The Quest of the Historical Jesus [Paperback]

Albert Schweitzer (Author), John John Bowden (Editor), Dennis Nineham (Foreword)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 1, 2001

A monument in historical Jesus studies In this revised translation and retrieval of the full text of the revised German edition, Schweitzer describes and critiques eighteenth and nineteenth century attempts at retrieving the "Jesus of history" and stands at the crossroads of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries to bring closure to the former, and to open the latter for New Testament scholarship. Schweitzer saw the problems of historiography, theology, and politics in the ways the issues were formulated - and the answers proposed - and refocused attention on Jesus' "eschatology" in a way abandoned by his predecessors. Issues of the messianic secret, the nature of the kingdom of God, and Jesus' mission are addressed. Because of the new invigorated study of Jesus in his first-century context, informed readers will desire Schweitzer as a reference point for the mistakes of the past and the possibilitites of new directions.

Editorial Reviews

Review

The best introduction to the subject... Scholarly and urbane... A fine example of critical exposition... A mystery story on the highest possible level, enlivened by Dr. Schweitzer's wit, and enriched by his effective command of simile and metaphor... Affords a wide view of the whole library of critical theology.

(Saturday Review ) --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Language Notes

Text: English (translation)
Original Language: German --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 612 pages
• Publisher: Augsburg Fortress Publishers; Subsequent edition (January 1, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0800632885
• ISBN-13: 978-0800632885
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.7 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.5 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,286,589 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

83 of 89 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars better tahn anything on the subject since, Schweitzer summar, March 6, 1999

By 

Robert M. Price (Selma, North Carolina USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Quest of the Historical Jesus: A Critical Study of Its Progress from Reimarus to Wrede (The Albert Schweitzer Library) (Paperback)

This book is a turning point in the history of Jesus studies. Schweitzer demonstrates how previous research was really an (unwitting) attempt by liberal and rationalist theologians to proof-text a Jesus who would embarrass orthodox Protestantism and serve as a figurehead for liberal ("Fatherhood of God, Brotherhood of Man") Christianity. Schweitzer showed how each historical reconstruction of Jesus uncannily matched the beliefs and agenda of the scholar in question. But Schweitzer knew the Christ of orthodoxy was not the historical Jesus either. One could only discover the latter by being willing to find the unexpected, and Schweitzer thought he found a Jesus who was a prophet of the end of the world, who expected to judge the earth as the Son of Man, and who died tragically mistaken. Even so, he still serves as a beacon of spiritual force for the ages. As does Schweitzer's great book!

64 of 71 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars "There is silence all around...", December 8, 1999

By 

Loren Rosson III (New Hampshire, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Quest of the Historical Jesus: A Critical Study of Its Progress from Reimarus to Wrede (The Albert Schweitzer Library) (Paperback)

This landmark classic demonstrates the cliche of "the painting telling more about the painter than the subject being painted". People use the gospels as a mirror for their own beliefs and reconstruct Jesus accordingly in their self-images. Schweitzer's Jesus, by contrast, stands on a foreign landscape of apocalyptic fanaticism -- a deluded prophet who thought he was God's instrument sent to announce the end of history; burning with apocalyptic zeal, marching to Jerusalem, confident he could force God's hand and usher in the kingdom through a voluntary death. But it didn't happen. Jesus was crushed by the system he defied, and the drama ended on the cross.

Even if Schweitzer's portrait of Jesus is a bit extreme, he got the basics right -- Jesus the eschatological prophet -- and closed the curtains on the liberal quest for Jesus. He was a prophet himself, for we have another liberal quest today in the work of the Jesus Seminar. Instead of Jesus the liberal Protestant, the Seminar gives us Jesus the liberal humanist, disguised as a non-apocalyptic sage. For more up-to-date works which follow Schweitzer's apocalyptic prophet, see E.P. Sanders' "The Historical Figure of Jesus", Paula Fredriksen's "Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews", and Dale Allison's "Jesus of Nazareth: Millenarian Prophet". Allison's book, in particular, is worth its weight in gold.

50 of 55 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A MUST for theologians, pastors, & serious Christians, July 19, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: The Quest of the Historical Jesus: A Critical Study of Its Progress from Reimarus to Wrede (The Albert Schweitzer Library) (Paperback)

I don't think the above review understood the central theme or the historical importance of this monumental work. Fortunately, Mr. Price's eloquent review (below) explains Dr. Schweitzer's theme well: that most theologians who attempt to reconstruct the Gospels & the life of Jesus are simply projecting their own values onto the subject. The result is a normative portrayal of a "Christ of Faith," NOT a "historical Jesus." In fact, the "real" Jesus recedes into historical background as the authors of Matthew, Mark, Luke, & John also project their own values & interpretation onto Jesus' life. Who is Jesus, then? That is a question of faith, not a question of history.