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Rating: 
Summary: I think the last reviewer is crazy...
Review: ...or they have never actually read this book. First of all, Dr. Zahl is one of the best writers of theology and biblical scholarship because he isn't at all dull. He is witty, provocative, and brilliant. Zahl's attempt to recapture the historical Jesus from those who would rob him of his "Christ-ness" is quite successful, and the author adequately shows that whoever Jesus was, he certainly must have made universal claims about himself and about his message. I wholeheartedly recommend this book, and I recommend that the previous reviewer should actually pick it up and read it.
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Summary: Filling the gap left by Schweitzer and Saunders
Review: Dr. Zahl provides a deeply committed, solidly academic exposition of that one, central, unique aspect of the Christian faith--Jesus. Rather than dodging the historical questions raised by Schweitzer, Saunders, and others, Zahl demonstrates that Jesus, although shaped by second-temple Judaism, broke from it in a way that led to the founding of the Christian faith and that rings true with human experience. Zahl provides a succinct yet enlightening discourse on a most important subject for theologians, church leaders, and the faithful.
Rating: 
Summary: Nope
Review: I wanted to like this book, I really did. Sadly, I could not get through it. Pastor Paul F. M. Zahl wants to reclaim Jesus from the historical movement that wants to reduce him to a simple Jewish teacher, whose teachings were hijacked by the Apostle Paul and turned into a new religion. But, Rev. Zahl spends the first part of the book defending his position against the charge of anti-Semitism. Indeed, he is so defensive that the book just drags as he again and again denies any anti-Semitic feelings.Combining his defensiveness with a general dryness of writing, I just found this book too much to take. Now, it might be that the book got better later, but Rev. Zahl already lost me, I have moved onto another book. I highly recommend AGAINST this book.
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Summary: Creative, compassionate, shocking - like the first Christian
Review: SUMMARY
Preface. This book defies the traditional categories of New Testament studies and systematic theology.
Introduction. Zahl hopes his presentation of Jesus' message will help heal racial and ethnic divisions.
Chapter 1. Search #1 for the historical Jesus failed because it sought the rationalistic Jesus of its own time. Search #2 ended with a Jesus consumed with an eschatology (theology of the end) that is as alien to modern mankind as to traditional Christianity. With the immense human suffering of the 20th century, Search #3 found hope in his eschatology. Search #4 ignored the results of Search #3 to find the Judaistic Jesus that seemed to sever the root of past anti-Semitism. Zahl sees his work as springing from Search #3.
Chapter 2. Obviously, Jesus was a first-century Jew who ministered almost exclusively to Jews in the context of his culture.
Chapter 3. The difference between the eschatology of John the Baptist and that of Jesus gave rise to Christian compassion.
Chapter 4. Five radical themes of Jesus' teaching originated from his unique eschatology: 1. repentance of the whole person, not just of specific sins; 2. exorcisms that announced the coming of the kingdom of God; 3. opposition to the contemporary interpretation of the law of Moses; 4. inner purity; 5. association with sinners.
Chapter 5. Jesus' teaching on the inability of the human heart to overcome its own depravity is supported empirically, and yet psychologically that idea cannot be accepted without the hope of salvation from above.
There are some minor problems that future revisions could remedy. In some places, the book could have been improved by better editing, e.g., "former" and "latter" should have been transposed in the last sentence of the first paragraph of p. 41. Controversial statements, e.g., that the Council of Trent in effect repudiated Augustinianism, are sometimes made without supporting arguments. References provided to arguments deemed beyond the scope of this short book would help some readers.
Zahl's bold and timely application of his innovative research to the human condition makes this book one of the most rewarding on my shelf.
David R. Bickel, PhD
January 4, 2005
Rating:
Summary: Read Other works
Review: Try reading 'The Incredible Shrinking Son of Man' for some true scholarship and unbiased analysis of the Jesus myth.
Maybe too reality based for some of you.
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