DOC Jesus: Apocalyptic Prophet of the New Millennium by Bart D. Ehrman in History

Review

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful. This is not the end of your faith...By ‍This is not the end of your faith... at least not necessarily. In two key books; Apocalyptic Prophet (about the historic Jesus) and Misquoting Jesus (about the New Testament); Dr. Ehrman searches the most reliably accurate parts of the gospels to better understand who Jesus was. From this effort; Ehrman makes an exceedingly strong case that Jesus was a human product of his time; not of All Time.This is hard reading for Christians because Ehrman; formerly a Christian; methodically examines other historical sources along with the oldest surviving materials of the New Testament to make informed; rational; evidence-based arguments consistent with proven principles of scholarship. He's not pulling this stuff out of the air (in fact; much of it has been long-proved but ignored); and he's well aware of the crisis this awareness can cause. But evidence in the text and subtext of Jesus' message shows that his life was altogether human; while his story made a compelling impression in retelling that took on a life of its own. His followers couldn't let it go. Many of us still can't.Ehrman's point is; however; that the actual Yeshua from Nazareth was simply not the character that emerged through First Century fan fiction. The legendary "Jesus" stands the test of time because; for good and for ill; the canonical gospels allow believers from different times; cultures and contexts to emphasize those parts of the official story that they most crave. And even with all the tampering the story soon received as a result; the actual; mortal Yeshua from Nazareth did give us a lot to work with over the subsequent twenty centuries. The world was sorely ready for the man's radical ethical message -- contagious because he'd mixed it with the equally radical license of apocalyptic urgency. That was a powerful combination; but flawed. The actual Yeshua believed that the world; a mistakenly tiny world; was about to end in a spectacle of doom and magic. It turned out that history wasn't over. He was in fact writing history; in ways he himself never imagined.So the personal question Christians are left with after considering Ehrman's work is: What do we do with God; without Jesus as God? For some; faith dies without religion. Ehrman went from being an evangelical fundamentalist "Bible college" Christian to a moderate; literate Christian; and ultimately an agnostic heavily influenced by the New Atheism. He had very good reasons for this; and his journey was painful and real. But the same route isn't for everyone.The truth is; if you're a Christian who has seriously read Ehrman's work then you've already crossed the Rubicon into literate faith. Literal faith is over for you; whether you recognize it or not. You probably don't need a textual historian to convince you that Earth is more than 5700 years old; that theocracy is disastrous; that the Left Behind series is reckless huxterism. You may have already come to the conclusion that God wants you to be rational and intellectually honest; and that loving God -- however less certainly you view God now -- involves doing so with the mind you were given. Sometimes faith dies. But as the Jesus legend demonstrates; sometimes that's also how we experience faith anew. Consider that it's possible that Ehrman's theses have been on your spiritual reading list all along; that it's your time to encounter these facts about the faith; and to be further changed into the thinking spiritual person you're meant to be.If so; welcome again to the Emmaus Road; where God no longer has the face you knew. For what it's worth; you're not traveling alone.2 of 2 people found the following review helpful. Jesus: Apocalyptic Prophet of the New Millennium by Bart EhrmanBy richard gunterHere is a great understanding of the message and mission of Jesus as he actually lived it. Ehrman with his extensive scholarship places Jesus in context of his own time. The various Jewish factions; Roman occupation; and the apocalyptic movement of his day; and the social standing of Jesus and his early followers; all elucidate the historical meaning of Jesus' message. He taught that God would imminently intervene in the world and destroy evil and bring in an utopia. All would be judged on keeping God's Law by a Son of Man. In this New World Order the previously downcast and oppressed would be exalted and the lofty oppressors brought down and Jesus and his disciples would be rulers. But Jesus was crucified and the New World Order never arrived. However the experience of the resurrection gave life to the followers and led to an evolving set of beliefs. Jesus' conquering death and his exaltation to heaven as his followers experienced it; led to seeing Jesus' sacrifice as necessary for salvation. But the continued absence of the Apocalyptic Order; necessitated further evolution. Ehrman also elaborates the historical research methodology and let's us know what we can and cannot know historically. This is a great work to help understand the origin of the Christian perspective in which many of us have found ourselves today.3 of 3 people found the following review helpful. FantasticBy Tim KEhrman’s book is fantastic. He’s a very clear writer; drawing the reader in. His style is very conversational; non-academic (i.e.; not dry); and you actually want to know what happens next.As a historian; Ehrman is called upon to reconstruct what we can actually know about the historical Jesus and his teachings. As such; Ehrman uses the earliest sources to tell the reader about Jesus and what he did. He dissects which aspects of the Gospel we can fairly conclude as historically accurate. Ehrman utilizes three tools along the way: (1) Multiple attestations [i.e.; are the sayings attested to in many of the earliest sources (or; those sources least likely to be effected by future Christionization)?]; (2) Dissimilarity (do the sayings/deeds go against some Christian teaching or at least not further a Christian agenda?); and (3) does it make sense in a historical context (given what we know about the first century; does what is said to have happened make sense?).Ehrman makes the case that it is absolutely essential that we understand Jesus in his context. Too often we hear Christians attempting to make sense of Jesus in modern terms. That just can’t be sustained; because as a historian; Ehrman wants to know what Jesus actually did and said.Although many Christians won’t like what Ehrman has to say; his conclusion is substantially backed up by the evidence we have: Jesus was a Jewish apocalyptic preacher. Jesus taught that the world was going to end in the lifetime of his followers and people better heed his warning.Anyone interested in Jesus from a purely historical (and not theological) perspective could not start at a better place.