The Gospel of Jesus: In Search of His Original Teachings [Paperback]

In this book a professional scientist writes about religion, specifically, about Jesus. It is a spectacular accomplishment, totally honest in its outlook and impressively comprehensive in its scholarship.

I must admit that I am only halfway through its thousand pages. I am not reading it rapidly, but am annotating the margins of each page, in ink! It may take me the rest of my life to finish it (I am 77 and I read it only on Sundays for an hour or two), but already I know that I will never find a more scholarly and insightful work which honestly seeks to discern the true character of Jesus.

[Note added on April 22, 2012: I am now 87, and I finished reading this book years ago. I am now rereading it, and appreciating it even more for its incomparable scholarship and insight!]

Perhaps because I share the same scientific temperament as the author, we have a common bond that unconsciously brings us together. Davidson has studied and written exactly as I would like to, provided I could commit myself to devoting the immense amount of time and energy to meticulous scholarship, as he had done.

In this book the character of Jesus is incomparably broadened and sharpened by bringing in many sources that were ignored by the political and administrative forces that finally determined the content of the New Testament. There are hundreds of lengthy quotations about Jesus from over three hundred sources that were written in the first five centuries after his death. Furthermore, each quotation is rephrased by the author for further clarification.

Here is an example: "Jesus said, 'If the flesh came into being because of the spirit, it is a wonder. But if spirit came into being because of the body, it is a wonder of wonders. Indeed, I am amazed at how this great wealth has made its home in this poverty.'" This is quoted by Davidson from the Gospel of Thomas which is rejected by fathers of the Christian Church, for it suggests that the soul may have derived and evolved from its life in the body, rather than vice versa. I find that "twist" fascinating!

Frankly, I find it difficult to believe that the historical Jesus actually spoke this thought, but somehow it does not matter. The Bible is a collection of many noble, and some not so noble, thoughts of human beings, but it has been edited for "proper" content by many biased editors with tunnel vision.

In this book many insights are given that point toward the existence and the character of the divine in human life. And I find them inspiring! Nowhere else have I found any writing on religion that approaches the dedication and illumination of this book. Page after page I am enthralled by my introduction to many obscure and unknown writers who, in their admiration for Jesus, have put their inspired words into his mouth in much the same way as the New Testament writers have done.

It is clear that I cannot praise this book enough. However, it is written for the seeker, not for the believer.

A book for persons who love biblical wisdom but who can't quite make the stories mesh. This book will help you understand your frustration. Well-researched with pointers to many, many original works that almost got squeezed out of history. A tip: Do not give this book as a gift to a fundamentalist whose faith depends on every word of the New Testament being literally true. This book is for those who want to know the parts of the story that aren't in The Book.

John Davidson has presented a masterpiece that illuminates the Truth about Jesus' message. For many Christians this book will be a bitter and perhaps impossible pill to swallow. For many others who are still seeking Truth, yet are disillusioned with Christianity, this book will change you. Either way it is a must read.
Every Christian, I believe, is at some time in their life confused about the apparent irregularities in the bible. Why, for example, are events described differently in the four gospels when they were reputedly written by the apostles? Why are whole phrases repeated word for word when they were written independently?
Similarly, every Christian must repress feelings of confusion about the morality of the bible. How, for example can the Lord Jesus (who the gospels describe as the "Lamb of God", and who taught that "blessed are the meek") be the Son of a jealous Father, who because the people of Jericho were enemies of his "chosen people" and followed another religion, ordered the the people of Israel to massacre every man, woman, child and baby, as well as every living thing, after the sacking of the city? Was this not genocide? Is it enough to say that only God can understand why these things had to be?
For myself personally, I could never reconcile the simple and pure words of Jesus as recorded in the Bible with the great complexity and opaque teachings of Christianity as given by the church. Whereas I completely believed Jesus, I could never find him in my pentecostal church, where brothers and sisters, it was believed, gave utterance to the Holy Spirit Himself. There were endless prophecies, and visions of all kinds relaid. The pastor, apparently under the power of the Holy Spirit, interpreted the scriptures week after week. In the end, as in most churches, there was no light, but only more division. Nobody could agree about what the Lord wanted. Yet all considered that God had shown them with His 'still small voice'.
If the Bible was the ordained living Word of God, why was it taking so long for people to imbibe its teachings? Why was there, after 2000 years, still so much confusion? Of course there are always pat answers for such questions given by well intentioned church leaders.Usually accompanied with a stern warning not to allow satan to enter the mind by questioning or 'testing' God. But, as Davidson says, is ignorance really a strong basis for faith?
In reality, as John Davidson reveals, the Bible is not the Living Word of God, but simply a document that has numerous unknown authors, with varying agendas, that became the manifesto of a world religion.
'The Gospel of Jesus' is a well researched, beautifully written and scholarly work that reveals just how so much confusion exists in the Christian church.It reveals the true teachings of Jesus. It delineates the Path,the Logos, the Way that Jesus spoke of, revealed in numerous manuscript sources aside from those that were destroyed by the orthidox church, in its determined effort to define Christianity by its own mold.
Davidson's book is uplifting. While it breaks apart any notion that the bible is the Living Word of God, it reveals the mystical teachings of the Word, the Logos, which was given by Jesus and by Mystics in all ages and regions, and was therefore not only known to the early Christians but to many ancient peoples. The Mandeans, a society from southern Iraq, for example, in who's scriptures and hymns is repeated the mystical message that Jesus brought to those who would listen and follow, and yet who defined themselves not as descendants of the followers of Jesus, but as the descendants of followers of John the Baptist!
It offers hope to all seekers of truth. The True Word that was in the world since the beginning and was revealed by mystics of old is available through mystics of all ages. As Jesus said, 'Seek and you will find, knock and the door will be opened'.