Jesus of Nazareth: A Realistic Portrait

by Paul Verhoeven

Jezus van Nazaret ontdaan van elke 'onmogelijk' mirakel. Geplaatst met een realiteitsbesef in de historie. Paul Verhoeven vertelt zijn kijk op het N.T. en dat verschilt nogal van de evangelisten.

Genres: Religion, History, Nonfiction, Biography, Ebooks, Realistic Fiction

First published January 1, 2008

About the author

Paul Verhoeven is a Dutch director, screenwriter, and producer, best known for films such as RoboCop, Basic Instinct, Starship Troopers and Blackbook.

He is also a bible scholar and critical thinker.

Reviews

[Rogier · Rating 3 out of 5]

Paul Verhoeven, the Dutch movie director, comes at this topic from an interesting vantage point. Besides the fact that before becoming a movie maker, he was trained as a mathematician, however he had an abiding interest in the figure of Jezus all of his life.

Unsurprisingly, coming from a predominantly protestant/reformed culture, he is focused on the search for the historical Jesus. It was a surprise to learn however that he carried this interest so far as to become the (apparently) one and only lay member of the Jesus Seminar, which undoubtedly is THE leading body of serious scholarship in this area.

The book is interesting primarily because he has a way of making you think more deeply about the scenes (because he does think as a movie maker). This can be helpful regardless of whether you agree with Verhoeven or not, for it focuses the mind on "what's the upshot?", what's the point. Woven into the fabric of the book is his own thinking about one day perhaps making a movie about the life of Jesus. Even though I hardly agree with his approach, I venture to say that his Jesus movie could be more interesting than many others, except perhaps Monty Python's Life of Brian, which it would be hard to outdo. On the other hand it would suffer from the fact that Verhoeven kills off Jesus' spiritual meaning right from the outset.

Verhoeven sums up the relationship with Paul in an interesting way: Paul had more to gain from a dead Jesus than from a live one, because his framing of the basic tenets of what was to become Christianity depended on Jesus dying on the cross. In other respects however, the book stays within the framework of a thoroughly Christian conception of who and what Jesus was and keeps him within a patently Christian framework - which very definitely does benefit more from a dead Jesus than from a live one. He does so even when he embraces certain positions that are bound to be thought controversial, such as advancing the theory of Jesus having been conceived out of wedlock from the rape of Mary by a Roman soldier.

He does try to clarify the notion of Jesus being radical, which is relevant, but he ends up framing that in the mold of Che Guevara, as a revolutionary and a sponsor of violence. With that he loses me entirely. But, while this is another aspect of his view that will likely be deemed controversial, he still manages to leave Jesus as the first Christian, and founder of a religion. A truly radical view of the matter would be to finally come to grips with the fact that Jesus was no such thing.

To my taste Jesus was closer to Socrates, or Jiddhu Krishnamurti, when in his "Truth is a Pathless Land" speech in 1929, disbanded the "Order of the Rising Star." To my taste, that moment embodied the spirit of Jesus. With the historical trails Verhoeven follows, Jesus is effectively killed off as the spiritual teacher he was (as he is bound to be in this world), exactly because Verhoeven limits himself deliberately to talking only about the 30 years of Jesus's life on earth, and treating the three years of his ministry as an extension of that, and so, in focusing on the body, which Jesus taught was not the point, he once again kills the spirit of the teacher which was and is Jesus, something we are doomed to keep on doing as long as we make the ego system real.

[Lee Harmon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Question: What happens when an accomplished film maker delves into the realm of historical Jesus scholarship?

Answer: Fresh insight.

Paul Verhoeven is the only non-theologian admitted to the Jesus Seminar, a group of scholars dedicated to uncovering the historical Jesus. While his book will not be recognized for the depth of research that goes into the books of more noted scholars, it's still an interesting read.

Verhoeven digs into the relationship between Jesus and John the Baptist, the sin of riches, exorcisms, and much more to paint Jesus in human terms. Jesus is not an ideal for Verhoeven, but a living, breathing person, with fears and failures alongside his accomplishments. Jesus is a hunted criminal who masterfully escapes the long arm of the law...until an apostate disciple masquerading as a Zealot (not likely one of the twelve, nor even named Judas, according to Verhoeven) leads the authorities to him.

