Jesus: A Historical Portrait

I am not good at writing reviews, but I was impressed with the book. I know that Daniel J. Harrington, S.J. is an esteemed scripture scholar. I really liked that he offered some perspectives of Jesus, the culture and Judaism that we've not known to consider before.

There were a lot of useful insights, and it’s well written, but l would have liked it to help us respond to some of the challenges re the historical Jesus made by, e.g., Crossan/the Jesus Seminar.

Excellent service and delivery.

Franciscan Media has asked me twice or more to review Jesus: A Historical Portrait. Unfortunately my recollection of this read is not strong. James Martin, S.J., mentions Father Harrington very favorably as a formative influence, which is why I searched for a book by Father Harrington. I was pleased that the book was not ponderous. It seemed to be in step with other current writings on the historical Jesus, but covered all the bases better. Unfortunately my recall is not that good; I am 74 and have short-term memory issues. I shelved this book with a view to keeping it as a reference work. I didn’t like the statue on the cover. The subject looks like an artist used to refinement, rather than a peasant woodworker turned itinerant preacher and healer. Although some think Jesus was middle class, Joseph and Jesus being skilled craftsmen at the time of Herod Antipas, who had construction projects in Sepphoris and Tiberias. I’m not a historian or scripture scholar, so I apologize if that citation is uninformed.

This book remains a valuable introduction to the historical context and the public ministry of Jesus. It is well received by students as a first entrance to engaging the Gospels' portrait of Jesus.