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Books by The Jesus Seminar
The
Five Gospels :
--- Ilene Cooper, From Booklist
The
Acts of Jesus:
The
Gospel of Jesus: According to the Jesus Seminar
Honest
to Jesus: Jesus for a New Millennium
The
Jesus Seminar and Its Critics
--- Laurie Dennis
Books by Marcus Borg
Meeting
Jesus AGAIN for the First Time
"One of the best gateways into modern Jesus scholarship, this brief, accessible book presents the vision of Marcus Borg, one of the most high-profile of today's Jesus scholars. Borg invites us to set aside our old images of Jesus, as the only begotten Son of God or as the teacher spouting moral platitudes, and to open our minds to a very different figure. This Jesus was experientially in touch with the realm of Spirit, was intensely concerned with both individual and cultural transformation, and taught a radical way that overturns the conventional wisdom of his or any age. This Jesus provides the basis for a very different image of the Christian life, one that is not centered on belief or on 'being good,' but on following Jesus' way of transformation." --- Robert Perry
Jesus
in Contemporary Scholarship
"In lucid style and with first-rate scholarship, Borg introduces the reader to the growing debate around the historical Jesus in the last fifteen years... an exceptionally useful map for exploring and making sense of some exciting developments in contemporary historical Jesus studies." --- Reformed Review The book contains one full chapter on the Jesus Seminar. Writes John Dominic Crossan: "Nobody is clearer, nobody is fairer than Marcus Borg in this superb analysis of historical Jesus research's current situation."
Jesus:
A New Vision:
"In this masterful book, Jesus scholar Marcus Borg presents his remarkably broad and comprehensive vision of the historical Jesus. According to Borg, Jesus was a 'spirit person' who was experientially in touch with the Spirit; a charismatic healer who performed miraculous healings; a transformative sage who taught a radical, subversive wisdom; a revitalization movement founder who sought to form an alternative community within Judaism; and a prophet who called his people to change in the face of impending destruction at the hands of Rome. A must-read." --- Robert Perry
The
Lost Gospel Q:
--- Booklist
Jesus
and Buddha: The Parallel Sayings
Jesus and Buddha were separated by five hundred years, three thousand miles, and two drastically different cultures. Yet this TP edition of the highly acclaimed hardback juxtaposes passages from the New Testament and ancient Buddhist scriptures to illuminate the striking similarity between their lives, deeds, and teachings.
Books by John Dominic Crossan
The
Historical Jesus:
"The backbone of this book is the primary literary material from the Jesus tradition, ranked according to 'stratum' and 'multiple independent attestation.' The earlier a saying or event in these sources can be dated, and the more independent sources attest to it, the higher a ranking it receives in the inventory, and the more likely it is to be authentically spoken or done by Jesus. Being careful to use only materials from the primary stratum (c. 30-60 CE) which have a number of independent attestations, Crossan paints his portrait of Jesus -- one, he hopes, which is relatively free from the accretion of later biblical and Christian tradition." --- Frederick Polgardy
Who
Is Jesus?:
Crossan condenses his critically acclaimed Jesus: A Revolutionary Biography for a wider audience in this insightful book about popular religious issues. Written in an easy-to-follow question-and-answer format, this volume will fascinate everyone interested in learning more about the life and teachings of Jesus.
