The Words of Jesus: A Gospel of the Sayings of Our Lord with Reflections by Phyllis Tickle

Features

• Cover Type: Hard Cover with 224 pages
• Published by: Jossey-Bass February 4, 2008
• Written in: English
• ISBN 10 Number: 0787987425
• ISBN 13 Number: 978-0787987428
• Book Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.7 x 0.9 inches
• Weighs: 9.6 ounces

From Publishers Weekly
Award-winning author and speaker Tickle (Rediscovering the Sacred; The Divine Hours), who is PW's former contributing editor in religion, chooses to take the red letter Bible one step further in this great study tool. The first section of this slim volume is a reflective essay on what Tickle learned from extracting the words of Jesus out of their narrative context in the Gospels. She writes of Jesus gradually becoming the heard rather than the seen, stripped of the sentimental images she had grown up with. She argues that the sayings, taken on their own merit, offer a third way between biblical literalists and literary critics: Jesus was an actualist, not a literalist or a metaphorist [the words] don't mean; they are. As such, they must be absorbed with both heart and mind together. Tickle divides the sayings into five categories: public teaching, private instruction, healing dialogue, intimate conversation and postresurrection encounters. Each saying stands alone but has been given a brief descriptive title. Tickle used an amalgam of biblical translations and chronologies to produce a version that is accessible and vibrant. These sayings of Jesus will be a valuable tool to Christians looking for new ways to study and assimilate his core teachings and character. (Feb.)
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Product Review
Harsh. Testy. Uncompromising. These aren't words typically associated with Jesus, but Christian scholar Phyllis Tickle, a former religion editor of Publishers Weekly, says they often came to mind as she wrote her new book, "The Words of Jesus." The book, which arrives in stores next week, plucks Jesus' words out of the Gospels and Acts, leaving them to stand alone without the context of his actions. "His words come as a shock," says Tickle. "Readers will get a Jesus they never saw before." He is, of course, still the warm and compassionate man who said "Father, forgive them" and "Love one another." But when it comes to his mission, Jesus doesn't mince words. "Anyone who loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me," he told his apostles. Tickle believes Christians err when they "domesticate Jesus," because they lose a sense of his power and the urgency of his message. "Obviously, he has an enormous amount of love," says Tickle. "But it is the love of a parent who knows the rules and who isn't going to soften the blow." Jesus was anxious to be understood. He asked Philip, an apostle, "Have I been so long a time among you … and still you do not know me?" It's a question that Tickle's book helps us answer today. (Newsweek, February 4, 2008)

Founding editor of the religion department at Publishers Weekly, Tickle is also the prolific author of God-Talk in America, Recovering the Sacred, and other books. This volume is a thoughtful reflection on the meaning of Jesus's words and the importance of various contexts for his followers, as well as on truth that emerges around unconsciously imposed cultural blinders. In the process, Tickle explains much of the thinking behind the Emergent Church movement. She also struggles with how to phrase certain "words" found with different nuances in more than one canonical Gospel. The book concludes with a recounting of Jesus's words from the canonical Gospels and the first chapter of Acts, dividing them into five different contexts, by delivery venue or topic: words of public teaching, of private instruction, of healing dialog, of intimate conversation, and of postresurrection encounters. For many readers, this book will fulfill Tickle's intent: to lead to a new appreciation of Jesus's words and of Jesus himself. Highly recommended for public and seminary libraries.—Carolyn M. Craft, formerly with Longwood Univ., Farmville, VA (Library Journal, February 1, 2008)

Award-winning author and speaker Tickle (Rediscovering the Sacred; The Divine Hours), who is PW's former contributing editor in religion, chooses to take the “red letter” Bible one step further in this great study tool. The first section of this slim volume is a reflective essay on what Tickle learned from extracting the words of Jesus out of their narrative context in the Gospels. She writes of Jesus gradually becoming “the heard” rather than “the seen,” stripped of the sentimental images she had grown up with. She argues that the sayings, taken on their own merit, offer a third way between biblical literalists and literary critics: “Jesus was an actualist, not a literalist or a metaphorist [the words] don't mean; they are.” As such, they must be absorbed with both heart and mind together. Tickle divides the sayings into five categories: public teaching, private instruction, healing dialogue, intimate conversation and postresurrection encounters. Each saying stands alone but has been given a brief descriptive title. Tickle used an amalgam of biblical translations and chronologies to produce a version that is accessible and vibrant. These sayings of Jesus will be a valuable tool to Christians looking for new ways to study and assimilate his core teachings and character. (Feb.) (Publishers Weekly, December 3, 2007)

Reader Reviews
Finally ... the true Jesus, in his own words. It's no wonder, after domesticating Jesus like an obedient poodle wearing pink nail polish and a tiara, that this book is so shocking to us. Jesus said a lot of things that even today would get him locked up, blacklisted, wiretapped, put on the no-fly list, and sent to Gitmo with a black bag over his head. Think hard before you read this book. Wouldn't you rather be happy with your illusions than know the truth and be disappointed? It's the real Jesus all right. But it's not the Jesus you and I have been hearing about almost from the moment of birth. This guy had a lot of strange, revolutionary ideas. He was scary then, and still is. So why can't we seem to turn away ...