Encounters with Jesus: The Man in His Place and Time

CONTENTS

CONTENTS Introduction: On Jesus’ Lifestyle ix Lifestyle as the First Message x The Historical Reliability of the Gospels xii The Necessity of Research into the Historical Jesus xiv 1. Jesus on His Landscape: Mental Maps and Real Territories 3 Jesus and His Land 3 Far from the Cities 5 Jesus in Galilee, in Judaea, and outside the Borders 11 Jesus’ Attitude toward Jerusalem 16 2. Jesus on Foot: A Life in Continuous Movement 25 An Identity without Networks 26 Not a Nomad, Not a Traveler, nor Yet a Pilgrim 29 The Code of the Itinerant: Do Not Sow or Reap, Do Not Toil or Spin 33 Walking and the Time of the Itinerant 35 Solitude and Flight 37 3. Jesus Face to Face: Encounters 41 On an Equal Footing 41 The Encounter with the Baptizer 42 The Followers 48 The Twelve 53 Meetings with Relatives: Closeness and Conflict 57 Friends and Supporters 62 The Women 65 Sinners, Those Possessed by Demons, and the Sick 69 An Array of Adversaries 69 “Rich” and “Poor” among the Addressees of Jesus 71 The Lost Sheep of the House of Israel 72 Jesus’ Preference for Direct Encounters 74 v vi Contents 4. Jesus at Table: Eating Together 78 Coming Together to Eat: Building Up Society 78 In the Houses of the Rich 84 Eating along the Way 85 At Table with His Followers 87 At Table with Friends 89 Miracles to Feed the Hungry: The Sign of Abundance 90 Eating Together in the Parables 91 The Symbolic Complexity of Conviviality 94 The Future Banquet 99 5. Jesus Leaves Home and Is Made at Home with Others 102 Without a House of His Own—in the Houses of Others 102 The Variety of Houses: Styles and Relationships 104 A Group without a Place of Its Own 107 The Individual Call 109 The Adult Generation Abandons Home 110 Conflicts among the Members of a Household 116 An Interstitial Strategy 125 6. Jesus and His Body 128 The Place of Corporality 128 Bodies Procreate: Jesus’ Genealogical Position 130 When His Contemporaries Looked at Jesus, What Did They See? 134 Other Looks, Other Appearances 139 The Body Is Taken Prisoner 141 An Inclusive Subject: The Crowd 143 The Body in Danger 148 The Body of Jesus and the Healings 150 7. Jesus and Emotion: Feelings and Desires 155 How Do We Get to Know the Inner Life of Jesus? 155 The Cultural Meanings of Emotions 155 Jesus’ Compassion 157 Anxiety and Sadness 159 Indignation and Anger 161 The Power of Silence 162 The Problems Involved in Leave Taking 163 Will, Desire, Decision 166 “I have come in order to . . .”: Jesus Expresses His Desire and His Interior Passion 168 Conclusion: The Concrete Reality of a Radical Life 170 Notes 177 Bibliography 221 Index of Authors and Names 237 Index of Ancient Texts 242 Index of Subjects 249 Contents vii Translator’s Note Biblical texts are usually taken from the New Revised Standard Version , but occasionally a more literal translation is given in order to bring out the authors’ meaning. ...