We have previously dismissed the notion that Jesus died for our sins as nonsensical, if not repugnant. What, then, did he do that created such a ruckus? Why did people follow him? Over and over, we hear reference to the “teaching” of Jesus, as if his teaching was unique, which it was not. His basic motif of “love God and your neighbor as yourself” is universal and found in practically all teachings of a spiritual nature. So the question remains: what was so special about Jesus? 

To begin with, maybe he was not so special. It could be that there were and are individuals on this planet who impacted people the same way Jesus did. Perhaps some of these people were Neanderthal or Denisovan. Or perhaps beyond Earth, on other planets in different galaxies. We don’t know. But since the task at hand is to understand the charisma of Jesus, we will seek to understand him without negating the possibility that there may be others with similar charisma.

Charisma is difficult to define, but one approach to unlocking its mystery is to understand not the one who has it, but those whom it impacts. And so we look to human nature as we find it evolved on earth in recent times, including the time of Jesus. What we find is that there are four characteristics of this nature basic to and found in all of us. [Please see my book “The Void and the Vision” for a full discussion of these characteristics.] First is the fact that we all create our own private world. When we enter this life, we are bombarded by stimuli- touch, sound, sight, taste, smell. As we develop, we begin to connect and organize these stimuli. Eventually, we develop expectations: e.g., given a particular sound, we learn that food might soon be on the way. Eventually, as days and years move along, associations that we have created begin to not only reflect but also to determine what we perceive, and the organizing function of our brain begins to create a reality unique to the individual, one that may not even correspond to the external reality. We create our own world. Furthermore, we make unconscious assumptions that other people see matters the same way we do. And if they don’t, there is something wrong with them. They become “other”.

Secondly, this perception of reality that proceeds from the center out creates in us a sense that something is missing, not quite right. Such a feeling is inevitable, given that we have closed ourselves off from reality. Something is missing! Namely, reality and its inclusion of everyone else’s perceptions. On occasion, however, thirdly, we experience moments in which we temporarily escape the confines of our own world and become free to experience new dimensions of life. A baby smiles, and we reflexively smile back. We gaze at the Milky Way and are carried away. A friend dies, and we shed a tear. Such moments liberate us from our world and fill the emptiness of the void we experience. Lastly, we are social animals. Others, with whom we feel a bond, critique our world, fill the void, and provide opportunity for moments to happen, always filling our spirit with a love that encompasses all.

These characteristics describe the people that Jesus encountered. Creating worlds, searching for meaning while living in the void, experiencing liberating moments that too quickly disappear, all the while reaching out in search of fulfilling fellowship. And what did they find in Jesus? They found a person who had no self-created world. He could recognize the needs of others and react accordingly. They found a person who did not seek meaning but lived meaningfully. Jesus did not live in the void. He lived in the fullness of life. They found a person for whom every time of life was a moment filled with the experience of the Transcendent. And they followed a person who was gathering a family that cared for one another and who shared with one another. In all these dimensions, the disciples saw reflected in Jesus who they really were and could become. 

And because Jesus was who he was and as he was, he became a window to the divine, a reflection of God. An all-encompassing love embracing the totality of creation -that is, the Reality that came through the pure humanity of the person of Jesus. In short, what the disciples found in Jesus was true human and true God.

That was his charisma. It had nothing to do with walking on water or feeding 5000 or being born of a virgin. It had nothing to do with suffering on a cross. It ultimately had nothing to do with his teaching. It had to do with living the fullness of a human life in which the disciples could see who they were, and we today, as they, can see the same.

Read All Parts Here.

Dr. Carl Krieg received his BA from Dartmouth College, MDiv from Union Theological Seminary in NYC, and Ph.D. from the University of Chicago Divinity School. He is the author of What to Believe? the Questions of Christian Faith,   The Void and the Vision and  The New Matrix: How the World We Live In Impacts Our Thinking About Self and God. As professor and pastor, Dr. Krieg has taught innumerable classes and led many discussion groups. He lives with his wife Margaret in Norwich, VT.