After Jesus' crucifixion, his disciples believed he returned from the dead. But if the whole of the Jesus story were wrapped up in this miracle of overcoming death, Christianity could not have survived for 2,000 years. Jesus created powerful parables and devised a new code of ethics; regardless of his false understanding that the kingdom of God was imminent, he indeed transformed the world. Verhoeven closes his book with this paradox: Jesus' mistaken view of reality led to the most significant ethical revival in the past two thousand years.

[Luana · Rating 5 out of 5]

Though Verhoeven sometimes jumps to conclusions even the most non-biblical minded reader might raise an eyebrow at, his endless enthusiasm for the subject shines through on every page. Such leaps of logic are always preceded by a humble admission of him letting his passion get the better of him, and thus, in a way, even enhance the reading experience.

For those mournful of Paul Verhoeven probably never getting to make a big budget Jesus movie in his lifetime, he also eagerly describes some storyboards he totally has in his mind for the movie he would have made.

Highly recommended!

[Jenn Raley · Rating 2 out of 5]

The reader should know, before beginning this book, that there are two primary elements that underpin Paul Verhoeven's analysis of the life and death of Jesus: 1) Verhoeven does not think Jesus was divine or the Son of God; 2) Miracles are impossible and therefore any stories of them are simply untrue.

When you start with those two ideas as a foundation for a book on Jesus, it means you're going to discount a LOT of what is written in the Gospels. What, then, can an author do in this situation?

The options are to: a) rearrange the stories; b) replace some of the content with ideas from apocryphal gospels, other ancient writings, and speculations by centuries of scholars; c) just plain make stuff up.

Verhoeven does all of these things. It makes for an interesting read. I will give him credit: he has obviously studied the materials closely, and the book is well-annotated (indeed, 40% of the pages are footnotes). This isn't a film director simply writing an interesting screenplay, though he makes it plain that this was his initial intent. Verhoeven did his homework.

However, I object to this completely unspiritual examination of Jesus. This book is so obviously written by an individual who has no spiritual faith to speak of, much less a faith-based understanding of the Old or New Testament. He treats the subject matter merely as stories to be analyzed for their historical accuracy and narrative consistency, without considering that both the Old and New Testament passages he references might have been written with a different purpose in mind. Not to mention that he seems to have no spiritual curiosity about the possibility of miracles (not even the idea that what took place may have been contemporaneously considered a miracle).

My other major objection to this book is that Verhoeven so often writes, "I think" or "my opinion is". Although he doesn't claim to be a scholar, he could have made some effort to omit his own ego.

Christians who are looking for spiritual formation won't find it in this book.

For others who may be looking for a critique of scripture, this wouldn't be a bad place to start. Verhoeven's text is sprinkled liberally with references to a multitude of other authors. This would be a good launching off point to learn the basics of the non-Christian version of the Jesus story, then follow up by reading some of the scholars referenced. It's a quick and easy read, and covers all the highlights of Jesus' birth, life, and death.

[César · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesante si tienes curiosidad por la figura histórica de Jesús de Nazaret y, además, aprecias el estilo de Verhoeven.
Sales del libro con una nueva visión del personaje, más ajustada a criterios racionales, como si hubieras visionado esa película que Verhoeven no ha tenido ocasión de rodar. En especial, son muy disfrutables los pasajes en los que el director holandés recrea con palabras cómo hubiera filmado él determinados acontecimientos de la vida de Jesús.

[Thomas Coogan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A nice little historiography of Jesus and The New Testament from one of my favorite psychos, Paul Verhoeven (Robocop, Starship Troopers, Showgirls, Elle).

I’m sure this would hit even harder if you ever went to church regularly or read the Bible, neither of which I’ve done. It is nonetheless fascinating for a non-informed non-believer and makes me wish he got to make his Jesus movie.

[Goof Reeds · Rating 4 out of 5]

A concise, readable and remarkably well-researched account of the “historical Jesus” from the only dogmatically secular member of the Jesus Seminar, filmmaker Paul Verhoeven! This doubles as insight into Verhoeven’s preoccupations as an artist, namely his intense rationalism and insistence on the importance of confronting difficult, worldly realities. Amazingly, here he often employs his expertise as a storyteller to convincingly disprove and reverse-engineer the tales woven by the evangelists in their gospels. Accidentally becoming a leading scholar on Jesus as research for a film project that may never materialize is awesome.

[Jarkko Laine · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting addition to the long line of discussion about the historical Jesus. Verhoeven accepts a big part of the ideas from mainstream scholars but is not afraid to add his own interpretation and logic to create a compelling narrative around Jesus's life.

