Review of 'Zealot: The Life and Times of Jesus of Nazareth' on 'Goodreads'
4 stars
This work collects the key points of several biblical and historical scholars in a very readable fashion. The differentiation between the historical Jesus of Nazareth and Jesus the Christ was well presented and quite interesting. While we can't know much for certain, a lot of the ideas presented really focus on the simplest explanation - one that was never brought up in my church or bible studies. An example of that was tying some gospel passages back to old testament prophecies.
I found the final part of the book, post crucifixion, to be the most thought provoking. I did not know of the distinction between the Hebrew and Hellenist camps of Judaism, the impact of Paul's second trip to Jerusalem, or the plain bad timing of the executions of Peter and Paul. While I've read James epistle, I didn't appreciate it in the historical context. Perhaps the most interesting question …
This work collects the key points of several biblical and historical scholars in a very readable fashion. The differentiation between the historical Jesus of Nazareth and Jesus the Christ was well presented and quite interesting. While we can't know much for certain, a lot of the ideas presented really focus on the simplest explanation - one that was never brought up in my church or bible studies. An example of that was tying some gospel passages back to old testament prophecies.
I found the final part of the book, post crucifixion, to be the most thought provoking. I did not know of the distinction between the Hebrew and Hellenist camps of Judaism, the impact of Paul's second trip to Jerusalem, or the plain bad timing of the executions of Peter and Paul. While I've read James epistle, I didn't appreciate it in the historical context. Perhaps the most interesting question raised by that is how different Jesus' aims were from the Christianity that followed.
I sought this book out for the scholarship, and I also have Crossan's Historical Jesus waiting on the shelf. To see the author attacked by the media for some assumed religious bias in this work is frankly pathetic. This book (and the hundred pages of notes and probably many of the works in the bibliography) is well worth a read by anyone interested in the historical Jesus or the early church.