Greek Resurrection Beliefs and the Resurrection of Jesus in the Gospel of Luke: Contexts for Consideration (original) (raw)

A number of propositions are defended: (1) Christianity became widespread among Hellenized populations in the Roman Empire in the early centuries (standard demographic and social-scientific studies are presented). (2) Such populations would have been open to accepting the proclamation of a physically resurrected Lord based on the fact—contrary to the consensus—that such populations exhibit a diverse array of beliefs in vitality after death (a number of studies are brought together alongside ancient evidence). (3) The Gospel of Luke is the most “Greek” of the Gospels (this is defined and discussed), and has as its unique emphasis the expressly physical nature of Jesus’ resurrection in its resurrection narrative (a linguistic analysis of Luke 24 is provided). I suggest that the Gospel of Luke may have thus had a special purchase among an audience uniquely “fit” to its content, and that a number of inferences can be drawn regarding the acceptance of the Christian proclamation of physical resurrection among Hellenized populations beyond the merely social aspects of the movement.