While I'm not completely convinced by Verhoeven's image of Jesus, it is definitely worth considering. An inspiring, interesting read for anyone interested in the search for the historical Jesus.

[Richard Gray · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well, it's almost Easter so why not read a book about Jesus? The real reason behind picking this up was that I've been going through the filmography of Paul Verhoeven and this slotted in somewhere between Black Book and Tricked. Yes, the director of Robocop and Showgirls wrote a non-fiction book about the historical Jesus of Nazareth. How could I say no?

If you didn't know, Verhoeven has long been fascinated with Jesus. If you think about him as the ultra violent and sexualised director of 80s high concept gold, you may not see it. But religion is there in Spetters, it's a recurring theme in The Fourth Man and most recently, Jesus has a major role in the controversial Benedetta. Verhoeven has been a member of the Jesus Seminar for decades, a group of critical biblical scholars concerned with the historicity of the deeds and sayings of Jesus. That is, how did Jesus the man live in his time.

What began as a film project becomes a series of essays and provocations co-written with his biographer Rob Van Scheers. Verhoeven breaks down key moments we know about Jesus from the gospels - along with apocrypha Q and the Gospel of Thomas - to try and paint of picture of what Jesus the human would have been like. This is where the book is most successful, placing key stories, events and parables in their historical context.

Yet it is not without its biases. Following the tenants of the Jesus Seminar, Verhoeven dismisses all miracles and looks for their real explanation, just as us comic book geeks ponder who puts gas in the Batmobile. From the start, Verhoeven latches onto the idea that Jesus was waiting for the kingdom of heaven to "break through" to our world, and this was his primary motivator. He looks for political and personal reasons to explain actions and discrepancies between the gospels. It's a well argued piece, but there's a lot of passages that start with "in my opinion" which erode some of veracity of Verhoeven's scholarship.

Which isn't to say that Verhoeven hasn't done his research. Over a third of the book is filled with extensive footnotes and bibliographies, and he's clearly in a dialogue with his reader and contemporaries. Indeed, the book started as a series of interviews with Van Scheers before switching to its current format.

Verhoeven the filmmaker is also very present in the text. He compares certain moments to other films, or supposes what would have happened if he had made the film himself. Early on, there's a complete section of an early draft of his abandoned script. Disappointingly, it features a scene of Mary being raped, a plot device that has plagued almost all of his productions including Turkish Delight, Spetters, Flesh + Blood, Basic Instinct, Showgirls, Hollow Man and Elle. So, for all of his surface level academia, there's still a lot of Verhoeven the Man in here as well.

Which is a shame because there's a decent thesis at the heart of this. Verhoeven, who holds a M.Sc. in mathematics and physics, brings the insight of an engaged layperson or practiced enthusiast to this exploration of Jesus. While all of the criticisms of the Jesus Seminar can probably be applied to this book, I'm no theological scholar - just a very, very, very lapsed Catholic. For me, this is just an insight into the mind of one of the more unique filmmakers of the last five decades.

3.5 scaled down.

[Russell · Rating 2 out of 5]

It is impossible to review this book without first acknowledging the name on the cover. Paul Verhoeven is a world-renowned director responsible for such children-corrupting films as Robocop and Basic Instinct. He recently made a splash for bemoaning the lack of sex in new James Bond films. He's a horny old bastard, but in an ornery way that is difficult not to love.

Jesus of Nazareth: a Realistic Portrait is a book born out of Vehoeven's personal fascination with the historical Jesus. What started as background research for a future movie, morphed into a lifelong obsession. And because gun-shy Hollywood is scared of religious backlash, that untitled Jesus movie became this academic book.

This is a celebrity book— published with the hope that hapless book buyers will be wooed by a recognizable author and open up their pockets. It's a cynical approach to publishing and it definitely worked on me. I'm approaching this book as a fan or Verhoeven's movies and as a secular patron of the twin churches of Goodreads and Letterboxd. My understanding of Jesus comes from musical theatre. I didn't read this book for Jesus of Nazareth. I read it for Paul of Starship Troopers.

Somewhere between academic history and the first draft of a screenplay, Jesus of Nazareth separates the Myth from the Man. And it does so with a juicy eye for the dramatic. This text isn't just about telling a story, it's here to academically undermine the Sunday School narrative with a messy history. It's 200 pages of Hollywood gossip followed by a 100-page bibliography.

