イエスの笑い・序論(林陸雄教授退任記念号)

概要

論文の詳細を見る
In New Testament studies, the "laughter of Jesus" has seldom been a subject of full-fledged discussions, likely because the New Testament nowhere describes such an occasion, or because we have just assumed that Jesus, a serious and honest man, is anything but frivolous, and that he never laughs nor makes others laugh. After all, he has been revered as Christ, the Son of God or the Lord. The fact that he was cruelly crucified has also contributed to a general reluctance to take up "laughter" as a theme. However, those who love Jesus and engage in academic pursuit of Jesus must have heard his laughter oozing between the lines throughout the texts. In my book titled "Jesus the Man" (Kodansha Gendai Shinsho,1997), this theme is discussed under the section "Humor." In writing another book titled "Jesus on the Front Line - Sharing Pains" (Sekai Shisosha, 2006), I renewed and deepened my recognition of Jesus' exquisite sense of humor. On the basis of my essay "The Laughter of Jesus" (The Chugai Nippo, May 3, 2007), this paper gives a deeper insight into the theme, hopefully to develop into a book in the future. Re-reading the gospel texts from the perspective of "laughter" will shed light on a new aspect of the image of Jesus as a man.
2010-03-25