N.T. Wright’s book, “The Resurrection of the Son of God,” is a fantastic read. Wright sets off to examine the evidence of the resurrection of Christ, both on a historical level as well as a theological one. He opens up his book by giving the reader a deeper insight on how the Jewish culture viewed life after death, not just the Jewish culture but other belief systems that were assimilating into the Jewish belief system. Establishing this connection, Wright shows that the resurrection of Jesus was a one-of-a-kind event and highlights the unique moments that set it apart from every belief known in that day, it’s not life after death, but rather, a reversal of death with a bodily resurrection. This event that has never happened before, but because of this singular event, everything else has changed.
Wright then moves to examine the raise of Christianity and its counter-cultural threat to the Roman empire. He helps the reader understand the Roman culture, their views of god, Caesar, lordship, and how Jesus’ bodily resurrection impacted the growth of the church. Wright makes Paul his subject of study, what he witnessed, wrote about, and how his conversion from Judaism to Christ follower is evidence to build a strong case for the historical resurrection.
Wright does not end with a study of Paul, but examines the second century church as well, the witnesses mentioned in 1 Corinthians 15 for example. He poses the question of why the Church grew into what it did if the resurrection did not happen? He compares similar resurrection accounts from pagan beliefs but conclude with the flaws associated to those accounts, indicating that none of their followings had the explosion of converts like Christ did.
Wright closes with parts four and five by taking a critical view of the Easter story. He examines the biblical accounts of what took place as well as the decades of tradition passed down from the event of the resurrection.
This is a long read, overall, but extremely practical in understanding the early church belief and encourages the church of today to remain confident it what we know is true. The book was extremely organized and well executed. If you have ever had questions regarding the resurrection, this is a book carry. Wright may not answer every question directly, but he’ll give you a great starting point.
The one criticism I would assign here, is simply the length. This is a monster of a book and with the heavy topics being discussed, makes this a very dense read. It’s it easy at times to lose track of where he is going. For me, when I got here, I had to take break for a moment and return later. This approach ultimately paid off. I appreciate this book in so many ways and would challenge every Christian to keep a copy on their shelf, it’s a book to return to often.
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The Resurrection of the Son of God (CHRISTIAN ORIGINS AND THE QUESTION OF GOD) ペーパーバック – イラスト付き, 2003/5/1
英語版
N. T. Wright
(著)
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Explores ancient beliefs about life after death, highlighting the fact that the early Christians' belief about the afterlife belonged firmly on the Jewish spectrum, while introducing several new mutations and sharper definitions, forcing readers to view the Easter narratives not simply as rationalizations, but as accounts of two actual events: the empty tomb of Jesus and his "appearances." Simultaneous. Hardcover no longer available.
- 本の長さ740ページ
- 言語英語
- 出版社Fortress Pr
- 発売日2003/5/1
- 寸法15.24 x 3.81 x 22.86 cm
- ISBN-100800626796
- ISBN-13978-0800626792
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著者について
N. T. Wright is the former Bishop of Durham in the Church of England and one of the world's leading Bible scholars. He has taught New Testament at Oxford, St. Andrews, McGill and Cambridge. His award-winning books include The Case for the Psalms, How God Became King, Simply Jesus, and Jesus and the Victory of God.
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- 出版社 : Fortress Pr; Illustrated版 (2003/5/1)
- 発売日 : 2003/5/1
- 言語 : 英語
- ペーパーバック : 740ページ
- ISBN-10 : 0800626796
- ISBN-13 : 978-0800626792
- 寸法 : 15.24 x 3.81 x 22.86 cm
- Amazon 売れ筋ランキング: - 338,833位洋書 (洋書の売れ筋ランキングを見る)
- - 1,485位Christian Reference
- - 1,594位Christian Theology
- - 2,110位Bible & Other Sacred Texts (洋書)
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Brandon
5つ星のうち5.0
A great resource for understanding the culture surrounding the resurrection.
2023年12月13日にアメリカ合衆国でレビュー済みAmazonで購入
Kalita Ono
5つ星のうち5.0
Sensacional
2023年9月7日にブラジルでレビュー済みAmazonで購入
Livro maravilhoso
Daniel Rajasooriar
5つ星のうち5.0
Excellent treatment of why we should read the Easter narratives as actual events!
