The Historical Figure of Jesus

Rating:
Summary: Interesting portrait of a difficult subject.
Review: Whether you are a believer or not, Jesus must be considered one of the most important persons who ever lived. However, our historical record of Jesus is sparse -- it is generally agreed that the gospels were not written for many decades after Jesus's death, and thus the authors probably did not have direct knowledge of Jesus, but were relying on a lost source known as "Q." Sanders does a good job of providing a background for what Palestine was like during Jesus's lifetime, and while he must engage in some speculation about his life, he does so in a judicious way and his assumptions seem reasonable. He also is respectful of Christianity and does not engage in the kind of attacks unsupported by the historical record that anti-Christians can do. This book is a remarkable of work of scholarship.