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Review Summary: On short list for best introductory Christology texts |
Date: 2008-05-26 |
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Details: I've read a half-dozen or so books that attempt what Fr. Rausch attempts in this book, a solid introduction to scholarship in Christology for graduate students and even the "well-read undergraduate." This one is a major success. It's judicious and fair-minded and avoids the excesses of some of the recent "historical Jesus" books. It's well-organized. Perhaps the greatest success here, though, is Rausch's writing, which is clear and avoids jargon, taking care to explain the jargon which is unavoidable. A very fine text. |
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Review Summary: Required Course Reading |
Date: 2006-07-13 |
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Details: I purchased this book for an online course I was required to take for my teaching job. The book was very helpful in following and completing the assignments. Amazon provided the lowest cost and very quick delivery service. That was extremely important to me so I would not fall behind in the work. |
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Review Summary: decent reading |
Date: 2006-03-22 |
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Details: Jesus research and study is tricky business. There are those who are far left and those who are far right. Some are dogmatic and some are lacking clear conclusions. This particular work seems to linger somewhere in the middle. It's basically a decent introduction, although it has certain biases in relation to a few areas of Jesus/new testament studies. Read with a few grains of salt, so to speak, and read in conjunction with a few other works, this book has some good insights and some good reminders of what others have already made known. Peter Walker's little work on Jesus, Jesus in His World, by Inter-varsity press, is terrific as well as Craig Blomberg's Jesus and the Gospels. Also, make sure you don't overlook N.T. Wright's little work, The Original Jesus. These are some of the best, somewhat concise and recent, works on Jesus that are around as far as I'm aware. These works mentioned are a bit better than the one by Rausch, but his work is worth the read nonetheless. |
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Review Summary: Thomas Rausch has delivered an excellent introduction on Jesus Christ |
Date: 2005-09-19 |
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Details: A renaissance is occurring in Jesus studies. In 2004 almost six hundred books came out on Jesus Christ, and over seventy dealt with Christology (the theological study of the person and deeds of Jesus). People want to know more. There are questions to answer: Was Jesus God incarnate, or was he an eschatological prophet who proclaimed the imminent end of the world (A. Schweitzer), or was he a prophet of social change (G. Theissen), or was he peasant Jewish cynic philosopher (J. D. Crossan)? People want to know.
Thomas Rausch, professor of Catholic Theology at Loyola Marymount University, draws on his background in theology and church history. His writing, though learned, is engaging, interesting and informed. Much of Christianity today presents Jesus as God incarnate, thus sacrificing his humanity in order to deify him. Rausch writes against this... pressing the point, that to understand Jesus is to start with his Jewish/Palestinian heritage and to follow it through Chalcedon (451 AD) and contemporary theology.
For Thomas Rausch one needs not to start not with a Christology "from above", such as the orthodox statement of faith, the `Apostle's Creed'... i.e.: "I believe in God, the Father almighty, creator of heaven and earth. I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord..." Rather one should start with a Christology "from below"; start with history, and critically consider the words and works of the Jesus. He believes that when one learns of the historical Jesus, that is sufficient to reveal Jesus's message, and that message is in itself conductive to faith.
Rausch breaks no new ground, but rather, in a very logical manner puts together the pieces that will helps the reader to understand the Jesus of history and their faith.. Reason alone does not establish faith, but, the act of faith should in itself be reasonable. Highly recommended. |
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Review Summary: Too Interlectual |
Date: 2005-08-18 |
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Details: This book was a bit hard to follow. Some of the writings were directed to Biblical Scholars and not to the everyday lay person. But all in all, it will expose me to other ideas and opinions of who Jesus was.
Laureen Howard |
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out of 7 Reviews
