• The last part of Matthew Chapter 27 mentions that after Jesus’ death, the chief priests and the Pharisees gathered. They remembered Jesus’ words during His life (‘After three days I will rise again’), so they met to discuss preparations in case that event actually happened.
• They were worried that if Jesus’ disciples stole His body and then told people that Jesus had risen, the temptation would be greater than before. Therefore, they decided to secure Jesus’ tomb for three days by sealing the stone and setting a guard.
• Chapter 28 records the event where Jesus appeared to two women (Mary Magdalene and the other Mary) and the twelve disciples after His resurrection. At that time, the chief priests received a report from the guards that the body was missing from the tomb and paid the guards to spread the rumor that the disciples had stolen the body at night. Matthew writes that this story has been passed down among the Jews to this day (the early church period).
• Among the four great saints (Buddha, Confucius, Socrates, Jesus), only Jesus claimed to be the Son of God (either directly or indirectly), and He was the only one who resurrected. The evidence of Jesus’ resurrection seen by the disciples and other people has been passed down to this day. Therefore, the vitality of Christianity lies in Jesus’ resurrection.
• I, too, have felt confused about the Christian faith after hearing and seeing the words of some philosophers and saints recently. Especially when I heard Buddha’s preaching that ‘we only experience what is limited to us, and we are caught in the net of believing it,’ I was confused.

<Commonality among those who hold 62 views as seen by Buddha>

Humanity’s 62 views arise from feelings and experiences. Beings who do not know and see are merely feeling, and that feeling is only disturbed by views and experiences. No matter how much one talks about the past and the future, it is just reflecting their limited experiences and judging based on the experience here and now.

• All experiences come from one’s limited experience, and it strongly takes hold as a feeling, making us judge it that way, but in reality, it is limited. To everyone, their experience is precious. That’s why they cling to their experience. Moreover, the experience I gained is not only part of it but also because I have invested a lot of my time and effort, I become attached to it, making it hard to let go.

• I wondered if I, too, might have fallen into one of these 62 views that humanity could have. However, the view about Jesus’ resurrection is not merely based on feelings or experiences. The disciples who witnessed the resurrected Jesus experienced the fact and risked their lives to convey it. Therefore, I believe that Christianity cannot exist without the resurrection of Jesus.

• In the book ‘Sapiens’ I’m currently reading, it is argued that ‘when numerous unknown people believe in a common myth (fiction), successful cooperation becomes possible,’ and thus sapiens created common religious myths. For example, the church (including Catholicism and Christianity) is rooted in a ‘common religious myth’ (believing that God was born in a human body to forgive our sins and willingly crucified), which made successful cooperation possible, and this cooperated great power has dominated humanity since.

• However, I believe the resurrection is not fiction but a fact because it seems unlikely that humans would sacrifice their lives for fiction. The disciples died while transmitting the resurrected Jesus they witnessed.
• The author of ‘Sapiens,’ Yuval Noah Harari, might think that the early Christian community, which did not witness the resurrection, created the resurrection as a common myth (the process of making fiction into a story) with the intention of creating a great power, even though they had not seen the resurrected Jesus. The author views Catholicism and Christianity as religions that have created a great power by creating a common religious myth.
• Today’s meditation seems to be related. In Matthew Chapter 28, the Jews were worried that ‘if Jesus’ disciples stole His body and lied to the people that Jesus had risen, the temptation that would arise later would be greater than before.’

• For reference, the earliest Christian community coexisted with Judaism from the year AD(?) to AD 70 after Jesus’ death. Afterward, Christianity (the group of disciples who witnessed Jesus’ resurrection) emerged as a separate religion when the Jerusalem Temple was destroyed by Rome in AD 70.

<Application>

1. Offer prayers of thanks and praise to God, who provided evidence of the resurrection.
2. Let’s understand the differences between Judaism and Christianity (including Catholicism).