The Essential Jesus: What Jesus Really Taught [Paperback]

John Dominic Crossan (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1995

Now in paperback, this is an astonishing presentation of the authentic teachings and earliest images of the revolutionary Galilean sage that delivers a fresh vision of who Jesus really was. Includes 25 photos.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

John Dominic Crossan's collection provides readers with a fresh look at the central lessons of Christianity's great teacher in his depictions of the "historical Jesus ... in both his vision and program." His excellent introduction puts forth the radical thesis that Jesus is best understood as a social reformer, a poor Jew in an occupied country who stressed social equality as much as or more than individual salvation. Attempting to see Christ not through 20th-century eyes but in the social, political, and economic context in which he lived and taught, Crossan points out that for the first 300 years after his crucifixion what was emphasized was not Jesus' divinity but his concern for communal empowerment. The picture that emerges is of a political and social rebel, a fearless champion to the poor and dispossessed.

Crossan's translations of Christ's sayings gathered from the four canonical gospels and the Gospel of Thomas are paradoxically both new and familiar, and their newness helps readers break outside their preconceived ideas of what they may consider to be "essential" about the revolutionary Galilean's message. Renderings such as "the somebodies will be nobodies and the nobodies will be somebodies" give well-known biblical verses renewed impact. Each saying stands alone and is meant to be read like poetry or dialectical argument, to be savored and enjoyed for its simultaneous simplicity and power. Scattered throughout the text are images of Jesus in Pre-Constantinian Christian reliefs and frescoes. Crossan explains that their emphasis on Jesus' concern with open healing and shared eating are further evidence of his radical social commitment. Those who are not afraid to challenge their assumptions about Jesus' teachings will find much of value in this volume. --Uma Kukathas --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Publishers Weekly

With a concise gathering of 88 sayings by Jesus and 25 pre-Constantinian Christian paintings and other works of art of Him, Dom Crossan once again focuses on the Galilean "in his actual life" rather than on the canonical Jesus of the New Testament's four gospels. Jesus, Crossan believes, was a plainspoken sage; and "communal empowerment" together with healing comprised the core of his message about the "program and presence" of the kingdom he pointed to. Appropriately, the 25 early depictions, juxtaposed here with the sayings, emphasize how Jesus was understood before his revolutionary humanity was transfigured by the later creeds and theology of Christian orthodoxy. Crossan's eloquent pairing of the teachings and the imagery amplifies his The Historical Jesus and Jesus: A Revolutionary Biography, as well as The Five Gospels from the Jesus Seminar of which Crossan is a prominent member.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 199 pages
• Publisher: Harper San Francisco (October 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0062510452
• ISBN-13: 978-0062510457
• Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 5.3 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (16 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,487,942 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

John D. Crossan is generally acknowledged to be the premier historical Jesus scholar in the world. His books include The Historical Jesus, Jesus: A Revolutionary Biography, and Who Killed Jesus? He recently appeared in the PBS special "From Jesus to Christ."

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

32 of 35 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Much more than I expected, actually., July 19, 2000

By 

reve (LA, CA, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Essential Jesus: Original Sayings and Earliest Images (Hardcover)

Having read Crossan's "big" books, I picked this one up on a whim (hey, it was cheap). I figured it would be predominantly redundant, given that highly popular model of "publish scholarly work, follow with a couple spin-offs for lay audiences" that's making the rounds these days.

Not so -- this is much more than a Jesus Seminar pamphlet of "authentic sayings of Jesus." As a previous reader mentioned, there's one quote per page, but there are endnotes with a couple paragraphs of commentary per quote, plus a decent forward on the Kingdom movement vs. the Jesus Movement. More on the art at the end.

I found the vast majority of the quotes to be aptly chosen and thought provoking. I think it is a mistake to consider them "light." I sat there with a couple bibles and a couple different volumes of commentary dissecting each one. It's great for people like me who got wrapped up in theological niceties and historical circumstance, only to find ourselves losing touch with what Jesus _said_. It brings us back to the word whilst still humoring us with wholesome academic goodness.

Assuming my situation is not a singular phenomenon, of course.

The plates are indeed reletively poor reproductions, but such is the nature of inexpensive mass production. There are also even more lengthy endnotes on the 25 plates reproduced in the book, plus descriptions, locations, context, etc. of a good 40 more that do NOT appear in the book. It's certainly a good starting point for doing further research on early Christian art -- for the price, having that reference alone is worth it.

Taking price/performance into account, it's a five starer. Granted, I would have liked a little more commentary on each quote (which raises more questions than it answers, though assumably this is the point in the process of provoking thought), but we can't have it all, now can we?

16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent light reading, January 26, 2000

By 

Travis Benson (Calgary) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Essential Jesus: Original Sayings and Earliest Images (Hardcover)

This book is simply an extremely basic view of Crossans much larger book "The Historical Jesus". For those out there who don't have the time, patience, or just plain level of understanding to read four hundred and fifty pages of scholarly language can find this an excellent introduction to the works of Crossan. It is also very useful for the Christian without a lot of time or attention span. I gave this to a Christian friend of mine who is severely dislexic and cannot read the bible easily. Crossan breaks everything into well spaced easily readable texts. This book is great for people who have difficulty reading for any reason and does not require a great attention span. The book can be set down and picked back up at the drop of a hat and the reader will miss nothing. I found this especially useful reading for when I was travelling as I would often break from it to look out the window or talk to the driver. Of course, it lacks the depth of Crossan's "Historical Jesus" upon which this book is mostly based; but not everyone wants that much depth.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Placing Jesus in the Context of the 1st Century A.D., July 9, 1997

By A Customer

This review is from: The Essential Jesus: What Jesus Really Taught (Paperback)

Without a doubt, the most learned scholar on the
topic of Jesus Christ. What Crossan does in this
book is interpret the sayings attributed to Jesus
through the eyes of the 1st century A.D., not
through 20th century eyes.

He puts the meaning of the Gospels in the context
of the 1st centruy. Social: Jesus and most everyone
else with the exception of the ruling class were
peasants - illiterate and uneducated. Political:
Judea was a Roman province and many resented their
occupation of the Holy Land. Economic: in the split
between the "Have's" and "Have Not's", Jesus and
his followers were the Have Not's.

Many of Jesus's parables don't seem to make much
sense, are contradictory or seem not relevant to
today. But once you read them armed with the
Socio-Politico-Economic underpinnings of the 1st
century A.D., you get a much clearer and deeper
understanding of his teachings.

Although many Catholics that feel threatened by
Crossan's (a former priest) academic work on Jesus,
Crossan devotes the forward of the book explaining
how he can reconcile his Catholic faith with 20th
century secular study.

At the time of Christ