Verhoeven begins by addressing the elephant in the room: there are no primary sources. The New Testament is both written after the fact and a foundational work of religious scripture. It's here to canonize Christian faith not present a historical fact. In order to sieve away the changes, biblical scholars must adopt a longitudinal approach.

What do the changing translations reveal about the structural agenda surrounding Jesus?

And how might one mix that agenda with the lives of historical rebel leaders and work backward to puzzle out a single human life?

It reminds me of high school statistics. With both biblical texts and the translations' trajectory, it's possible to deduce what likely happened before the first source. As an outsider, unfamiliar with the techniques of biblical historians, this is an eye-opening process.

But it's also one that invites skepticism.

As timescales increase, uncertainty balloons. And this type of narrative analysis is an inexact science— especially when trying to gaze through the fog of religious dogma. Verhoeven qualifies his every conclusion with "most likely" and "one possible conclusion." It gets to the point where each story about Jesus starts to feel apocryphal. Not that this is inherently a bad thing— nuance and caution are staples of a balanced academic breakfast. But it's nuance and caution that are so easily undercut by Verhoeven's imagined screenplay.

And what a screenplay it is. Each one provides a snapshot of what a historical Jesus film would look like— objective descriptions to the director. In truth, they should be the most engaging part of the text— who doesn't want the inside scoop on what their favorite artist is thinking? But instead, they're just uncomfortable perspectives from a convention-flaunting old man.

Page 31 is where the problems start. Once Verhoeven abruptly transitions from hermetic descriptions of Roman power structures to the inflammatory screenplay of Jesus' theorized conception, I lose faith in his ability to be an objective writer.

"A Jewish girl, no older than sixteen, hides inside a house. Her family has been brutally slain. A Roman soldier finds her and rapes her. The girl's name is Mary" (31).

Paul… buddy— you can't have it both ways. The truth (which Verhoeven fully endorses) is that there is no truth. There is only evidence and conjecture. But the silver screen doesn't have time for opposing interpretations. It's there to get butts in seats. Verhoeven refuses to settle for ambiguity. He provides lip service to multiple possibilities. But his cinema brain boils it to a single film, a film that takes glee in trampling what you know.

Ultimately, I'm left with a lesson that I probably should have guessed from the Thriftbooks summary. If you want to learn about film, read a book about film. If you want to learn about the historical Jesus, find a book written by a Jesus historian.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -


And that is where I could (and probably should) have ended this review— with a neat (if unsatisfying) conclusion. But I still have unfinished business here. And long-winded Goodreads reviews are the closest things I have to therapy.

Hold on to your seamless robes, it's time for a postscript.

Something about Verhoeven's characterization of Jesus bothered me. And the weird thing is, I'm not a religious person, nor do I have any attachment to the divine. "Profane" is one of my top 5 adjectives. And yet… I still can't shake the feeling that some ghosts should not be mocked.

Or at least, should be mocked more carefully.

Jesus is no longer a man. We are too many years and too many translations away from the original Christ for his humanity to persist in anything more than the abstract. And that story has as much to do with the people tell it as it does the figure it is about. Stories are snowballs rolled down freshly powdered hills. They start small but with time grow into unrecognizable behemoths. And no story has rolled quite large as this one. From Handel to Herobrine, Jesus has become a load-bearing component of our modern world.

But precisely, what does Jesus stand for? To return to the snowball metaphor, rampaging snowballs pick up debris— and so has Jesus. In the wake of so many scisms and reformations, the remnants of Jesus's original message are little more than faith is good.

And while that's a noble message, it's not the end of the story. Because The Story is what makes Jesus special. And so when we talk about or pray to or even just acknowledge his presence. We engage with a tradition of a hundred generations of people who have found divinity in Christ before us. And even if we can't find meaning in the life of a 1st-century Jewish preacher, we can find meaning knowing a lot of other people have. The snowball is so massive and so slow that it's easy to forget it's not part of the landscape. But it still feels nice to throw on your best snow pants and give it a push.

Verhoeven almost completely ignores the lived reality of Jesus as a story. Even while using deductive analysis of that story to inform his screenplay. I admit that this narrative angle is perhaps not exactly what the text was about and I am projecting my own thoughts onto a 20-year-old book written by the director of Robocop. But the living story feels too central to the conversation to dismiss. And this is the post-script to my review, so I can write what I want.