Books by Other Jesus Scholars
Jesus
and Judaism
--- Sean W. Anthony
The
Complete Gospels:
--- Steve Schroeder, Booklist "There are not just four gospels written about Jesus there are more than twenty written in the first three centuries. This book presents all those gospels. In a translation that is a collaboration between many of the best scholars in this feild these gospels are imbued with dynamic life and variety. No stone is left unturned, these scholars also explain the histories of each gospel and in an extremely readable way they provide people with no scholarly background a view into the world of Historical Jesus study. It also makes an invaluable tool or those who are studying the historical Jesus. It is very readable and very thorough, the translators and editors walk a person through every step of the way. There is no good reason to not read this book and so many good reasons to read it." --- Travis
Jesus
Through the Centuries:
"Pelikan's book looks at how Jesus has been viewed over the last 2,000 years, beginning with Jesus the Rabbi during his lifetime in Galilee and Judea. The author chooses to devote each chapter to an aspect of Jesus' place within the culture of a specific period, so the discussion can be somewhat restrictive - for example, the overview of "just war" theory within Christianity is conducted only in the context of the medieval and Reformation eras and ignores the many later theological developments. It is, however, a rich and enjoyable work, tracing the evolution of how Jesus has been seen from Jewish rabbi to deity to liberator." --- Dan Hayward
The
Elusive Messiah:
--- Steven Schroeder
Gospel
Truth:
Russell Shorto does a crackerjack job of summing up the latest research on the historical Jesus. Without taking sides, Shorto draws a fascinating picture of Jesus the man by approaching the topic from all available angles, such as his Greekness, his Jewishness, his miracles, and his message. Although there is nothing in this book that hasn't been said already, it's value lies in its easy-to-read, balanced synthesis of the cacophony of scholarly and religious opinions. Not meant as a challenge to the Gospels but as an honest exploration of an issue of profound significance to so many Christians and non-Christians alike.
A
Marginal Jew:
--- Kirkus Reviews
Stories of Personal Encounters
With Jesus
Visions
of Jesus:
--- Phillip H. Wiebe, The Author
I
Am With You Always:
--- Steve Schroeder
Other Resources Concerning
Jesus
Jesus:
The Complete Story
Join experts as they reconstruct the life of Jesus using archaeology, history and science. Through re-enactments set in Israel/Palestine and computer generated backgrounds, see the main events of his life and his death. Plus, for the first time, watch as experts strip away the layers of history that cover almost every biblical site and reveal the Jerusalem, Bethlehem and Nazareth that Jesus himself would have known. 3 videos, 156 minutes. ABC's
"The Search for Jesus"
Frontline:
From Jesus to Christ: The First Christians
A soundtrack of this programis available from: WGBH/From
Jesus to Christ
Books, Videos, Photographs
& Sculptures About The Shroud of Turin
The
Shroud of Turin: Imprint of Mercy (1997)
This ground-breaking video series features John P.Jackson, Ph.D., the leader of the 1978, thirty-person plus, high tech scientific American expedition that examined the Shroud first hand in Turin, Italy. This is the only video series on the Shroud that describes, in detail, the fifty-three years of collective research by Dr. John Jackson, Rebecca Jackson, and their research colleagues. It is also the most comprehensive television exploration of the Shroud to date. Extremely informative.
Jesus
and the Shroud of Turin (1999)
--- Frank A. Hoeschler
"'The Mysterious Man in the Shroud' is the title of a one hour special that ran on CBS on April 1, 1997. Produced and directed by Terry Landau, whose credits include the PBS series, 'The Brain,' it was one of the most balanced and accurate, well researched and well presented documentaries on the Shroud ever produced for television. Terry and her fine crew should be congratulated for the beautiful visual quality, superb editing and exquisite graphics that make the program a 'must see' for anyone with even a passing interest in the Shroud of Turin. The program runs approximately 48 minutes without commercials." --- Barrie M. Schwortz, creator of the Shroud of Turin Website and the Official Documenting Photographer for the Shroud of Turin Research Project, Inc., (STURP
--- Michael Joseph Gross
Shroud of Turin Website Resources
A variety of Shroud of Turin books, videos, photographs and other important resources can be ordered from the Shroud of Turin Website. We are especially fond of the photographs that Barrie M. Schwortz, the Official Documenting Photographer for the Shroud of Turin Research Project, Inc., (STURP), has made available on his website:
Shroud
of Turin Sculpture Sculptor Willem Branca read about the history of the Shoud of Turin in Time magazine (20 April 1998) and was deeply moved by the story and photographs. He was inspired to try and sculpt the face of the man in the shroud. Using information from books, writings and web pages, he completed the work in a day. Willem wants to distribute the image to "shroudies" everywhere. This face is available as full color poster, postcard and white or terracotta plastic sculpture.
Click Here To See More Faces Of Jesus
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Books,
tapes, videos, and other resources that deal with all aspects of Jesus
research. The more stars a particular item receives (five stars is our
highest rating), the better we think it is.
