After the conclusion of A Hitchhiker’s Guide to Jesus, I found the book to be full of new ideas and interpretations that I had previously not heard of as a Christian. I feel as if keeping an open mind is a key thing to remember while reading the book. Norm is pursuing an academic, historical study of who Jesus was as a person. Surprisingly, this tends to stray from what many think of as who Jesus really was. The way Norm does so is by looking at the four Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John) and pointing out any differences he sees by using intertextuality, embarrassment, dissimilarity, etc. When Norm recognized these differences, it allowed him to better identify how each writer “embellished” his own interpretation of Jesus and his life. Through years of Christianity, people have drawn conclusions about Jesus and what he did. Norm tries to peel back these “false” ideas and discovers that Jesus may not have been the man people think of. Norm proposes things like his birth narrative may be false, his miracles just embellishment of psychological disorders, and that he may have been more of a political leader than anything. Because of the hardships due to the Roman power, people could have looked to Jesus as an outlet for the oppression. Because of his political image going against the grain, Norm believes that this was most likely the reason for his quick and brutal death. The Romans treated him like every other criminal but because of embellishment from writers, he was conformed into a leader who rose from the dead to overcome.
Although many of these ideas cause conflict with faith, it is the byproduct of academic study. Fisk uses the book to make faith into more of a science: meaning studying the data (gospels) to give realistic, plausible answers to the gospel stories of who Jesus really was as a person. Although many may not agree with Fisk’s proposed ideas, (much like Fisk not agreeing with the Gospels) the book gives new ideas and interpretations worth studying.
Although many of these ideas cause conflict with faith, it is the byproduct of academic study. Fisk uses the book to make faith into more of a science: meaning studying the data (gospels) to give realistic, plausible answers to the gospel stories of who Jesus really was as a person. Although many may not agree with Fisk’s proposed ideas, (much like Fisk not agreeing with the Gospels) the book gives new ideas and interpretations worth studying.
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