2020年10月14日にカナダでレビュー済みAmazonで購入
Why should we read the Easter narratives as actual events rather than a late rationalization of early Christian spirituality? Although the length of the book may be intimidating, Dr. N. T. Wright answers this question in a manner that is both scholarly and accessible. If you are interested in the subject matter, this is a valuable resource to add to your library.
In the first part of the book, Wright sets the scene. I enjoyed how he discusses different senses of history, such as “history as event,” “history as significant event,” “history as provable event,” “history as writings-about-events-in-the-past” or “history as speaking-about-events in the past,” and “history as what modern historians can say” (Wright, 2003, pp. 12-13). Wright mentions that what is at stake throughout much of the book is whether the resurrection of Jesus is historical in the first sense and proceeds to address six objections to such historical study of the resurrection of Jesus (pp. 14-28). He first addresses the objections that we have no access, no analogy, and no real evidence, as articulated by those who say that the relevant historical study of the resurrection cannot be undertaken (pp. 14-20). He then addresses the objections that Christians have no other starting point, that resurrection is tied to Christology, and that resurrection is tied to eschatology, as articulated by those who say that the relevant historical study of the resurrection should not be undertaken (pp. 20-28). I also enjoyed how Wright (2003) points out that pagans, Jews, and Christians all understood resurrection to be “new life after a period of being dead” (p. 31). He notes that while pagans denied this possibility, some Jews affirmed it as a long-term future hope, and virtually all Christians claimed that it happened to Jesus and would happen to them in the future (p. 31). Wright then goes on to survey the pagan and Jewish worldviews in terms of what they believed about what happens after death (pp. 32-206).
In the second part of the book, Wright surveys resurrection as mentioned in the Pauline epistles. I enjoyed how Wright (2003) analyzes resurrection as mentioned in the Pauline epistles apart from the Corinthian correspondence, introduces the Corinthian correspondence, and tackles the key passages mentioning resurrection in the Corinthian correspondence (pp. 207-374). I also enjoyed how he discusses Paul’s experience of the resurrected Jesus on the road to Damascus (pp. 375-398).
In the third part of the book, Wright surveys resurrection as mentioned in early Christianity apart from the Pauline epistles. I enjoyed how Wright (2003) analyzes the Gospel traditions apart from the Easter narratives, analyzes other New Testament writings, and analyzes non-canonical early Christian texts (pp. 399-552). I also enjoyed how he discusses what it means for Jesus to be recognized as Messiah and Lord (pp. 553-583). As Wright notes, the early Christian belief about Jesus is powerful supporting evidence for the early Christian belief about what happened to Him (p. 553).
In the fourth part of the book, Wright discusses the story of Easter. I enjoyed how Wright (2003) brings up the origin of the resurrection narratives and the surprise of the resurrection narratives (pp. 589-608). To touch on the latter, he makes the interesting argument that the strange silence of the Bible in the stories, the strange absence of personal hope in the stories, the strange portrait of Jesus in the stories, and the strange presence of the women in the stories are due to the gospel stories being “chronologically as well as logically prior to the developed discussions of the resurrection which we find in Paul and many subsequent writers” (Wright, 2003, pp. 599-615). I also enjoyed how Wright surveys the Easter narratives found in Mark, Matthew, Luke, and John (pp. 617-682).
In the fifth part of the book, Wright discusses belief, event, and meaning. I enjoyed how Wright (2003) addresses what caused the early Christian belief in the resurrection of Jesus by focusing on the empty tomb and the appearances of the living Jesus after His death (pp. 685-696). Wright does a tremendous job dismantling two rival theories to the resurrection theory, namely the theory that the disciples were suffering from cognitive dissonance and the theory that the disciples had a profound religious experience that slowly grew into the misleading language of physical resurrection (pp. 697-706). Wright goes on to argue that the empty tomb and the appearances of the living Jesus after His death do not simply entail a sufficient condition to account for the rise of Christianity and that they instead entail a necessary condition (pp. 706-710). Ultimately, Wright (2003) notes that, “The fact that dead people do not ordinarily rise is itself part of early Christian belief, not an objection to it,” and that in terms of history we should go by “inference to the best explanation” (pp. 710-718). I also enjoyed how Wright addresses the question of what it means if Jesus, the Son of God, was raised from the dead (pp. 719-738).
