



Produced by Jeroen Hellingman and the Online Distributed
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                           THE JESUS PROBLEM

                    A RESTATEMENT OF THE MYTH THEORY


                                   BY
                         J. M. ROBERTSON, M.P.


        [ISSUED FOR THE RATIONALIST PRESS ASSOCIATION, LIMITED]


                                London:
                              WATTS & CO.,
                17 JOHNSON'S COURT, FLEET STREET, E.C. 4
                                  1917








CONTENTS


                                                            PAGE
    Prefatory Note                                           vii

    Chapter I.--THE APPROACH                                   1
    Chapter II.--THE CENTRAL MYTH                             24

        § 1. The Ground of Conflict                           24
        § 2. The Sacrificial Rite                             31
        § 3. Contingent Elements                              39
        § 4. The Mock-King Ritual                             50
        § 5. Doctrinal Additions                              53
        § 6. Minor Ritual and Myth Elements                   57
        § 7. The Cross                                        61
        § 8. The Suffering Messiah                            64
        § 9. The Rock Tomb                                    67
        § 10. The Resurrection                                70

    Chapter III.--ROOTS OF THE MYTH                           72

        § 1. Historical Data                                  72
        § 2. Prototypes                                       91
        § 3. The Mystery-Drama                                96

    Chapter IV.--EVOLUTION  OF THE CULT                      107

        § 1. The Primary Impulsion                           107
        § 2. The Silence of Josephus                         121
        § 3. The Myth of the Twelve Apostles                 126
        § 4. The Process of Propaganda                       135
        § 5. Real Determinants                               148

    Chapter V.--ORGANIZATION AND ECONOMICS                   157

        § 1. The Economic Side                               157
        § 2. Organization                                    162

    Chapter VI.--EARLY BOOK-MAKING                           170

        § 1. The "Didachê"                                   170
        § 2. The Apocalypse                                  173
        § 3. Epistles                                        176

     Chapter VII.--GOSPEL-MAKING                             182

        § 1. Tradition                                       182
        § 2. Schmiedel's Tests                               188
        § 3. Tendential Tests                                192
        § 4. Historic Summary                                202

    Chapter VIII.--SUPPLEMENTARY MYTH                        207

        § 1. Myths of Healing                                207
        § 2. Birth Myths                                     209
        § 3. Minor Myths                                     217

    Chapter IX.--CONCLUSION                                  223

    Appendix A.--TRANSLATION OF "THE TEACHING OF
                 THE TWELVE APOSTLES," WITH NOTES            235
    Appendix B.--THE MYTH OF SIMON MAGUS                     248








PREFATORY NOTE


Most of the propositions in mythology and anthropology in this
book are founded on bodies of evidence given in the larger works of
the author. It seemed fitting, therefore, to refer to those works
instead of repeating hundreds of references there given. Readers
concerned to investigate the issues are thus invited and enabled to do
so. For brevity's sake, Christianity and Mythology is cited as C.M.;
Pagan Christs as P.C.; and the Short Histories of Christianity and
Freethought as S.H.C. and S.H.F. respectively. In the first three
cases the references are to the second editions; in the last case,
to the third. The Evolution of States is cited as E.S. Another work
often referred to is Sir J. G. Frazer's great thesaurus, The Golden
Bough, which is cited as G.B., the references being to the last
edition. Other new references are given in the usual way. The Ecce
Deus of Professor W. B. Smith is cited in the English edition.

Passages in brackets, in unleaded type, may be passed at a first
perusal by readers concerned mainly to follow the constructive
theory. Such passages deal controversially with counter-polemic.








THE JESUS PROBLEM

THE APPROACH


As was explained in the preamble to The Historical Jesus (1916),
that work was offered as prolegomena to a concise restatement of the
theory that the Gospel Jesus is a mythical construction. That theory
had been discursively expounded by