Confusion of Christian Prophets with Jesus?

CONFUSION OF CHRISTIAN PROPHETS WITH JESUS?

By Fr. William Most

:Bultmann (HST, 127 ff) argued: "The Church drew no distinction between such utterances by Christian prophets... and the sayings of Jesus in the tradition... ."

Support for that objection comes from: 1) There were prophets in the early community. 2) History of Religions shows I sayings where the I was the Lord of the cult. Cf. Od. Sol. 42:6.3) Relative lack of interest in the earthly life of Jesus in the kerygma in Acts and in Paul. 4) Some texts are cited as Scripture texts we cannot find in any known OT texts. . 5) Mt 18:20: "Where two or three are gathered together, there I am in the midst of them."

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In addition:

1) Wherever we look we find the distinctive character of prophecies are noted as words of a prophet. In the OT no book names God as the author: if there were no human author named, it would not be accepted.

2) Wherever Luke quotes a prophetic utterance he always names the prophets: 11:27; 13:1ff; 21:9ff.

3) On Apoc 1:1 we have "the revelation of Jesus to his servant John". So a distinction was kept. And the revelations said to be from the exalted Christ are clearly kept distinct from those of the earthly Christ.

4) Paul in 1 Cor 7:10, 25, 40 distinguishes what comes from Jesus' tradition and his own views even though he considers his own opinion as inspired: 7:40.

5) When the Gnostic Gospels claim Jesus as author of a saying it is clearly attributed to the exalted Jesus, not to the earthly Jesus.

6) In Judaism there was great care taken to pass on authoritative tradition and to identify the source, a human Rabbi.

7) At Qumran there was keen awareness that a false spirit could be present: 1 QS 3:18-4:26; CD 8:1ff. The spirit of a member of the community was to be checked not only on entrance, but every year: 1QS 5:20-24.

8) Mt 7:15 ff warns against false prophets. Acts 13:6 tells of a false prophet Elymas in Cyprus and Acts 8 has Simon Magus.

9) 1 Cor 14:29 gives rules for judging prophets in the community. Also 1 Ths 5:19-22 tells them to check every spirit and keep only what is good.

10)1 John 4:1 tells them to not believe every spirit.

11) The Didache gives detailed rules for judging prophets in 11:7;12:1.

12) Hermas in Mandate 11:7 and 11:16 is warned about false prophets.

13) Gal 1:8 says even if an angel came down with a different Gospel, the angel is to be cursed.