Customer Reviews

Jesus Without Religion: What Did He Say? What Did He Do? What's the Point?

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

 

 

The subtitle of this book is "What Did He Say? What Did He Do? What's the Point?" This is an excellent summary of what this book is about. I give this book 5 stars because the author set out to answer those questions, and that is exactly what he did.

This book is an introduction to Jesus, to the real Jesus, the one you meet in the pages of the Bible. It isn't about the latest alleged discovery. It isn't yet another expose on who Jesus really was. It is a clear, readable presentation of what the Bible says about Jesus, and an observation that the story we find there is actually pretty persuasive. There is no denying the impact Jesus has had on the world. Who hasn't heard his name? Who doesn't at least have some idea that he was some great religious teacher who lived long ago? Get rid of the vague notions you have about Jesus and get introduced to the Jesus of the Bible. If you haven't met the real Jesus, or if you aren't sure that you have, then this book is for you.

One last tip: read the preface too. And the appendix.

I'm going to go out on a very short limb here and speculate that no one in history --- no one --- has been more misunderstood, more subject to misinterpretation, and more burdened with layers of distortion than has the person of Jesus Christ. This is not to suggest that there is but one crystal-clear image of Him that we can consider to be accurate. But most of us have to admit that our perception of Jesus is clouded by add-ons, a host of cultural and religious elements that serve as barriers to seeing Him as He truly is.

Writing primarily for seekers and new believers, Rick James helps remove those barriers by presenting Jesus' words and actions in the ever-important context of the culture in which He lived. James strips biblical stories of their distortions, lays them bare and then clothes them with insights into the meaning that would have been clearly understood by the people of Jesus' time.

Example: the parable of the Good Samaritan. Seekers --- if they've ever heard the actual account at all --- may come to the story with some vague understanding that Jesus was making a point about how we should treat each other. Good point, but not the main one. The main point, as James describes it, was an "insulting kick in the groin" to the priests and Levites scattered among the crowd that was listening not to a morality tale told by Mr. Rogers but to a scathing indictment leveled by the King of kings. The priest and Levite in the parable ignore the victim on the road due to their blind allegiance to the Law; by contrast, the Samaritan, so despised by the Jews, goes above and beyond in helping the man. James's point is clear: this is a picture of Jesus without religion. And its meaning was not lost on the Jewish religious leaders who heard the parable. ("You can tell seditious little stories for only so long until people wise up and say, 'Hey, I think he's talking about us.' And of course he was," James writes.)

James, the publisher of Campus Crusade for Christ's student-oriented CruPress, not surprisingly writes in an engaging, accessible style designed to appeal primarily to the Campus Crusade and InterVarsity demographic that is evident in the organizations' names. Even so, all but the stodgiest post-college readers should appreciate his sense of humor and understand his contemporary cultural references. (On the choosing of the 12 disciples: [this] "communicated a message to the effect of 'Here is the true Israel' or 'I'm putting the old Israel up for auction on eBay' or something. Understandably, this less-than-subtle message would not have been warmly received by Israel's leaders.")

JESUS WITHOUT RELIGION includes an appendix that would seem out of place except for the fact that the book is intended as an evangelistic tool --- not just for reaching seekers but also for helping confused believers sort out the contradictory images of Jesus that have appeared in the secular media in recent years. With that in mind, it makes perfect sense to feature an appendix addressing the veracity of the New Testament texts, the role of Gnostic literature, and the relationship between Jesus and Mary Magdalene. Among the specific questions raised, and answered, are these: When were the books of the New Testament written? How do we know our New Testament is accurate? Were there other gospels not included in the New Testament, and if so, why were they excluded?

For those seekers who are almost there but not quite ready to commit, JESUS WITHOUT RELIGION is a good supplementary read. It may not answer all their questions about Jesus, but it hits the high points and does so in a thoughtful but easy-to-understand way.

--- Reviewed by Marcia Ford

I was given this book when I passed by a table on campus hosted by the "Campus Crusade for Christ." The Campus Crusade is basically a group trying to generate religious discussions among students without pushing any particular religious tenets...a sort of lower pressure forum for students to think about religion. This book takes that same tactic. It looks at the Bible's treatment of Jesus Christ and evaluates the messages presented by the gospels as well as some of the writings from the Old Testament and New Testament. The book tries to take the stance of just presenting a portrait of Jesus and Christianity without the overhead of any particular beliefs or doctrines taught by any formal religion. In essence, it's exploring the roots of "Christianity."

The writing style was very accessible. The author uses very conversational language and references many contemporary objects and themes. He also lets his personality come through as he narrates the subject matter, filling it with humorous asides and anecdotes. The tone of the book is light and easy to read even though the material itself is definitely treated seriously and with respect. It's a book about Christ that's not going to be heavy and intimidating to a casual reader.

Being fairly religious myself and having taken formal scripture courses over the years, I found a lot of what is presented to be things I'd already learned. There were a few things that he presented in a new light and with interesting insights that I hadn't thought about. There were a few points that seemed contrary to things I'd learned and as such I'm now motivated to do my own study to set myself straight.

To those who haven't done any real study of the Bible or of Christ or who haven't had any formal scripture/gospel courses, this book seems like a pretty good introductory text. It answers the question of "Who was/is Jesus Christ?" from a biblical perspective. Because he's not preaching about any particular religion other than Christianity, readers shouldn't feel their own belief system threatened or undermined by anything he has to say.

