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Christianity Today, September (Web-only), 2008 |

Theology in the News

JesUSAves

Stephen Nichols argues that Americans have remade Jesus in their own image.

Collin Hansen | posted 9/08/2008 10:14AM

Jesus Made in America: A Cultural History from the Puritans to the Passion of the Christ
Stephen J. Nichols
$20, 240 pages

Liberal scholars looking for Jesus remade him in their own image. So argued ...

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catherine

Posted: September 19, 2008 8:10 PM


The only way to get to really know God and His Son Jesus Christ is to spend a whole lot of time with them. Obey God in everything. Have a good weekend!

Ephrem Hagos

Posted: September 10, 2008 2:21 AM

Nicols' criticism is completely right! Remaking Jesus in one's own image is a standard practice, not just for Americans, but for all Christians who are comfortably unaware of the absurdity of their claim to "believe" in Jesus "by faith" contrary to 1. knowing Him personally; and 2. believing in Him securely as He continues to reveal Himself on the cross in glory (John 8: 24-30; 14:15-21; 17: 1-5; 19: 30-37). For 34 years, this is the Christ that I know, i.e., as He is!!!!!

Jason

Posted: September 09, 2008 1:41 PM


The question seems sometimes to be, Which SUV would Jesus drive?

Eugene M. Wiese

Posted: September 09, 2008 9:09 AM

We have shaped Jesus so that we can damn most of the world population except ourself. We use His name to show that we as individuals are the only ones with entry into salvation. Rather weakly we include our families, those that we are not feuding with. With few exceptions, almost every clergyman I have spoken with has promoted an extremely narrow view of God and His plan of salvation, that excludes 90% of the world population. Every one of us does this, at least in his private thoughts. This book and this article are too generous. Truth to tell, God would have reason to damn all of us, but His love and grace will win, despite our efforts, and we will find that He is more loving than any of us, and will accept us for what we are. Just trust Him. Completely!

Steve Jones

Posted: September 08, 2008 6:31 PM


I would argue that every culture and subculture casts Jesus in its own image. Even with that the Gospel still changes lives.

Leroy

Posted: September 08, 2008 2:55 PM

Mr. Cambell's comment that Mr. Martin's "comments are at best a reflection of his limited understanding of the history of Christianity" is extreme in its generosity. Even the most "liberal" of today's NT scholars date each of the gospels as having been written by or before 90AD and the entire body of Paul's work significantly earlier. That aside, this article addresses an important issue without really nailing it down. It's not so much that American Evangelicals have remade Jesus in their own image, but that they have conveniently equated being a good Christian with being a good American and vice versa and turned Jesus into a mascot used to market everything under the sun. This however should come as no surprise; American Evangelicalism has essentially become a suburban subculture enclave bent on creating a safe alternative environment in which to enjoy the material comforts of the consumer culture to which we are so beholden so as to avoid interacting with the world around us.

Delwyn X. Campbell

Posted: September 08, 2008 2:24 PM

Martin's comments are, at best, a reflection of his limited understanding of the history of Christianity. Assuming that his points make a point, Jesus might not have existed at all. You then have to explain the existence of the documents, along with the history of a movement that arose around the person of Jesus, not around his philosophy. While the Gospels are theological presentations, they are presentations of events that either took place in real time, or not. Unlike the stories about Buddha, the Gospels are rooted in historical times, places, and personalities. Unlike the writings regarding Confucius, they are as much about the person of Jesus as they are about His teachings. Finally, take away the belief in Jesus' divinity, and you gut Christianity. This is not true of any of the others whom I mentioned. I know that this is all old hat, but when people repeat old garbage, you are forced to remind people of these things once again.

Paul Maurice Martin

Posted: September 08, 2008 12:30 PM

Something fundamental to discussions of this kind that seems to me is often overlooked is the fact that the gospels' representations of incarnation/resurrection are themselves theological points of view on a person about whom essentially no real historical information exists. The New Testament is a faith document of the early Christian church that wasn't put into writing until decades after Jesus' death and didn't assume its present canonical form until centuries later. The fact that it's theology and not historiography means that "the gospel truth" about Jesus just isn't the non-interpretive point of view that conservatives make it out to be.

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