In the first part of the book, Wright sets the scene. I enjoyed how he discusses different senses of history, such as “history as event,” “history as significant event,” “history as provable event,” “history as writings-about-events-in-the-past” or “history as speaking-about-events in the past,” and “history as what modern historians can say” (Wright, 2003, pp. 12-13). Wright mentions that what is at stake throughout much of the book is whether the resurrection of Jesus is historical in the first sense and proceeds to address six objections to such historical study of the resurrection of Jesus (pp. 14-28). He first addresses the objections that we have no access, no analogy, and no real evidence, as articulated by those who say that the relevant historical study of the resurrection cannot be undertaken (pp. 14-20). He then addresses the objections that Christians have no other starting point, that resurrection is tied to Christology, and that resurrection is tied to eschatology, as articulated by those who say that the relevant historical study of the resurrection should not be undertaken (pp. 20-28). I also enjoyed how Wright (2003) points out that pagans, Jews, and Christians all understood resurrection to be “new life after a period of being dead” (p. 31). He notes that while pagans denied this possibility, some Jews affirmed it as a long-term future hope, and virtually all Christians claimed that it happened to Jesus and would happen to them in the future (p. 31). Wright then goes on to survey the pagan and Jewish worldviews in terms of what they believed about what happens after death (pp. 32-206).
In the second part of the book, Wright surveys resurrection as mentioned in the Pauline epistles. I enjoyed how Wright (2003) analyzes resurrection as mentioned in the Pauline epistles apart from the Corinthian correspondence, introduces the Corinthian correspondence, and tackles the key passages mentioning resurrection in the Corinthian correspondence (pp. 207-374). I also enjoyed how he discusses Paul’s experience of the resurrected Jesus on the road to Damascus (pp. 375-398).
In the third part of the book, Wright surveys resurrection as mentioned in early Christianity apart from the Pauline epistles. I enjoyed how Wright (2003) analyzes the Gospel traditions apart from the Easter narratives, analyzes other New Testament writings, and analyzes non-canonical early Christian texts (pp. 399-552). I also enjoyed how he discusses what it means for Jesus to be recognized as Messiah and Lord (pp. 553-583). As Wright notes, the early Christian belief about Jesus is powerful supporting evidence for the early Christian belief about what happened to Him (p. 553).
In the fourth part of the book, Wright discusses the story of Easter. I enjoyed how Wright (2003) brings up the origin of the resurrection narratives and the surprise of the resurrection narratives (pp. 589-608). To touch on the latter, he makes the interesting argument that the strange silence of the Bible in the stories, the strange absence of personal hope in the stories, the strange portrait of Jesus in the stories, and the strange presence of the women in the stories are due to the gospel stories being “chronologically as well as logically prior to the developed discussions of the resurrection which we find in Paul and many subsequent writers” (Wright, 2003, pp. 599-615). I also enjoyed how Wright surveys the Easter narratives found in Mark, Matthew, Luke, and John (pp. 617-682).
In the fifth part of the book, Wright discusses belief, event, and meaning. I enjoyed how Wright (2003) addresses what caused the early Christian belief in the resurrection of Jesus by focusing on the empty tomb and the appearances of the living Jesus after His death (pp. 685-696). Wright does a tremendous job dismantling two rival theories to the resurrection theory, namely the theory that the disciples were suffering from cognitive dissonance and the theory that the disciples had a profound religious experience that slowly grew into the misleading language of physical resurrection (pp. 697-706). Wright goes on to argue that the empty tomb and the appearances of the living Jesus after His death do not simply entail a sufficient condition to account for the rise of Christianity and that they instead entail a necessary condition (pp. 706-710). Ultimately, Wright (2003) notes that, “The fact that dead people do not ordinarily rise is itself part of early Christian belief, not an objection to it,” and that in terms of history we should go by “inference to the best explanation” (pp. 710-718). I also enjoyed how Wright addresses the question of what it means if Jesus, the Son of God, was raised from the dead (pp. 719-738).
