Jesus and Early Christianity in the Gospels
This book provides a review of the modern academic, often agnostic, methodological approaches which are employed in Biblical Studies, with a focus on the first four Gospels in particular--Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. The book is not written as a polemical work, nor as a "teaching tool" to reconcile the Baha'i Faith and Christianity or describe obscure Prophecies from the Bible, but rather is a useful tool which discusses the Bible in terms that many Christians themselves would use.
Though not an introductory work to academic, in contrast to polemic or traditional, biblical studies, this work is logically structured in a way which provides the reader with Grolin's framework--which helps a reader new to this subject orient themselves, and for more seasoned readers to appreciate the assumptions for this particular work. Specifically, the book begins by identifying the standard forms taken in the "Critical Sciences": introducing such concepts as 'Q', Redaction Criticism, Form Criticism, Source Criticism, Historical Criticism and Textual Criticism; the following chapter discusses the Jewish Context of the Gospels; and the following chapter discusses the conditions surrounding the birth of Christianity--which together form a foundation upon which the following chapters rely.
The remaining chapters of the book use the methods introduced in its framework to chronologically discuss particular events from the Gospel Narratives--addressing, reconciling or outlining, as required, contradictions that occur between each Gospel. Of particular interest note is the discussion of various parables of the Bible, which are explained according to redaction criticism--and thus may appear challenging to more traditional commentators of the Bible. The questions, and different levels of understanding shed from these explanations provide a fresh perspective to those unfamiliar with them, and a lucid one to those who are more seasoned in the field.
Finally, Grolin provides three appendixes which discuss rather different concepts to those appearing in the main text of the work: Interpretation and Re-writing of the Gospels in the Baha'i Writings, A New Inter-Religious Dialogue, and the Origin of the Didache.
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978-0-85398-462-X
