Jesus Then and Now (Paperback)

In this engaging collection of essays conservative and liberal theologians and scholars engage each other in a dialogue about the place of faith, the nature of history, the character of literary texts, and the purpose of theology. While some essays focus on the historical context of Jesus' life and work, others focus on the ways in which the later Christian church established belief in the life and work of Jesus as a proof of faith. Included here are voices that question the value and meaning of Christology in a post-Holocaust world, voices that converse about Jewish and Islamic understandings of Jesus, and others that "save Jesus from those who are right." These moving essays offer a survey of the best in historical Jesus scholarship and contemporary Christology. Contributors to the volume include: James M. Robinson (Claremont Graduate University); Colin Brown (Fuller Theological Seminary); N. T. Wright (Westminster Abbey); John Dominic Crossan (Emeritus, DePaul University); Robert Funk (Jesus Seminar, Westar Institute); Jonathan Reed (University of LaVerne); John Hick (University of Birmingham); Charles Hughes (Chapman University); Richard Swinburne (Oxford University); Karen Torjesen (Claremont Graduate University); Ronald Farmer (Chapman University); Carter Heyward (Episcopal Divinity School); Didier Pollefeyt Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Belgium); David Sperling (New York University); F. E. Peters (New York University); and Lloyd Geering (Victoria University, New Zealand). Marvin Meyer is Professor of Religious Studies at Chapman College and is the author of The Gospel of Thomas: The Hidden Sayings of Jesus, The Unknown Sayings of Jesus and other books. Charles Hughes is Associate Professor of Religious Studies at Chapman College and is the author of studies on philosophy of religion and theology. For: General audiences; undergraduates; graduate students; professors>