Skip to main content
PBS logo
 
 

Book Review of Rabbi Jesus : An Intimate Biography

Rabbi Jesus : An Intimate Biography
reviewed on + 271 more book reviews


This book is not a novel, but a study, i.e. it is not an easy read. The author, an Anglican priest, learned multiple ancient languages in order to "yield insights into the original meanings of the texts...(like) the ancient literature of Judaism in Aramic, the common langueage of the Jewish people in the first century that Jesus spoke." He learned Greek, Hebrew, Latin, Aramic to study the Targums, Coptic to study the Gnostic texts, and Syriac, which is closely related to Aramic. He wanted to understand "what Jesus' life had been like and how he had come to develop his extraordinary vision of God."

That made for an intriguing book. However, this was purely a study, with the author claiming "this is what he would have felt" and "this is how it probably really happened, and that came from this other experience he had..." It was dull, dull, DULL! I could not get into it, as much as I wanted to. It would have made a much better novel. But if you are into studies, you might enjoy this book. I did not. Life is too short to read dull books. Dianne (gardngal)