Who would have thought that Jehovah’s Witnesses were not alone in identifying the archangel Michael with Jesus? That the idea is also found in the writings of Martin Luther and John Calvin? That a host of other theologians have said it too? It was news to me.
Really enjoyed this exhaustive article. Were it not for the Michael/Christ identification running afoul of trinitarian concerns, I think few would care about how JWs define this. It would just be a relatively insignificant quirk of the faith. That’s why I was surprised to see Luther, Calvin and others also make the connection and am not quite sure how they did so without arousing those concerns. It must be they have changed over time?
On higher criticism, I noted separately how Luke Thomas Johnson likened it to a sort of Trojan Horse. Under the historical-critical method, he said, the theologian cannot talk about miracles as Jesus’ resurrection or virgin birth, therefore that restraint has a way of becoming an implied denial.
See link here to chapter 6, by G. Chryssides
of the book:
The Archangel Michael Beyond Orthodoxies: History, Politics and Popular Culture
which is found: https://www.bloomsburycollections.com/monograph?docid=b-9781350302716
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