(+) The Changing Faces of Jesus (2000 Vermès), book
The Changing Faces of Jesus (2000) is a book by Géza Vermès.
Abstract
Who was the real Jesus? How was this Palestinian charismatic transformed by later generations into the heavenly savior who is the focus of the Christian Church? Did Jesus's own teachings lead to his divine characterization? Or did the church-centered needs of gentile Christianity hide his true face, obscuring the religion he preached and practiced? With unique authority, sensitivity, and insight, renowned scholar Geza Vermes explores these difficult questions by examining the New Testament writings, placing them in the context of the Jewish civilization of the first century. Starting with the elevated, divine figure of Christ presented in the most recent Gospel, the Gospel of John, Vermes travels back through earlier accounts of Jesus's life to reveal the true historical figure. "A bold effort to sift out the 'real' Jesus from the theological embellishment in the New Testament that (according to Vermes) turned him into a divine persona." (The Washington Post) ... Examines New Testament writings about Jesus as part of first-century Judaism, focusing on the letters of Paul and the Gospel of John, and looking at the process by which interpretations of Jesus changed over the years from a historical figure to the Christian savior.--Publisher description.
Editions
Published in London [England]: Allen Lane, 2000; and New York, NY: Viking Compass, 2001.
Translations
- Jézus változó arcai (2001 Vermès), book (Hungarian ed.)
- Los rostros cambiantes de Jesús = The Changing Faces of Jesus (2004 @2000 Vermès / Giovine), book (Spanish ed.)
- Twarze Jezusa = The Changing Faces of Jesus (2008 @2000 Vermès / Kolak), book (Polish ed.)