I’ve just finished reading NT Wrights monumental Jesus and the Victory of God (Christian Origins and the Question of God, Volume 2). At over four hundred pages long, and with every page consisting of dense argument and academic discussion this is not a book to be undertaken lightly (especially as you really should read The New Testament and the People of God (Christian Origins and the Question of God) first of all. However, it is a book that repays the time and effort it takes to read it.
I didn’t take notes as I was reading, so I’m not able to give a detailed review, but I’m sure that there are plenty of those out there if you care to look for them. Equally, it’s hard to find a snappy quote to illustrate what the book is all about. It really isn’t a sound-bite book. For me, this book marks something of a turning point; I don’t think I’ll ever read the Gospels in quite the same way again. Wright firmly roots Jesus in the world of first century Judaism and in doing so raises huge questions about the way in which I have traditionally read and understood the parables. He also illustrates that Jesus’ actions were far more symbolic than I had ever understood them to be.
There are some things about Wright’s views on the Gospels that leave me slightly uneasy, but to be honest, I just don’t know enough about second temple Judaism to be able to argue with him – but his book has opened up a whole new world of scholarship – sadly I’ll never have the time or leisure to get to know it better. For now, I’m eager to start on The Resurrection of the Son of God (Christian Origins and the Question of God, Vol. 3) which (rather worryingly) seems to be as long as the last two books put together.
I realise that most people won’t want to sit down and read this series of books (though if you are a Christian and a historian, you have no excuse) but you can profit from some of the material in them by listening to four of Wright’s lectures. Sue and I listened to these in one sitting (it was a long sitting) on holiday this year – they are wonderful.
- Jesus and the Kingdom (8.5MB MP3)
- Jesus and the Cross (8.2MB MP3)
- Jesus and God (10.4MB MP3)
- Jesus and the World’s True Light (9.8MB MP3)
I also, can’t recommend highly enough that everyone read Wright’s book on heaven, hell and the last things, Surprised by Hope. If you think that the Left Behind series gives an accurate account of biblical eschatology, then you must read Surprised by Hope before you read any other book.
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There’s a lot of richness in the book, and a lot to learn from it. I found myself less and less convinced by much of the argument the further I went. A much shorter book, which offers a sharply different picture to Wright’s is Dale Allison’s Jesus of Nazareth: Millenarian Prophet. Of the making of books about Jesus there is clearly no end, but my personal favourite is Ed Sanders’ Jesus and Judaism (not because I agree with all of it but) because I thought it was truly ground-breaking and well-written.
Thanks Doug – a couple more for the Amazon wishlist!
Ta for the MP3 links. I don’t have the time and enthusiasm to read more, but listening I can do… usually at the gym.
Interestingly, when I think of the things that have most influenced me over the past few years… Mike Frost, Missions Dilemma… it’s clear that I’m either reading the wrong stuff, not reading enough or my preferred learning style doesn’t involve books.
Just wondering what leaves you “slightly uneasy” about Wright’s views on the Gospels? (And where that leaves the unconditional commendation of Surprised by Hope?)
I think the difference, Jelle, is that I am far more familiar with the literature and background to ‘Surprised by Hope’ than I am with Second Temple Judaism. SbH did not stretch or confront my thinking to anything like the degree that JVG does.
OK, so the uneasiness has more to do with the academic level and unfamiliarity with the subject, than with certain aspects of the theology of JVG itself? (While I was wondering what impact problematic aspects of Wright’s views on the Gospels might have on the theology presented in SbH, given that the Christian Origins and the Question of God-series serves as a justification (no pun intended
for Wright’s more accessible books.)
Just finished listening to the 4 audio files you linked to here – whenever I listen to or read him he always has a way of bringing things to life and helping me to see them from a completely different perspective.
Paradoxically I think the more we realise that Jesus lived in a specific time and place and read the gospels in that context, the more relevant the gospels become to our everyday lives. The fourth audio is particularly good at applying the concepts and showing what a 1st Century Jewish Jesus means for Christians in the 21st Century.
I should really read those books, but like Phil I find books harder going (and not so handy for long driving trips…!)
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