The thomas jefferson bible, or the life and morals of jesus is a stripped down and combined version of the first four books of the biblical new testament compiled by. Read peter carlsons examination of jeffersons bible below, and click here to read jeffersons women by cleo fellers kocol the president sat at his desk in the white house on a winter evening. The life and morals of jesus of nazareth thomas jeffersons. Written by one of the founding father of the us, thomas jefferson, this short text is an alternative interpretation of the new testament. Thomas jefferson and his bible the jefferson bible was thomas jefferson s attempt to extract an authentic jesus from the gospel accounts. But this time he was tinkering with something held sacred by hundreds of millions of people. Jefferson adapted the teachings of jesus by removing sections of the new testament containing supernatural parts along with areas that he felt were added by the four evangelists. Following is an image of of a bible now in a museum that he altered by using a razor to cut out the offending passages.
Fewer still will know that jeffersons bible purposefully excluded supernatural elements from the scriptures. The jefferson bible what thomas jefferson selected as the life and morals of jesus of nazareth by thomas jefferson and elizabeth campbell 3. In compiling what has come to be called the jefferson bible, he sought to separate those ethical teachings from the religious dogma and other supernatural elements that are intermixed in the account provided by the four gospels. The jefferson bible, or the life and morals of jesus of nazareth as it is formally titled, was a book constructed by thomas jefferson in the latter years of his life by cutting and pasting with a razor and glue numerous sections from the new testament as extractions of the doctrine of jesus. The jefferson bible by thomas jefferson on free audio book. With these parts removed, jefferson glued the passages he wanted to keep back into a single book. Read peter carlsons examination of jefferson s bible below, and click here to read jefferson s women by cleo fellers kocol the president sat at his desk in the white house on a winter evening. Opinion thomas jeffersons bible teaching the new york. In this new new testament, the only text allowed to stay were statements and messages that jefferson decided came directly from jesus himself or were accurate depictions of history. Thomas jeffersons version of the bible is distributed to. A practice that many christians both his contemporaries and most today would consider sacrilege.
In 1804, jefferson took a razor to english, french, latin and greek versions of the new testament to construct a clear account of jesus original, uncorrupted teachings. Jefferson first excised passages from the new testament in 1804. Is the jefferson bible still available in the us senate. Thomas jefferson believed that his version of the new testament distilled the most sublime and benevolent code of morals which has never been offered to. Thomas jefferson believed that his version of the new testament distilled the most sublime and benevolent code of morals which has never been offered to man. Jefferson edited and arranged the passages in a chronological. He has just been listening to thomas jefferson deliver a rather dry version of the new testaments parable of the talents. Mark beliles, to write a book on the faith of our third president.
Why thomas jefferson rewrote the bible without jesus. Discover thomas jeffersons cutandpaste version of the. He believed in jesus morality and in his teachings but he, being a committed naturalist, had an a priori assumption that miracles could not happen. A heavily redacted version of jesuss life story, the jefferson bible omits many passages fundamental to mainstream christianity, including the resurrection and ascension to. Thomas jeffersons revolutionary take on the bible reissued us. The jefferson bible, or the life and morals of jesus of nazareth as it is formally titled, was thomas jeffersons effort to extract the doctrine of jesus by removing sections of the new testament containing supernatural aspects as well as perceived misinterpretations he believed had been added. The presidents bibles national museum of american history. Once in a while, the myth that thomas jefferson edited. Being an abridgement of the new testament for the use of the indians, unembarrased uncomplicated with matters of. The life and morals of jesus of nazareth was created in 1820 by thomas jefferson. Thomas jefferson deleted and edited parts of the bible. The life and morals of jesus of nazareth, commonly referred to as the jefferson bible, is one of two religious works constructed by thomas jefferson. The jefferson bible, or the life and morals of jesus of nazareth, as it is properly titled was thomas jeffersons version of the new testament.
Gleaned from the four gospels of the new testament, and jeffersons private work, it remained unknown until his greatgranddaughter sold the. In 1783 jefferson was again a delegate to congress. Thomas jefferson began his rewrite of the scriptures in 1804 same year he authorized the lewis. Last will and testament thomas jeffersons monticello. Had he lived during the inquisition, thomas jefferson would have been burned at the stake. Jefferson bible, abridgment of the new testament compiled by thomas jefferson. Being an abridgement of the new testament for the use of the indians, uncomplicated with matters of fact or faith beyond the level of their. He was seventyseven years old when he constructed his book by cutting excerpts of the new testament gospels from six printed volumes published in english, french, latin and greek. The jefferson bible, or the life and morals of jesus of nazareth as it is formally titled, was thomas jeffersons effort to extract what he considered the pertinent doctrine of jesus by removing sections of the new testament containing supernatural aspects as well as perceived misinterpretations he believed had been added by the four evangelists. Thomas jeffersons religious beliefs although called the jefferson bible, the actual title of the book is the life and morals of jesus of nazareth. It consists solely of quotations jefferson selected from the the the christian new testament books of matthew, mark, luke, and john. Jefferson served as governor of virginia from 17791781.