"Based
on the work of the Jesus Seminar, which brought together a group of
biblical scholars, this new translation of and commentary on the five
Gospels offers an answer to the perennial question, What did Jesus really
say? The group not only surveyed all the surviving ancient texts for
words attributed to Jesus, but also examined the Gnostic Gospel of Thomas.
Then, juxtaposing the Synoptic Gospels against John and Thomas, the
seminar scholars began a long and arduous process to see if they could
discover which sayings are close to what Jesus said, which might have
originated with Jesus, those that are not his (though the ideas may
be), and those that were created by his followers or borrowed from folklore.
The story of how the scholars put together this translation is fascinating
in its own right, but even more so is the color-coded New Testament
itself, bolstered by enlightening commentary that explains why and how
category decisions were made. A strong addition to religion collections."
In
their groundbreaking bestseller 
A
unique and provocative new gospel composed of only those sayings and
stories about Jesus found to be historically authentic by the scholars
of the Jesus Seminar. Along with the new gospel, this compact book includes
references to the original sources of the texts included and brief endnotes
explaining the scholarship supporting the selections. Also included
is a description and chronology of all the known ancient gospels. The
Gospel of Jesus is an essential work for anyone seeking to understand
and experience the sayings and story of Jesus as the earliest listeners
did. It is a compelling and enlightening book to read and a valuable
volume for all those who include the historical Jesus in their practice,
worship or study. 
"Honest
to Jesus" is far and away the best book about the goals and work
of the contemporary Historical Jesus movement. Robert W. Funk is director
of the Westar Institute, which sponsors an annual Jesus seminar in which
scholars attempt to establish which events recorded in the gospels actually
happened and which did not. In Honest to Jesus, Funk describes these
scholars' professional methodologies and personal goals, and summarizes
their surprising findings. His prose is clear, his passion is bracing,
and his conclusions are challenging. Funk's Jesus, in the end, emerges
as a revolutionary figure for a new age, without being the least bit
New Age-y.
"This
book provides a useful overview of both the Jesus Seminar's efforts
to reconstruct the historical Jesus and the critical response such efforts
have drawn from conservative Biblical scholars. Author Robert J. Miller
makes it clear from the beginning that he is himself an active member
of the Jesus Seminar and proud of its accomplishments. This volume is
a collection of Miller's published essays about the Jesus Seminar divided
into two parts. The first third provides background about the Jesus
Seminar, explains its controversial voting methods and gives the principles
that guide its work. The second two-thirds of the book concentrates
on criticisms, especially those written by Luke Timothy Johnson and
Ben Witherington. Miller diputes most of these criticisms, but carefully
lays out the points of argument on both sides. His chapter on how scholars
view the resurrection is especially fascinating for its focus on how
nonbelievers respond to a religion's core beliefs. In sum, this is a
carefully organized and thoughtful discussin of a pioneering project
in biblical scholarship."
"So
many particularly pithy passages appear in both Matthew and Luke that
scholars believe those Gospels are based on an earlier compilation of
the sayings of Jesus, designated Q, after the German word Quelle, which
means 'source.' Scoring modern-day scholars for not previously presenting
the general public with an edition of this hypothetical first gospel,
editor-translators Powelson and Riegert make up the lack. They base
their work, as have the Bible's English-language translators since even
before the King James Version, on the wordings of previous renditions.
(Why? Because Q exists entirely within the texts of Matthew and Luke.)
Their versions of these, to Christians and the Christian-bred, very
familiar words are crystalline and contemporary and may inspire new
insight for many a reader. Meanwhile, their introduction and those by
best-selling inspirational writer Thomas Moore and Jesus Seminar scholar
Marcus Borg, respectively, put Q in inspirational, historical, and critical
context."
"Crossan's
book is a rigorous exploration of the anthropological, historical, and
literary issues surrounding what we can know about Jesus of Nazareth.
Though Crossan himself is not a Christian, this work is by no means
an unfavorable portrait of the Galilean. In fact, reading this book
may make you realize what it was about this peasant and his 'ragtag
followers' that has made a 2,000-year impact on Western Civilization.
Book
"Texts
written before Sander's work or texts that neglect his study seem to
be outdated and obsolete. While some revolts in American scholarship
have occurred since this book was written (e.g., Crossan, Borg, and
the Jesus Seminar), the foundation of this book have remained firm and
unshaken. The primary reason for this is Sander's moderation and erudition.
