Rating: 
Summary: It's the case -for- Christ...
Review: Lee Strobel explicitly titled his book "The Case -for- Christ." It is not his fault if the "skeptics" here failed to read the cover. As for "balance," that is notably lacking in atheist publications, with the possible noble exception of the late J.L. Mackie's THE MIRACLE OF THEISM. Even Le Poudvin's (sp) book, which is ostensibly about the philosophy of religion as a whole, is devoted solely to making the case for atheism. Strobel's book is a good introduction to the Evangelical Christian case for God, and he does bring up atheistic objections in context, unlike many of his opposite numbers. Just compare it to B.C. Johnson's ATHEIST DEBATER'S HANDBOOK to see the difference.
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Summary: This is an incomplete treatment and an apologist's viewpoint
Review: This is certainly an interesting read for the faithful and skeptic alike. However, Mr. Strobel doesn't treat the birth narratives at all, it seems. But then, legends are not easily rationalized. The authorities quoted in his interviews are all men of strong faith and we hear what one would expect to hear from such individuals. I came away from the book with the thought that there is much more to my search for comfort in my personal spiritual journey. I am happy that I took the time to read it, especially since I must still defend my viewpoint to those close-minded friends who think this book is the end-all authority for traditional Christian belief. I also think that heretics like Pelagius, Arius, etc. had viewpoints that have as much validity as the mainline evangelists represented by those quoted by Mr. Strobel. Furthermore, I feel that the work of the Jesus Seminar has been a wonderful goad for the often tunnel vision of Mr. Strobel's "authorities." Our search for the historical Jesus is not over by any means.
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Summary: This book is only for the BEGINNER, NOT ADVANCED STUDENT
Review: For those who have bothered to read the previous reviews, you well know that some skeptics claim the book is shallow and uninformed, while some Christians imply it is the end-all-beat-all to the Jesus issue. So considering the one-line summary review I gave, I think Strobel's work deserves 5 stars FOR AN INTRODUCTORY. He does cover a broad range of issues in a little space! Nowhere does he say he is going to make an unbiased presentation of the evidence. In fact, he explicitly said he wanted the readers to act as a jury. At any rate, you can't possibly compare this book to a scholarly work -- IT WAS NEVER INTENDED TO BE AS SUCH. If you really want to dig deeper, there are PLENTY of other works which deal with the Jesus controversy more in depth. I know that means doing weeks worth of library work, but if you really want to get at the truth of anything, it takes hard work!! The Net: Simply accept the book as a good solid introduction into the issues surrounding Christianity and grow beyond Strobel's book. It meant as an introductory and nothing more!
Rating: 
Summary: Sheer Propaganda
Review: This book is not the objective appraisal of the facts it purports to be. It is a one-sided, explanation-laden commentary filled with hyperbole, non-sequiters, and flawed reasoning. The second star is for effort.
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Summary: Cognitive Dissonance re "The Case for Christ."
Review: It is interesting that those who give negative reviews about this book do so in an angry and almost violent tone. Although I agree that there are some "holes" in the arguement, there is overwhelming evidence to support Stroebel's claims, whether or not you believe he is right or wrong. The book is captivating and interesting and easy to read, all qualities of a good book. Although Stroebel does attempt to push you in the direction of Christianity, it is the responsibility of any person to take what the subject of a book is and do the "math" as it were, to make heads or tails of the subject matter. Something the opponents of this book have not thoroughly done. As a former psychologist I will note that the theory of cognitive dissonance teaches us that anyone, who is represented with an idea or thought that repudiates their current beliefs, will lash out and attack the opposing arguement or the person who represented it. This is further amplified when the "victim" of the cognitive dissonance does not have the evidence to refute the new claim. I would recommend this book to anyone who is open minded enough to find the merits and the negatives objectively, and finish the process by doing their own work to prove or disprove the authors hypothesis in an objective manner.
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Summary: Good intro, but don't stop here
Review: This is a pretty good introductory level book for someone tryingto get at the evangelical view of Jesus. Strobel was a journalist at one point, and so his training in communicating at a 10th grade reading level helps most people not familiar with the issues to get a grasp of just what is going on in the interviews. Anyone who has sat through a lecture by Dr. Moreland will truly appreciate this! But, at the same time, due to the effort to keep the material accessible to the larger audience, those that are more educated on the issues are straining at the bit wondering what happened to the "hard questions." While Strobel does make some sort of effort, he could have gone further. But if his whole point is to stir up discussion, why go any further? He's obviously done that. If those that disagree with him, including some of the more vitriolic reviewers, it's is up to them to refute the claims of his interviewers. Besides, as Strobel himself said in the book, we each need to see where the evidence goes, rather than letting someone else do the work for us. If you are new to the Jesus debate and want to get a feel for the evangelical position, go ahead and take a look at this. But don't stop here.
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Summary: The reviews are a "hoot" (and the book is good, too...)
Review: When I first looked at this Amazon site, I had absolutely no intention to write a review. Yet, it seems that everyone else has, so why not get into the act? If the book wasn't effective, it would not have generated as much discussion as it obviously has. Insipid books are not controversial. This book clearly does not fall into the "insipid" category. It is a good, thoughtful book. I believe that many of the flaws discussed in some of the posted messages are the result of Mr. Strobel's need to place an incredible amount of material into semi-concise form.
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Summary: Strobels' Labor of Disbelief turns into a Labor of Love
Review: + A must-read for anyone interested in the historical evidence regarding the Savior. Strobels, the investigative reporter who broke the story on exploding Pintos in the '70s, came home one evening to find his wife had given her life to God. What followed was Strobels on the warpath, his keen eye and unscrupulous mind set ablaze. He is merciless in his all-encompassing canvas of Jesus the Myth vs. Jesus the Reality. What the skeptical Strobels finds in his dozen sessions with the world's foremost Biblical authorities, however, is a change of heart for eternity.
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Summary: Excellent book, if you are open minded and unbased.
Review: This is an excellent book which I recommend for Christians and nonchristians alike. Some on this review board claim that it is biased and Mr. strobel was a minister when writing this book. They are correct he became a minister as a result of the research he did which he admits in the book was done from books primarily. He wrote the book by using the interviews, by experts, to give it credibility rather than him saying..'this is how it is...' It is not comprehensive in it's defense of the Christian faith, but it is informative. Also with the long bibliographical list anyone is free to go and do some research themselves. Also as for the writing being biased, I don't know if I agree with that som much as the evidence points in only one direction and some people do not want to come to that conclusion. Also some have suggested other books, some written by atheists. Are these atheist unbiased? Most reached there conclusions before they began the research. Mr. Strobel began his research than reached the conclusion. He effectively demonstrates that Christianity is not blind faith, but faith in evidence. I highly recommend it. 1 Thessalonians 5:21
Rating:
Summary: great - buy 1 for you and 1 to loan/give
Review: i loved this book. it is a great read - i really looked forward to the time that i had set aside each night to read it. this is the 5th time i have bought the book! i keep giving it to family and friends that are not Christians. i highly recommend the book and i appreciate lee strobel doing this homework for me.
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