The Resurrection of Jesus: A Jewish Perspective (Paperback)

~ (Author), Wilhelm C. Linss (Translator)

Editorial Reviews

Language Notes

Text: English, German (translation) --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Paperback: 160 pages
• Publisher: Wipf & Stock Publishers (March 31, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 157910908X
• ISBN-13: 978-1579109080
• Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 5.1 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 0.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #523,974 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

40 of 41 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A remarkable book by a remarkable man., December 22, 1999

By	John S. Ryan "Scott Ryan" (Silver Lake, OH) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Resurrection of Jesus: A Jewish Perspective (Paperback)

In this remarkable volume -- unfortunately not now in print -- Pinchas Lapide, an Orthodox Jewish scholar of the New Testament, mounts a surprising argument that the resurrection of Jesus was a historical event.

Dr. Lapide, recognizing that Christianity stands or falls with the resurrection itself, regards Jesus the man as a Torah-faithful Jew "who wanted to bring the kingdom of heaven in harmony, concord, and peace." Noting that the resuscitation of the dead by God is, and has long been, a part of Jewish belief, he examines the New Testament accounts of the resurrection of Jesus and finds what he describes as a "Jewish faith experience" in full consonance with the historical teachings of Judaism.

He concludes as follows: "[A]s a faithful Jew, I cannot explain a historical development which, despite many errors and much confusion, has carried the central message of Israel into the world of the nations, as the result of blind happenstance, or human error, or a materialistic determinism . . . . [T]he Easter faith has to be recognized as a part of divine providence."

He does not regard resurrection as literally "miraculous," if that word denotes an arbitrary suspension of cause and effect. But he does not see why a resurrection is any more "miraculous" than a birth -- in which, after all, dead matter in some way springs to life as a person. If once, why not twice?

He also points out carefully that the resurrection does not make Jesus "the Messiah of Israel for Jewish people." Jesus, he insists (with textual support from two millennia of Jewish history, including Moses Maimonides), was/is a "paver of the way" for the Messiah, not (necessarily) the Messiah himself -- though Dr. Lapide has said elsewhere that if the Messiah comes and _does_ turn out to be Jesus, that will of course be fine with him.

All in all, this marvelous little book is thought-provoking in its own right, utterly remarkable as a sympathetic Jewish understanding of Christianity, and a tremendous contribution to Jewish-Christian dialogue that has not, to my knowledge, received the attention it deserves. I hope it comes back into print. In the meantime, anyone interested in its contents is advised to seek a used copy.

28 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic thought piece crossing religious boundaries., May 30, 1999

By	Derek Leman (Snellville, GA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Resurrection of Jesus: A Jewish Perspective (Paperback)

Have you ever considered whether the resurrection of Jesus really happened? Rabbi Pinchas Lapide, a devout Orthodox Jewish man has not only thought about it, he sets out in this book to prove it. When an Orthodox rabbi says Jesus rose from the dead, you can expect some interesting discussion. The book does not disappoint. Lapide looks at the resurrection with Jewish eyes. Resurrection, he says, is a Jewish concept in the first place. Furthermore, the gospels are just too honest about the disciples' faithlessness to be fiction. While Lapide is not a follower of Jesus, his book made a splash in the religious world when it came out in 1979. Time Magazine ran an article on this book in the religion section (May 7, 1979). Lapide sees Jesus' resurrection as ordained by God to bring in non-Jewish people to monotheistic faith. The book is an easy read for anyone interested in the subject and the discussion is compelling throughout. Some of Lapide's arguments will surprise, even shock some people of Christian or Jewish background. Although it is out of print, this book is a must-read for anyone interested in Jewish-Christian dialogue, in the resurrection, in modern Judaism and its trends, or in the Jewish roots of Christianity.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Truely Unique, August 4, 2004

By	R. Savage "uber reader" (United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I must say that I am surprised that this book is not replete with superficial compliments and indirect slander. Such is usually what takes place in most Jewish literature that even brings up the subject of Christianity.

Pinchas Lapide is the only Jewish scholar who has bothered to objectively study Christianity. He has spent the time studying not only Greek but the writings of the early church fathers. Included with his own theological background, he makes numerous successful attempts of approaching the New Testament in a Jewish mindset; something all other Jews are generally radically opposed to.

The Resurrection is something both Judaism and Christianity believe in, and his exposition of the topic is surprisingly refreshing. He notes correctly that Christians do not place enough emphasis in the Resurrection of Jesus, something which, in his mind, is the decisive thrust of the New Testament. He is consistant in noting that it is extremely unlikely that Christianity would have made it out of the 1st Century had the Resurrection not taken place. The Gospels simply do not carry the kind of embellisments that one would expect from a propagandive political movement.