The Life of Jesus (Great Minds Series) [Paperback]

Ernest Renan (Author)

Book Description

Series: Great Minds Series | Publication Date: December 3, 1991

In this classic work, renowned rationalist and scholar of religion Ernest Renan is the first biographer of Jesus to present him as entirely human. Renan describes Jesus as a popular religious leader and self-proclaimed Messiah who increasingly advocated the overthrow of Roman rule and the establishment of a theocracy. To support his apocalyptic vision, Renan's Jesus was not above using trickery and deception, as in the raising of Lazarus. The impression left by Jesus on his disciples was so profound that they began to proclaim his Resurrection and presence among them shortly after his death. Even conceding Christ's historicity, it is still seriously debated by modern biblical scholars whether a reliable life of Jesus can be gleaned from the gospels. For this very reason, the questions raised by Renan a century ago about the facts surrounding Jesus' life and the authorship of the gospels are still far from settled. "The Life of Jesus" has provoked both controversy and praise since its publication in 1863.

Editorial Reviews

Language Notes

Text: English (translation)
Original Language: French

Product Details

• Paperback: 237 pages
• Publisher: Prometheus Books (December 3, 1991)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0879757043
• ISBN-13: 978-0879757045
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.4 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.5 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #538,785 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This book is a body blow to traditional Christian dogma and a supremely original work. It's a definite must-read!, January 15, 2010

By 

M. Thorsson (New Mexico) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Life Of Jesus (Paperback)

This has got to be the best book I've ever read. It's an absolute masterpiece. If you don't already own this book, you really must pick it up. It's a classic of classics and continues to be controversial even to this day.
Renan presents us with a brilliant biography of Jesus, but one in which he's a mere man, not a god. He paints us a picture of a talented and wise man who gets caught up in the fervor he creates and provides us with logical explanations for the "miracles" that were said to surround him. This book created an enormous stir at the time it was written and still ruffles feathers even now.
Renan certainly treads on sacred cows, but they are cows that deserve to be treaded upon. Of all the divisive factors, religion has been the main and most persistent one. Religion has greatly hampered the advancement of humanity and caused a great deal of suffering, privation, and death. It also kept women oppressed for millennia, and we are still working to undo that damage. It's only been in the past century that great strides have been made to improve the lot of women, and I believe that religion has been the main culprit to blame for the inequities that women have faced for so long.
This book is a body blow to traditional Christian dogma and a supremely original work. It's a definite must-read.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderfully thought provoking!, January 22, 2010

By 

Kylie Edwards (North America) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Life Of Jesus (Paperback)

Humanity has spent far too long hobbling on the crutch of religion, and it's long past time for us to cast that crutch aside and run free. Religion has bridled too many minds and bound too many hands. How much longer will humanity remain crippled by it? How much longer will we continue to point fingers at others, harm each other, and limit ourselves in the name of a god? This is the 21st century. We're only just beginning to see the wonders we can achieve (and might have achieved ages ago if religious leaders hadn't kept insisting that the world was flat and viciously persecuting anyone who decreed otherwise).

Renan was cruelly persecuted for penning his masterwork on the life of Jesus as a mere man. Now that we live in more enlightened times, it's easy to forget what a fearsome and powerful adversary the church used to be and how ruthlessly it dealt with anyone who crossed it.

I strongly recommend this book. It's wonderfully thought provoking, and the author wrote it at great risk to himself.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I can't recommend this book enough!, January 27, 2010

By 

Ethan Parker (Florida, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Life Of Jesus (Paperback)

There are some books that everyone should read, and this is one of them. The idea was so fresh, and controversial, for its time and remains intriguing to this day. Renan was a brilliant and courageous man who dared to do what no one else had done before. He insisted on writing an unthinkable biography on Jesus, treating him like any other man, and critiquing the Bible like any other book. Naturally, a firestorm ensued. The book still causes firestorms today, but it also has been very influential. It's been an important steppingstone that's inspired other works, though I believe Renan's work is the best of them all. The original always is. I can't recommend this book enough.