Hugh J. Schonfield

Hugh Joseph Schonfield ( born May 17, 1901 in London, † January 24, 1988 ) was a British biblical scholars specializing in the New Testament and the early development of Christianity. He completed his education at the University of Glasgow. He was a founder of the pacifist organization " Commonwealth of World Citizens". For a time he was president of the H. G. Wells Society.

Schonfield was a Jew who described himself as a Nazarene, which means that as a Jew he believed that the Messiah had come in the person of Jesus, as foretold in the Jewish Hebrew Bible. He believed, moreover, that Jesus in his daily life consciously tried hard to fulfill the role of the Jewish Messiah and the related prophecies; that Jesus did not intend to found a new religion, but that he intended the fulfillment of God's covenant to work with the Jewish people; that the Christian religion is a product of the disciples of Jesus, was special as it was conveyed to the non- Jewish people, which was the bond to the original intent of Jesus lost. To those who are said to have defaced the message, he counted the Apostle Paul refers to Schonfield as insane, and accused to believe to be the Messiah him self.

This spin-off of the original message came over a longer period in times of great distress (wars, loss of national sovereignty, slavery, exile from Jerusalem and Palestine ) and a number of other reasons.

Schonfield encouraged the faithful to have a critical view of Jesus of what is told about him and to try to discern the historical Jesus as his time and his country adapted itself and what was the true intent of his original message: the belief in the scriptures to live an exemplary life for him, for the purpose of alleviating suffering and the rejection of the imperfect human nature.

Schonfield wrote commercially successful history books and biographies as well as books on religion; he wrote a new translation of the New Testament entitled " The Authentic New Testament" ( The true New Testament). In 1965 he published the controversial book " The Passover Plot" (German edition: " The Passover Plot" ), in which he argues that the crucifixion was part of a comprehensive and intend to test Jesus to fulfill the messianic expectations in his time were used and the intention unexpectedly failed. Schonfield In 1968 another book follow: " The Incredible Christians" (German edition: " Unheard of, these Christians "), which, however, had less influence than the first book.

On Schonfield the interpretation of the term "Baphomet ", a controversial mystical symbol of the Knights Templar, with an ancient Jewish encryption method returns. In his opinion, this word could have been caused by the use of the Atbash code to the Greek word "sophia " ( wisdom).

Books ( German editions )

• Unheard of these Christians. Molden, Vienna / Munich / Zurich in 1969, DNB 458,880,310th
• Plan target Calvary. Wirschaft -Verlag, Aldingen 1969 DNB 458,880,302th
• The long road to Calvary. Luebbe, Bergisch Gladbach 1978, ISBN 3-404-01040- X.
• The Politics of God. Mondcivitaner Verlag, Durchhausen 1974, ISBN 3-921329-01-9.
• The Essenes. Martin, Südergellersen 1985, ISBN 3-921786-46-0.