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rise, he anticipates Christian resurrection; when he multiplies the loaves and fish, he foreshadows the Eucharist. Consequently, Jesus’ miracles are fundamental to spread his message and without doubt, they become, along with his parables, the most adequate medium to proclaim God’s Kingdom on Earth.
Jesus’ thaumaturgies, as living signs that proclaim the gospels, are profoundly intertwined with his message of steadfast faith and belief in the Holy Spirit and God. Jesus himself does not believe in dualisms or paganisms. Instead, faith becomes his ideal instrument by which he releases the downtrodden from the grips of physical, mental and spiritual anguish, thus liberating them from social oppression, stigma and guilt of sin imposed by antiquated Jewish laws. This liberating transition, from one inferior state of being (sick, sinful) to a superior one (healed, forgiven), mediated by faith and miracle, brings about radical change from existing Jewish orthodoxy. Since everyone in God’s Kingdom can be healed by faith or pistis,3 faith will be what ultimately defines a Christian (Jn 6:29) for “without faith it is impossible to please God, for whoever would approach him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him” (Heb 11:6).
This very Epistle to the Hebrews also emphasizes many Hebraic role models of steadfast faith. By faith, Abel can offer
3 Scott and Liddell. Greek and English Lexicon. Cambridge: Oxford University Press, 2005.
Pistis, faith: to believe in one, to have confidence and assurance against fear. Faith as opposed to sight and knowledge, science. 641
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