Jesus and the Word

by Rudolf Karl Bultmann and D. Rudolf Bultmann; Louise Pettibone Smith and Erminie Huntress - Translators

Book Overview

No Synopsis Available.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: B0007DM5XU
• ISBN13: 9780684717265
• Release Date: January 1958
• Publisher: Scribner
• Length: 226 Pages
• Weight: 0.57 lbs.

Customer Reviews

a controversial look at Jesus' message

Rudolf Bultmann is well-known for his demythologizing program. This book presents in clear fashion some of Bultmann's main ideas. Right from the very beggining, Bultmann makes clear that we can almost know nothing about the historical Jesus. The New Testament data on Jesus is quite limited, and anyhting else would be pure speculation. However, this doesn't mean that we can't inmerse ourselves into the world of Jesus' message. Even if we can't say much about his life, there is a lot to be said about his preaching. To do so, Bultmann relies upon an existentialist approach (although he does not mention the name Martin Heidegger). Jesus' praching is centered on decision. "Either-Or" are the central words used by Bultmann to understand Jesus' message. Through a clever analysis of many of Jesus' recorded sayings, Bultmann makes clear that man is facing decision at every moment of his life. This decision must be complete, commited. It can not be done halfway. Bultmann pays special attention to Jesus' eschatological preaching. For Bultmann, the Kingdom of God is very much like death, it has not arrived yet, but it wholly shapes our present lives. The Kingdom is not some socio-political entity as it was thought during Jesus' time. The Kingdom is already here, it is man's decision for himself.