ABSTRACT
Jesus’ resurrection and Christians’ subsequent analysis of it took place within a context of ancient understandings of what makes up a human being. Greeks believed the self was made up of body and soul, and the great philosopher Plato articulated the relationship in a way that had a long-standing influence. Plato believed that the body and soul were profoundly opposite. The body was formed of matter and was thus changeable and mortal. The soul on the other hand was incorporeal, eternal, and unchangeable. Thus, the very property of the soul was immortality-that was neither a divine gift nor a miracle-and the expectation at death was that the immortal soul would escape from the flesh that had entrapped it and resume its incorporeal state.