The english version has now been reissued as the jefferson bible. After 50 years, a controversial version of the bible is again making its way through the h. He called the writers of the new testament ignorant, unlettered men who. His ideas about jesus and christianity were far from orthodox. Thomas jeffersonlife and morals of jesus of nazareth, thomas jefferson, ca. By integrating history, theology and literature, this exhibition tells the history of. History tells us that he cut out text that he considered false or exaggerations. Jeffersons version ends with jesus burial on good friday. The jefferson bible the life and morals of jesus of nazareth. His purpose was to distill jesus ethical teachings from accounts of miracles and other elements that he considered. Jefferson was a deist, influenced by the enlightenment, with its rejection of the. Jefferson frequently expressed discontent with this earlier version, which was merely a. Life and morals of jesus of nazareth was created in 1820 by thomas jefferson. He lived during the age of enlightenment and understood the natural order of the world.
News the peoples bible goes to washington thomas jeffersons edited version of the new testament again makes its way into the hands of members of congress. The jefferson bible thomas jefferson by thomas jefferson. A couple of years ago, i teamed up with a pastor from jeffersons home town of charlottesville, virginia, dr. A product of the enlightenment, jefferson believed that everything, including religion, should be examined in the light of reason when jefferson examined the gospels he came away with a strongly divided opinion.
In 2009, cari haus, an accountant and christian author, published the reverse jefferson bible, which contains the parts left out of jeffersons version. Americans will well know this author as a founding father and former u. Using a razor to cut out and then arrange verses across the canonical gospels, he composed his own version of the new testament, which omitted the supernatural moments noted by the gospel writers to emphasize jesus moral teachings. An earlier version of the thomas jefferson bible was titled the philosophy of jesus of nazareth, being extracted from the account of his life and doctrines given by matthew, mark, luke and john. Jefferson bible, original title the philosophy of jesus, abridgment of the new testament compiled by thomas jefferson 17431826, who rearranged the text of the gospels into an account of the life and ministry of jesus that eschews mention of any supernatural or miraculous elements. According to thomas jefferson, charles dickens and count leo. Jefferson had essentially created a new version of the bible. The peoples bible goes to washington thomas jeffersons edited version of the new testament again makes its way into the hands of members of congress. Tj basically cut the supernatural miracles out of the new testament. The jefferson bible audiobook by thomas jefferson youtube. Why thomas jefferson rewrote the bible without jesus miracles and resurrection the third president had a secret. Jesus many faces thomas jefferson and his bible from.
Just six years earlier, jefferson completed an 84page manuscript he called the life and morals of jesus of nazareth. The jefferson bible was created by thomas jefferson in 1820 as a collection of the. Thomas jefferson was known as an inventor and tinkerer. Thomas jefferson, the life and morals of jesus of nazareth. The life and morals of jesus of nazareth, also known as the jefferson bible, was created by thomas jefferson around 1820 to express his own rational approach to faith. Jefferson had done close reads of the new testament, comparing translations in greek, latin, french, and king james english before cutting into them with a.
Unfortunately, jefferson missed the point that the morals of jesus were linked to the way, the truth and the life, she wrote in her introduction. The first printed english translation of the new testament will be on view at the library of congress from june 4 to september 6 in an exhibition titled let there be light. The peoples bible goes to washington thomas jefferson s edited version of the new testament again makes its way into the hands of members of congress. Jefferson has removed all of the supernatural or divine aspects from the teachings of jesus christ in order to contend that he was a brilliant philosopher and pacifist. President thomas jefferson was fascinated with the moral truths in the holy bible. Thomas jefferson and his bible the jefferson bible was thomas jeffersons attempt to extract an authentic jesus from the gospel accounts. However, many do not know that thomas jefferson also created his own version of the bible. Using a pen knife and glue, jefferson crafted a condensed version of the new testament in keeping with the spirit of the enlightenment. Thomas jeffersons copy of his last will and testament is located at the university of virginia. Using his clippings, the aging third president created a new testament of his ownone that most christians would hardly recognize. The religious life and legacy of thomas jefferson morganjames, 2014. The jefferson bible shows what the president thought of. Jefferson never referred to his work as a bible, and the full title of this 1804 version was the philosophy of jesus of nazareth, being extracted from the account of his life and doctrines given by matthew, mark, luke and john. The thomas jefferson bible, or the life and morals of jesus is a stripped down and combined version of the first four books of the biblical new testament compiled by thomas jefferson as a means of distilling the core teachings of jesus christ.
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