A Portrait of Jesus

Rating:
Summary: A clear simple picture
Review: A simple portrait of a Savior. I have recommended and given this book to many. It is awe inspiring how the author can grasp the real Jesus. This book can be read by every religion and culture. For a clear understanding and feeling of a undescribable " Messiah". The author displays a true friendship and love for Jesus. We can all learn from this wonderful little book.

Rating:
Summary: A clear simple picture
Review: A simple portrait of a Savior. I have recommended and given this book to many. It is awe inspiring how the author can grasp the real Jesus. This book can be read by every religion and culture. For a clear understanding and feeling of a undescribable " Messiah". The author displays a true friendship and love for Jesus. We can all learn from this wonderful little book.

Rating:
Summary: The most uplifting book I've ever read
Review: At first I resisted this book, thinking it would be mostly boring preaching. I finally went for it, hoping to find some new biographical material that forty-six years of Roman Catholicism hadn't taught me. What I found, to my surprise, was a new way to look at religious beliefs that just blew me away.

The Jethro Tull album "Aqualung" came to mind while reading this. In the liner notes for that classic, Ian Anderson playfully states that "In the beginning Man created God, and in his image did he create Him". This is not blasphemy, folks. It is a statement that shows how humans have twisted religion to fit their own selfish needs over the past couple thousand years. The result is a state of religious thinking that often has little to do with the original message of Christ, if you take what the author has to say seriously.

...The Jesus as portrayed in this book is a refreshingly great guy that specifically tried to get away from exactly what happened before and after his time on earth. Jesus came into a Jewish world that was so bogged down with rules and laws that it took away from the few simple ones that are the most important. Which is, love your neighbor and your God, and things will find a way of working out.

...The book me feel good enough about myself to give it ten stars, but I'm holding back at four for a reason. While uplifting, this is the author's own interpretation of Christ. A lot of these interpretations make sense. But while he mentions Jesus had a great sense of humor, I would have liked to have seen more examples. And he does portray our Lord and Savior as a party guy who seemed to prefer hanging with sinners (maybe they're more fun), had no trouble supplying more booze to the party, and had no problem laughing at a dirty joke or two. While I'd love to accept this interpretation of reality, it does at times sound a little too good to be true. If it is, then this is the Jesus I want to follow.

Rating:
Summary: Jesus, Man and God
Review: Father Joe's humble yet captivating book made it clear to me why God loves us: he created us in His image, he made us capable of great love and He would do anything to keep us close. In "A Portrait of Jesus", Fr. Girzone provided me with a three-dimensional Christ who enjoyed being human, who celebrated it, loved his human family and companions and was not ashamed to live among us. Never before did I understand how God could live with us and yet be misunderstood by man; in "Portrait", Jesus is an ordinary, blue-collar guy, quietly living his life until the Father calls him to his ministry. He is so peaceful about his place in the human world that everyone, including society's outcasts, finds his company fascinating.

Written in ordinary language, this profound little book made me joyful that I, too, am human, and according to Jesus' life, death and resurrection, worth saving and renewing, every day.

Too much religion focuses on shame, unworthiness and our failures to be what God expects. Fr. Joe helps communicate that it is Jesus who makes us worthy, and religion should be a human framework to support our spiritual lives with Him.

In returning to church after decades of abscence, books like this one help keep my spirit united with God, despite all the human difficulties of working within a church organization.

Thank you, Joseph Girzone! Long may you write!

Rating:
Summary: This is the Jesus I never knew.
Review: Girzone captures Christ's persona. I found myself asking lots of questions of who I thought Christ was--and found Girzone answering them in a way I never expected. Shedding light on Christ's humanity and well as his divinity by shedding insight to his story, as found in the Gospel, Girzone creates a vivid picture of a truely caring man who relished his role as counselor, teacher, healer, friend and savior.

If you want to know Jesus better and more personally, read this book. Have a Bible near by, you may wish to look up stories as Girzone mentions them. I know it was worth my time and effort and I highly recommend this book.

Rating:
Summary: Profound, but a breezy read
Review: Girzone is truly a master at reminding us of the heart of Jesus teaching. He casts the gospel accounts of Jesus' life in a way that is both inspiring and challenging. This is Girzone's best book since Joshua, and in some ways I think its even better, since he talks directly about Jesus instead of through the fictional stories of the Joshua novels.

Rating:
Summary: Absolutely Magnificient!!
Review: I absolutely loved this book--couldn't hardly put it down!! I enjoyed the honesty of the book and loved how the author draws
you into it!! I highlighted a lot of the book so that I could
go back from time to time and reread the highlights. I feel so strongly that what is said in this book needs to be said, read
and understood by all!! What a magnificient gift the author has given us!!

Rating:
Summary: I was amazed
Review: I was thrilled with the book A Portrait of Jesus. There have been so many authors that have tried to paint an acurate and readable description of what Jesus might have been like but few have given Him the justice that Girzone does in this book. This book delves into every facet of written scripture to bring out the subtle, as well as the obvious, acts of perpetual love that exuded Jesus's every being. More than a reminiscing of the well known tails of Jesus, this book reaches behind the words and actions to what each encounter must have ment to the lives that were touched by Jesus. Beautifuly written,deep, accurate, and refreshingly simple this book overwhelmed my heart and taught me to look at Jesus's life, and what he was trying to accomplish as a whole, in a new and peaceful light. I highly reccomend it to anyone, Christian or not.

Rating:
Summary: Simplicity
Review: Joseph Girzone has written in this book his Christology. He follows the classical pattern of Christological works, but he expressed the simplcity of Jesus' message, as he does in his novels of Joshua. This simplcity can be very charming and inspiring. And at times it can be irrelevant.

In this book he sometimes repeats themes in separate chapters. For example, he writes about priestly celibacy. He believes that it is a discipline that should be changed. He writes early in the book about this and then repeats himself almost word for word later. This appears to me redundant and unnecessary.

Chapter 4, " A Humble, Casual Savior", sums up New Testament Morality. It is a very effective chapter, the best in the book. It is also the longest and needs to be digested carefully. Girzone also writes simply and that style can be deceiving. He summarizes Jesus' teaching in the chapter and manages to cover all the bases that New Testament moralists take books to write.

This simplicity of style is best appreciated when the book is read in small increments. Reflection should follow, even prayer.

The last two chapters concerning the end of Jesus' life seem unimportant. He simply narrates at that point. a point or two is made, especially about God's humor, but one would wish for a little more reflection.

Nevertheless as usual Girzone challenges the soul with his spiritual insights in the Savior.

Rating:
Summary: The Real Jesus comes to life!
Review: Joseph Girzone presents a truly personal portrait of Jesus. He takes the stories and the sayings of Jesus from the Gospels and interweaves them with his own personal understanding of who Jesus is. This is a most readable and enjoyable insight into the person who is Jesus and how He was and would be if He were around today. I have recommended this book to all of my friends and have given it as gifts. It is a most moving experience!