Jesus, Symbol of God

One of the most important books on the subject of Jesus Christ as a historical figure is Jesus, Symbol of God by Roger Haight. This highly researched piece of non-fiction demonstrates the argument for the existence of Jesus as a true historical figure by surveying key scriptural information and certain developments in the creation of Christian doctrine. The author begins with an overview of the more modern take on the Jesus figure, highlighting some technical aspects to Christology and how this relates to the present day. He is systematic in his approach, and takes on the idea that the Gospel has become indoctrinated into the various cultures around the world that embrace the teachings of Jesus from the Bible.  In addition, the author looks at the subject matter as a member of both the Christian community and also as a chronicler of history as a whole throughout the ages since Jesus’ time. This book is a comprehensive study of Christology and its impact on the historical nature of Jesus. 

The details of Jesus’ life are often victims of the fog of history, as is the study of Christianity as a whole. There are also the various forms of worship available to those who would consider Jesus the son of God and take him into their daily lives as a savior; the historical nature of man’s tendency to stray from the original path, not to mention the ways a historical text can be interpreted based on one’s own personal bias, can shape the way that ideology is formed. The author is aware of this, and takes great pains in attempting to thread the multitude of schisms within the faith together into a cohesive whole. He believes the faith of Jesus as a real person and the son of God can be purified and freed from the indoctrination of the cultural influences on Christianity and put back together to form a true interpretation of the Bible as the word of God taught by Jesus. 

This is certainly a tall task but one worthy of attempting. Many scholars have done similar things in the past by attempting to reconcile the religious connotations of Jesus with the real world. The entire purpose of Christology is to inform the world that he was in fact a real person and his actual ministry happened in history; the purpose of which was to spread the word of God in order to save the souls of mankind. Author Haight does a magnificent job in portraying the historical and philosophical aspects of this extremely important topic with a passionate and deft hand. The relevance for not only today’s Christians but historians as well is quite far-reaching, and he makes it all matter. 

For instance, the inculturation factor presented in the book is certainly pertinent for modern people. He goes into detail about all the various languages, cultures, regions of the world, and other entities in which the teachings of Jesus Christ have penetrated.   There is so much diversity to the human experience, with such a large number of Christians, taking the Gospel as the word of God is a somewhat easier concept to accept for the layperson; if one examines the sheer amount of infrastructure involved with Christianity, it can be more readily taken as having a solid foundation in fact. The substance of the Gospel, the author argues, is easily malleable to the local region of the world in which it is found and this demonstrates God’s will very well. This situation allows the word of God to be brought into the lives of the people in which it is used and preached. The logical arguments presented with the text of the book add weight to the author’s words. 

Height goes on to speak on the impact this inculturation had on developing cultures within the sphere of the Eastern World. This is particularly relevant for Hellenistic cultures where the Gospel of Jesus was translated and then incorporated into that specific culture in order to continue to spread the word of God.  This also allowed for some translation into the local dialect and thus increased the sway of Jesus’ teaching and the strengthening of the idea that he was in fact a real person that walked the earth. That these words were able to be understood and taken for actual fact increased the likelihood that the various cultures that were exposed to them were able to understand them and the live their lives according to God’s intentions. This is/was the purpose of Jesus’ life; to impact humanity in such a way that people are/were able to live by God’s words and go into heaven when they live their mortal coils. 

This book makes mention of the Vatican II’s Gaudium et Spes. This entails making faith learned and acquired from the Bible applicable to the modern world and relatable to the people who live and breathe today, as opposed to their counterparts from the ancient world.  This is quite helpful for those strongly connected to faith in Jesus and also those who wish to be closer to God but might not be at the present. Making such an intricate institution palatable and understandable is quite a task but the author is up to it. He does a fine job of translating what having faith in Jesus means for a person living today, and the historical framework in which it operates palatable for anyone. This is a well researched, well thought out piece of writing with great parallels to today’s world. 

There are problems inherent with this kind of undertaking, however, and these are not blown off by the author; instead, he examines what challenges a modern day Christian faces when attempting to compile reasons for believing in God and why understanding the text within the Gospel itself is so very vital to the process. Knowing the Jesus walked the earth and partook in preaching the word of God no doubt leads one to a better place. However, conceptualizing the ideas in such a deep, philosophical book is daunting at the best of times. Height wades through much of the confusing aspects of this enterprise and presents a clear, logical examination of the words written by those who chose to fill the Bible with Jesus’ words, even thought Mark, Matthew, Luke, and John wrote those words decades after Jesus’ death. It is only with clear understanding of the intentions of God and his one and only son can someone interpret these books within the Bible as they were originally meant to be understood. This is of course difficult to qualify but is easier through the guidance of Haight’s work. 

The intention with this tome is to not only clarify things from a more layperson perspective but also to adhere to the original principles of the original writings within the Bible. The traditions passed on through the centuries over the time from Jesus’ teachings to the present when all people can read and learn from his words, must be upheld in order to stay true to God’s words.  A daunting task for certain, for it is only through the understanding of the original intention can one find both enlightenment and ultimately salvation. Some of what makes the interactions between understanding the teachings of Jesus Christ and being a Christian come from the idea that one must experience salvation through the personal commitment to this course of action. By being saved, one comes closer to the ideals passed down from God through his one and only son and therefore can truly experience all the Gospels have to offer. Without this, it cannot be truly said to be a real thing; it is only through acceptance of Jesus as God’s son can anyone truly know the power of his words and wisdom. Haight does a fine job of balancing this will the historical significance of Jesus’ life. 

