From Joan Lewis ... EWTN Blogger
JESUS OF NAZARETH: FROM THE ENTRANCE INTO JERUSALEM TO THE RESURRECTION
Ignatius Press is the U.S. publisher of the Pope’s latest book, “Jesus of Nazareth, From Entrance into Jerusalem to the Resurrection.” As the web site says in a promotion for the book, this second tome asks important questions: Why was Jesus rejected by the religious leaders of his day? Who was responsible for his death? Did he establish a Church to carry on his work? How did Jesus view his suffering and death? How should we? And, most importantly, did Jesus really rise from the dead and what does his resurrection mean? The story of Jesus raises many crucial questions.
Pope Benedict, in his intensive and extensive study of both the Old and the New Testament, though especially the latter, attempts to answer these questions and many others regarding the historical, theological and pastoral nature of the passion, death and Resurrection of Jesus. His brilliant resumé as a theologian contributes in this masterful work to open hearts and eyes even wider than before to the man who is Jesus and the event that is the Passion, Death and Resurrection of this historic figure.
The Pope said, "The New Testament message is not simply an idea. Essential to it is the fact that these events actually occurred in the history of this world: biblical faith does not recount stories as symbols of meta-historical truths; rather, it bases itself upon history that unfolded upon this earth." He writes in this latest work: "Only in this second volume do we encounter the decisive sayings and events of Jesus' life . . . I hope that I have been granted an insight into the figure of Our Lord that can be helpful to all readers who seek to encounter Jesus and to believe in Him."
Cardinal Marc Ouellet (pronounced weh lay), prefect of the Congregation for Bishops, presented the Pope’s book last evening at a press conference in the presence of the Holy Father secretary, Msgr. Georg Ganswein and heads of some of the 22 publishing houses that were selected to publish the Pope’s book. He outlined four crucial questions faced by the Pope in his book: the question of the historical foundation of Christianity, the messianic nature of Jesus (“messianismo”), the meaning of redemption and the place that must be occupied therein by the expiation of sins, and the final “knot to be untied” regards the priesthood of Christ.
The cardinal defined “Jesus of Nazareth” at the presentation as a “moving, fascinating and liberating testimony” and “the dawn of a new era of exegesis.”
Volume two examines the final week of Jesus’ earthly life and the historical and theological questions surrounding his death. It has an opening print run of 1.2 million copies and has been published so far in seven languages.
On their web site –
www.ignatius.com - Ignatius brings together five prestigious figures to offer their comments on “Jesus of Nazareth. From Entrance into Jerusalem to the Resurection”:
"Working from Scripture, the Church Fathers and contemporary scholarship, Benedict XVI deftly brings together the historical and theological dimensions of the gospel portraits of Jesus. This is a splendid, penetrating study of the central figure of Christian faith; a learned and spiritual illumination not only of who Jesus was, but who he is for us today." +Charles J. Chaput, O.F.M. Cap., Archbishop of Denver
"What better guide could you find than Benedict XVI to lead you on the bracing adventure of exploring the historical Jesus and discovering, under the tutelage of this most sage successor to Peter, the inner meaning of Jesus‘ death and resurrection. Faith and reasonare the two wings Benedict XVI takes up to lead us to astonishingly fresh spiritual perspectives and dizzying heights. This book often takes ones breath away, while infusing in the reader the God-breathed Word, which is the Gospel." Tim Gray, Ph.D., President, Augustine Institute
"As is his first volume of Jesus of Nazareth, so, once again, in his second volume Pope Benedict XVI has authored a marvelous book, this time on the passion, death and resurrection of Jesus. What makes this study so attractive is the depth of its biblical insight, its attention to historical issues, its keen theological acumen, and its lucid and precise expression. Moreover, as with the first volume, it is written in a serene and prayerful manner - a serenity and a prayerfulness that is conveyed to the heart and mind of the reader. This book fulfills Pope Benedict's ardent desire - that it would "be helpful to all readers who seek to encounter Jesus and to believe in him." Thomas G. Weinandy, O.F.M., Cap., Executive Director for the Secretariat for Doctrine, United States Conference of Catholic Bishops
"On the Day of Pentecost, Peter sought to explain to the assembled multitude what God had done through Jesus of Nazareth, crucified and risen. Peter's successor, Benedict XVI, here undertakes the same urgent task, in fruitful dialogue with the historical-critical biblical scholarship that dominates contemporary academic study of Jesus. Charting the path of the new evangelization, Pope Benedict XVI uncovers for us the living source of Peter's evangelizing mission: Jesus, in whom God gives hope to the world." Matthew Levering, Ph.D., Co-Editor, Nova et Vetera, and Co-Director, Center for Catholic-Evangelical Dialogue
"This theological masterpiece courageously confronts head-on two centuries of historical exegesis and establishes a fresh way of reading the Gospels as both biography and theology in a coherent way. The author explains, "I set out to discover the real Jesus, on the basis of whom something like a Christology from below would then become possible. The quest for the historical Jesus, as conducted in mainstream critical exegesis in accordance with its hermeneutical presuppositions, lacks sufficient content to exert any significant historical impact. It is focused too much on the past for it to make possible a personal relationship with Jesus." Jacob Neusner, Distinguished Service Professor of the History and Theology of Judaism; Senior Fellow, Institute of Advanced Theology - Bard College
You can also click on the following link which will bring you to Jesus of Nazareth for an in-depth look at the volume where, for example, a panel of scholars reacts to the book and you can listen to their exchange on the eve of the worldwide release of Jesus of Nazareth. The tele-press conference featured a renowned interfaith group of biblical scholars and theologians discussing the Pope, the book, and its impact on the figure of Jesus.
