Knowing Jesus [Paperback]

James Alison (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 1994

A new edition of an analysis of the influence of Jesus in the world today, written by the author of LIVING IN THE END TIMES and THE JOY OF BEING WRONG. It is suitable for use in group work and contains questions at the end of each chapter for individual study or group discussion.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Paperback
• Publisher: Templegate Pub (February 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0872432025
• ISBN-13: 978-0872432024
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.4 x 0.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #249,703 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Coming to Understand "the Intelligence of the Victim", March 14, 2009

By 

M. L. Asselin (Bethesda, MD USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Knowing Jesus (Paperback)

In this moving and challenging little book, KNOWING JESUS, the Catholic theologian James Alison delves into a topic most often associated with evangelical Protestant Christianity: having a personal relationship with Jesus. This early work by Alison, at the time of publication a priest of the Dominican Order, exhibits the influence of René Girard, an anthropological philosopher who is particularly well known for his work on "violence and the sacred" and the need for sacrificial victims. At the heart of KNOWING JESUS is the idea of "the intelligence of the victim."

In Jesus' context, Alison explains "the intelligence of the victim" as Jesus' self-understanding of his role as victim, and his freely given self-offering in sacrifice. This "intelligence of the victim" only becomes apparent to the disciples of Jesus after their experience of the crucified and resurrected Christ--and even then it took some time for it to sink in. As we ourselves apprehend "the intelligence of the victim" we can experience the freely offered grace of God's forgiveness and at the same time extricate ourselves from the role of victimizer, as participant in the violence of the world that led to Christ's death and that causes so much pain and destruction to this day. It is through "the intelligence of the victim" that we are boldly empowered to relate to people on a whole new level.

Through "the intelligence of the victim," we come to "know Jesus." We directly experience the crucified and resurrected Christ in the eucharist, in which we remember Jesus' establishment of the New Israel, the newly understood community of God's people that knows no national or ethnic bounds. "The real presence of Jesus in the eucharist is the real presence of the crucified and risen Lord, giving himself, founding the new Israel, making possible the conversion of the people who participate" (p. 85).

In KNOWING JESUS, Alison neither disparages nor rejects the emotional experience that some people have being in a personal relationship with the Lord. But he suggests that such experiences are really beside the point. Jesus does not see himself as an end, but as a conduit to the Father. It is through Jesus--as crucified and risen Lord--that we come to know who the Father really is (pp. 106, 108-109).

Alison's writing can be bracingly direct, colloquial, and even include pop cultural references; at many other times, it can be turgid and opaque. The transition between his lively and direct writing style and his denser prose seems to mirror his careening between more directly theological concerns and others that lean philosophical in nature. It's quite a ride; especially without a background in Girard, one is not always sure where one is headed. Aware of the reader's possible confusion, Alison periodically "checks in" with his reader to make sure that the reader knows where they've been and where they're going. Nonetheless, KNOWING JESUS is challenging spiritual reading.

For Christians, especially Catholic Christians, it is well worth the time to read and digest this book. I believe it will make you see things in a different light, the light of "the intelligence of the victim," and maybe change your heart and so your life.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Good stuff, February 5, 2010

By 

DJWOD (Phila, PA United States) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Knowing Jesus (Paperback)

Alison has a simple yet profound way of looking at the Scriptures. Knowing Jesus goes to the basics of what is the "base" from which you view Jesus Christ - the book is about how Jesus viewed Himself and empowered others to do the same.
He is a wonderful author that moves me outside the box (which is where Jesus is)

5.0 out of 5 stars Knowing Jesus, February 14, 2010

By 

Redd Heart "Jackie" (San Francisco, CA USA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Knowing Jesus (Paperback)

It is a great book to read especially if you want an understand of how Jesus became such a crucial figure for Christians.