Book Review: The Mind of Jesus by William Barclay
My copy is a bit tattered. I bought it used. The pages are nothing close to white; rather, they are a mixture of use and wear that combines to form a color unnamable. The print is small; those with bad eyes may need a magnifying glass. There is no long introduction or stunning conclusion. No synopsis on the back, although there is a picture of the aging William Barclay. The physical qualities of the book are less than impressive. But the content will astound.
Barclay has put together something more than a primer but less than a scholarly work on the life of Jesus. He admits one shortcoming of the book, declaring that it will only look at the life of Jesus from birth to transfiguration. There is no detail of the cross or resurrection, and larger topics like teachings and miracles are dealt with throughout, although each has a chapter all its own. Thus, the book is not meant to be read by chapter, but rather as a whole. Only when one steps back to see the entirety of what Barclay has created can one grasp the finer points he makes by piecing together this life of Jesus.
An immediate drawback to the prose of the book is the language. Perhaps his choice to use the masculine pronoun exclusively and the male for the hypothetical is a product of the time in which he was writing, as the first edition was published in 1960. Barclay means well, but the reader will find absolutely no mention of the female gender, although, knowing Barclay's neo-orthodox and progressive theology, one would hope his text does not lose its meaning on account of his exclusivity. The same can be said for Scripture. Perhaps a reissuing with gender inclusion is due so as to increase both sensitivity and understanding. The same can be said for Scripture.
Barclay's look at Jesus perfectly takes into account both Jesus’ humanity and divinity. One is not emphasized at the expense of the other. Barclay understands that both operated in complete harmony for Jesus and the Christian must understand this harmonization if he or she is to understand the person of Jesus. In short, Barclay keeps the Christ of faith and the Jesus of history together as one entity. But is there a cost to such a method?
Because he wished to show the overwhelming humanity of Jesus while compromising none of his divine properties, Barclay must make a few ahistorical assumptions, such as believing that Jesus knew the exact method of his death, something many contemporary scholars of the historical Jesus could not concede. However, such an example is minimal at best in terms of cost, as the devout evangelical will agree and the scholarly student will pass over such a presumption.
The best section of the book is the chapter titled "Waiting for the Call," in which Barclay discusses what might have happened in the years between Jesus getting separated from his parents at the temple and his baptism. Barclay sees this period as a time of intense and detailed preparation for the future mission. During this time, Barclay writes, Jesus learned to pray and talk about God while living life. He learned the details of life that would form the backdrop for some of his most memorable parables.
Barclay has a deep and sound appreciation for the historical context that affected Jesus. His recaps of Judaism, first century Palestine, and Roman history are detailed, but not cumbersome, as these facts only enter the text when necessary.
In terms of writing style, his chapters can be both easily summarized and sermonized, as he breaks each one into concise points and data. This makes the text easy to follow and review, but perhaps too systematic for the leisurely reader.
In the end, Barclay puts together 190 pages that cannot be labeled conservative or liberal, evangelical or mainline, elementary or scholarly. His amalgam of the Christ-figure is a text that gives basics and lets the reader go as far as he or she wants is his or her pursuit of this man Jesus. The Christian will find it spiritually uplifting and the one who does not follow Christ will find it intellectually stimulating. Barclay sees the beauty and truth of the Biblical account without a need to deify it. Thus, regardless of where the reader is spiritually or intellectually, this book is excellent for use as a place of departure for further study on Jesus. Happy reading.
Barclay has put together something more than a primer but less than a scholarly work on the life of Jesus. He admits one shortcoming of the book, declaring that it will only look at the life of Jesus from birth to transfiguration. There is no detail of the cross or resurrection, and larger topics like teachings and miracles are dealt with throughout, although each has a chapter all its own. Thus, the book is not meant to be read by chapter, but rather as a whole. Only when one steps back to see the entirety of what Barclay has created can one grasp the finer points he makes by piecing together this life of Jesus.
An immediate drawback to the prose of the book is the language. Perhaps his choice to use the masculine pronoun exclusively and the male for the hypothetical is a product of the time in which he was writing, as the first edition was published in 1960. Barclay means well, but the reader will find absolutely no mention of the female gender, although, knowing Barclay's neo-orthodox and progressive theology, one would hope his text does not lose its meaning on account of his exclusivity. The same can be said for Scripture. Perhaps a reissuing with gender inclusion is due so as to increase both sensitivity and understanding. The same can be said for Scripture.
Barclay's look at Jesus perfectly takes into account both Jesus’ humanity and divinity. One is not emphasized at the expense of the other. Barclay understands that both operated in complete harmony for Jesus and the Christian must understand this harmonization if he or she is to understand the person of Jesus. In short, Barclay keeps the Christ of faith and the Jesus of history together as one entity. But is there a cost to such a method?
Because he wished to show the overwhelming humanity of Jesus while compromising none of his divine properties, Barclay must make a few ahistorical assumptions, such as believing that Jesus knew the exact method of his death, something many contemporary scholars of the historical Jesus could not concede. However, such an example is minimal at best in terms of cost, as the devout evangelical will agree and the scholarly student will pass over such a presumption.
The best section of the book is the chapter titled "Waiting for the Call," in which Barclay discusses what might have happened in the years between Jesus getting separated from his parents at the temple and his baptism. Barclay sees this period as a time of intense and detailed preparation for the future mission. During this time, Barclay writes, Jesus learned to pray and talk about God while living life. He learned the details of life that would form the backdrop for some of his most memorable parables.
Barclay has a deep and sound appreciation for the historical context that affected Jesus. His recaps of Judaism, first century Palestine, and Roman history are detailed, but not cumbersome, as these facts only enter the text when necessary.
In terms of writing style, his chapters can be both easily summarized and sermonized, as he breaks each one into concise points and data. This makes the text easy to follow and review, but perhaps too systematic for the leisurely reader.
In the end, Barclay puts together 190 pages that cannot be labeled conservative or liberal, evangelical or mainline, elementary or scholarly. His amalgam of the Christ-figure is a text that gives basics and lets the reader go as far as he or she wants is his or her pursuit of this man Jesus. The Christian will find it spiritually uplifting and the one who does not follow Christ will find it intellectually stimulating. Barclay sees the beauty and truth of the Biblical account without a need to deify it. Thus, regardless of where the reader is spiritually or intellectually, this book is excellent for use as a place of departure for further study on Jesus. Happy reading.
