THE POPE’S NEW BOOK
March 9th, 2007 by Dim BulbThe Pope’s newest ( and from my perspective, most anxiously awaited) book is now available for presale orders from Amazon.com. In said book the Pope engages modern Biblical criticism which seeks to divorce “the hisotrical Jesus” from the “Jesus of faith.” This divorce has serious consequences:
“But what significance could there be in faith in Jesus Christ, Jesus as the Son of the living God, if Jesus the man was so different from what the evangelists had portrayed and how the Church proclaims Him to be on the basis of the Gospels?
The progress of the historical-critical research led to ever more subtle distinctions among the different layers of tradition. Behind those layers, the figure of Jesus, on which the faith rests, became ever more indistinct, took on ever less definite contours.” (From the preface)
For a good overview of what to expect from this book and what its intentions are, see this post by Michael Barber of Singnig in the Reign. You should also check out his post POPE BOOK NEWS ROUNDUP.