He distinguishes very well between what we can and cannot know about
Jesus and is not given to speculation. The most powerful result of his
book is how he brings to light why in fact Jesus faced opposition and
eventually suffered martyrdom. This he does through an articulate examination
of Palestinian Judaism in the 1st century and a scathing critique of
past scholarship which generally failed at doing this task. Recommended
for those who are seriously searching for the history of Jesus and his
society. Casual readers who do not have much background in this field
will be perplexed or overwhelmed."
"This
new edition should become an indispensable tool for students of the
Jesus tradition and others interested in the development and interpretation
of Christian scripture. Gathered together in one volume are new English
translations of all the known gospels--canonical and extracanonical,
complete and fragmentary -- from the first centuries of the Christian
era. Each translation is preceded by a brief introduction and accompanied
by extensive notes; all are cross-referenced to facilitate comparison.
The Complete Gospels is the first phase of a new translation of the
Bible from the ancient languages into American English as it is spoken
and written in North America today. The translators are eminently qualified
scholars who have worked independently of ecclesiastical control. The
result is a lively, consistently accessible but sometimes surprising
translation that allows diverse literary creations to speak with a variety
of voices that gives fresh insight into the diversity of communities
and personalities that composed them."
"Martin
reads the quest for the historical Jesus in terms of the relationship
between 'the methods people use in investigating the world and what
they take to be the results of their inquiry.' He offers a great deal
of quest history, more about historical method and how to marry scholarship
and popular controversy, and close readings of the major contemporary
quest writers. Acknowledging John Dominic Crossan's characterization
of historical Jesus research as a 'scholarly bad joke' in which competent
researchers generate wildly varied interpretations, Martin yet points
to substantial areas of agreement. 'Only two divisions among secular
historians of Jesus . . . really matter': that between traditionalists
who depict Jesus as an eschatological prophet and liberals who do not,
and that between those who presuppose methodological naturalism and
those who do not. Martin distinctively locates tension between faith
and reason at the heart of even the most dispassionate scholarly inquiry.
He insists the faith-reason relationship is not either-or but both-and,
which gives hope for civil discourse and understanding on this most
controversial subject."
"This
second volume of Meier's magisterial attempt to create a 'consensus
document' about the historical Jesus on which scholars of all faiths
could agree makes some tantalizing assertions about Jesus' public ministry.
Meier divides this successor to Volume One (subtitled The Roots of the
Problem and the Person, 1991) into three parts: an examination of the
pervasive effect on Jesus of the life and career of John the Baptist,
whom Meier calls Jesus' 'mentor'; an analysis of the centrality to Jesus'
message of the concept of the 'kingdom of God'; and an extended discussion
of the historicity of Gospel accounts of Jesus' miracles, healings,
and exorcisms. Meier uses John the Baptist's career as his starting
point, asserting that Jesus not only accepted baptism from the charismatic
preacher at the outset of his public ministry, but he also adopted John's
themes of the imminent judgment of sinners and the need for reform and
repentance as integral parts of his own message. Unlike John, however,
Jesus emphasized the coming of the kingdom of God, which he represented
as both an approaching eschatological event and, in a mystical way,
as being present in the actions, beliefs, and fellowship of the community
of believers: 'The kingdom of God is in your midst' (Luke 17:21). Meier
argues that Jesus' preaching of the heavenly kingdom was most manifest
in his miraculous works, which Meier inventories in painstaking detail,
dividing them into exorcisms, healings, raising of the dead, and 'nature'
miracles, such as walking on water and cursing the fruitless fig tree
and causing it to wither. The author concludes that the power of Jesus'
message arose from his actual historical fame as a miracle worker as
well as from his moral teachings. Scholarly, carefully reasoned, and
lucidly written, Meier's portrait of Jesus as a fiery, wonder-working
prophet rather than the gentle teacher of Christian tradition may continue
the controversy (with believers and nonbelievers alike) initiated in
Volume One."
"This
book is a critical examination of visions of Jesus Christ, with special
attention given to contemporary experiences. I located thirty living
persons reporting having had one or more experience that they interpret
as Jesus appearing to them. These people were awake, their eyes were
open, the being was identified as Jesus, their experiences were not
part of a near-death experience, and they were spontaneous (not generated
by fasting, sleep- deprivation, etc.). I devote a chapter to their description.
