Rating: 
Summary: Follow-up Review
Review: I am writing to correct a statement in my previous review and to elaborate on a few others points. Josephus wrote about Jesus an estimated sixty years after Jesus' death and not the eighty years I had incorrectly mentioned. But the point is still valid that he wrote several decades later. Because his writings were altered it is uncertain what he actually wrote. In any event his statements merely reflected what others believed. The same is true of Tacitus and Pliny the Younger. If they had written that the Egyptians believed Osiris was a resurrected god would that be a reliable historical reference and proof it was actually true? Of course not. There are no contemporary writings about Jesus. In fact, there is such a lack of evidence that J.A. Wells wrote a book entitled "Did Jesus Exist." Added to the numerous reasons that pagan writings challenging the accuracy of the gosples have not been discovered, is the fact that pagan books were destroyed when Christianity became the official religion. In fact entire ancient libraries were burned by the early Christians. Several of the statements made by Strobel's "experts" are so historically incorrect that they are absurd. For example Boyd stated the mystery religions borrowed the practices of baptism and communion from Christianity. These practices and the mystery religions existed for centuries before Chistianity. Furthermore the similarities between Mithraism, which was several hundred years older, and Christianity are numerous, remarkable, and profound. Boyd also stated the Jews strongly resisted outside influences. Judiasm and Christianity are rife with the mythologies and rituals of other, older cultures. The early Jews even worshiped the gods and goddesses of other countries. The myths of virgin births and resurrected gods have existed for thousands of years throughout the world prior to Christianity. Both religions were also influenced by Zoroastrianism. Although most of those Strobel interviewed are professors, a good number of them received their degrees in divinity and philosophy rather than history or Biblical research. They are more theologians than true scholars. Their statements are biased propaganda based upon faith rather than a fair analysis of all the facts. Who would die for a lie? Heaven's Gate is only a recent example. The Jesus Seminar includes many of the most respected scholars in the field, like John Dominc Crossan. If their views are so much in the minority why are so many of them concurred with by the experts in the PBS presentation of "From Jesus to Christ?" The author readily accepted any explantion given whether it was historically correct or not. He did not dig deeply or check out the information he received as any good reporter would do. His book is therefore only a superficial investigation of the questions he raises.
Rating: 
Summary: Ignore the Low Raters ! Read it with an Open Mind.
Review: For those who claim that this book is one sided because the author is a Christian, for the sake of fairness, ask yourself : "How many 'one-sided' books are out there favoring the Jesus Seminar, liberal Christianity, etc.? How many are out there that think they aren't one-sided because they include token quotes from scholars holding the opposite point of view (the ones that Strobel interviewed for example) ? Tons of each. Think of this book as a rebuttal. Granted, Stroebel interviewed no scholars with opposing views like Sanders, Mack, or Fredriksen, but what is he supposed to do ? Do these scholars go around answering opposing views too ? I somehow doubt it. In fact if you read Mack's WWNT today, you will find that other than a snide swipe at Theide's Magdalene Papyrus theory, he ignores every "opposing" point of view there is. Notice that a book by a journalist named Russell Shorto, published a few years back, did the same thing in favor of the Jesus Seminar. So now we've got Shorto for one side and Strobel for the other. Looks like the match is even! If you want balance, read Shorto's and Strobel's book and compare the arguments ! I personally found Strobel's arguments to be more convincing. You might disagree with my assessment but you can't do so honestly by not reading this book. Asking the question : "If certain towns or people mentioned in the Bible are found to have existed at that time, so what?" smacks of intellectual laziness. What this evidence means is that they ARE MORE LIKELY TO BE RIGHT than if the towns and people DIDN'T exist. And Strobel covered this on p.96, He said : "In trying to determine if a witness is being truthful, journalists and lawyers will test all the elements of his or her testimony that can be tested. If this investigation reveals that the person was wrong in those details, this casts considerable doubt on the veracity of his or her entire story. However, if the minutiae check out, this is some indication-not conclusive proof BUT SOME EVIDENCE-that maybe the witness is being reliable in his or her overall account....If the details check out, this doesn't prove that his ENTIRE story is true, BUT IT DOES ENHANCE HIS REPUTATION FOR BEING ACCURATE." (Emphasis mine). This may not satisfy skeptics, but these are the rules of evidence that lawyers and historians (i.e. professionals in interpreting evidence) use in assessing the truthfulness of a witness. Good thing archaeologists as a whole don't take this careless 'so what' attitude. If they did, nothing would be discovered and they might as well close shop. The Jesus Seminar IS INDEED COMPOSED OF a number of radical fringe scholars who are on the far, far left wing of NT thinking. I don't find this statement inaccurate at all. Naming three of their ringleaders doesn't change the assessment in the least, one which is agreed upon not only in the circles Strobel checked in, but also in moderate circles led by the likes of Richard Hays and Luke Timothy Johnson. For those who have read this book and are still interested in debating the case for Christ "live", I invite you to refute the works of J.P. Holding in his TEKTON APOLOGETICS Website on the internet. Lee Stroebel's book is a good counter-balance to the works of many liberal skeptics out there on the case for Christ.
