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When I was an evangelical I remember hearing this teaching that Jesus didn't start his rabbinical ministry until he was 30 because he was being taught himself by rabbis and such, as was the Jewish tradition of the time. They had three schools called Bet-Sefer, Bet-Talmud, and Bet-Midrash in that order. The herd was basically thinned as kids progressed through each one, the capable ones graduating and the those who struggled told to "go ply your family trade". So by the time you get to Bet-Midrash it's "the best of the best of the best" - the boys who were surely going to be rabbis and maybe even priests or a high priest. So they go through this schooling system until they were about 15 and then they begin a more personal discipleship under a rabbi for a number of years until they're blessed to begin their own ministry at age 30.
So you can see how Christ's life in a lot of ways follows that mold, and that it's a possible explanation of what happened in the years of his life that aren't outlined in Sacred Scripture. The teacher who explained this also pointed out that what was happening in Luke 2:46 where it says "After three days they found him in the temple, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions." That's essentially the experience of Bet-Midrash.
Further, the teacher said that's part of what makes Christ eventually calling his apostles so significant. They were fishing and doing other jobs, so obviously they weren't "the best of the best" who had matriculated through these schools. They at some point were told to go and ply their family trade. Then Christ comes and tells them they are good enough, so no wonder they so quickly abandoned their nets to follow him. Besides what they might've perceived as him being the Messiah, to be told they're good enough to disciple under a rabbi is a big deal.
Anyway, that remains one of the most profound teachers I've ever heard and I'm wondering if the Church or a Saint or anybody has ever established a teaching or doctrine on it. I know a lot of evangelicals push back on that saying "No, no way, Jesus is God so he had all of the knowledge already." Which I think is kind of a straw man, just because he went through schooling doesn't mean he didn't already know everything. He experienced humanity in it's fullest so he could redeem it fully, which means he engaged with all of the cultural traditions that he was raised in.
I'm not saying I personally hold this as a belief, since I don't know whether the Church rejects the concept. But I do think it's an interesting interpretation of Christ's life leading up to his ministry.
So you can see how Christ's life in a lot of ways follows that mold, and that it's a possible explanation of what happened in the years of his life that aren't outlined in Sacred Scripture. The teacher who explained this also pointed out that what was happening in Luke 2:46 where it says "After three days they found him in the temple, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions." That's essentially the experience of Bet-Midrash.
Further, the teacher said that's part of what makes Christ eventually calling his apostles so significant. They were fishing and doing other jobs, so obviously they weren't "the best of the best" who had matriculated through these schools. They at some point were told to go and ply their family trade. Then Christ comes and tells them they are good enough, so no wonder they so quickly abandoned their nets to follow him. Besides what they might've perceived as him being the Messiah, to be told they're good enough to disciple under a rabbi is a big deal.
Anyway, that remains one of the most profound teachers I've ever heard and I'm wondering if the Church or a Saint or anybody has ever established a teaching or doctrine on it. I know a lot of evangelicals push back on that saying "No, no way, Jesus is God so he had all of the knowledge already." Which I think is kind of a straw man, just because he went through schooling doesn't mean he didn't already know everything. He experienced humanity in it's fullest so he could redeem it fully, which means he engaged with all of the cultural traditions that he was raised in.
I'm not saying I personally hold this as a belief, since I don't know whether the Church rejects the concept. But I do think it's an interesting interpretation of Christ's life leading up to his ministry.
