“What did the president know and when did he know it?” On June 29, 1973, Senator Howard Baker Jr., vice-chairman of the Senate Watergate Committee, asked former White House Counsel John Dean this famous question to protect President Nixon. Instead, Dean explained the president’s knowledge of the break-in and deep involvement in the cover-up. Senator Baker’s question is now a part of the American lexicon, often referenced when assessing someone’s knowledge of and involvement in less-than-upright actions. A paraphrase of the Watergate question — “What did Jesus know and when did he know it?” — is a succinct summary of a debate that dates back to the earliest years of church history and theology. At one end of the spectrum are those who maintain Jesus must have known everything because of his divine nature. Those at the other end of the spectrum argue just as strongly that Jesus was as limited in his knowledge as any other human being. For example, in his book, Jesus: God and Man, Raymond Brown cites Cyril, the 5th-century patriarch of Alexandria, who said of Jesus, “We have admired his goodness in that for love of us he has not refused to descend to such a low position as to bear all that belongs to our nature, INCLUDED IN WHICH IS IGNORANCE.” The emphasis on the last phrase is original to Cyril. Our Gospel text for this first Sunday after Christmas, Luke 2:41-52, is the only story in the four gospels about Jesus’s childhood other than his birth. On the one hand, Luke seems to acknowledge the idea that Jesus possessed some extraordinary knowledge. After three days, his parents “found him in the temple, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. And all who heard him were amazed at his understanding and his answers” (Luke 2:46-47). On the other hand, Luke concludes this unique story with the observation that “Jesus increased in wisdom and in years, and in divine and human favor” (Luke 2:52). This is not the first time Luke mentions Jesus’s growth and development. After Jesus and his parents returned to Nazareth following his dedication in the temple, “the child grew and became strong, filled with wisdom; and the favor of God was upon him” (Luke 2:40). The amazement exhibited by those who heard Jesus talking with the teachers that day in the temple is characteristic of the reaction of the crowds throughout his ministry. ...
Thank you to this week's writer Philip K. Gladden. Read the rest of the commentary on the website. | 
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