On the final page of the epilogue, Verhoeven calls the longevity of Jesus's story "a miracle". But Paul, perhaps the real miracle was the story we told along the way.

[Jaap Tilburg · Rating 2 out of 5]

Dit boek was mij aangeraden door iemand die niet in God gelooft. 

Dat Paul Verhoeven gefascineerd is door Jezus verbaast mij niet. Niemand anders heeft immers ooit zo'n stempel gedrukt op de wereldgeschiedenis.

Vanuit de optiek 'hoe zou ik het verhaal verfilmen' heeft Verhoeven zich verdiept in Jezus Christus. Hij deed dat als niet-christen en niet-theoloog. Hij heeft Jezus bestudeerd als een mens en niet als zoon van God. Het is zijn visie dat Jezus geen deel van God is. Verhoeven zou wel willen geloven, maar rationeel kán hij het niet. Zijn verstand zegt: christelijke religie is een truc van de hersenen om de hoop te behouden dat - hoewel alles daar tegen spreekt  - de zogenaamde werkelijkheid niet het laatste woord is.

Verhoeven geeft veel aandacht aan de 4 evangelie beschrijvingen en hij ziet daarin veel onzin. Gebeurtenissen die in zijn ogen niet kunnen.

Maar hij bestudeerde ook andere delen van de bijbel en checkte ook veel externe bronnen.

Verhoeven gelooft niet in het bestaan van God, accepteert niets bovennatuurlijks en bedenkt allerlei alternatieven naast wat in de bijbel beschreven staat. Hij is ervan overtuigd dat de bijbelschrijvers, toen ze hun verhaal lange tijd later hebben opgeschreven, veel dingen zelf hebben verzonnen. En dat er veel christelijke verzinsels zijn en dat alle wonderen uit de bijbel leugens zijn. Die kunnen niet en zijn dus ook niet gebeurd. Verhoeven probeert te ontrafelen wat er waarschijnlijk echt gebeurd is.

Uiteindelijk geeft hij aan dat Jezus een op de vlucht zijnde rebel was, die gezondigd heeft tegen de bestaande orde en de heersende wetten van de schriftgeleerden. Hij was een politieke misdadiger, die voor zijn eigen zonden is gestraft door een kruisdood. En niet voor de schuld van anderen.

Verhoeven constateert dat er bij Jezus een overgang van idealisme naar gewelddadigheid plaatsvond. Naarmate de komst van het nieuwe koninkrijk tegenviel. Een dergelijke beweging constateert Verhoeven bijvoorbeeld ook bij de Wederdopers en de Rote Armee Fraktion.

Verhoevens conclusie is o.a. dat Jezus dood is, zijn geest vernietigd is en er nooit een lichamelijke opstanding heeft plaatsgevonden. Is er dan nog iets over van het christendom? Heeft Paulus gelijk als hij stelt dat ons geloof zinloos is als Christus niet is opgestaan? Verhoeven gelooft van niet.

Als mensen het mensbeeld dat Jezus voor ogen had navolgen door o.a. edelmoedigheid te betonen aan kansarme medemensen en heel misschien zelf de bijna-onmogelijkheid om je vijanden lief te hebben, kunnen heel wat menselijke tegenstellingen worden vermeden.

Verhoeven besluit ermee dat er daardoor voor het komende millenium de "clash of civilizations", die door Samuel Huntington in 1996 werd beschreven in zijn gelijknamige boek, dan minder dodelijk zal zijn. Huntington stelde namelijk dat de culturele en religieuze identiteit van mensen de belangrijkste bron van conflicten wordt sinds de Koude Oorlog. 

Mijn gedachte na het lezen van dit boek is dat een ontkenning van het bestaan van de Schepper leidt tot een verblinding. Je denkt dat je de werkelijkheid ziet, maar dat is niet zo. Je mist een essentieel deel daarvan, zelfs de kern. Maar er is hoop. Zo staat er in ‭‭2 Korinthiërs‬ ‭3:16‬ "Maar als iemand zich tot de Here bekeert, wordt die sluier weggenomen." 

