Product Description

In The Original Jesus biblical historian Tom Wright focuses on key stages in the life of Jesus, and key elements of his teaching, revealing a vivid reconstruction of what Jesus himself was aiming to achieve, and how the movement he began can best be understood in relation to the turbulent politics and fervent aspirations of his day. Tom Wright also looks at the way we interpret the different Gospel narratives about Jesus, showing how modern readers coming fresh to these texts can do so in an informed and discriminating way. Written in a lively, non-technical style, and illustrated throughout with full-colour photographs, The Original Jesus offers a compelling insight into what Jesus really stood for, why he was crucified, and how it was that his followers came to regard him as nothing less than the human face of God.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #284463 in Books
• Published on: 1997-10
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 160 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9780802842831
• Condition: NEW
• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
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Customer Reviews

A clear, insightful introduction to the historical Jesus
In The Original Jesus, author Tom Wright examines Jesus in the historical perspective. He attempts to take you back to Jesus' own time in order for the reader to recognize the message Christ was actually proclaiming and to interpret it and the Gospels in the context of those times. In other words, Wright tries to "take you there" to see Jesus as he was two thousand years ago. It is a short and seemingly uncomplicated book, filled with a number of illustrations of Jesus in the Holy Land, yet it does succeed surprisingly well in its aims. I consider myself fairly knowledgeable about the subject of Jesus' words and deeds, and Wright gave me new perspectives that certainly enhance my understanding. He calls Jesus a revolutionary in the sub-title, and he does a great job of showing just how revolutionary his message was based on the context of the time. Under Wright's guidance, even as seemingly esoteric a fact as the nature of the area in which Jesus delivered the Sermon on the Mount becomes theologically important. The history of Israel and her covenant with God serve as the lynchpin of the message Wright gleans from the Gospels. He argues that the Gospels were written for two main reasons: to tell the story of Jesus and to address the contemporaries of the individual Gospel writer. It is in this context, he says, that the discrepancies between the Gospel accounts can be explained, and he offers a helpful summation of the purposes and target audiences of each of the four books. By understanding the worlds out of which the Gospels were penned, one can gain greater insight into the good news revealed in each book.

Wright mentions the ideas of the Jesus Seminar and clearly disagrees with their practice of questioning everything in the Gospels hypercritically. He clearly believes the Gospels are meant to show us the true life and work of Jesus, despite any differences in facts between their accounts, and that one's depth of comprehension can be greatly increased by understanding the historical context of Jesus' time on earth. This book can easily be read in one sitting and is a great starting point for anyone interested in pursuing his/her own search for the historical Jesus. Wright includes a bibliography of recommended sources for those who wish to continue the quest.

4 stars, because it succeeds in addressing it's audience
I found this to be a very enjoyable, _very_ accessible, but perhaps slightly uneven book. The first seven chapters were originally aired on TV, if I recall correctly, with Wright narrating (pictures of the holy land are included throughout the book to supplement what is lacking in the transition to print). It's aimed at a large audience - so large, that sometimes I felt like it got too thin, lacking the detail and depth _I_ wanted. That being said, it's worth reading.

The book begins with a chapter on Jerusalem. I found that it picked up kind of slow, but the reader eventually breaks upon the simply phrased nuggets of insight he's scattered throughout this book. He mentions that you can't be neutral or objective when you study history, especially the patch of history he's dealing with here. "If you pin the history to the wall like a butterfly, you may be able to study it analytically, but you mustn't be surprised that it won't fly again. To get to the heart of it all, you have to live within the story and see what it does to you. That's what this book invites you to do." I should note here, in case I'm misread, that he certainly thinks that we can make a historical study of Jesus and his context.

He then goes on to talk about the various aspects of the religious/political situation in 1st century Palestinian Judaism, trying to take you into their mindset, situating Jesus' actions within that context, from the event where he issued the beatitudes, to his "coded actions" in the temple. In one chapter he talks about the nature of a story. It isn't the case that stories are for children, while abstract ideas are the real meat, he argues. Stories are more powerful than naked abstract ideas, they create worlds. If you change the story (especially when most of your hearers live _inside_ of the story) then you change the world. The stories were a way of "getting to grips with reality." He then says that understanding these stories requires that we try to understand the 1st century mindset, so we can understand what they meant to Jesus' audience.

Starting with chapter 8, he departs from the original BBC presentation (which concluded with chapter 7), and talks about how to read the Gospels "for all they're worth." This chapter and the ones to follow, I think, are where most of the meat is. There is some excellent, simple advice here.

There's a large list of books for further reading at the end of the book, to follow up on various aspects of historical Jesus studies. Wright has coupled the titles to the books he's recommended with some brief comments of his.

Some people might want to pick up this book, especially if you've got a short attention span, little time, or you're new to the field. Otherwise, you should probably move up to one of Wright's more scholarly works, where he tackles the same material, writes a bit less simply (but still quite accessibly), and goes into much more depth on assumptions and statemtents he never cracks open in this book. People who're interested enough to pursue this stuff seriously should just pick up his _Jesus and the Victory of God_ or _The New Testament and the People of God_. If you really don't want to read through 400 to 500 pages of text, you might want to pick up _The Challenge of Jesus_, as well as this work.

Best among many
Searching to learn more about "Jesus among us," I've read E.P. Sanders, Geza Vermes, James Charlesworth, David Flusser, Brad Young and more.

This is by far the most lucid statement, and the only truly stirring account I've read, of Jesus' historical ministry and its meaning for Christians.

It is not an exhaustive treatment (see the number of pages), but it is my favorite book in this area.

Although Wright points out that in comparing the Synoptic Gospels there are differences that are difficult to reconcile (which he points out adds to their credibility), conservative Christian believers will be comfortable with and helped by Wright's excellent book.