Jesus, also known as Jesus of Nazareth or Jesus Christ, is a Jewish missionary and religious leader, becoming the central figure of Christianity. Christians believe that he is the son of God and the anticipated Messiah (Christ) in the Old Testament.

Almost all modern ancient scholars agree that Jesus exists in history, although there is little agreement on the historical reliability of the Gospels and the extent to which Jesus reflects historical Jesus in the Bible. Jesus was a Galilean Jew. He was baptized by John the Baptist, and then began his ministry. He told his message orally, usually called "Rabbi". He was arrested and tried by Jewish authorities and ordered to be crucified by the Roman capital, pintius Pilate. Jesus debated how best to follow God, heal, teach in parables, and gather followers. After his death, his followers believed that he had risen from the dead and that the community they had built had finally become a Christian Church.

Christmas is celebrated every year on December 25 (or different dates in January in some Eastern churches), as a Christmas holiday, his good Friday is celebrated on Good Friday, and his resurrection is celebrated on Easter. The calendar era "ad" and the alternative "CE" widely used in the Latin Anno Domini ("our year") are based on Jesus' approximate date of birth.