Other chapters are devoted to an examination of visions of Jesus in
Christian history and theology, to assessing the challenges in accepting
such reports, and to various explanations of the phenomenon. I devote
three chapters to competing explanations. One chapter discusses the
explanations offered by the Christian church. Another discusses the
explanations offered by psychologists (Freud, Julian Jaynes, Jung, etc.).
The third chapter examines the attempt to explain visions neurophsiologically.
I argue that no explanation can handle all of the experiences as they
are detailed to us by those who have them. I use fifteen phenomenological
variables to describe the visions, and six demographic ones. I defend
the legitimacy of considering a transcendent source for these phenomena,
all the while granting that a perceiver's neurophysiological structures
will be involved."
"For
the past five years, transpersonal psychotherapist G. Scott Sparrow
has collected and studied accounts of contemporary face-to-face encounters
with Christ, including his own. In spite of the subtitle, he wisely
refrains from any narrowly defined attempt to assess the objective truth
of the encounters, opting instead to focus on their subjective experiential
authenticity. In many cases, they have had profound impact on the persons
reporting them, and in some cases they have the potential of profound
impact on persons reading them. For the most part, the book simply reports
the encounters, though Sparrow does provide interesting commentary that
places them in a history of Christian encounter stories beginning with
Mary Magdalene. He organizes the material into broad categories--awakening,
physical healing and consolation, emotional healing, initiation, and
spiritual instruction--that could prove useful as heuristic devices
for the study of contemporary mystical experience. But the interest
of the book lies more in its raw material than in its theoretical insight."
"This
excellent 1999 documentary attempts to review and update evidential
findings in recent Shroud research. The Shroud of Turin is described
as 'the most studied artifact in human history'. The film focuses on
three types of physical markings on the Shroud, which is now permanently
sealed in argon gas to prevent further fading deterioration of the image.
The three types are: the blood stains, the front and back image of a
man, and the scorching. The editors show the blood stains consistent
with 1st century Roman flagrum, the spear wound, and numerous puncture
points consistent with Bible descriptions of Christ's passion. The filmakers
use the 1978 STURP findings to show how the bloodstains soaked through
while the image did not. Experts conclude that the image could not be
a painting. Ultra violet (UV) tests showed that scorching is found on
the entire cloth but the image does not show concluding that scorching
could not have caused the image. Chemical analysis shows 'allover' iron
oxide while VP8 image analysis demonstrates 3D characteristics inconsistent
with forgery theories. Images of flowers blooming only during March
and April (Passover), which are found on the Shroud, are identified
by renowned Israeli Botanist, Avinonn Danin. Uri Baruch, Israeli pollen
expert, confirms that 28 of the 58 pollens on the Shroud are found only
in the Middle East. Artistic comparison of the Shroud image indicates
that the Shroud was the prototype for all subsequent Christian representations
of Christ. This is reinforced by comparison of coins known to be struck
in 65 AD, which reflect the same congruent points. 1st century Jewish
burial expert, Mika Halpern confirms the Shroud as being consistent
with ancient Jewish burial practices. The Shroud's historic existence
is then traced to Edessa and to Constantinople, where in 1204, during
the sack of Constantinople by European crusaders, it disappeared. Comparative
dating cites John 20: 6-7, which speaks of two cloths. The second known
as the Sudarium is traced from Jerusalem in 614 to Alexandria, Toledo,
and eventually Oviedo, Spain. While there is no image on the Sudarium,
AB type bloodstains match exactly with the blood on the Shroud at points
on the head, hair and nose. Manuscripts record and date the Sudarium
to the 1st century. 1988 Carbon 14 testing of the Shroud fixed its age
as no more than 600 years old implying a forgery. Then, in 1996, Spanish
doctor, Garza Valdez, discovered and proved that bacterial coatings,
later found on the Shroud, significantly distort carbon test dating.
In an interview with Harry Gove, father of modern carbon 14 testing,
Gove acknowledges that bacterial contamination, which was unknown during
the 1988 testing, would render the tests inaccurate."
