Part I
Fisk begins the book by telling us about how he is going to tell his story as the fictional character Norm. Norm’s journey is based strongly on Fisk’s personal encounters and studies throughout the Middle East. Fisk tells us that his intentions were to write a book about the quest for knowledge of the historical Jesus while still maintaining his faith. The first chapter is written from the perspective of Norm’s though processes on his plane to Tel Aviv in Israel. He spends time both describing the flight as well as the events leading up to and his inspirations for the journey he is about to take. The majority of the chapter is spent focusing on a conversation between Norm and his seat-mate on the plane, Dorothy. In this discussion, Fisk gives us a basic introduction to the study of historical Jesus and some of the preconceptions people may have about Jesus as Christ of faith (through the preconception Norm has of Dorothy before they even speak).
Part II
Reading books about Jesus and other religious figures generally makes me feel very skeptical due to the fact that they generally have some sort of religious bias that makes them less factual from a historical and academic standpoint (But one must note that my readings on this subject are quite limited). However, after reading the first chapter in Fisk’s book I realize that it is unlike other books that I have read in the fact that it is much more academic writing than religious. I really enjoyed how Fisk set the scene with some background information about the historical Jesus through the perceptions of higher-ranking Roman onlookers. I have always been a big history buff and really enjoy reading things, especially religious texts, from a historical viewpoint where beliefs and traditions are not as prevalent in the subject matter. I look forward to reading more of Fisk’s account and hope to learn much about how he handles the struggle of learning about the historical Jesus while still maintaining his faith as a Christian.
Fisk begins the book by telling us about how he is going to tell his story as the fictional character Norm. Norm’s journey is based strongly on Fisk’s personal encounters and studies throughout the Middle East. Fisk tells us that his intentions were to write a book about the quest for knowledge of the historical Jesus while still maintaining his faith. The first chapter is written from the perspective of Norm’s though processes on his plane to Tel Aviv in Israel. He spends time both describing the flight as well as the events leading up to and his inspirations for the journey he is about to take. The majority of the chapter is spent focusing on a conversation between Norm and his seat-mate on the plane, Dorothy. In this discussion, Fisk gives us a basic introduction to the study of historical Jesus and some of the preconceptions people may have about Jesus as Christ of faith (through the preconception Norm has of Dorothy before they even speak).
Part II
Reading books about Jesus and other religious figures generally makes me feel very skeptical due to the fact that they generally have some sort of religious bias that makes them less factual from a historical and academic standpoint (But one must note that my readings on this subject are quite limited). However, after reading the first chapter in Fisk’s book I realize that it is unlike other books that I have read in the fact that it is much more academic writing than religious. I really enjoyed how Fisk set the scene with some background information about the historical Jesus through the perceptions of higher-ranking Roman onlookers. I have always been a big history buff and really enjoy reading things, especially religious texts, from a historical viewpoint where beliefs and traditions are not as prevalent in the subject matter. I look forward to reading more of Fisk’s account and hope to learn much about how he handles the struggle of learning about the historical Jesus while still maintaining his faith as a Christian.
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