the unseen world and other essays-第26章

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divine；　for　the　escape　of　a　divine　being　from　Sheol　could　afford　no　precedent　and　furnish　no　assurance　of　the　future　escape　of　human　beings。　It　was　expressly　because　the　man　Jesus　had　been　rescued　from　the　grave　because　of　his　spirituality；　that　other　men　might　hope；　by　becoming　spiritual　like　him；　to　be　rescued　also。　Accordingly　Paul　is　careful　to　state　that　〃since　through　man　came　death；　through　man　came　also　the　resurrection　of　the　dead〃　（1　Cor。　xv。　21）；　a　passage　which　would　look　like　an　express　denial　of　Christ's　superhuman　character；　were　it　probable　that　any　of　Paul's　contemporaries　had　ever　conceived　of　Jesus　as　other　than　essentially　human。

But　though　Paul's　Christology　remained　in　this　primitive　stage；　it　contained　the　germs　of　a　more　advanced　theory。　For　even　Paul　conceived　of　Jesus　as　a　man　wholly　exceptional　in　spiritual　character；　or；　in　the　phraseology　of　the　time；　as　consisting　to　a　larger　extent　of　pneuma　than　any　man　who　had　lived　before　him。　The　question　was　sure　to　arise；　Whence　came　this　pneuma　or　spiritual　quality？　Whether　the　question　ever　distinctly　presented　itself　to　Paul's　mind　cannot　be　determined。　Probably　it　did　not。　In　those　writings　of　his　which　have　come　down　to　us；　he　shows　himself　careless　of　metaphysical　considerations。　He　is　mainly　concerned　with　exhibiting　the　unsatisfactory　character　of　Jewish　Christianity；　and　with　inculcating　a　spiritual　morality；　to　which　the　doctrine　of　Christ's　resurrection　is　made　to　supply　a　surpassingly　powerful　sanction。　But　attempts　to　solve　the　problem　were　not　long　in　coming。　According　to　a　very　early　tradition；　of　which　the　obscured　traces　remain　in　the　synoptic　gospels；　Jesus　received　the　pneuma　at　the　time　of　his　baptism；　when　the　Holy　Spirit；　or　visible　manifestation　of　the　essence　of　Jehovah；　descended　upon　him　and　became　incarnate　in　him。　This　theory；　however；　was　exposed　to　the　objection　that　it　implied　a　sudden　and　entire　transformation　of　an　ordinary　man　into　a　person　inspired　or　possessed　by　the　Deity。　Though　long　maintained　by　the　Ebionites　or　primitive　Christians；　it　was　very　soon　rejected　by　the　great　body　of　the　Church；　which　asserted　instead　that　Jesus　had　been　inspired　by　the　Holy　Spirit　from　the　moment　of　his　conception。　From　this　it　was　but　a　step　to　the　theory　that　Jesus　was　actually　begotten　by　or　of　the　Holy　Spirit；　a　notion　which　the　Hellenic　mind；　accustomed　to　the　myths　of　Leda；　Anchises；　and　others；　found　no　difficulty　in　entertaining。　According　to　the　Gospel　of　the　Hebrews；　as　cited　by　Origen；　the　Holy　Spirit　was　the　mother　of　Jesus；　and　Joseph　was　his　father。　But　according　to　the　prevailing　opinion；　as　represented　in　the　first　and　third　synoptists；　the　relationship　was　just　the　other　way。　With　greater　apparent　plausibility；　the　divine　aeon　was　substituted　for　the　human　father；　and　a　myth　sprang　up；　of　which　the　materialistic　details　furnished　to　the　opponents　of　the　new　religion　an　opportunity　for　making　the　most　gross　and　exasperating　insinuations。　The　dominance　of　this　theory　marks　the　era　at　which　our　first　and　third　synoptic　gospels　were　composed；from　sixty　to　ninety　years　after　the　death　of　Jesus。　In　the　luxuriant　mythologic　growth　there　exhibited；　we　may　yet　trace　the　various　successive　phases　of　Christologic　speculation　but　imperfectly　blended。　In　〃Matthew〃　and　〃Luke〃　we　find　the　original　Messianic　theory　exemplified　in　the　genealogies　of　Jesus；　in　which；　contrary　to　historic　probability　（cf。　Matt。　xxii。　41…46）；　but　in　accordance　with　a　time…honoured　tradition；　his　pedigree　is　traced　back　to　David；　〃Matthew〃　referring　him　to　the　royal　line　of　Judah；　while　〃Luke〃　more　cautiously　has　recourse　to　an　assumed　younger　branch。　Superposed　upon　this　primitive　mythologic　stratum；　we　find；　in　the　same　narratives；　the　account　of　the　descent　of　the　pneuma　at　the　time　of　the　baptism；　and　crowning　the　whole；　there　are　the　two　accounts　of　the　nativity　which；　though　conflicting　in　nearly　all　their　details；　agree　in　representing　the　divine　pneuma　as　the　father　of　Jesus。　Of　these　three　stages　of　Christology；　the　last　becomes　entirely　irreconcilable　with　the　first；　and　nothing　can　better　illustrate　the　uncritical　character　of　the　synoptists　than　the　fact　that　the　assumed　descent　of　Jesus　from　David　through　his　father　Joseph　is　allowed　to　stand　side　by　side　with　the　account　of　the　miraculous　conception　which　completely　negatives　it。　Of　this　difficulty　〃Matthew〃　is　quite　unconscious；　and　〃Luke；〃　while　vaguely　noticing　it　（iii。　23）；　proposes　no　solution；　and　appears　undisturbed　by　the　contradiction。

