If Thomas Jefferson would have lived he would have celebrated his 269th birthday yesterday. We decided late on Thursday to take a short trip up to Monticello to show our boys around Jefferson’s historic home place. Honestly when we left on Friday morning we didn’t even know it was Jefferson’s birthday. Most people don’t know about Jefferson’s birthday because he kept it a secret fearful that his birthday would somehow detract from our celebration of Independence on July 4th. This was the second time that I have had the opportunity to visit Jefferson’s home place and each time you come away impressed with his ingenuity, his attention to detail, and his strong intellect. As a pastor I also came away thinking about the impact that Jesus played on Jefferson’s life. There has been much historical debate about Jefferson’s stance on Jesus. Let meshare what the Smithsonian says,
Thomas Jefferson was devoted to the teachings of Jesus Christ. But he didn’t always agree with
how they were interpreted by biblical sources, including the writers of the four Gospels, whom he considered to be untrustworthy correspondents. So Jefferson created his own gospel by taking a sharp instrument, perhaps a penknife, to existing copies of the New Testament and pasting up his own account of Christ’s philosophy, distinguishing it from what he called “the corruption of schismatizing followers.” Much of the material Jefferson elected to not include related miraculous events, such as the feeding of the multitudes with only two fish and five loaves of barley bread; he eschewed anything that he perceived as “contrary to reason.” His idiosyncratic gospel concludes with Christ’s entombment but omits his resurrection. He kept Jesus’ own teachings, such as the Beatitude, “Blessed are the peace-makers: for they shall be called the children of God.” The Jefferson Bible, as it’s known, is “scripture by subtraction,” writes Stephen Prothero, a professor of religion at Boston University.
how they were interpreted by biblical sources, including the writers of the four Gospels, whom he considered to be untrustworthy correspondents. So Jefferson created his own gospel by taking a sharp instrument, perhaps a penknife, to existing copies of the New Testament and pasting up his own account of Christ’s philosophy, distinguishing it from what he called “the corruption of schismatizing followers.” Much of the material Jefferson elected to not include related miraculous events, such as the feeding of the multitudes with only two fish and five loaves of barley bread; he eschewed anything that he perceived as “contrary to reason.” His idiosyncratic gospel concludes with Christ’s entombment but omits his resurrection. He kept Jesus’ own teachings, such as the Beatitude, “Blessed are the peace-makers: for they shall be called the children of God.” The Jefferson Bible, as it’s known, is “scripture by subtraction,” writes Stephen Prothero, a professor of religion at Boston University.
Thomas Jefferson produced the 84-page volume in 1820—six years before he died at age 83—bound it in red leather and titled it The Life and Morals of Jesus of Nazareth. It is also known that Jefferson began this work sixteen years before it was completed. In 1804 Jefferson wrote that his intention was “the result of a life of enquiry and reflection, and very different from that anti-Christian system, imputed to me by those who know nothing of my opinions.”
I come away from my trip to Charlottesville grateful that Thomas Jefferson saw the importance of a “life of enquiry” as it relates to Jesus Christ. However, I also know that we can’t put our hope in our ability to comprehend no matter how intelligent we may be. As I stood in the very room in which Jefferson took his last breath it is was my prayer that in Jefferson’s later days he came to “know Christ and the power of His resurrection” in a way that went beyond his ability to comprehend.
Stephen Willis
I don't pretend to compreheand why Jesus loves me so, but HOW SWEET IT IS TO BE LOVED BY HIM!
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