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Jesus Within Judaism: New Light from Exciting Archaeological Discoveries
Describes the rituals, customs, and daily life of Jews in the time of Jesus, and discusses the influence of Judaism on Jesus.
265 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1988
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
May 23, 2020
Charlesworth says in his introduction that the book was a compilation of his lectures given in Edinburgh in 1985. He says "in order to make these lectures more interesting and enjoyable for a wider audience, I have removed all technical language and supplied brief footnotes." I don't know how he defines a technical language, but the book is filled with such. At least in my definition! And I wish he would have used footnotes instead of endnotes. I always like to see this information in my sight and not have to chase up the other page for such information.
His history is not histrionics-- it's excellent, featuring the chapters Jesus and the OT Pseudepigrapha, Jesus and the Dead Sea Scrolls, Jesus of History, and finally Jesus' concept of God (and his own self-understanding). This book is not easy by any means, but it's very worthwhile in the steady stream of 20th century "Who is Jesus?" books about his role within historic Judaism.
He affirms that Jesus was not an Essene (p. 75) which makes great sense in his unpacking of the issue, and he works to show the similarities and differences in their views. He shares 4 ideas of connections: 1) The belief in a singular God. Monotheism was being rattled in various sects of Judaism at the time with angelology 2) Essenes were the only celibate group at the time and may have been in Jesus' view when he praised the men who were eunuchs for God's kingdom (Mt. 19.10-12), 3) also in Mark, Jesus forbids divorce. That also only lines up with Dead Sea Scroll (11QTemple 57.17-18) and was only part of Essene tradition, and 4) purity is key. But he makes it clear that Jesus goes against their Essene grain over and over again as well. His points are well taken.
Beyond the Jesus of History, he covers specific theological conclusions about Jesus' own view of God and himself.
I like (p. 17) his agreement with Archbishop Ramsey who wrote about the "lonely and rejected Jesus" in disagreement with both Tillich and Bultmann, "who assumed or tended to argue that all we can know categorically of the historical Jesus is the fact of the cross."
If you are a serious student about Jesus, and want to see him in his historical context, this is a great read. A bit dated, but then, so was Jesus, right?
His history is not histrionics-- it's excellent, featuring the chapters Jesus and the OT Pseudepigrapha, Jesus and the Dead Sea Scrolls, Jesus of History, and finally Jesus' concept of God (and his own self-understanding). This book is not easy by any means, but it's very worthwhile in the steady stream of 20th century "Who is Jesus?" books about his role within historic Judaism.
He affirms that Jesus was not an Essene (p. 75) which makes great sense in his unpacking of the issue, and he works to show the similarities and differences in their views. He shares 4 ideas of connections: 1) The belief in a singular God. Monotheism was being rattled in various sects of Judaism at the time with angelology 2) Essenes were the only celibate group at the time and may have been in Jesus' view when he praised the men who were eunuchs for God's kingdom (Mt. 19.10-12), 3) also in Mark, Jesus forbids divorce. That also only lines up with Dead Sea Scroll (11QTemple 57.17-18) and was only part of Essene tradition, and 4) purity is key. But he makes it clear that Jesus goes against their Essene grain over and over again as well. His points are well taken.
Beyond the Jesus of History, he covers specific theological conclusions about Jesus' own view of God and himself.
I like (p. 17) his agreement with Archbishop Ramsey who wrote about the "lonely and rejected Jesus" in disagreement with both Tillich and Bultmann, "who assumed or tended to argue that all we can know categorically of the historical Jesus is the fact of the cross."
If you are a serious student about Jesus, and want to see him in his historical context, this is a great read. A bit dated, but then, so was Jesus, right?
May 14, 2019
This book written in 1988 is definitely found a particular point in historical research. So much work has been done and discoveries have happened that has changed the nuances and questions that are asked here. However, this book was such a good read for a lover of historical Jesus research.
What you are reading here is a scholar interacting with the world of textual criticism in light of the most recent research (in their day) of the historical Jesus. While the world of textual criticism often pushes negative assumptions far beyond what I am comfortable with, it is the method they are committed to for academic accountability and it is so refreshing for my mind and critical thinking.
I dont often get to spend much time reading about the world of archaeology — at least not like I would like to — but this book snuck out of the back recesses of an inherited library and was an absolute surprise and delight. His six chapters covered some very concise yet significant questions about the historical Jesus.
It was also fun, at the end of the book, to read his explanation of where Jesus Research had been in that decade (the 1980's). I would highly recommend this read for anyone who loves looking into the world of academic textual criticism and the world of historical Jesus research.
What you are reading here is a scholar interacting with the world of textual criticism in light of the most recent research (in their day) of the historical Jesus. While the world of textual criticism often pushes negative assumptions far beyond what I am comfortable with, it is the method they are committed to for academic accountability and it is so refreshing for my mind and critical thinking.
I dont often get to spend much time reading about the world of archaeology — at least not like I would like to — but this book snuck out of the back recesses of an inherited library and was an absolute surprise and delight. His six chapters covered some very concise yet significant questions about the historical Jesus.
It was also fun, at the end of the book, to read his explanation of where Jesus Research had been in that decade (the 1980's). I would highly recommend this read for anyone who loves looking into the world of academic textual criticism and the world of historical Jesus research.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews