What was the nature of Jesus' resurrection appearances? Most attempts to explain these appearances in purely naturalistic terms have long been discredited by critical scholars. Nonetheless, we will consider two theories: the hallucination theory, which has made a comeback, and the objective vision theory, which is fairly recent in origin.

The hallucination theory suggests that the disciples had an identical yet purely subjective hallucinatory experience that led them to believe that they all had seen the risen Jesus. First, we must acknowledge the very subjective and personal nature of a hallucination. Psychologists point out that it is this characteristic of a hallucination that makes the experience available only to an individual, not to a group. For example, among a group of individuals lost in a desert without water for a few days, one may believe he sees an oasis ahead, another may claim to see a camel caravan coming over a dune, and yet another may assert that he is surrounded by rattlesnakes, while none of the others in the group see anything but miles of sand. This is typical of hallucinations. No one has the same experience as another. 

Also, the antecedent psychological condition of the disciples does not seem conducive to a hallucinatory experience. They were in despair, having lost their closest companion. There was no anticipation or preparatory excitement among any of the disciples that would have induced such an experience. Moreover, there was certainly no such anticipation on the part of skeptics such as Paul and James. As we have already noted, anticipating an encounter with a risen Christ would have been the furthest thing from their minds.

In addition, hallucinations tend to result from mental instability or illness. Again, there is no evidence in the text to suggest that any of the disciples suffered from such maladies. Finally, we are left with no explanation for the empty tomb, a New Testament proclamation that most critical scholars accept as historical. Therefore, it seems highly unlikely that the appearances of Jesus proclaimed by the disciples were of a hallucinatory nature
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Could these appearances have been objective visions? That is, perhaps Jesus' spirit was translated directly to heaven, and God then began sending to the disciples actual visionary manifestations of some kind that led them to conclude that Jesus was alive spiritually in the heavenly realm. It is well documented that first century Second Temple Judaism knew nothing of a non-physical resurrection of the dead. One of the undisputed features of Pharisaic theology, which was the popular theology of that day, was its espousal of a bodily resurrection of the dead in the end times, and the disciples employed the common vocabulary consistent with this notion to explain Christ’s appearance.

Therefore, it is difficult to understand why some one as theologically astute as the Apostle Paul would be using the well known terminology of physical resurrection to explain the appearances of Jesus to himself and the other disciples if he understood these experiences to be only visionary and non-corporeal. First century Jews knew the difference between a vision and a resurrection, as did first century pagans, and it seems quite implausible that Paul and the other disciples would have failed to make this distinction, particularly when faced with threats to their lives. Furthermore, we are still left with no explanation for the empty tomb.

Finally, there is the testimony of Peter recorded by Luke in the book of Acts. In Acts 2:24, Peter states plainly about Jesus that “God raised him up, loosing the pangs of death, for it was not possible for him to be held by it.” In verse 32, Peter asserts, “This Jesus God raised up, and of that we all are witnesses.” Sandwiched in between these two verses, Peter presents a contrast between King David and Jesus, quoting Psalm 16:8-11 as his proof text (Acts 2:25-28). He points out that King David “both died and was buried and his tomb is with us to this day” (Acts 2:29). Peter argues that David must have been speaking prophetically in this psalm, for “he foresaw and spoke about the resurrection of the Christ, that he was not abandoned to Hades, nor did his flesh see corruption” (Acts 2:31, italics mine).

This is as lucid a statement as Peter could make about his understanding of the resurrection. Unlike David’s body, which by contrast remains decomposed in its tomb, Christ’s body experienced no such corruption or decay after his death and burial. Peter’s testimony contains the concept of a physically resurrected Christ in space and time, and it appears that Peter was indeed preaching such a Christ within but a few weeks of Christ's crucifixion. Once again, a broad consensus of scholars agree, just as they agree about the Corinthian creed, that this is a summary of a real sermon that expresses the deepest convictions of the Church in its earliest days, convictions that never wavered, even when believers faced torture and death. Even conservative Jewish scholar Pinchas Lapide, who denies the Christian claim that Jesus is God or the Jewish Messiah, has argued that "if the Disciples were totally disappointed and on the verge of desperate flight because of the very real reason of the Crucifixion, it took another very real reason in order to transform them from a band of disheartened and dejected Jews into the most self-confident missionary society in world history." He admits a very real resurrection as a very plausible explanation.

Thus, all of the truth indicators present in the ancient texts, the authenticity of which are agreed upon by virtually all critical scholars, point to the actual bodily resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. No one at the time anticipated such an event, yet many claimed to have witnessed it. Nor did the disciples begin proclaiming an incorporeal vision and later invent the story of a bodily resurrection. All the evidence supports a primitive claim and a primitive conviction that Jesus Christ walked out of the tomb in his own strength, fully alive. As St. John asserts at the beginning of his first epistle, that "which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we looked upon and have touched with our hands, concerning the word of life...we proclaim also to you, that you too may have fellowship with us."
 
But the early disciples did not only exhort their listeners to believe in the bodily resurrection of Jesus Christ, but also to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and be saved. These men were convinced that the resurrection meant something profound about the nature of God and the eternal destiny of all people on earth. It was not just a trick to impress people, but a miracle that validated all that Jesus had said during his lifetime about himself, God, and the human condition. Just who did Jesus think he was? We will explore this question in our next entry.

Blessings,

Arnie Gentle