Richard Wagner’s prose sketches for Jesus of Nazareth: historical and theological reflections on an uncompleted opera

Bell, Richard H.

Abstract

In May 1849 Wagner fled Dresden after the failure of the uprising of which he was a leader. His last creative work in Dresden was prose sketches for an opera Jesus of Nazareth, the result of his study of the Graeco-Roman world and the New Testament together with some knowledge of biblical criticism. Although he portrays Jesus as a social revolutionary in that he attacks the Pharisees, oppression and injustice, he is by no means a political messiah; indeed Wagner emphases his sacrificial death which results in the giving of the Holy Spirit. Key theological themes of the work which I explore include Jesus’ messiahship, law and freedom, and the significance of his death.

Citation

Bell, R. H. (in press). Richard Wagner’s prose sketches for Jesus of Nazareth: historical and theological reflections on an uncompleted opera. Journal for the Study of the Historical Jesus, 15(2-3), https://doi.org/10.1163/17455197-01502007

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Sep 5, 2017
• Online Publication Date: Dec 14, 2017
• Deposit Date: Sep 18, 2017
• Publicly Available Date: Dec 15, 2019
• Journal: Journal for Study of the Historical Jesus
• Print ISSN: 1476-8690
• Electronic ISSN: 1745-5197
• Publisher: Brill Academic Publishers
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 15
• Issue: 2-3
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1163/17455197-01502007
• Keywords: christology; freedom; law; redemption; Richard Wagner; sacrifice
• Public URL: https://nottingham-repository.worktribe.com/output/899719
• Publisher URL: http://booksandjournals.brillonline.com/content/journals/10.1163/17455197-01502007
• Contract Date: Sep 18, 2017