The Jesus Sayings: The Quest for His Authentic Message [Hardcover]

Rex Weyler tackles a controversial topic and confronts it in a manner that is direct, thorough and logical, though sometimes a tad too pedantic. He is slow to leap to conclusions, which is a testament to his objectivity. This is a constructive review which examines what we know about the message of Jesus Christ, looking at the subject from multiple sources and angles. The author pieces together the clues, carefully sifting through the source of the material, like a forensic scientist, looking at all of the pieces of the puzzle before offering his conclusions. Some of what he concludes may be offensive or objectionable to fundamentalists, but if one reviews his research objectively, there is little to take offense to.

Weyler comes up with an interesting analysis of who St. Paul and Mary Magdalene were, based on the fragments of history. He is critical of Popes from the past, and an admirer of St. Francis of Assisi. He offers us an interesting analysis of when the gospels were written, which appear more credible, which appear to be copycats and leaves the reader wondering just how much we really know about who wrote the gospels, and to what degree they were edited along the way, highlighting portions that seem glaringly out of context, as well as some containing language out of sync with its time. He also injects his personal experiences (such as his grandmother's loving kindness and his child's spirit of sweet generosity among the homeless of Vancouver) as a backdrop to show the reader why finding the purity of the original message is important.

In some places, this book can be a laborious read, but generally it is manna from heaven to those who are curious and open-minded about learning how the New Testament was written and how it should be viewed today. Weyler takes the reader along on his quest, and for the reader, the journey is a worthwhile one.

Rex Weyler tackles a controversial topic and confronts it in a manner that is direct, thorough and logical, though sometimes a tad too pedantic. He is slow to leap to conclusions, which is a testament to his objectivity. This is a constructive review which examines what we know about the message of Jesus Christ, looking at the subject from multiple sources and angles. The author pieces together the clues, carefully sifting through the source of the material, like a forensic scientist, looking at all of the pieces of the puzzle before offering his conclusions. Some of what he concludes may be offensive or objectionable to fundamentalists, but if one reviews his research objectively, there is little to take offense to. Weyler comes up with an interesting analysis of who St. Paul and Mary Magdalene were, based on the fragments of history. He is critical of Popes from the past, and an admirer of St. Francis of Assisi. He offers us an interesting analysis of when the gospels were written, which appear more credible, which appear to be copycats and leaves the reader wondering just how much we really know about who wrote the gospels, and to what degree they were edited along the way, highlighting portions that seem glaringly out of context, as well as some containing language out of sync with its time. He also injects his personal experiences (such as his grandmother's loving kindness and his child's spirit of sweet generosity among the homeless of Vancouver) as a backdrop to show the reader why finding the purity of the original message is important. In some places, this book can be a laborious read, but generally it is manna from heaven to those who are curious and open-minded about learning how the New Testament was written and how it should be viewed today. Weyler takes the reader along on his quest, and for the reader, the journey is a worthwhile one.

As one who isn't a died-in-the-wool Christian, I found this to be a good look at both the Bible and other old documents to try and extract the essential message of 2000 years ago.