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A new quest of the historical Jesus and other essays

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This book caused a major impact between bultmannian's theologians. It is a history of the evolution of bultmannian theology concerning the so call Quest of the Historical Jesus. The book analyzes the major arguments for and against the possibility of a Quest of the Historical Jesus inside Bultmann's scholarship. There two major objections against the Quest made by Bultmann himself: such a quest is impossible, and also illegitimate.

Concerning the first one, the quest is impossible because the nature of the sources itself. The sources we have are not historical documents, but kerygmatic documents. That is to say: they are not interested in historical records, but in the faith they cause to the audience. Because of that, they do not report an objective history of Jesus.

Concerning the second one, the quest is illegitimate because it seeks to settle faith upon an objective inner-worldly happening. But this is to kill faith in its core. Faith cannot depend upon anything inside the world. If faith is authentic must come from God Himself, that is to say, from the "ganz anderes", the completely otherness.

This is the starting point Bultmann's pupils faced with the Quest. Robinson shows slowly, step by step, how Bultmann's pupils overcome this major difficulties and made again the Quest for the Historical Jesus possible and legitimate. The pupils are: Fuchs, Käsemann, Ebeling, Marxsen and others.

Admittedly, it is a hard lecture and familiarity with Bultmann theology is required to grasp its full content. Perhaps, a more agile prose could be attained by the author.

Actually, the situation of the Quest is very far from Bultmann concepts and scholarship. Meier's work, A Marginal Jew, 4 volumes, is the most convenient example.

Erudit book, hard reading, somehow overcame by recent investigation, but important for those interested in the evolution of Bultmann theology and in the history of the Quest of the Historical Jesus.