RABBI TALKS WITH JESUS, A

Rating:
Summary: reasonably well done
Review: As another reviewer points out, Neusner does not try to address Christianity as a whole. Rather, he addresses a much narrower question: leaving aside the question of whether Jesus was a supernatural figure, how consistent are his teachings with the Torah? Neusner asserts that even if one sees Jesus as a rabbi, his views differ from those of the Torah and of classical Judaism. The major difference: Jesus speaks to the individual, Judaism to the community as a whole. Jesus says "follow me", classical Judaism says "follow the Torah". After reading this book, I understood both Christianity and Judaism a bit better.

Rating:
Summary: Good Concept, Bad Followthrough
Review: In this book, Jacob Neusner seems to be attempting to find a common ground for interfaith dialogue. He does so by addressing Jesus as if he were really in the first century. The premise is to demonstrate how Jewish Jesus is. A good notion, but Neusner fails at it miserably. The main problems result from the responses of Jesus. We must really ask ourselves would Jesus answer with the words Neusner gives him. That brings up two questions: 1, did Jesus consider himself the Messiah and 2, if he so, did Jesus also think he was divine? If any Christian were to write this book, obviously the answers would be yes. Of course, Neusner, writing from his own theological perspective, discounts two entirely and really hedges his bets on one. So, his own ideas in reality override those of Jesus. Also, using JUST Matthew's Gospel presents a unique problem in that it's not a "whole" picture of Jesus. In undertaking a job like this, one must use as much information as available. That is, at least the synoptic Gospels and at best all four. The limitations Neusner places on his work thus inhibit it's own natural growth. The writing was also horrible. The book, aside from the dialogue, followed no particular though pattern and seemed clouded in the general construction of the text. Of course, there are some redeeming qualities of the work. For one thing, it does give a Jewish perspective on the teachings of Jesus, though there are works out there that do so with vastly greater amounts of clarity than this. In all, a well conceived (though poorly executed) project, worthy of two stars if for nothing else than he had a good idea.

Rating:
Summary: Why or Why Not follow Jesus - A Jewish perspective.
Review: Jacob Neusner tackles a difficult task which for many people would be too emotionally charged for them to do the job in a fair an respectful manner. Rabbi Neusner shows himself to be up to the task. His conclusion is (in part) that the crux of the matter is not what Jesus taught but rather who Jesus was. This examination proceeds from the perspective of a contemporary of Jesus who is diligently focused on being an authentic Chosen Person in a Chosen People. "Would I or would I not follow this man?" is the question. His analysis presents serious concepts to consider both on the part of the modern day Jew and Christian.