All good suggestions. I would also suggest his parents, who whether or not you believe in the literalness of the virgin birth, were willing to accept that they were a young, unmarried family in a delicate situation, and make it work; the concept of God's plan not always being readily identifiable to human eyes, and not always looking like what we'd expect the 'divine' to look like, God acting in mysterious ways and all that - the concept of acceptance that either a. not everything is exactly as it appears and/or b. not everyone who ends up in a less-than-ideal situation, or dare I say makes mistakes, is an awful person - his forgiveness and radical inclusivity, I think, might have found a start there.
GRR
Posted on: 08/16/2010 22:51
crazyheart wrote:
Did Jesus have mentors. Who were they. I would say that the rabbis in the temple for some. Who else do you think?
I heard he was a bit of a know-it-all. Told the scholars they had it all wrong; kept contradicting the experts.
Sheesh
seeler
Posted on: 08/17/2010 08:59
Mentors?
I don't think his parents were particularly helpful as spiritual mentors. Yes, they provided him with a stable home, and brought him up in the Hebrew faith, sending him to the synagogue school and teaching him in the home so that he had a good background of knowledge about the Hebrew religion. But I don't think that they understood him or were there for him much after he began his mission.
So I would say:
Perhaps the rabbis in that local synagogue, and those he encountered in the temple at the age of 12.
John the Baptist - definitely
Perhaps some religous leaders like Nicodemus with whom he carried on theological discussions. and Joseph of Armithea who only appears in scripture after Jesus death. I think that Jesus relationship with some of the religious leaders of his time may have been much closer than the writers of the Gospels portray it - writing as they did after the split between the Jews and the newly forming Christian church.
Perhaps some of the women who were part of his group, seldom mentioned but always present - Mary Magdalene, Martha (the sister of Lazarus and Mary), or others. Did he go apart with Mary and talk about his day, receiving guidance and encouragement or perhaps occasionally a bit of advice?
We do know that Jesus often went apart to pray. He nutured and maintained a close relationship with the Spirit so that it dwelt within him. God was his mentor.
Comments
Diana
Posted on: 08/16/2010 19:37
John the Baptist.
blackbelt
Posted on: 08/16/2010 19:51
God the Father
Olivet_Sarah
Posted on: 08/16/2010 20:31
All good suggestions. I would also suggest his parents, who whether or not you believe in the literalness of the virgin birth, were willing to accept that they were a young, unmarried family in a delicate situation, and make it work; the concept of God's plan not always being readily identifiable to human eyes, and not always looking like what we'd expect the 'divine' to look like, God acting in mysterious ways and all that - the concept of acceptance that either a. not everything is exactly as it appears and/or b. not everyone who ends up in a less-than-ideal situation, or dare I say makes mistakes, is an awful person - his forgiveness and radical inclusivity, I think, might have found a start there.
GRR
Posted on: 08/16/2010 22:51
Did Jesus have mentors. Who were they. I would say that the rabbis in the temple for some. Who else do you think?
I heard he was a bit of a know-it-all. Told the scholars they had it all wrong; kept contradicting the experts.
Sheesh
seeler
Posted on: 08/17/2010 08:59
Mentors?
I don't think his parents were particularly helpful as spiritual mentors. Yes, they provided him with a stable home, and brought him up in the Hebrew faith, sending him to the synagogue school and teaching him in the home so that he had a good background of knowledge about the Hebrew religion. But I don't think that they understood him or were there for him much after he began his mission.
So I would say:
Perhaps the rabbis in that local synagogue, and those he encountered in the temple at the age of 12.
John the Baptist - definitely
Perhaps some religous leaders like Nicodemus with whom he carried on theological discussions. and Joseph of Armithea who only appears in scripture after Jesus death. I think that Jesus relationship with some of the religious leaders of his time may have been much closer than the writers of the Gospels portray it - writing as they did after the split between the Jews and the newly forming Christian church.
Perhaps some of the women who were part of his group, seldom mentioned but always present - Mary Magdalene, Martha (the sister of Lazarus and Mary), or others. Did he go apart with Mary and talk about his day, receiving guidance and encouragement or perhaps occasionally a bit of advice?
We do know that Jesus often went apart to pray. He nutured and maintained a close relationship with the Spirit so that it dwelt within him. God was his mentor.