Robin W. (BumbleBob) reviewed Dethroning Jesus: Exposing Popular Culture's Quest to Unseat the Biblical Christ on + 10 more book reviews
"Dethroning Jesus" is an in-depth evaluation of Jesus as viewed in Christianity and Jesusanity. Bock and Wallace describe each of these viewpoints in a lengthy introduction that lays the groundwork for the reader to follow the debates set forth later in the book. Christianity is described as the belief in Jesus as the "anointed one" and messiah found in the Bible, a fulfillment of the Old Testament prophecies. Jesusanity, however, is described as the belief that Jesus, while being a teacher and spiritual leader, was solely human and not divine. The background information and scholarship of Jesusanity is detailed and gives the reader a decent framework to evaluate and understand each claim. Six claims are discussed in this book and range from the validity of the gospels to the new revelations in recently found gospels to the claim that Jesus was not physically resurrected. Each claim is clearly laid forth with the evidence and writings written about each claim described with the writers' arguments against the claims. Each claim is concluded with Bock and Wallace's educated opinion.
The reader can form their own opinions for themselves based on the evidence suggested. Bock and Wallace are proponents of the Christian view of Jesus and this is a good book to read if you want to learn more about Christianity as opposed to a more liberal view of the Bible. "Dethroning Jesus" is not an easy read and does require the reader to have a thorough knowledge of the Bible and early Christianity. Bock and Wallace refer to many works of theology and Christian criticism that are not completely relayed to the reader of this book. If you want to know what they are referring to, you need to purchase a few more books.
"Dethroning Christ" is clearly written by men in academia and might be a bit complex for many people to understand. Without having read "The Gospel of Thomas" I have to admit that I was a bit confused as I read their debate into whether it was an authentic and valuable description of Jesus. That being said, this book is well researched and clearly shows many points of views into Jesus. The reader will come away from this book knowing a lot more about how varying groups view this man who is always at the center of so much controversy.
The reader can form their own opinions for themselves based on the evidence suggested. Bock and Wallace are proponents of the Christian view of Jesus and this is a good book to read if you want to learn more about Christianity as opposed to a more liberal view of the Bible. "Dethroning Jesus" is not an easy read and does require the reader to have a thorough knowledge of the Bible and early Christianity. Bock and Wallace refer to many works of theology and Christian criticism that are not completely relayed to the reader of this book. If you want to know what they are referring to, you need to purchase a few more books.
"Dethroning Christ" is clearly written by men in academia and might be a bit complex for many people to understand. Without having read "The Gospel of Thomas" I have to admit that I was a bit confused as I read their debate into whether it was an authentic and valuable description of Jesus. That being said, this book is well researched and clearly shows many points of views into Jesus. The reader will come away from this book knowing a lot more about how varying groups view this man who is always at the center of so much controversy.
