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Mentor, Message, and Miracles (A Marginal Jew: Rethinking the Historical Jesus, Volume 2) | 
 enlarge | Author: John P. Meier
Publisher: Anchor Bible
Category: Book
List Price: $55.00
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Rating:  13 reviews
Sales Rank: 495612
Media: Hardcover
Pages: 1136
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 3.4
Dimensions (in): 9.3 x 6.2 x 2.4
ISBN: 0385469926
Dewey Decimal Number: 232.9
EAN: 9780385469920
ASIN: 0385469926
Publication Date: November 1, 1994
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Condition: FAST SHIPPING! Pages free of marks & creases. Minor shelf wear. No DJ, minor bumping
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Product Description
This book is the second volume in John Meier's masterful trilogy on the life of Jesus. In it he continues his quest for the answer to the greatest puzzle of modern religious scholarship: Who was Jesus? To answer this Meier imagines the following scenario: "Suppose that a Catholic, a Protestant, a Jew, and an agnostic were locked up in the bowels of the Harvard Divinity School library... and not allowed to emerge until they had hammered out a consensus document on who Jesus of Nazareth was and what he intended...". A Marginal Jew is what Meier thinks that document would reveal. Volume one concluded with Jesus approaching adulthood. Now, in this volume, Meier focuses on the Jesus of our memory and the development of his ministry. To begin, Meier identifies Jesus's mentor, the one person who had the greatest single influence on him, John the Baptist. All of the Baptist's fiery talk about the end of time had a powerful effect on the young Jesus and the formulation of his key symbol of the coming of the "kingdom of God." And, finally, we are given a full investigation of one of the most striking manifestations of Jesus's message: Jesus's practice of exorcisms, hearings, and other miracles. In all, Meier brings to life the story of a man, Jesus, who by his life and teaching gradually made himself marginal even to the marginal society that was first century Palestine.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 8 more reviews...
 A New Elijah for the End of the World August 6, 2004
pnotley@hotmail.com (Edmonton, Alberta Canada)
19 out of 21 found this review helpful
Of the three volumes of John Meier's study of the historical Jesus, this is probably the most difficult for the average reader. Much of it consists of complex discussions of the historicity of various bible passages, considered in extensive and exhaustive detail. It is not an easy read, but Meier's research is vital to understanding the real Jesus. As the subtitle indicates, Meier discusses John the Baptist, the basically eschatological message of the Kingdom of God, and the question of Miracles. On John the Baptist we read of how the embarassment of Jesus' baptism is effaced by the Gospel writers. We learn how Jesus accepted a baptism for the forgiveness of sins, which does not necessarily mean that he personally thought he was a sinner (many such confessions are of a communal nature). We learn about John's fundamental belief in the approaching end of the world. We learn how Mark muddled certain details of John the Baptist's execution, such as the identity of Herodias' first husband, and we find that many of the passages dealing with the Baptist likely go back to the historical Jesus. As for Jesus' message, Meier argues that Jesus did believe in a quickly approaching future kingdom. We can see this from his study of the Lord's Prayer, the Beatitudes, and such passages as Mark 6:10 and Matt 8:11-12. Meier also agrees that in some way Jesus viewed the Kingdom as already present, the first century Galilean mind not sharing the same interest in clarity and non-contradiction. Meier makes two vital points. First off, if John the Baptist believed in the near end of the world, and the early church believed in the near end, then it is likely that Jesus shared this incorrect belief. Second, if Jesus was an experienced teacher and if he "used the symbol of the Kingdom of God in a sense directly counter to the eschatological connotations with which it was often connected, he would have made his own usage clear--all the more so if he wanted to negate any or all eschatological expectations."
Meier then spends the second half of the book discussing Jesus' miracles. As a historian he claims that he cannot judge whether Jesus actually carried them out or not. This may seem like a cop-out, but it is not. Many past biographers of Jesus have wanted to split him from the miracles, but this assumes that Jesus was fundamentally rational and modern. Clearly this is not the case, and it also led to peculiar explanations of how people incorrectly thought a miracle took place. Instead, Meier notes we can examine which miracles go back to the historical Jesus and which do not. Certain kinds of miracles take place more than others, others show the redactional tendencies of the particular Evangelist. As such Meier concludes that Jesus was an exorcist, and was believed to carry out some remarkable healings. There are three accounts in the bible of Jesus raising someone from the dead. Here Meier believes there is a historical core to the events, though he is unsure whether they originally involved an actual resurrection. By contrast, nearly all of the nature miracles are creations of the Early Church. After one strips the allusions to the Eucharist and to Elijah in the Feeding of the 5,000 there may have been a remarkable, if not miraculous, meal in Jesus's life. But once one strips all the allusions and Johannine redaction in the turning of wine into water there is, as Meier clearly shows, nothing left. The walking on water, the stilling of the storm and the miraculous catch of fish are all reshifted resurrection appearances, while the cursing of the fig tree is clearly an exercise in Matthean theology.
What can we say about all this? First, this is a remarkably researched book. There are at least 380 pages of notes in this 1,049 page book. There are exhaustive discussions of linguistic questions, stylistic questions, and redactional ones. Meier is excellent on providing the wider historical context, such as the origins of the Kingdom of God, the Old Testament backgrounds to the walking on the water, and the Hebrew practice of exorcism. Meier is also acute on distinguishing between Jesus' miracles, (which emphasizes Jesus and God's free gift, are symbols of the coming end time, and [with one exception] do not hurt anyone) with contemporary magicians (who coerced deities for often petty purposes, provides no church and engaged in esoteric secrets and mysterious, often nonsensical spells). Many of his discussions, such as the raising of Lazarus, or the Miracle of Cana, are tour de forces. Naturally they are caveats with this book, as there must be in one so learned and complex. It may be true that the miracles of the Greek Apollonious and the Jewish Honi the Circle Drawer are not really contemporary with Jesus. But it is reasonable to assume that there were Greek and Jewish miraculous contemporaries, and had not Christians destroyed exactly this sort of literature once mastering the empire we would find more of them. Meier tends to concentrate on differences of technique in Jesus' healing and exorcisms, while forgetting that while we can trace the fact of exorcism and healing back to Jesus, we are less certain about his techniques. Nevertheless this is an important major work, especially so since it remembers that Jesus was a very different person from the man 21st century Christians of all denominations would like him to be.
