Who was Jesus? And what was the world in which he lived? These are the two questions that Fik Meijer, professor emeritus and author of a large stack of well-selling books about antiquity, wants to answer in his book 'Jesus and the fifth evangelist.'
Jesus and his world:it is a thorny subject. There are hardly any reliable sources and there is a constant danger that history and (Christian) myth-making will become intertwined. If you, as a historian, cannot or do not dare to separate that, it may even be advisable not to venture into the subject. And then success writer Fik Meijer also has the obligation to his general public to write it all down without confusing his readers.
Judeo-Roman source
The structure of Meijer's book is effective and has been used regularly by other authors:first sketch a picture of the time through the world of early Judaism around the beginning of our era and then give Jesus a place in it. In this way the readers understand that Jesus was not a Christian but a Jew, that he lived in a Jewish world and held completely Jewish ideas. And they understand that the world of early Judaism in and around Jerusalem was very different from Rabbinic Judaism today. A strange world, moreover, of which ancient historians understand less than they would like due to a lack of sources.
Meijer starts off energetically with the first part. For the opening part of his book, sketching the time in which Jesus lived, Meijer has one guide:the Jewish-Roman author Flavius Josephus. Josephus is a controversial writer. He was initially a Jewish army chief at the time of the Jewish Revolt (67-70 AD). However, he was captured and then rallied behind the Romans, much to the anger of his fellow citizens. He travels with Titus to Rome and there (to come to terms with himself) writes two historical works:"The Ancient History of the Jews" and "The Jewish War". Josephus, as the only non-Christian contemporary, even briefly mentions the person of Jesus in his writings. The authenticity of that fragment is doubtful, but partly because of this, Josephus is also called the fifth evangelist in certain circles.
Because Meijer does not mention other sources, including the famous Dead Sea Scrolls, the complexity of the religious issues to which Jesus responds is not fully understood by the author. This choice is still understandable for the sake of overview. Meijer relies heavily on his guide, but is also appropriately critical here and there. He outlines the difficult political circumstances, the corrupt King Herod and the miserable social circumstances to which Jesus responded. He even devotes a few pages to the intricate but lively discussions that have taken place about halacha, how to live according to jewish law. Conclusion:Judaism was socially, politically and religiously divided to the bone.
Who was Jesus?
As a writer there is nothing to criticize about Meijer. His style is clear and lively, which makes 'Jesus and the Fifth Evangelist' entertaining and easy to follow even in the more difficult passages about the political background. As a historian, however, he goes wrong with the second part of his book, which is about the life of Jesus himself.
To answer the question of who Jesus was, a historian cannot escape describing Jesus as a Jew. The evangelists were also Jews, or at least Jewish Christians. To understand what they wrote about Jesus and why, they must be interpreted from their Jewish background. However, Meijer presents his readers with a Christian Jesus. That is not who the historical Jesus really was, but what his followers have made of him.
Who was the (Jewish!) Jesus actually for anyone? What were the motives for his followers to ascribe to him all kinds of (Christian!) qualities? Why did the crucifixion of a (Jewish!) rioter and preacher create a new world religion? Those are all interesting questions. Unfortunately, Meijer's book remains somewhere in the middle. He sketches a Jewish world, but does not place a Jewish Jesus in it. He describes his life on the basis of the Gospels, but hardly takes the trouble to strip them of their Christian overtones.
We do not read exactly what Jesus' message was and why he was so successful in the divided Jewish world. While there is quite a bit to be said about all this, as long as you take a critical look at the scarce sources and combine them cleverly. What remains is a too easy book about Jesus and his Jewish world. It seems as if Meijer is deliberately falling into the trap of history and myth-making that intertwine.
The book
Title:Jesus &the Fifth Evangelist
Author:Fik Meijer
Publisher:Athenaeum
ISBN:9789025300371
Price:€19.99