Rating:
Summary: Can the resurrection withstand modern-day investigation?
Review: As an award-winning investigative journalist with a self-proclaimed aversion to the claims of Christ's resurrection, Strobel sets out to prove that the 2000 year old story will not stand up to modern day investigative techniques. Where his investigation leads will surprize some. Written in an easy-to-read style Strobel winds us through interviews with experts in theology, history, science, and psychology in a search for truth. The search is refreshing in it's willingness to take the facts in "without prejudice". Reading this book is an experience similar to having some of the sharpest minds living today gather together in your home. Strobel has that reporter's instinct for hitting on exactly the most pressing questions. He challenges these experts unflinchingly. If you enjoy intellectual sparring, you will thoroughly enjoy this book. If you have questions about the validity of Christ that need factual answers, this book will help you.
Rating: 
Summary: So very, very disappointing.
Review: All this hype about a journalist going after the truth. And gues what this one time atheist is now? He may have asked tough questions but he seems to have blindly accepted the answers he received as gospel. One sided and incomplete. Disappointing. A better read would be "Rescuing the Bible from Fundamentalism" and "Why Christianity Must Change or Die", both by J.S. Spong.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent
Review: This book gives great answers for the questions especially the young people ask. Holy Spirit did a wonderful work through Lee Strobel
Rating:
Summary: Don't believe the skeptics!
Review: This book does a fantastic job of making the case for Christ. Don't be fooled by the few negative reviews you see here - it is just proof that some people will never open their minds enough to give up their secular world view and allow for the possibility of something greater than themselves. A previous negative review accuses Strobel of being one-sided. Actually, the opposing viewpoint is so widely held and taught in intellectual circles that it has become the de-facto standard point-of-view. Strobel is simply allowing the reader to see that there is a rebuttal to this point of view. The skeptics like to pick at singular details, trying to find a loose thread that will unravel the entire Christian belief system. But if you look at the big picture, it just doesn't wash. For example, one reviewer here points out a counter-argument to the assertion that the Gospels can be authenticated by the fact that no one objected to them at the time they were written. He makes it sound like he has just pulled the rug out from under Strobel, but what he doesn't tell you is that this was only one of several reasons given for the authenticity of the Gospels. Even if we cede this argument to him, there are still plenty of other arguments that stand in favor of the Gospels (such as, why would the Gospel writers and other disciples endure a lifetime of persecution and eventual gruesome deaths to perpetuate what they knew to be a lie?). In fact, most of the negative reviews I have read here either misrepresent the arguments Strobel is making, or they leave out important facts. Don't take their word for it - read the book for yourself.
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Summary: Strobel's book is an excellent look at the evidence & Jesus.
Review: This evidenvce is good but only the Holy Spirit can convince a non-believer of the reality of the Gospel. This book will strengthen your faith as a believer or incite you to anger if you are a non-believer. Most of Strobel's experts are well respected, but there is only one person who can drawl an unbelieving doubter to Christ, that is Jesus himself. Excellent work by Strobel though, I pray that it may open some hearts to the truth of the Gospel.