Click here to see that and more:
www.ignatius.com/promotions/jesus-of-nazareth/
The Vatican Information Service had a good summary of Cardinal Ouellet's remarks:
Cardinal Ouellet explained how, apart from the natural interest in a book about Jesus, "the Pope's book is humbly presenting itself to the forum of exegetes in order to compare methodology and research results with them. ... I cannot but see in this book the dawn of a new era of exegesis, a promising age of theological interpretation", he said.
"The Pope first enters into dialogue with German exegesis, though he does not overlook other important authors from the French, English or Romance language areas", the cardinal said. The Holy Father's "is that of 'seeking the real Jesus', not the 'historical Jesus' of the dominant school in critical exegesis, but the 'Jesus of the Gospels'".
Cardinal Ouellet explained that, "although the author is not presenting an official teaching of the Church, it is easy to imagine that his scholarly authority and the profound consideration given to certain disputed questions will be of great help in confirming many people's faith. This will also serve to enliven debates that have become stagnated because of rationalist or positivist prejudices, impairing the prestige of modern and contemporary exegesis".
Going on then to comment on the contents of the new book, the cardinal first noted how "the question of the historical foundation of Christianity has interested Joseph Ratzinger since his formative years and his first experience of teaching, as is evident from his book 'Introduction to Christianity', published forty years ago".
"A second question touches on the Messianism of Jesus. A number of modern exegetes, under the influence of dominant ideologies, have made Jesus out to be a revolutionary, a master of morality, an eschatological prophet, an idealist rabbi, a madman of God, a messiah in some way in the image of His exegete".
The prefect of the Congregation for Bishops explains how "the Pope powerfully and clearly outlines the regal and priestly dimensions of this Messianism, the meaning of which is to establish the new form of worship - adoration in spirit and in Truth - which involves all of individual and community life, as an offering of love for the glorification of God in the flesh.
"A third issue", the cardinal added, "concerns the meaning of redemption and the place that it should occupy in the expiation of sins. The Pope examines the modern objections to this traditional doctrine, ... and shows how mercy and justice go hand in hand within the framework of the Covenant established by God".
"The fourth problem involves the priesthood of Christ. In terms of today's ecclesial categories, Jesus was a lay person invested with a prophetic vocation. He did not belong to the priestly aristocracy of the Temple. ... This fact has led many interpreters to consider the figure of Jesus as entirely divorced from any relationship with priesthood. ... The Pope provides an ample response to the historical and critical objections, demonstrating how Jesus' new priesthood was coherent with the new worship He came to establish upon the earth, in obedience to the will of the Father".
"The final issue", the cardinal went on, "concerns the resurrection and its historical and eschatological dimension, its relationship with corporeity and with the Church. ... The Pope speaks out against ... interpretations which declare that the announcement of Christ's Resurrection is compatible with His body remaining in the tomb. He excludes these theories observing that the empty tomb, even if it is not proof of the resurrection, which had no direct witnesses, remains as a sign, ... a trace in the history of a transcendent event. ... The paradoxical experience of the apparitions reveals that, in this new dimension of existence, ... Jesus lives fully, in a new relationship with real corporeity but free from corporeal ties as we understand them. The historical importance of the resurrection is clear from the evidence of the early communities, which instituted the tradition of Sunday [worship] as a sign identifying the fact that they belonged to the Lord".
"It is clear from this book", the cardinal concluded, "that Peter's Successor dedicates himself to his specific ministry, which is to confirm his brothers and sisters in the faith. ... This book will serve, on the one hand, to mediate between contemporary and Patristic exegesis and, on the other, to foster the necessary dialogue between exegetes, theologians and pastors", he said.
"In this work", the cardinal completed his remarks, "I see a great invitation to dialogue on the essential aspects of Christianity, in a world seeking points of reference, a world in which religious traditions struggle to transmit humanity's heritage of religious wisdom to new generations".