[Omar Muñoz Cremers]

Wilde ik lezen sinds het ter sprake kwam in een van de documentaires over Verhoeven en hij zijn thesen aan een gezelschap Jezus-kenners uitlegt. Verhoeven was lange tijd van plan een film over een "echte" Jezus te maken en deed daarvoor niet alleen heel veel research; hij sloot zich ook aan bij een groep Amerikaanse theologen die alles met een open en kritische blik bestuderen. Dat leverde uiteindelijk dit boek op. Prettig geschreven en met een zeer uitgebreid notenapparaat. Verhoeven is natuurwetenschapper en agnost en wil Jezus ontdoen van zijn mythologische status, zoals hij stelt: twee dingen staan vast: hij werd gedoopt door Johannes de Doper en hij stierf aan het kruis. De rest is open voor interpretatie. En in goede protestantse traditie gaat Verhoeven aan de exegese. Heel af en toe gebruikt hij een voorbeeld uit een film (het meest te spreken is hij over Pasolini's versie) en hij kan heerlijk stellen "Over water lopen, ja, dat is dus niet gebeurd." Wat blijft er over? Heel veel gegoochel met chronologie door de evangelisten, gekloot met Grieks en achteraf een mooi verhaal vertellen. Jezus wordt zo tot een exorcist, die zich verkijkt op de snelle komst van het Koninkrijk Gods, de waarschuwing van de dood van Johannes de Doper niet goed inschat, misschien iets te militant wordt en dan gewoon heel snel uit de weg wordt geruimd. In die zin is het een teleurstellende figuur waarvan het ongelooflijk is dat die zo'n invloed heeft gekregen. Niet dat het Verhoeven daar om te doen is, hij is geen zure nu-atheist. Ontdaan van de mythe blijft voor hem een mooie ethiek over die heel lastig is na te leven.

[Antonio · Rating 4 out of 5]

Está claro que Verhoeven escribió este libro por ver muy complicado, o imposible en el mundo cada vez más intolerante que habitamos, llevar a cabo su proyecto más personal, una película sobre Jesús de Nazaret intentando despojar a los hechos históricos de toda la doctrina cristiana que los ha deformado. Teniendo en cuenta que los lectores del libro serán en su mayoría amantes del cine del director, más que expertos en teología, no les va a defraudar, porque Verhoeven hace divulgación con mirada de cineasta acerca de aspectos relativos a los hechos y personajes que aparecen en los evangelios.

[Gino M. Villablanca A.]

Desde la perspectiva de un estudioso y dedicado guionista y director de cine como Verhoeven, este libro -que recopila sus análisis y apuntes de lo que podría ser una excelente película- entretiene y atrae a cualquier esceptico a entender la idea de un Jesús más humano que aquel que más de 2000 años se han encargado de mitificar y divinificar.

[Ville · Rating 3 out of 5]

Olen entinen "seurakuntanuori" ja lähinnä agnostikko, mutta jostain syystä puhtaasti historiallisesti ja tekstintutkimuksen kannalta olen aina ollut kiinnostunut Raamatusta ja todellisista historiallisista tapahtumista kaikkien sen kerrosten taustalla. Verhoevenin Jeesus-kirja rakentuu yllättävän vankalle ja laajalle taustatiedolle, hän on aiheeseen todella perehtynyt vaikkei teologi olekaan. Jeesusta historian henkilönä käsittelevä kirja väkisinkin sisältää paljolti arvauksia, koska varmaa tietoa on vain murusia, mutta Verhoeven argumentoi omat veikkauksensa enimmäkseen hyvin. Sujuva ja kiinnostava kirja.

[Sini · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book covered Jesus' life well, and explained many theories about the Scriptures and their origin. I really liked it. It was purely fact-based, and described Jesus well as a political leader and a human. Verhoeven introduced some completely new interpretations of the scenes and it was great. He did amazingly good.

I saw there a kind of existential crisis. Verhoeven denies Jesus' divinity and all the miracles. He doesn't negotiate. He is skeptical about God. As a Christian it didn't bother me like I thought it would. Maybe it's because of his background as a natural scientist. Still his enthusiastic interest in Jesus tells that there is something more. He writes about Jesus beautifully and with a very warm, even loving style. This is only my own view, but in the end, I think that he really wants to believe.

[Kathy Sebesta · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a fascinating book. It starts with the premise that Jesus was as human as you or I. It looks at every part of his recorded life (both historical accounts and what the Bible says) and draws conclusions about the man and the myth. I have to say that much of what he says accords with the way I think things happen, only he has alot more credentials to say it. Highly recommended whether you're Christian or not.

