Jesus the Magician
Jesus the Magician: Charlatan or Son of God? is a 1978 book by Morton Smith arguing that the historical Jesus was a magician who "sprang from a Galilean strain of Semitic paganism" (p. 68). Background. The idea that Jesus was a magician did not originate with Morton Smith. It was previously voiced by the philosopher and critic Celsus (The True Word c. 200 CE) as we know from the rebuttal authored by the Christian apologist/scholar Origen: “It was by magic that he was able to do the miracles” ("Contra Celsum" 1.6). Hans Dieter Betz (1994) observes  that "from early on even Jesus of Nazareth was implicated in that he was said to be mad or a magician possessed by Satan" and R. Joseph Hoffmann writes (1987) that it is well attested that "the early Christian mission was advanced by the use of magic." Smith was featured discussing his theories in the controversial television documentary series, "" (1984: LWT for Channel 4). Reviews. Smith's theories have not gained acceptance among scholars. Barry Crawford (Vanderbilt University), currently Co-Chair of the Society of Biblical Literature's Consultation on Redescribing Christian Origins, wrote in his 1979 review that "Smith  exhibits an intricate knowledge of the magical papyri, but his ignorance of current Gospel research is abysmal", concluding that the work has traits of a conspiracy theory. "Kirkus Reviews" describes the book as "carefully researched, elegantly written, and thoroughly prejudiced."