Erastos Filos
5つ星のうち5.0
Theological Implications from the Historicity of Jesus' Resurrection
2020年10月13日に英国でレビュー済みAmazonで購入
What happened on Easter morning? N.T. Wright believes that this question – the central theme of the book – is closely related to the question of why Christianity began, and why it took the shape it did. His intention was to write about the historical beginnings of Christianity and about the question of God – not an easy undertaking, given the amount of historical and theological thinking that has been invested in researching this topic, this is perhaps why the book has turned out to be that voluminous (more than 800 pages). Its purpose, Wright contends, is determined by two sub-questions: what did the early Christians think happened to Jesus, and what can we today say about the plausibility of those beliefs?
Wright is well aware of the two hundred-year fight to keep history and theology at arm’s length. The resurrection accounts in the canonical gospels have almost routinely been treated by post-Enlightenment scholarship as mere back-projections of later Christian belief, with only shaky claims to historical veracity, he claims. This understanding of Jesus’ resurrection is still widely accepted in scholarship and many mainline churches: ‘resurrection’ could mean a variety of different things; Paul, did not believe in bodily resurrection, but held a ‘spiritual’ view; the earliest Christians used ‘resurrection’ language initially to denote such a belief but underwent a kind of fantasy or hallucination; and, finally, whatever happened to Jesus’ body, it was certainly not ‘raised from the dead’ in the sense that the gospel stories seem to require. Wright challenges this by saying that the resurrection of Jesus was just as controversial nineteen hundred years ago as it is today. The discovery that dead people stay dead was not first made by the philosophers of the Enlightenment.
Wright shows that this position, fashionable as it has been, leads to enormous historical problems which disappear when treated as descriptions of what the first Christians believed actually happened. They are not the leaves on the branches of early Christianity. They look very much like the trunk from which the branches themselves sprang.
Is there an alternative explanation for the rise of the early church? Early Christianity was a ‘resurrection’ movement through and through and Wright states precisely what ‘resurrection’ involves (going through death and out into a new kind of bodily existence beyond, happening in two stages, with Jesus first and everyone else later). Early Christianity’s answer was based on a firm belief that Jesus had been raised from the dead, his tomb was empty, and several people, who had not previously been followers of Jesus, claimed to have seen him alive in a way for which the readily available language of ghosts, spirits and the like is inappropriate. If one takes away either of these historical conclusions, the belief of the early church becomes inexplicable, Wright claims.
So, what is the ultimate theological impact of the resurrection? Wright offers some hints in the final chapter: "Death—the unmaking of the Creator’s image-bearing creatures—was not seen as a good thing, but as an enemy to be defeated. ... The early Christians saw Jesus’ resurrection as the act of the covenant god, fulfilling his promises to deal with evil at last" (727). Furthermore, "[c]alling Jesus ‘son of god’ ... constituted a refusal to retreat, a determination to stop Christian discipleship turning into a private cult, a sect, a mystery religion. It launched a claim on the world ... It grew from an essentially positive view of the world, of creation. It refused to relinquish the world to the principalities and powers, but claimed even them for allegiance to the Messiah who was now the lord, the kyrios" (729). And, finally: "The resurrection, in the full Jewish and early Christian sense, is the ultimate affirmation that creation matters, that embodied human beings matter" (730).
These powerful messages, emanating from the historicity of the resurrection, offer the grounds for preaching the message of hope to a distressed and desperate humanity, a message that proves that the resurrection in fact is the reason behind the powerful start of Christianity as a world-changing grassroots movement that it truly has been.
Dr. Erastos Filos, Physicist, Brussels, Belgium
Wright is well aware of the two hundred-year fight to keep history and theology at arm’s length. The resurrection accounts in the canonical gospels have almost routinely been treated by post-Enlightenment scholarship as mere back-projections of later Christian belief, with only shaky claims to historical veracity, he claims. This understanding of Jesus’ resurrection is still widely accepted in scholarship and many mainline churches: ‘resurrection’ could mean a variety of different things; Paul, did not believe in bodily resurrection, but held a ‘spiritual’ view; the earliest Christians used ‘resurrection’ language initially to denote such a belief but underwent a kind of fantasy or hallucination; and, finally, whatever happened to Jesus’ body, it was certainly not ‘raised from the dead’ in the sense that the gospel stories seem to require. Wright challenges this by saying that the resurrection of Jesus was just as controversial nineteen hundred years ago as it is today. The discovery that dead people stay dead was not first made by the philosophers of the Enlightenment.