[Floris Lieshout · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interessante en uitgebreid gedocumenteerde ontrafeling van de mythische figuur Jezus van Nazareth, waaruit de historische Jezus overtuigend wordt gereconstrueerd. Een Jezus bovendien die niet, zoals gebruikelijk, statisch en onkreukbaar is, maar ambitieus, ijdel, ongeduldig, naïef en driftig kan zijn. Die soms verscheurd wordt door twijfel en angst. En die een ontwikkeling doormaakt, van verkondiger van het koninkrijk Gods tot een revolutionair.

[Shane · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'll never read the gospels the same way again. Who would've thought the director of starship trooper would have been responsible for that?

[Wim Otte · Rating 3 out of 5]

V. (filmregisseur van Turks Fruit, RoboCop), schreef in 2008 deze verrassende biografie van Jezus. Alle bovennatuurlijke elementen zijn verwijderd. V. baseert zich op historisch-kritisch onderzoek en stelt Jezus voor als een revolutionaire, politieke figuur die door een Romein werd verwekt en uiteindelijk door de Romeinen werd geëxecuteerd. Het boek, geschreven vanuit V.s lidmaatschap van de Jesus Seminar-groep, presenteert een Jezusbeeld dat afwijkt van traditionele duidingen en eerder aansluit bij radicaal-humanistische interpretaties.

Nu, zeventien jaar later, met meer acceptatie van historisch-kritisch werken en een doorwerkende secularisering in de kerk, voelt V.s analyse minder schokkend dan in 2008, maar nog steeds gedurfd. Zijn beschrijving van Jezus als een verzetsleider tegen de Romeinen blijft intrigerend, hoewel speculaties niet van de lucht zijn. Misschien zit daar ook wel de kracht: het confabuleren over of bewust verzinnen van Jezus’ motieven. Met de terugkeer van het ‘magische’ in de huidige samenleving is het ook wat vervreemdend om V. zo in de weer te zien met het wegwerken van bovennatuurlijke elementen uit Jezus’ leven.

[Jaana · Rating 3 out of 5]

Yleensä elämäkerran tai tutkimuksen kirjoittajan asenne kohteeseensa on myötätuntoinen tai selkeästi kiinnostunut, mutta Verhoeven kirjoittaa Jeesuksesta nuivasti ja kyynisesti. Tulee mieleen petetty rakastaja joka yrittää päästä tapauksesta yli.
Epilogissa kirjailija toteaa että ”Jeesus on kuollut. Hänen henkensä on sammunut kuten Einsteinin ja Mozartinkin.” Verhoeven näkee että Jeesuksen merkitys on siinä ”Inhimillisen käytöksen utopiassa” joka ilmenee hänen vertauksissaan ja Vuorisaarnassa. Kirjailija avioi että utopia voisi toteutua ehkä parin miljoonan vuoden kuluttua.
Kirja on suoraviivaisesti kirjoitettu ja helppolukuinen. kirjoittaja perehtynyt aiheeseensa hyvin ja hänen näkemyksensä evankeliumiin kirjoittajien tarpeesta muokata kertomuksiaan ja historiallusta totuutta, on kiinnostava. Samoin pidin selkeästä katsauksesta Jeesuksen ajan poliittiseen tilanteeseen. Verhoeven on merkittävä ohjaaja. Jos hänen suunnittelemansa elokuva aiheesta valmistuu niin haluan kyllä nähdä sen.

[Herman · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interessant boek waarin Verhoeven zijn kijk op Jezus geeft. En het leuke eraan is dat hij dit vaak doet als dramaturg. Niet zo raar natuurlijk, want het is altijd een grote wens van hem geweest om een film over Jezus te maken.
Het boek leest over het algemeen ook soepeltjes, al is dit mogelijk vooral te danken aan Verhoevens biograaf Rob van Scheers, die aan dit boek heeft meegewerkt en ongetwijfeld hier en daar wat heeft herschreven.
Toch ging het mij - als gematigd geïnteresseerde in religieuze zaken - allemaal iets te diep op de materie in. En de overvloed aan noten had van mij op een andere manier opgelost mogen worden. Het is al met al toch meer een boek voor mensen met een meer dan gemiddelde Bijbelkennis en christenen, al zullen die laatsten niet zo blij zijn met Verhoevens conclusies...

[Nico Merino]

Muy interesantes las resoluciones que saca Verhoeven. Van desde algunas muy prácticas a otras más interpretativas y que, como bonus, nos ilustran un poco sobre las construccciones de las grandes dramaturgias.

