Synopses & Reviews
This book is the second volume in John Meier's masterful trilogy on the life of Jesus. In it he continues his quest for the answer to the greatest puzzle of modern religious scholarship: Who was Jesus? To answer this Meier imagines the following scenario: "Suppose that a Catholic, a Protestant, a Jew, and an agnostic were locked up in the bowels of the Harvard Divinity School library... and not allowed to emerge until they had hammered out a consensus document on who Jesus of Nazareth was and what he intended...". A Marginal Jew is what Meier thinks that document would reveal. Volume one concluded with Jesus approaching adulthood. Now, in this volume, Meier focuses on the Jesus of our memory and the development of his ministry. To begin, Meier identifies Jesus's mentor, the one person who had the greatest single influence on him, John the Baptist. All of the Baptist's fiery talk about the end of time had a powerful effect on the young Jesus and the formulation of his key symbol of the coming of the "kingdom of God." And, finally, we are given a full investigation of one of the most striking manifestations of Jesus's message: Jesus's practice of exorcisms, hearings, and other miracles. In all, Meier brings to life the story of a man, Jesus, who by his life and teaching gradually made himself marginal even to the marginal society that was first century Palestine.
Review
andldquo;John Meierand#39;s refusal to belong to a particular and#39;schooland#39; of Gospels research is clearly evident in this latest volume in the
andnbsp;Marginalandnbsp;Jew series. His remarkable erudition both in the primary sources and in the extensive secondary literature is palpable throughout. He is the very model of a sober and learned contrarian!andrdquo;andmdash;Simon Gathercole, University of Cambridge
Review
andldquo;The subject of the parables is one of the more daunting areas of historical Jesus research. Yet, with his characteristic wisdom and wit, John Meier guides us through the many parables that are attached to Jesusand#39; name. Freely conceding that in many cases utter certainty will escape us, Meier shows us which parables are most likely from the lips of Jesus and why.andrdquo;andmdash;Gary A. Anderson, University of Notre Dame
Review
andldquo;This book is a breath of fresh airandmdash;refreshingly forthright about what can and cannot be said about the parables attributed to Jesus. Meier shows that the parables can no longer be seen as the bedrock for reconstructing the historical Jesus. Yet four parables have a demonstrable origin in his teaching.andrdquo;andmdash;Adela Yarbro Collins, Yale University
Review
andldquo;Seldom in the history of scholarship has one scholar so attractively combined both scientific and theological sophistication as does John Meier, one of our leading experts on the Historical Jesus. In this fifth volume of his definitive Marginal Jew series, Meier explores the authenticity of Jesusandrsquo; parables.andrdquo;andmdash;James H. Charlesworth, Princeton Theological Seminary
Review
andquot;Father Meierand#39;s amazingly disinterested accounts of the career of Jesus will now include this subtle and astute exegesis of the parables.andrdquo;andmdash;Harold Bloom,andnbsp;Sterling Professor of the Humanities,andnbsp;Yale University
Synopsis
A milestone in biblical studies, here is the much-awaited second volume in Meier's quest for the real Jesus--without the halo that poets and believers have given him. Focusing now on Jesus's adult life and ministry, Meier explores Jesus's mentor, John the Baptist, and Jesus's miracles. Charts. Maps.
Synopsis
Since the late nineteenth century, New Testament scholars have operated on the belief that most, if not all, of the narrative parables in the Synoptic Gospels can be attributed to the historical Jesus. This book challenges that consensus and argues instead that only four parablesandmdash;those of the Mustard Seed, the Evil Tenants, the Talents, and the Great Supperandmdash;can be attributed to the historical Jesus with fair certitude. In this eagerly anticipated fifth volume of A Marginal Jew, John Meier approaches this controversial subject with the same rigor and insight that garnered his earlier volumes praise from such publications as the New York Times and Christianity Today. This seminal volume pushes forward his masterful body of work in his ongoing quest for the historical Jesus.
About the Author
John P. Meier is William K. Warren Professor of Theology (New Testament) at the University of Notre Dame and the author ofand#160;A Marginal Jew: Rethinking the Historical Jesus.and#160;He has also written six other books and over seventy articles. At various times he has been the editor or associate editor ofand#160;The Catholic Biblical Quarterly, New Testament Studies,and#160;andand#160;Dead Sea Discoveries.