Wright shows that this position, fashionable as it has been, leads to enormous historical problems which disappear when treated as descriptions of what the first Christians believed actually happened. They are not the leaves on the branches of early Christianity. They look very much like the trunk from which the branches themselves sprang.
Is there an alternative explanation for the rise of the early church? Early Christianity was a ‘resurrection’ movement through and through and Wright states precisely what ‘resurrection’ involves (going through death and out into a new kind of bodily existence beyond, happening in two stages, with Jesus first and everyone else later). Early Christianity’s answer was based on a firm belief that Jesus had been raised from the dead, his tomb was empty, and several people, who had not previously been followers of Jesus, claimed to have seen him alive in a way for which the readily available language of ghosts, spirits and the like is inappropriate. If one takes away either of these historical conclusions, the belief of the early church becomes inexplicable, Wright claims.
So, what is the ultimate theological impact of the resurrection? Wright offers some hints in the final chapter: "Death—the unmaking of the Creator’s image-bearing creatures—was not seen as a good thing, but as an enemy to be defeated. ... The early Christians saw Jesus’ resurrection as the act of the covenant god, fulfilling his promises to deal with evil at last" (727). Furthermore, "[c]alling Jesus ‘son of god’ ... constituted a refusal to retreat, a determination to stop Christian discipleship turning into a private cult, a sect, a mystery religion. It launched a claim on the world ... It grew from an essentially positive view of the world, of creation. It refused to relinquish the world to the principalities and powers, but claimed even them for allegiance to the Messiah who was now the lord, the kyrios" (729). And, finally: "The resurrection, in the full Jewish and early Christian sense, is the ultimate affirmation that creation matters, that embodied human beings matter" (730).
These powerful messages, emanating from the historicity of the resurrection, offer the grounds for preaching the message of hope to a distressed and desperate humanity, a message that proves that the resurrection in fact is the reason behind the powerful start of Christianity as a world-changing grassroots movement that it truly has been.
Dr. Erastos Filos, Physicist, Brussels, Belgium
Kindle Customer
5つ星のうち5.0
Engaging Historical Exploration That Makes Compelling Case for the Bodily Resurrection of Jesus
2023年10月27日にアメリカ合衆国でレビュー済みAmazonで購入
N.T. Wright’s The Resurrection of the Son of God is an engaging and comprehensive historical exploration through which a compelling case for the bodily resurrection of Jesus is constructed.
The structure of the book is innovative—Wright spends the first part on a substantial treatment of both ancient near eastern non-Jewish and Jewish views of life after death. The “pagan” view is illustrated both to provide a backdrop for the apostle Paul’s mission to the pagan world and to contest the supposed parallels between the New Testament resurrection accounts and pagan beliefs. Wright clearly demonstrates that the pagan view would have not have allowed any expectation of bodily resurrection, but shows that ancient Jewish beliefs were more complex—afterlife is often depicted in many passages of the Old Testament as a shadowy place of near nothingness, yet in others there seems to be a basis for Jewish hope, not only in the restoration of the nation of Israel, but in a possible personal bodily resurrection. Wright also provides a detailed treatment of the Jewish concept of “resurrection” into the second-Temple period and demonstrates that the first century apostles would have understood any meaning of “resurrection” as only possibly a bodily one.
After “setting the scene,” Wright explores Paul’s descriptions of “resurrection” in the epistles and argues that resurrection is uniformly understood by Paul as bodily and literal rather than any type of subjective personal experience. The pre-Pauline creed in 1 Corinthians 15:3-7 receives its own treatment as the earliest and strongest written evidence for the resurrection and the appearances of the risen Jesus to the apostles. Wright then strengthens his case for the historicity of the resurrection through the exploration of the evidence in the four canonical Gospels (highlighting their restrained nature and other marks of their authenticity), non-Pauline biblical books, and non-canonical early church literature.