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Summary: Great book that stands up to scrutiny
Review: As someone who has spent years studying ancient history, I can attest to the accuracy, fairness, readability, and thorough nature of this excellent new book. And while it's great that "The Case for Christ" has generated so much response at amazon.com, I'm concerned that a handful of people who disagree with the author's conclusions have sought to discourage others from obtaining the book through reviews that are at times misleading or which miss the point of the book entirely. Taking simplistic potshots when there is no ready mechanism for response by the author seems terribly unfair. Let me give just a few examples. One reviewer tries to discredit the author's citing of Josephus, a first century historian. First, the reviewer claims that Josephus wrote about Jesus 80 years after Jesus died, which is absurd because this would place the date after Josephus' own death! Further, he claims Josephus' work has been "universally acknowledged to have been altered or doctored by later Christians." Yet this is a point that the book's author, Lee Strobel, readily concedes! However, Strobel takes the approach of a true historian by seeking to determine what part of Josephus' work is authentic and what was likely a later Christian interpolation. Unfortunately, potential readers of the book might think from the review that Strobel's book is lacking, when it's the review that misses the mark. A reviewer points out that several of the experts interviewed in the book are from Christian universities, so of course they believe Jesus is who he claimed to be. However, these scholars don't hold this view because they are at Christian universities; they are at Christian universities because they have been personally convinced by the evidence that Jesus is who he claimed to be! These experts are highly respected scholars with excellent academic credentials. Why aren't opposing scholars interviewed? Because the scholars in the book are confronted with the claims of these opposing scholars and are forced to defend their positions with facts. Thus, the claims of opposing scholars are given due consideration. In addition, the author devotes an entire chapter to debunking the highly questionable -- and sometimes laughable -- scholarship of the left-wing Jesus Seminar. Concerning the resurrection, a reviewer claims: "If one disciple claimed to see Jesus, wouldn't others also do so in order to not feel less special or blessed?" Why would someone falsely claim to have seen the resurrected Jesus when it meant a life of hardship, rejection, poverty, and eventual torture and death? Can anyone find a single example in history of a person who knowingly and willingly allowed themselves to be tortured to death for a lie? I could go on and on. There are logical and rational responses to every single point brought up by the reviewers. In fact, a fair reading of this book shows that it already provides answers to much of what is raised! At about 300 pages, this book is clearly intended to be an overview of the evidence concerning Jesus. To fault the author for not going deeper on one point or another does not mean there aren't adequate answers. It simply means one book can only give so much information. What is in this book, as far as I can determine, is accurate, balanced, and written in a very creative and highly readable form. I strongly recommend it to anyone with an open mind.
Rating:
Summary: A College Graduate Must Read
Review: This book is a must read for college graduates especially those who attended liberal state universities. If you thought your college philosophy prof's were giving you the straight scoop regarding Christianity, think again. Strobel, a Harvard Law Grad and ex Chicago Tribune reporter attacks this subject with the vigor of a bulldog reporter. He criss crosses the country posing tough questions to the top experts in the world. The results will shock you. Think there's no proof for the Christian faith's reliability? Think again, Strobel shows you don't have to check your brain at the door to believe in Jesus Christ, in fact it's the logical conclusion. If your as open minded as you tell everyone you are, you owe it to yourself to read this book!
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Summary: Many of the issues I have put in my "Faith Box"
Review: I am a philosophy student, and a critical thinker. When I started to think about reading this book I wasn't overly excited about it. I was pleasantly surprised at how fast paced and exciting this book was in comparison with other books written with the same intention. What it did for me was it opened up my "Faith Box." This is a box that contains all of the little leaps of faith that I have taken in my walk with Christ. As a introspective person, at quiet moments of brutal honesty with myself, I am forced to look at how many leaps of faith that I have taken and it often times is very scary. This book dealt with so many of those questions and doubts that I had, and it has strengthened my faith in the historical Jesus immensely, my faith will NEVER be the same. There is no book out that is like this.
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