Overview

The Quest of the Historical Gospel explores the nature and origin of the gospel genre. Lawrence M. Wills compares the Greco-Roman tradition of the cult of the dead hero to the parallel traditions in ancient Judaism to consider a paradigm for the Christian gospels: the death and vindication of the revered hero. Wills explores the analogies between popular, novelistic biographies, such as the bawdy and satiricalLife of Aesop, alongside the gospels, arriving at striking conclusions about the origin and function of the gospels. Paraphrasing the title of Albert Schweitzer's influential work,Quest of the Historical Jesusthis book provides a timely and provocative analysis of the gospels as literature, while placing Jesus in a definitive historical context.

Full Product Details

9780367863609

Table of Contents

Reviews

... a helpful and up-to-date work on the gospel genre. - The Catholic Biblical Quarterly This is an imaginative book that opens up new perspectives on the Gospels, Hellenistic literature, and the relations between them. - The Journal of Religion Willis's erudite study could force a rethinking of the origins of the narrative gospels. - Religious Studies Review

' ... a fascinating and well-written study...' - Richard Burridge

Author Information

Lawrence M. Wills is Ethelbert Talbot Professor of Biblical Studies and has taught at Harvard Divinity School and Wesleyan University.

Tab Content 6

Countries Available