Zealot: The Life & Times of Jesus

Last updated on: June 1, 2014 at 10:16 am by George G. Coe

Zealot: The Life & Times of Jesus 2014-06-01T10:16:00-05:00 George G. Coe

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

If you teach World Religions, you might want to check out this new book about Jesus of Nazareth by Reza Aslan. Aslan is also the author of No God but God: The Origins, Evolution, and Future of Islam.

NPR interviews Aslan in the nine minute clip below. Aslan concentrates on the tumultuous and apocalyptic period in which Jesus lived. He relies largely on Roman sources about Palestine in the first century and uses the Bible to fill in some gaps. He sees the Bible as sacred history, which reveals certain truths, “…the facts that they reveal are not as valuable as the truths are.” The book has gotten great advance reviews and you can pre-order it now.

In addition, here’s a great article Reza Aslan wrote for the Washington Post today (7/15/2013) called “What can we know about Jesus.” He writes: “It is a miracle that we know anything at all about the man called Jesus of Nazareth. The itinerant preacher wandering from village to village clamoring about the end of the world, a band of ragged followers trailing behind, was a common sight in Jesus’ time—so common, in fact, that it had become a kind of caricature among the Roman elite.”

Finally, here are several other links:

Aslan’s interview with Terry Gross on Fresh Air
A short video clip on Huffington Post in which Aslan explains the importance of understanding the times in which Jesus lived in order to understand the man.
An interview on the Daily Show, on 7/17/2013, in which Aslan disputes the idea of Jesus as a detached, celestial spirit
Aslan on Morning Joe, along with a short excerpt from his book
Aslan talking at All Saints Episcopal Church in Pasadena, California on Sunday, 7/21/13 as part of their summer preaching series
Aslan’s essay on the CNN Belief blog called “Losing Christ and finding Jesus.”
Here is Aslan talking to Rev.Jennifer Crumpton about Jesus and women
Jesus the Revolutionary: A Q&A; With Reza Aslan (this is excellent, worth copying and using in religion class)

Uncategorized

Previous Post

July 13, 2013

Malala Yousafzai, Girl Shot by Taliban, Makes Appeal at U.N.

Next Post

July 18, 2013 The Scientists who Escaped the Nazis

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Uncategorized

Select a Month May 2019 January 2017 December 2016 October 2016 September 2016 July 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

Which Christian holiday is celebrated on December 25th in most Western churches?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Advent Pentecost Epiphany Christmas