That Jesus Christ walked the earth and taught his Gospel to real people is a sometimes erroneous enterprise, for much of this relies on one’s own personal faith to allow them to comprehend the experience and truth. Yet there remains, according to the author, a solid understanding of the words of faith being sourced from the one and actual Jesus of Nazareth through the historical underpinnings discussed throughout. There is a blend of thought between the idea of God taken flesh through his one and only son Jesus and the actual personage of that man. All people of faith, especially those concerned with carrying on the traditions entailing modern Christianity and those that came before, should work towards this high ideal of Christology in order to better understand the entire chain of thought and logical involved.  Without this foundation this book would be difficult if not impossible to take as historical fact and therefore is not really written with the idea of the nonbeliever in mind. Furthermore, it is with the intention that people of faith strengthen their resolve in the face of doubt, uncertainty regarding the historical truth of Jesus’ life, and the understanding that it will only increase their internal faith and relationship with God. 

This is perhaps the greatest boon involved with reading this book. One can enjoy being a Christian and all the happiness that comes with it and increase the feelings of oneness with the one true God above by reading this account of Jesus’ life. It makes those Christians who actually care about being right, rather than those solely concerned with ideas of faith and faith alone, feel better when there is such a solid accounting done relating to the historical Jesus. In the modern world, as themes of faith and belief in the almighty creator are under siege by policymakers in Washington and violence against people of faith abroad, it is extremely heartening to read an account laced with both logic and fact when it comes to believing in Jesus and the Lord almighty, God. 

Sometimes, though, some confusing terminology is plied by the author as being necessary to understand, even when it becomes a bit repetitive in nature. It is also difficult at times to understand, as the author himself seems quite educated and extremely intelligent. That is all well and good for the most part but at times it can come across as pedantic and tiresome. When one must stop, retrace their steps and/or look up a word they do not understand and wish to increase retention, it becomes a laborious attempt at true comprehension. Though this is certainly not the author’s intention, it goes without saying certain passages are fraught with less than stellar understanding. An abrupt stoppage occurs when this happens, as does some significant degradation in the enjoyment of the text. This is not to say that overall it is not an enjoyable, thought provoking read, for it is most certainly is; it is only a minor quibble with some of the written textual reality within its pages. 

While the execution may sometimes be lacking, the author’s intentions and clear direction are always well thought out. The purpose of the book, of course, is not only measured in the logical constructs of demonstrating the facts regarding Jesus’ earthly life; instead, the combination of drawing one closer to God and his son’s words is part and parcel of the experience reading Haight’s book entails. The Christology of this book intends to bring one closer to Holy Spirit by connection thought with theory and demonstrating it through the logical application of known facts.  There is no system in place, however, and according to the author this work is meant to be something else entirely, something more methodical and consistent. This claim is proved true throughout the text, as the author strives for consistency while obviously remaining biased as whole on the side of thought pertaining to Jesus’ life being real. This is not a distraction while reading but rather a generally enjoyable part of the experience; one can see the truth through the eyes of another Christian who has studied the subject well. 

There are a huge range of topics discussed. The main two topics are of course theology and Christology, which he does a fine job in defining for both the layperson and those of faith. One of the main components of the modern world is the idea that the Church itself has undergone changes in how it reflects the real world and all the myriad of institutions therein.  Because the Church has had to adapt to changing times, theology in general has morphed to reflect this ever changing reality; as stated previously, it is the author’s intention (of many) to recreate the initial purpose of Jesus’ life and reintroduce it to modern people. Regardless, the definition of what theology was before and now represents, combined with the constructs of Christology, go a long way in justifying the study of Jesus’ life as it may have been in the world he lived in all those centuries ago. The interplay between theology and Christology is what is important here, as is the study of both concepts as they exist today. 

The author does well with presenting the facts as he sees them, either from a historical or personal perspective. This does not distract from the reading but rather enhancing it, for it is only through the eyes of true Christology that one can understand the real life Jesus and what he did to save the souls of humanity. By sacrificing himself on the altar of history, Jesus gave his life so that all could live in harmony and peace, promising a return once his father, the Almighty God, sees fit. With all the multitude of conflicting belief systems within Christianity as a whole, it is extremely codifying to have a single volume detailing and promising that the great divides between Christian sects are in fact all part of the same entity: God himself and through his son Jesus, the run to salvation. It is easy to forget the most simplistic and original of concepts involving Christian faith, and the author does well in rectifying them together. 

Some concern is to be expected with a topic of this nature, even if one is already a part of the Christian faith. However, the author does a wonderful job explaining important concepts like Christian Theology, even though at times some of the word choices are a little on the redundant and somewhat overly convoluted. He uses terms interchangeably when attempting to discuss the words themselves, like saying a tree is treelike. Some of the text moves so fast and deep into the subject matter that is a common enough occurrence to be as lost as it is to understand what Haight is specifically discussing. Yet in the end, the effort is worth it, because at the end of the reading one will gain an enormous understanding on the life of Christ and the study involved in the aforementioned Christology. 

Roger Haight, with his powerful combination of faith-based arguments and logical enunciation on an extremely complex issue, does a marvelous job educating the reader on the life of Christ through a historical perspective. Issues of faith, history, cultural bias, and many other aspects of the real world infringe upon the story of Christ. The study of life of Jesus is fraught with potential peril; yet if armed with the knowledge of this book (and many others like it), one can grasp the most important concepts involved. Detailing Jesus’ life, the entirety of his teachings to both his disciples and the rest of humanity throughout the ages, is as important a subject as anything imaginable, especially for practicing Christians. Though many have been influenced by their individual cultures or by growing up during a certain period of history, by embracing the actual facts of his teachings, anyone can become closer to Jesus, the son of God, and thus closer to achieving true salvation. By reading Jesus, Symbol of God, one can also learn a great deal about history.

Bibliography

Haight, Roger. Jesus, Symbol of God (Kindle Edition). London: Orbis Books, 2000.