Description
Book SynopsisJames has been a subject of controversy since the founding of the Church. Evidence that Jesus had siblings contradicts Church dogma on the virgin birth and James is also a symbol of Christian teachings that have been obscured. While Peter is traditionally thought of as the leader of the apostles and the rock on which Jesus built his church Jeffrey Bütz shows that it was James who led the disciples after the crucifixion. It was James not Peter who guided them through the Church's first major theological crisis - Paul's interpretation of the teachings of Jesus. Using the canonical Gospels writings of the Church Fathers and apocryphal texts Bütz argues that James is the most overlooked figure in the history of the Church. He shows how the core teachings of Jesus are firmly rooted in Hebraic tradition; reveals the bitter battles between James and Paul for ideological supremacy in the early Church; and explains how Paul's interpretations which became the foundation of the Church are in many ways its betrayal. Bütz reveals a picture of Christianity and the true meaning of Christ's message that are sometimes at odds with established Christian doctrine and concludes that James can serve as a desperately needed missing link between Christianity Judaism and Islam to heal the wounds of centuries of enmity.
Table of ContentsIntroduction A New Look at an Old Text 1. Complicated and Paradoxical Beginnings 2. The World's Greatest Sermon 3. Coming Down from the Mountain 4. Choosing Disciples to Share in the Work 5. Criticism Follows a Man of Controversy 6. Teaching in Parables 7. A Mentor’s Death Brings New Challenges 8. Who Is This Man? 9. On the Road to Jerusalem 10. Challenging the Religious Establishment 11.Warnings about the Future 12. The Path from Death to Life Suggested Readings
