The Historical Jesus : The Life of a Mediterranean Jewish Peasant

Rating:
Summary: A People's History of the Roman Empire?
Review: This book is superb. Among other things, it is scholarly, critical, and written well so that it is a pleasure to read. I suggest it's single finest quality is Crosson's ability to read various texts against each other, against themselves, and against their authors' social positions in order to arrive at clear educated guesses and, often, outright determinations of the nature of life in Palestine during the final years of the Roman Republic and the early years of the Empire. Not being much of a student of the period, it has served me brilliantly as an introduction to acient times. As a radical interpretation of those times, it has also been a welcome foil to the mainly aristocratic sources which have survived from that period -- hence my suggestion that Crosson is to ancient Rome what Howard Zinn has been to early American history.

Rating:
Summary: Rationalism, Not Scholarship
Review: This book shows little more than Father Crossan's rationalistic biases. These center about an a priori denial of the possibility of miraculous events. The ensuing denial of the authenticity of the Gospels as historical documents then becomes little more than a foregone conclusion.

Rating:
Summary: Disappointing
Review: What a rip off. I expected to learn about the historical being, Jesus. Instead the author tells me about the whole Mediteranian. He includes miscellaneous material as if to impress me with his knowledge, but I had to read 250 pages of a 500 page book to even have Jesus mentioned. I suggest if you buy this book, use it as a book end. It is not a buy for $14.00. I wish Mr. Crossan had stuck to material on which the book is entitled. The author has written the book to impress himself. He sure will not impress any readers.