I recommend this book to those interested in Christianity and looking to get a basic foundational introduction to Christ and the content of the gospels. I would not recommend that you take this book at face value and stop after reading it, assuming that you now know and understand all there is to know about Christ and Christianity. And I don't think the author would recommend that either. Rather, I would recommend that you take the thoughts, emotions, questions and feelings raised by this book and apply them to your own study and investigation. Go read the Bible itself. Seek out other instructional and inspirational books. Talk with other religious Christians and see what there is out there.

***
3 stars

Just read this. After you do you'll find that you understand what all the fuss is about. Religion is for those who need to be led....this book leads without preaching and teaches without a formal religious take on the subject. Believe me, I learned so much more than I did in religious schools! Just READ this and then reflect on the truths it contains.

The book clearly pushes the agenda that Christ is messiah and such. It has to, because the Gospels are part of the Bible, and the author builds on that. The Gospels are the sayings of Jesus, and the author really fills us in on the background of some of the stuff.

We misinterpret a lot, particularly because we don't comprehend or know the specific time and culture in which certain things are written. With this book, Rick James points out this issue with several examples and fills the reader in on the background to further understand certain claims.

It's written in a very casual language. Anyone can pick this up and start reading. The author's personality shines through with humor and small remarks that pop up. In one instance, he was talking about a particular word and noted that his spell check insists that the word was supposed to be something else. Small little notes like that, but it makes the text more enjoyable. It doesn't make it seems tedious and "religious" in the sense that we're used to with all strictness and unnecessarily obscure words and sentence structure.

It really feels like you're sitting down with Kevin and he's just chatting with you about the subject. He's certainly knowledgeable and knows his stuff, but he presents it in a very interesting and tolerable way.

This book could definitely appeal to non-believers who are curious, people just looking for new insights that they may have never read or felt on the subject, to Christians who want to further expand their knowledge without having to go through theological encyclopedias to grasp something, or really anyone.

Definitely recommended, it goes by quickly and it's a pleasure to read the entire time.

This review is from: Jesus Without Religion: What Did He Say? What Did He Do? What's the Point? (Paperback)
I attended a talk on this book. It is not about understanding Jesus. It is about making a case for why you should become an evangelical Christian. Basically, it starts with a claim that the Gospels were written to portray Jesus as the Jewish messiah and as the Jewish God. Take note, this is a highly selected point. It also focuses solely on Gospel of Mark, and asserts a consensus on dates of books in the Bible that does not exist. The issue is never raised that the Bible was heavily edited and certain gospels and parts of gospels selected by the Catholic Church. To continue on the main point, this selected interpretation as the Bible painting Jesus as the messiah leads into an assertion that this is a convincing reason to be a Christian. No note is made of the fact that most of these stories either could be spurious or that Jesus could have simply had insight into the Bible, and imitated what he needed to. It almost seems like this is being said, but that valid doubt is ignored. This is also despite a seemingly illuminated examination of historical accuracy in the Bible. The author also makes an appeal to authority (the highest Jewish authority decided that Jesus was the most likely Messiah) and other misleading arguments.

Then, experiential and emotional claims are made about religion. First, it is argued that experiential knowledge can sometimes be useful. Of course, anyone would think that is true. In particular, it is argued that experiential knowledge is the only way to come to a conclusion in certain cases, which is to most people at least plausible. While that claim is still being processed and your mind is on experience, you are then supplied with imagery while bent towards the idea that experiential knowledge could be the sole valid way of knowing whether or not the Christian God exists. This is a masterful way to subvert decision making. Rationality should be weighed against experience, and a decision made about which one applies. That is normally what we do. In this case, everything else aside from experience is dismissed. Second, it is claimed jubilantly that religion makes you happy. However, religion is not for everyone. There are many anecdotes that can relate misery within religion. Indeed, there is research supporting the idea that some people are not happy within religion. Beyond that, when a person who enjoys their religion argues that it makes you happy, it creates the appearance that religion brings you peace. What you do not see is the other parts of that person's life. You do not see their unhappiness, or surely in some cases, their misery. The ups-and-downs of life are not acknowledged. Further, the happiness seems (in speech) superficial in at least some cases. Perhaps even more importantly, many who disagree with evangelicals acting in this way may appear appear less happy. Religion may not bring them happiness. It may even be something they do not like. As a result, when discussing the topic, they may not be happy. That does not reflect on the overall status of their life, however. The argument was also made that religion could make you happier in general. In reality, anything that makes you happy at some point can help you to be more happy in general. For some people, religion may not be that thing, and for most people there are alternatives. With alternatives, there is no reason in particular to go to evangelical religion. It is also discussed nowhere that becoming an evangelical Christian entails a whole range of changes in beliefs, how you spend your time, and how you interact with other people. So, it is a bait-and-switch. Happiness is offered explicitly, but what is really being offered is entirely different.

Assuming the lecture was a summary, the book is misleading and manipulative. As demonstrated already, it is a great deal of incomplete information along with emotional appeal and mind games. Though, it is great if you are already an evangelical Christian. There is a good deal of evangelical religious insight. However, even most religious people may find this to be a stifling book just for sake of it being mired in certain focuses of evangelical Christianity. A caveat to that is that some of these in some form or another have a more general appeal. As for some more positive aspects of the book, the humor is good. The author is kind on some levels. That is, of course, aside from the perhaps unintentional or trained deceptive manner of preaching. Regardless, it deserves 2 stars rather than 1 for its merits. There is, nonetheless, only minor non-religious and non-evangelical insight. I would also give a good rating to support this author, but I do not believe in elevating the success of people for making somewhat underhanded work that, even worse, may harm some people by misleading them into the wrong path for them in life. I cannot conscionably support this book.