First Rate Scholarship, Well Worth the Reader's Effort April 18, 2000
Alan (California)
16 out of 17 found this review helpful
With the first two volumes of "A Marginal Jew," Meier has proved himself one of the premier New Testament scholars in the English language. "A Marginal Jew" is not an easy read but rewards the reader with solid scholarship. Throughout, Meier confronts 20th century commentators (such as the Jesus Seminar) and reveals the degree to which preconceptions have colored their conclusions regarding the historicity of the four gospels. The extensive treatment of John the Baptist, the Kingdom of God, and Jesus' miracles are each worthy of publication as stand-alone texts and would be accounted among the leading works on these subjects. I eagerly await volume three.
Accessible only to non-scholars who are serious readers January 25, 1999
T. Temin (robint@erols.com) (Rockville, Md.)
12 out of 13 found this review helpful
If you're willing to concentrate, this book, like the preceding volume, is highly worthwhile even for non-Christian readers who want to be maximally informed on an important world figure. It can be tough going because Meier is not writing primarily for lay readers, but anyone with a healthy interest in logic, history and the critical tools of historians can enjoy it. On the other hand, Meier's erudition and dry humor augment and humanize his exhaustive scholarship. I've found Meier's criteria for historicity to be useful in gaining a deeper understanding and appreciation of scriptural material in general. I, too, and eagerly awaiting Volume 3.
 The Best Book in The Marginal Jew Series So Far December 28, 2001
10 out of 14 found this review helpful
In this second volume of John Meier's "A Marginal Jew: Rethinking the Historical Jesus" series Meier gets down to the meat of his subject. Here Meier tells us about Jesus relationship to John the Baptist (Mentor), his enunciation of the "kingdom of God" (Message) and his great deeds (Miracles).The first two parts here I regard as solid stuff, building a picture of Jesus as an eschatologically minded individual following after John the Baptist who talks about God's domain on earth. This is a very (exclusively) Jewish Jesus. But then with the miracles Meier gets a bit silly. Apparently "what happened" with the miracles is, for Meier, an "unhistorical" question to ask; it is beyond history's bounds to investigate. Faith, of course, may have its opinions but that is not history and history is what Meier repeats that his study is about. I think Meier cops out here. Its precisely the historian's business to say what they think happened and why. Meier, in effect, has his faith considerations which he intends to keep but not talk about. Maybe he finds caution a virtue. Funny, though, that Meier can write several hundred pages about things he claims not to be able to expedite! This is one place in this book where I sense that Meier is being too uptight about what "history" is. Meier seems to me to be at his best when he's doing history rather than talking about it. However, that is but a little fault in a largely professional and standard volume on the historical Jesus.
Three Books In One January 23, 2005
Steve Jackson (New England)
8 out of 9 found this review helpful
Every once in a while, public attention turns to the person of Jesus of Nazareth. A few years ago, it was the "Jesus Seminar." Lately, Dan Brown's book THE DA VINCI CODE sparked some interest, particularly among the conspiracy minded. The impression that many people have is that the conventional story about Jesus is wrong, and the more established churches don't want you to know it.
What many people haven't been told is that there is a large body of work in recent years which is supportive of the historical accuracy of the Gospels. One such work is John Meier's series A MARGINAL JEW. Meier is a Catholic priest who teaches at Notre Dame. In 1991 he came out with the first volume. It might not be the first book you want to read on the subject, but it's a work that anyone interested in the historical Jesus should tackle. Volume two and three are out, and a fourth and final volume is promised.
There are a few things to keep in mind when reading this series. First, Meier is writing a book on the historical Jesus. There is minimal theological reflection. Second, it is not an old-fashioned "life of Jesus" which presents a chronological discussion of Jesus' life (Meier probably doesn't have enough confidence in the historicity of the Gospels to write such a work). He arranges his material topically.
Volume 2 is a 1118 page monster which discusses three subjects: (1) John the Baptist; (2) Jesus' teaching on the Kingdom of God; and (3) Jesus' miracles. This book is well organized and Meier has an introduction which tells you where he is going. For example, he tells you flat out that he disagrees with Crossan and Smith's claim that Jesus was a magician. There are tons of footnotes, which are unfortunately placed at the end of each chapter. The footnotes/endnotes are informative and contain lots of interesting barbs directed at other scholars.
Meier's discussion of miracles is illustrative of his approach. Meier concludes that there is no reason to doubt that Jesus was perceived to be a miracle worker. In addition, through an exhaustive look at other miracle workers and magicians in antiquity, he shows that Jesus was not a magician in any traditional sense. At the same time, when and if any particular miracle occurred as written is an open question. Thus, he thinks it unlikely that the miracle in Mk. 3:1-6 (the man with the withered hand) occurred at all. Yet the curing of Bartimeaus (Mk. 10:46-52) is probably historical at its "core." Even here, he thinks Mark "worked up" the oral tradition. If your view of biblical inspiration swings toward the Chicago Statement on Biblical Inerrancy, you might be disappointed.
Ben Witherington provides a review of Meier's project up to the second volume in THE JESUS QUEST. Witherington reaches more conservative conclusions while using a similar methodology.
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