A crisp, lucid organizational tool kit for categorizing Jesus’ teachings.
A debut collection of the moral and social precepts attributed to Jesus Christ in the Bible.
Many modern-day Christians, asked to respond quickly to the question of how many commandments Jesus gave to his followers, would reach immediately for the Gospel of Matthew: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind” and “Love your neighbor as yourself.” But as Wagenblatt amply demonstrates, the total number of Jesus’ New Testament pronouncements to his Apostles is much higher; a significant portion take the form of commandments on matters ranging from divorce (“What God has joined together, let no one separate”) to specific liturgical practices (the injunction to recite the Lord’s Prayer). The author identifies 40 such statements, carefully and very helpfully breaking everything down by specific Gospel and keyword; Christian textual students will find this extremely handy. That said, Wagenblatt uses a fair amount of creative license in characterizing some sayings as commandments, such as by treating warnings (such as “Whoever does not take up their cross and follow me is not worthy of me”) as explicit commands. But even so, by organizing these sayings under precise headings, such as “Good Deeds,” “Repentance,” and “Showing Mercy,” and following the thematic threads through the four Gospels, Wagenblatt creates thought-provoking juxtapositions that most readers may not have considered. Because the author offers them without gloss or interpretation, readers are tacitly encouraged to ponder them themselves. Appendices provide a reference list of passages addressing Jesus’ various miracles, among other items, and an index lists all 40 statements and their sources by chapter and verse. It all combines to create an invaluable reference work for Christian readers.
A crisp, lucid organizational tool kit for categorizing Jesus’ teachings.Pub Date: Jan. 5, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-4908-8153-9
Page Count: 286
Publisher: Westbow Press
Review Posted Online: Sept. 19, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2016
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
Worthwhile reference stuffed with facts and illustrations.
A compendium of charts, time lines, lists and illustrations to accompany study of the Bible.
This visually appealing resource provides a wide array of illustrative and textually concise references, beginning with three sets of charts covering the Bible as a whole, the Old Testament and the New Testament. These charts cover such topics as biblical weights and measures, feasts and holidays and the 12 disciples. Most of the charts use a variety of illustrative techniques to convey lessons and provide visual interest. A worthwhile example is “How We Got the Bible,” which provides a time line of translation history, comparisons of canons among faiths and portraits of important figures in biblical translation, such as Jerome and John Wycliffe. The book then presents a section of maps, followed by diagrams to conceptualize such structures as Noah’s Ark and Solomon’s Temple. Finally, a section on Christianity, cults and other religions describes key aspects of history and doctrine for certain Christian sects and other faith traditions. Overall, the authors take a traditionalist, conservative approach. For instance, they list Moses as the author of the Pentateuch (the first five books of the Hebrew Bible) without making mention of claims to the contrary. When comparing various Christian sects and world religions, the emphasis is on doctrine and orthodox theology. Some chapters, however, may not completely align with the needs of Catholic and Orthodox churches. But the authors’ leanings are muted enough and do not detract from the work’s usefulness. As a resource, it’s well organized, inviting and visually stimulating. Even the most seasoned reader will learn something while browsing.
Worthwhile reference stuffed with facts and illustrations.Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2005
ISBN: 978-1-5963-6022-8
Page Count: -
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: May 23, 2010
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
This a book of earlier, philosophical essays concerned with the essential "absurdity" of life and the concept that- to overcome the strong tendency to suicide in every thoughtful man-one must accept life on its own terms with its values of revolt, liberty and passion. A dreary thesis- derived from and distorting the beliefs of the founders of existentialism, Jaspers, Heldegger and Kierkegaard, etc., the point of view seems peculiarly outmoded. It is based on the experience of war and the resistance, liberally laced with Andre Gide's excessive intellectualism. The younger existentialists such as Sartre and Camus, with their gift for the terse novel or intense drama, seem to have omitted from their philosophy all the deep religiosity which permeates the work of the great existentialist thinkers. This contributes to a basic lack of vitality in themselves, in these essays, and ten years after the war Camus seems unaware that the life force has healed old wounds... Largely for avant garde aesthetes and his special coterie.
Pub Date: Sept. 26, 1955
ISBN: 0679733736
Page Count: 228
Publisher: Knopf
Review Posted Online: Sept. 19, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 1955
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