Chapter 4: How the Problem Arose in History

The recorded data we have about the person of Jesus is contained in the Gospels. First off, let us define what the Gospels are not. They are not minute by minute descriptions of events. They are not intended to be precise word for word transcriptions of dialog. They are not news stories or police reports.

The evangelists wanted to pass on the most important things they had seen and heard about Jesus, and so the Gospels tell of significant events in Jesus' life that are exemplary. Giussani uses the following analogy: Say my new and expensive car had just been stolen. I could find out about its whereabouts via two ways. First, I might be called by the police and read a report about an abandoned car with no tires or registration, but whose description fitted my vehicle. Or, my friend might call me and exclaim that he saw my car on a side street as he was taking a bus downtown. He can't remember the exact street, but he is sure he could find it again, and he is sure it is my car. "I have, therefore, heard the news in two reasonably reliable ways. Only the methods of verification differ" (37).

The Gospel writer's intent is to pass on the memory of Jesus, meaning that the facts and jottings in the text automatically suppose that the reader will fill in the gaps. Our memory of our childhood upbringings is not a perfect chronology of events, times, and conversations; instead we recall crucial facts, words, and images that make sense when put together. So too the Gospels contain scenes and excerpts that, when assembled, form a whole picture.

Our next question is, "Is it convincing?" Giussani is insistent that the method of knowing is contingent on the object at hand. In this case, the object is a person, Jesus. To know a person one must spend time with him. In the case of the apostles, they not only spent time with him, but lived with him for three years. "Living with, that is 'investing time,' is a necessary condition that enables an individual to obtain that qualitative skill which produces certainty [about anything, be it a person, or art, music, etc.]" (41).

Certainty about another person is solidified when there is adequate reason for believing in another. And the more "powerfully human" the observer is, the more he can make a correct evaluation of another based on only a few indications. To make an analogy, consider two doctors. One has vigorously studied medicine and has worked with thousands of patients over the past 30 years. The other has only been an M.D. for one year. The more experienced doctor will be able to diagnose, to connect the dots, about the source of illness much faster and with much less information than the inexperienced doctor. In the same way Jesus praises those who believe based on just a tiny clue over those who need to see wonders and miracles. "Blessed are those who have not seen yet believe" (Jn 20:29). But let us remember than the believer still has reasons, for without reasons one would be alienating himself from reality. The mind's assent to the truth that is proposed to us, which is reasonable, even without full comprehension, is faith, which is in no way opposed to reason.

The rest of Chapter 4 illuminates the first chapter of the Gospel of John. Like a notebook in which each sentence and phrase begs to be expanded and explained, "Every blank space must be filled in with developments that the writer takes for granted" (45). After John the Baptist cries, "Behold the Lamb of God!" two fishermen follow Jesus to his home, and stay with him until evening, even forgetting to go to work with their partners. One of the two, Andrew, tells his brother Simon, "We have found the Messiah."

There is an incredible spontaneity to this account. They remained there long enough to forget that it was the evening... They stayed there and attained that certainty, which they communicated to others. What happened in between is not explained. Yet they must have done something - they would have heard him speak, asked him questions, seen him move about the house doing things... [and the next day] The first thing one of the two men says to his brother who is on the boat is: "We have found the Messiah." (46)

The next day Philip meets Jesus and quickly afterward tells Nathanael, who is incredulous that the Messiah could come from Nazareth. Yet after a few exchanges of words Nathanael cries, "You are the Son of God. You are the Messiah." So many things are assumed in the text, but the message would not be the same if only the sterilized details of what, where, and when, were recorded. This first chapter is a testimony of those who "were left with such an impression that they reported as the truth an affirmation that perhaps he himself made, which satisfied all the expectations of their time" (47). Andrew, Simon, Philip, and Nathanael have found someone different from all others. They have a certainty about him, which would be confirmed later, but for now it gives witness to Jesus' distinct quality. This is only the beginning of the certainty. The next chapter will show how the certainty evolves.