The Meaning of Jesus: Two Visions is a theological remix of the old Cole Porter song “Let’s Call the Whole Thing Off.” In alternating chapters, the (mostly) liberal Marcus J. Borg and the (mostly) conservative N.T. Wright consider the major questions of the historical-Jesus debate that has dominated biblical studies in the 1990s. Borg and Wright agree that Jesus was the Christian messiah and preached the Kingdom of God, but they disagree about the Virgin birth, the purpose of Jesus’ death, the issue of his bodily resurrection, and the question of his divinity. The Ping-Pong structure of this book and the fastidious politeness with which the authors treat one another sometimes give The Meaning of Jesus a tomato/tomahto, potato/potahto bounciness, but the project is nevertheless worthy: this is a simple, clear orientation to some of the most important biblical questions of our time, and a record of a lively and loving friendship between two of the best Christian scholars alive. –Michael Joseph Gross –This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

In this valuable book, historical Jesus scholars Bog (Meeting Jesus Again for the First Time) and Wright (Jesus and the Victory of God) engage in a lively debate on the significance of historical Jesus research for the Christian faith. Each of the seven sections of the book contains alternating chapters by the two authors. For example, in a section called “How Do We Know About Jesus?” Borg argues that the ways people “see” Jesus are determined by the critical lenses and methods they use to look at the sources, while Wright claims that we “know” Jesus as a result of a dialogue between faith and history. In similar fashion, Borg and Wright exchange remarks on topics ranging from the Virgin Birth and “Was Jesus God?” to the crucifixion, the resurrection and the Second Coming. Borg’s conclusions about the historical Jesus arise out of his conviction that the Gospels are not historical reports that can be factually verified but documents in which history is “metaphorized” to reveal symbolic meanings about Jesus’ life. Wright, on the other hand, argues that a historical reading of the Gospels supports a Christian’s “faith-knowledge” of Jesus. This is a splendid introduction to contemporary conversations about the historical Jesus as well as an excellent primer on New Testament Christology for general readers.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc. –This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.