Wright’s ultimate point is that the best explanation for the historical evidence surrounding the Easter events is the bodily resurrection of Jesus. The empty tomb combined with the apostles’ experiences of the risen Jesus provided the necessary and sufficient conditions to account for their belief and transformation. Wright makes it clear that the empty tomb itself would have been automatically assumed by Paul and other witnesses who affirmed the burial and then resurrection of Jesus. No other explanation would have led to the apostle’s unwavering proclamation of the risen Jesus.
The book is impressively comprehensive, clear, well-written, and well-reasoned. I was especially fascinated by the deep examination of the pagan and early Jewish views of the afterlife and the tie to the apostles’ context for belief in the resurrection. The book is a pleasure to read—though 738 pages, I had a difficult time putting it down until I finished it. Anyone who has read N.T. Wright’s other work will appreciate his injection of humor into the writing as well. The research is extensive and the footnotes helpfully amplify his arguments and direct the reader to other sources. The 79 pages of bibliography and indexes are themselves an incredible resource for deeper exploration.
I found the unique overall layout of the argument engaging. However, I do worry that some readers might find Wright’s scene setting purpose for the first 206 pages difficult to appreciate without being offered more early context. The book as a whole creates a solid and compelling argument, but it is an emergent argument that becomes clear over the course of the book’s entirety; he might have made his case even stronger if the book began with a more extensive outline of its trajectory.
I highly recommend this outstanding magnum opus for anyone interested in an innovative and compelling historicity of the resurrection of Jesus.
The structure of the book is innovative—Wright spends the first part on a substantial treatment of both ancient near eastern non-Jewish and Jewish views of life after death. The “pagan” view is illustrated both to provide a backdrop for the apostle Paul’s mission to the pagan world and to contest the supposed parallels between the New Testament resurrection accounts and pagan beliefs. Wright clearly demonstrates that the pagan view would have not have allowed any expectation of bodily resurrection, but shows that ancient Jewish beliefs were more complex—afterlife is often depicted in many passages of the Old Testament as a shadowy place of near nothingness, yet in others there seems to be a basis for Jewish hope, not only in the restoration of the nation of Israel, but in a possible personal bodily resurrection. Wright also provides a detailed treatment of the Jewish concept of “resurrection” into the second-Temple period and demonstrates that the first century apostles would have understood any meaning of “resurrection” as only possibly a bodily one.
After “setting the scene,” Wright explores Paul’s descriptions of “resurrection” in the epistles and argues that resurrection is uniformly understood by Paul as bodily and literal rather than any type of subjective personal experience. The pre-Pauline creed in 1 Corinthians 15:3-7 receives its own treatment as the earliest and strongest written evidence for the resurrection and the appearances of the risen Jesus to the apostles. Wright then strengthens his case for the historicity of the resurrection through the exploration of the evidence in the four canonical Gospels (highlighting their restrained nature and other marks of their authenticity), non-Pauline biblical books, and non-canonical early church literature.
Wright’s ultimate point is that the best explanation for the historical evidence surrounding the Easter events is the bodily resurrection of Jesus. The empty tomb combined with the apostles’ experiences of the risen Jesus provided the necessary and sufficient conditions to account for their belief and transformation. Wright makes it clear that the empty tomb itself would have been automatically assumed by Paul and other witnesses who affirmed the burial and then resurrection of Jesus. No other explanation would have led to the apostle’s unwavering proclamation of the risen Jesus.
The book is impressively comprehensive, clear, well-written, and well-reasoned. I was especially fascinated by the deep examination of the pagan and early Jewish views of the afterlife and the tie to the apostles’ context for belief in the resurrection. The book is a pleasure to read—though 738 pages, I had a difficult time putting it down until I finished it. Anyone who has read N.T. Wright’s other work will appreciate his injection of humor into the writing as well. The research is extensive and the footnotes helpfully amplify his arguments and direct the reader to other sources. The 79 pages of bibliography and indexes are themselves an incredible resource for deeper exploration.
I found the unique overall layout of the argument engaging. However, I do worry that some readers might find Wright’s scene setting purpose for the first 206 pages difficult to appreciate without being offered more early context. The book as a whole creates a solid and compelling argument, but it is an emergent argument that becomes clear over the course of the book’s entirety; he might have made his case even stronger if the book began with a more extensive outline of its trajectory.
I highly recommend this outstanding magnum opus for anyone interested in an innovative and compelling historicity of the resurrection of Jesus.