Customer Reviews

ABC News Presents The Search for Jesus

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(9)

 

 

The purse string holders at ABC news paid for the hotels, camera crews, and travel expenses to make this series, but no one was at the wheel, truth-wise. If I had to guess, I would say the mission statement of ABC news was the same as that of Time and Newsweek, when every year at Easter or Christimas they quote the same buffoonish scholar-skeptics to "prove" that Jesus was not who he said he was. As if pretty pictures, "quote marks," and "academic credentials" will somehow morph into truth greater than God's message. I'm not blaming Peter Jennings. He did go as far as most journalists go in asking dogged questions. The trouble is, the information is only as accurate as the sources, and they are not, in this series, telling the viewers the facts. Matthew, Mark, and John WERE eyewitnesses, and the gospels were not written way later by some weirdos. Luke was a Roman physician who did do careful journalistic research after Jesus' crucifixion, and he interviewed many who saw Jesus after come back to life after three days. There were 500 witnesses at least. There is much evidence, as others have pointed out, so I would only recommend this series as a travelogue to the modern Holy Land. Get some real sources if you actually want truth. A point-by-point refutation of the inaccuracies in the Search for Jesus would be a good thing, yet I doubt it would convince the people who actually believe the ABC news version, anyway.

(There are at least a dozen printed point-by-point refutations of Dan Brown's The DaVinci Code by actual scholars (some of whom used to be skeptics), but they keep migrating to the back shelves, while lots of friends of mine still prefer to believe a novelist rather than people who've done the research.)

Unfortunately, Peter Jennings who I really still like, was duped by so called "Bible scholars" called the "Jesus Seminar". Sounds good, but underneath it all, this video promoted their biased belief that the historical Jesus and the Biblical Jesus were different. Rather than being duped as Mr.Jennings was by both titles, prestige, and the rather seemingly innocent sounding name of this group--"Jesus Seminar" your money would be better spent in the name of "a journalistic investigation" by viewing the DVD, "A Case For Christ" by Lee Strobel who himself was a Chicago Tribune reporter and self-proclaimed atheist. In the "Case For Christ" real "students" of the Bible are interviewed and you can make up your own mind about the matter.

I saw this when it was shown on television. I was enthralled by the fact that it presented the factual history of the life of Jesus the Christ.

I recently purchased it through Amazon.com and viewed it immediately upon recieving the package.

I would like to inform the reader that I am a devout Christian of the Catholic religion who is not afraid to listen to, or read about, nor even see films that contain historical, archaelogical data to support their viewpoints on the life of the one now known to us as Jesus the Christ. All the other previous reviewers cannot deny the facts. All they can do is beg the Bible when it comes to espousing their viewpoints on Christianity. They'll even tell us that we are blasphemers and will rot in hell for not believing in what they believe. But most of them are not even faintly familiar with the actual history of the Bible. Well, I feel sorry for them. Hey, it's the Christian thing to do, is it not?

Anyway, job well done in presenting the FACTS, Mr.Jennings. I await the release on DVD of the episode you recently did on the historical life of Mary, the mother of Jesus the Christ.

As the film reveals most Christians know little about Paul. Probably non-Christians know less. Yet this is the man who took a minority declining cult and turned it into a world religion without ever intending it. If Christ wrote the song, Paul sung it and taught the world to sing along.

Well made, balanced, objective and well worth watching if only for a lesson in how not to stop a cult growing.

just Jack

This is a well researched and balanced look into the historical Jesus. Peter Jennings is an excellent host, and one of my favorite news people of all time. He states from the beginning that he can not say whether Jesus was literally the Son of God. That question can only be answered by faith. I'd say that's pretty fair and doesn't take anything away from anyone's religious views.

I watch this DVD every year during Lent, and any other time of the year I want a little pick-me-up for my soul. It is amazingly relevant and thought provoking. And the images of the Holy Land are just great!

A friend of mine was so insistent that I see this TV show that I ordered it and watched it. Her attitude was, "How can you still think the way you do after seeing this show?"

Actually, now that I've seen it, it's easier to still think the way I do. I believe that Jesus was and is the Son of God and it's going to take a lot more than ABC News to put a dent in that. I'm not a crazed fanatic, I'm just convinced.

What I also believe is that Peter Jennings and the makers of this show have no idea who Jesus was and what he meant. In fact, they appear to deliberately avoid anyone who might illuminate Christ in any other way than they see him: most of the "scholars" interviewed all have the same exact view of Christ. That several of them belong to the Jesus Seminar, an odd group of arrogant blowhards who exist to draw publicity and tear Christianity down, throws the entire show's credibility out the window.

They talk about Jesus taking advantage of political situations, bending social meanings and disregarding huge chunks of biblical accounts. Not for one second do they ever consider the possibility that God and the supernatural play any role in the life of Christ. Some of the scholars look like they're ready to keel over with convulsions rather than admit that Jesus was anything more than a really super guy!

The title of this show includes the word Search...but they never bother to look anywhere outside of what they want to find.

There are some nice shots from the modern Holy Land though.

I wanted to give this video five stars for one, in order to thwart the religious zealouts who feel by their one-star ratings there are absolutely no redeeming qualities to this report and who hope to discourage others from buying it, and two, to pay tribute to the late Peter Jennings and honor what will now be seen as part of his enduring legacy. He had the curiosity of a child and the doggedness of a pitbull, and I could trust that he pandered to nobody in the search for truth. I watched this show when it was on the air with my aunt who herself died only a month ago; we both learned from it, and I will add this DVD to my collection in memory of both of them.

All I can say is that this was a VERY interesting video that highlights all the findings of the leading researchers trying to prove or disprove the story of Jesus Christ.

ABC did a great job doing true investigative journalism on this one. Very accurate and very interesting! I learned a lot about the background and times that Jesus lived in!

This is a DVD which will probably offend the close-minded Bible thumpers, but for those who have an interest in all perspectives on Jesus, this DVD will deliver.