A veces se va muy en la suya con una seguridad que hace levantar una ceja, pero está todo lo suficientmenete bien argumentado y fundamentado para simplemente dejarlo pasar.

Si alguien llegó por Verhoeven director, este libro tiene poco que ver. Hay solo una referencia a su filmografía, el resto solo ejemplos de recursos narrativos que pueden explicarse mejor siendo homologados con su resolución en el lenguaje cinematográfico. Igual si hay un comentario sobre una película de Pasolini que es bastante digno de leer.

[Ross Maclean · Rating 3 out of 5]

A compelling argument for a deeply human Jesus, complete with flaws, but the approach is a bit self-perpetuating and unfocused, choosing to make (scholarly) assumptions about one thing and then layer further assumption after assumption on top until it makes the point it wants to make. As someone essentially unfamiliar with the Scriptures I’m somewhat on the back foot in terms of contextualising the events highlighted in here, but Verhoeven makes them accessible and enjoyable and it’s at its best when he leans into his filmmaking insight. I just wish there had been more of that evenly spread throughout.

[Martin Florio · Rating 5 out of 5]

Una libro espectacular para quien quiera adentrarse de un modo claro y sencillo en los conceptos principales y básicos sobre Jesús de Nazaret desde un punto de vista histórico y no religioso. Paul Verhoeven comparte su investigación sobre el tema para lo que iba a ser originalmente una película sobre un Jesús humano y no divino, proyecto que finalmente nunca filmó. El libro explora los principales concensos de historiadores y estudiosos sobre el origen del cristianismo y la figura de Jesus desde un lugar absolutamente serio y muy buen fundamentado. Cuando Verhoeven no coincide con ese concenso y tiene un punto de vista personal se encarga de aclararlo apropiadamente. Excelente.

[F.X.C. Van · Rating 2 out of 5]

Ik ben halverwege gestopt met lezen. Ik kon niets positiefs vinden in dit boek. Paul koestert een rancuneus beeld om Jezus neer te zetten als een rebelse opstandig heethoofd.
Ook diverse apostelen komen er bekaaid vanaf. Met name Johannes, Marcus en Lucas moeten het ontgelden.
Nee niet mijn boek. Helaas, ik ben ook wel van de school om Jezus wat minder verheven neer te zetten dan de kerk dat doet. Dat Jezus een redelijk normaal persoon was en een intieme relaties onderhield met vrouwen en uiteindelijk getrouwd is en kinderen kreeg. Hij was mystiek onderlegd en zeker ook hoog sensitief wat hem het predikaat heler gaf.
Maar helaas dit alles heb ik niet in dit boek kunnen vinden.

[Heta Kosonen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely fascinating, best book I’ve read in a while. The many mysteries of the historical person named Jesus and a movie director’s sense of drama and storytelling are an extraordinary combination. I got sucked into Verhoeven’s text and theories quite fully - so much so that I read even the tens of pages of references he uses to support his arguments.

While striving to find the truth behind Jesus, I found the book respectful to what Jesus represents to many.

[Kris L · Rating 4 out of 5]

Verhoeven is not a Biblical scholar and his “historical reconstruction” depends almost entirely on our most ahistorical gospel. However, he presents a ton of original ideas I haven’t seen replicated elsewhere in Jesus fandom. This is a worthy read for any fan of Verhoeven’s more political films because it lets you into his POV as a director and storyteller. It’s only a shame we’ll never see this brought to the screen - Catholics would HATE it.

[Sammy the Reader · Rating 4 out of 5]

Heel interessant boek, wat heel goed onderbouwd wordt, en wat je kijk op Jezus flink verandert. Het boek gaat er wel van uit dat je de verhalen uit het nieuwe testament goed kent. Jezus komt in dit boek over als een verzetsheld, een Navalny van zijn tijd. Misschien was hij zelfs wel homo?
Genoeg stof om over na te denken. Ik hoop van harte dat er daadwerkelijk eens een speelfilm van gemaakt wordt.

[Mark · Rating 4 out of 5]

An unexpectedly lucid and fascinating take. The book addresses a ton of potholes in the Jesus narrative that have irked me my whole life, and it has the double value of adding a little something to Verhoeven's highly symbolic filmography.

It's presented in too casual tone for me to give it a full 5. I would have appreciated another chapter reconstructing the entire narrative.