present_in_work theotokos
Jesus (; c . 4 BC  c . AD 30 / 33 ), also referred to as Jesus of Nazareth or Jesus Christ , was a Jewish preacher and religious leader who became the central figure of Christianity . Christians believe him to be the Son of God and the awaited Messiah ( Christ ) prophesied in the ___MASK60___ . Virtually all modern scholars of antiquity agree that Jesus existed historically , although the quest for the historical Jesus has produced little agreement on the historical reliability of the Gospels and on how closely the biblical Jesus reflects the historical Jesus . Jesus was a Galilean Jew who was baptized by John the Baptist and subsequently began his own ministry , preaching his message orally and often being referred to as " rabbi ". He was arrested and tried by the Jewish authorities , and was crucified by the order of Pontius Pilate , the Roman prefect . Jesus debated fellow Jews on how to best follow God , performed healings , taught in parables and gathered followers . After his death , his followers believed he rose from the dead , and the community they formed eventually became the Christian Church . In monotheism , God is conceived of as the Supreme Being and principal object of faith . The concept of God as described by most theologians includes the attributes of omniscience ( infinite knowledge ), omnipotence ( unlimited power ), omnipresence ( present everywhere ), divine simplicity , and as having an eternal and necessary existence . Many theologians also describe God as being omnibenevolent ( perfectly good ) and all loving . The ___MASK60___ is the first section of the Christian ___MASK99___ , based primarily upon the Hebrew ___MASK99___ ( or Tanakh ), a collection of religious writings by ancient Israelites believed by most Christians and religious Jews to be the sacred Word of God . It is the counterpart to the New Testament , the second portion of the Christian ___MASK99___ . The ___MASK60___ canon varies between Christian Churches . Protestants have a version with 39 books . Catholics have a version with 46 books , and Eastern Orthodox , and Oriental Orthodox Churches choose the ___MASK60___ version with 49 books . Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ , who serves as the focal point for the religion . It is the world ' s largest religion , with over 2 . 4 billion followers , or 33 % of the global population , known as Christians . Christians believe that Jesus is the Son of God and the savior of humanity whose coming as the Messiah ( the Christ ) was prophesied in the ___MASK60___ . In theology , the doctrine of divine simplicity says that God is without parts . The general idea of divine simplicity can be stated in this way : the being of God is identical to the " attributes " of God . In other words , such characteristics as omnipresence , goodness , truth , eternity , etc . are identical to God ' s being , not qualities that make up that being , nor abstract entities inhering in God as in a substance . Varieties of the doctrine may be found in Jewish , Christian , and Muslim philosophical theologians , especially during the ___MASK31___ of scholasticism , though the doctrine ' s origins may be traced back to ancient Greek thought , finding apotheosis in Plotinus ' " Enneads " as the Simplex . John the Baptist (" Ioánnes ( h ) o baptistés " or    , " Ioánnes ( h ) o baptízon ", known as the prophet " Yahya " in the ___MASK67___ ), also known as John the Baptizer , was a Jewish itinerant preacher in the early first century AD . John is revered as a major religious figure in Christianity , Islam , the Bahá ' í Faith , and Mandaeism . He is called a prophet by all of these traditions , and is honoured as a saint in many Christian traditions . The historical reliability of the Gospels refers to the reliability and historic character of the four ___MASK53___ gospels as historical documents . Some believe that all four canonical gospels meet the five criteria for historical reliability ; some say that little in the gospels is considered to be historically reliable . Almost all scholars of antiquity agree that Jesus existed , but scholars differ on the historicity of specific episodes described in the Biblical accounts of Jesus , and the only two events subject to " almost universal assent " are that Jesus was baptized by John the Baptist and was crucified by the order of the Roman Prefect Pontius Pilate . Elements whose historical authenticity is disputed include the two accounts of the Nativity of Jesus , the miraculous events including the resurrection , and certain details about the crucifixion . Theotokos ( / itokos , e - , - t - , - ks / ; Greek :  , transliterated ( Greek ) Theotókos , translation ( Syriac - Aramaic ) :              , transliterated ( Syriac ) : Yoldath Alloho ) is the Greek title of Mary , the mother of Jesus used especially in the Eastern Orthodox , Oriental Orthodox , and Eastern Catholic Churches . Its literal English translations include `` God - bearer '' , `` Birth - Giver of God '' and `` the one who gives birth to God . '' Less accurate translations include the primarily Western title `` Mother of God '' ( Latin : Mater Dei ) . The ancient use of this term is emphasised in Churches of the Syriac Tradition , which have been using this title in their ancient liturgies for centuries : the Anaphora of Mari and Addai ( 3rd Century ) , and the Liturgy of St James the Just ( 4th Century ) . The Council of Ephesus decreed in 431 that Mary is Theotokos because her son Jesus is both God and man : one Divine Person with two natures ( Divine and human ) intimately , hypostatically united . Roman Catholics and Anglicans use the title `` Mother of God '' more often than `` Theotokos '' . Lutherans also venerated and honored Mary as `` Mother of God '' as expressed by its founder , Martin Luther ; the title was officially confessed in their Formula of Concord , accepted by Lutheran World Federation . The quest for the historical Jesus refers to academic efforts to provide a historical portrait of Jesus . Since the 18th century , three scholarly quests for the historical Jesus have ___MASK2___ place , each with distinct characteristics and based on different research criteria , which were often developed during each specific phase . These quests are distinguished from earlier approaches because they rely on the historical method to study biblical narratives . While textual analysis of biblical sources had ___MASK2___ place for centuries , these quests introduced new methods and specific techniques to establish the historical validity of their conclusions . Theism , in the field of comparative religion , or when contrasted with atheism , is broadly defined as the belief in the existence of a deity or deities . In popular parlance , or when contrasted with " deism ", the term often describes the classical conception of god ( s ) that is found in the monotheistic and polytheistic religions ; a belief in a god or in gods without the rejection of ___MASK40___ as is characteristic of deism .