Divine Man

To be a divine man is to be seen as a God. One does not become a divine man by choice, it is a destiny commencing at birth. Through our readings we have focused on two very different men who would fit the classification of a divine man. It is noted that to be a divine man one must possess four essential characteristics. These characteristics include portents at birth, becoming a God (or son of a God), performing miracles, and dying a heroic death. Each of these characteristics can be seen through two men we have studied, Apollonios of Tyana and Jesus of Nazareth. By examining written works based off of each of their lives, the proof that each possesses the necessary characteristics supports my thesis.

Although other works help to support it as well, the main two that I have chosen to base my thesis off of are “The Life of Apollonios of Tyana,” written by Flavius Philostratus found in “Documents for the Study of the Gospels” written by David Cartlidge and David Dungan, supporting Apollonios as a divine man, and “The Gospel According to Mark” written by Mark, supporting Jesus as a divine man. “The Life of Apollonios of Tyana” was written to present him as the God he was. Philostratus used his writing skills to carefully depict Apollonios as godly in every way. His works can be compared to a statue built of Apollonios to praise his God-like nature and inspire reverence; only it is done through Philostratus’ words

Similar to the praise that Apollonios received for his god-like actions, “The Gospel According to Mark” is thought to be the first of the written Gospels in the New Testament. It is a collection of narratives that depicts Jesus as always being active. It was written around 70 A.D. and is broken down into different divisions. It focuses on his public life, starting with his baptism, moving on to his preaching’s, his journey to Jerusalem, and it ends with his crucifixion

and burial. Though not everybody looked at Jesus in the same way that Mark...