007.< http://www.consider.org/library/jesus.htm>
• John A. Hardon. Online Article: Ask Father Hardon: When Did Jesus Know He Was the Son of God? 1996. Information retrieved 08/31/2007.< http://www.catholic.net/rcc/Periodicals/Faith/0506-96/articl11.html>
• Marc H. Bornstein, Michael E. Lamb, Douglas M. Teti. Development in Infancy: An Introduction.. Publisher: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. Place of Publication: Mahwah, NJ. Publication Year: 2002. Page Number: 3.

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