Thus　far　the　Christology　with　which　we　have　been　dealing　is　predominantly　Jewish；　though　to　some　extent　influenced　by　Hellenic　conceptions。　None　of　the　successive　doctrines　presented　in　Paul；　〃Matthew；〃　and　〃Luke〃　assert　or　imply　the　pre…existence　of　Jesus。　At　this　early　period　he　was　regarded　as　a　human　being　raised　to　participation　in　certain　attributes　of　divinity；　and　this　was　as　far　as　the　dogma　could　be　carried　by　the　Jewish　metaphysics。　But　soon　after　the　date　of　our　third　gospel；　a　Hellenic　system　of　Christology　arose　into　prominence；　in　which　the　problem　was　reversed；　and　Jesus　was　regarded　as　a　semi…divine　being　temporarily　lowered　to　participation　in　certain　attributes　of　humanity。　For　such　a　doctrine　Jewish　mythology　supplied　no　precedents；　but　the　Indo…European　mind　was　familiar　with　the　conception　of　deity　incarnate　in　human　form；　as　in　the　avatars　of　Vishnu；　or　even　suffering　III　the　interests　of　humanity；　as　in　the　noble　myth　of　Prometheus。　The　elements　of　Christology　pre…existing　in　the　religious　conceptions　of　Greece；　India；　and　Persia；　are　too　rich　and　numerous　to　be　discussed　here。　A　very　full　account　of　them　is　given　in　Mr。　R。　W。　Mackay's　acute　and　learned　treatise　on　the　〃Religious　Development　of　the　Greeks　and　Hebrews｛。｝〃

It　was　in　Alexandria；　where　Jewish　theology　first　came　into　contact　with　Hellenic　and　Oriental　ideas；　that　the　way　was　prepared　for　the　dogma　of　Christ's　pre…existence。　The　attempt　to　rationalize　the　conception　of　deity　as　embodied　in　the　Jehovah　of　the　Old　Testament　gave　rise　to　the　class　of　opinions　described　as　Gnosis；　or　Gnosticism。　The　signification　of　Gnosis　is　simply　〃rationalism；〃the　endeavour　to　harmonize　the　materialistic　statements　of　an　old　mythology　with　the　more　advanced　spiritualistic　philosophy　of　the　time。　The　Gnostics　rejected　the　conception　of　an　anthropomorphic　deity　who　had　appeared　visibly　and　audibly　to　the　patriarchs；　and　they　were　the　authors　of　the　doctrine；　very　widely　spread　during　the　second　and　third　centuries；　that　God　could　not　in　person　have　been　the　creator　of　the　world。　According　to　them；　God；　as　pure　spirit；　could　not　act　directly　upon　vile　and　gross　matter。　The　difficulty　which　troubled　them　was　curiously　analogous　to　that　which　disturbed　the　Cartesians　and　the　followers　of　Leibnitz　in　the　seventeenth　century；　how　was　spirit　to　act　upon　matter；　without　ceasing；　pro　tanto；　to　be　spirit？　To　evade　this　difficulty；　the　Gnostics　postulated　a　series　of　emanations　from　God；　becoming　successively　less　and　less　spiritual　and　more　and　more　material；　until　at　the　lowest　end　of　the　scale　was　reached　the　Demiurgus　or　Jehovah　of　the　Old　Testament；　who　created　the　world　and　appeared；　clothed　in　material　form；　to　the　patriarchs。　According　to　some　of　the　Gnostics　this　lowest　aeon　or　emanation　was　identical　with　the　Jewish　Satan；　or　the　Ahriman　of　the　Persians；　who　is　called　〃the　prince　of　this　world；〃　and　the　creation　of　the　world　was　an　essentially　evil　act。　But　all　did　not　share　in　these　extreme　opinions。　In　the　prevailing；　theory；　this　last　of　the　divine　emanations　was　identified　with　the　〃Sophia；〃　or　personified　〃Wisdom；〃　of　the　Book　of　Proverbs　（viii。　22…30）；　who　is　described　as　present　with　God　before　the　foundation　of　the　world。　The　totality　of　these　aeons　constituted　the　pleroma；　or　〃fulness　of　God〃　（Coloss。　i。　20；　Eph。　i。　23）；　and　in　a　corollary　which　bears　unmistakable　marks　of　Buddhist　influence；　it　was　argued　that；　in　the　final　consummation　of　things；　matter　should　be　eliminated　and　all　spirit　reunited　with　God；　from　whom　it　had　primarily　flowed。

It　was　impossible　that　such　views　as　these　should　not　soon　be　taken　up　and　applied　to　the　fluctuating　Christology　of　the　time。　Accordi