Jesus of Nazareth: Holy Week: From the Entrance into Jerusalem to the Resurrection

by Pope Benedict XVI

Overview

For Christians, Jesus of Nazareth is the Son of God, who died for the sins of the world, and who rose from the dead in triumph over sin and death. For non-Christians, he is almost anything else—a myth, a political revolutionary, a prophet whose teaching was misunderstood or distorted by his followers.

Jesus of Nazareth is the Son of God, and no myth, revolutionary, or misunderstood prophet, insists Benedict XVI. He thinks that the best of historical scholarship, while it can't "prove" Jesus is the Son of God, certainly doesn't disprove it. Indeed, Benedict maintains that the evidence, fairly considered, brings us face-to-face with the challenge of Jesus—a real man who taught and acted in ways that were tantamount to claims of divine authority, claims not easily dismissed as lunacy or deception.

Benedict XVI presents this challenge in his new book, Jesus of Nazareth: Holy Week: From the Entrance into Jerusalem to the Resurrection, the sequel volume to Jesus of Nazareth: From the Baptism in the Jordan to the Transfiguration.

Why was Jesus rejected by the religious leaders of his day? Who was responsible for his death? Did he establish a Church to carry on his work? How did Jesus view his suffering and death? How should we? And, most importantly, did Jesus really rise from the dead and what does his resurrection mean? The story of Jesus raises many crucial questions.

Benedict brings to his study the vast learning of a brilliant scholar, the passionate searching of a great mind, and the deep compassion of a pastor's heart. In the end, he dares readers to grapple with the meaning of Jesus' life, teaching, death, and resurrection.

"Only in this second volume do we encounter the decisive sayings and events of Jesus' life . . .  I hope that I have been granted an insight into the figure of Our Lord that can be helpful to all readers who seek to encounter Jesus and to believe in Him."
-Pope Benedict XVI

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781586175016
Publisher:	Ignatius Press
Publication date:	04/05/2023
Pages:	384
Sales rank:	109,612
Product dimensions:	5.00(w) x 7.50(h) x 1.62(d)

About the Author

Pope Benedict XVI is widely recognized as one of the most brilliant theologians and spiritual leaders of our age. As Pope he authored the best-selling Jesus of Nazareth; and prior to his pontificate, he wrote many influential books that continue to remain important for the contemporary Church, such as Introduction to Christianity and The Spirit of the Liturgy.

Table of Contents

Abbreviations ix

Publisher's Note xi

Foreword xiii

1 The Entrance into Jerusalem and the Cleansing of the Temple 1

1 The Entrance into Jerusalem 1

2 The Cleansing of the Temple 11

2 Jesus' Eschatological Discourse 24

1 The End of the Temple 28

2 The Times of the Gentiles 41

3 Prophecy and Apocalyptic in the Eschatological Discourse 45

3 The Washing of the Feet 53

The hour of Jesus 54

"You are clean" 57

Sacramentum and exemplum-gift and task: The "new commandment" 61

The mystery of the betrayer 65

Two conversations with Peter 69

Washing of feet and confession of sin 72

4 Jesus' High-Priestly Prayer 76

1 The Jewish Feast of Atonement as Biblical Background to the High-Priestly Prayer 77

2 Four Major Themes of the Prayer 82

"This is eternal life …" 82

"Sanctify them in the truth …" 85

"I have made your name known to them …" 90

"That they may all be one …" 93

5 The Last Supper 103

1 The Dating of the Last Supper 106

2 The Institution of the Eucharist 115

3 The Theology of the Words of Institution 125

4 From the Last Supper to the Sunday Morning Eucharist 138

6 Gethsemane 145

1 On the Way to the Mount of Olives 145

2 The Prayer of Jesus 152

3 Jesus' Will and the Will of the Father 157

4 Jesus' Prayer on the Mount of Olives in the Letter to the Hebrews 162

7 The Trial of Jesus 167

1 Preliminary Discussion in the Sanhedrin 167

2 Jesus before the Sanhedrin 175

3 Jesus before Pilate 183

8 Crucifixion and Burial of Jesus 202

1 Preliminary Reflection: Word and Event in the Passion Narrative 202

2 Jesus on the Cross 206

The first of Jesus' words from the Cross: "Father, forgive them" 206

Jesus is mocked 208

Jesus' cry of abandonment 213

The casting of lots for Jesus' garments 216

"I thirst" 217

The women at the foot of the Cross-the Mother of Jesus 219

Jesus dies on the Cross 223

Jesus' burial 226

3 Jesus' Death as Reconciliation (Atonement) and Salvation 229

9 Jesus' Resurrection from the Dead 241

1 What Is the Resurrection of Jesus? 241

2 The Two Different Types of Resurrection Testimony 248

A The Confessional Tradition 248

Jesus' death 251

The question of the empty tomb 253

The third day 257

The witnesses 259

B The Narrative Tradition 260

Jesus' appearances to Paul 263

The appearances of Jesus in the Gospels 265

3 Summary: The Nature of Jesus' Resurrection and Its Historical Significance 272

Epilogue: He Ascended into Heaven-He Is Seated at the Right Hand of the Father, and He Will Cone Again in Glory 278

Bibliography 295

Glossary 309

Index of Biblical References 331

Index of Proper Names and Subjects 341

Editorial Reviews

"Working from Scripture, the Church Fathers and contemporary scholarship, Benedict XVI deftly brings together the historical and theological dimensions of the gospel portraits of Jesus.  This is a splendid, penetrating study of the central figure of Christian faith; a learned and spiritual illumination not only of who Jesus was, but who he is for us today."
— Charles J. Chaput, O.F.M. Cap., Archbishop of Denver

"What better guide could you find than Benedict XVI to lead you on the bracing adventure of exploring the historical Jesus and discovering, under the tutelage of this most sage successor to Peter, the inner meaning of Jesus' death and resurrection. Faith and reasonare the two wings Benedict XVI takes up to lead us to astonishingly fresh spiritual perspectives and dizzying heights.  This book often takes ones breath away, while infusing in the reader the God-breathed Word, which is the Gospel."
— Tim Gray, Ph.D., President , Augustine Institute

"As is his first volume of Jesus of Nazareth, so, once again, in his second volume Pope Benedict XVI has authored a marvelous book, this time on the passion, death and resurrection of Jesus. What makes this study so attractive is the depth of its biblical insight, its attention to historical issues, its keen theological acumen, and its lucid and precise expression. Moreover, as with the first volume, it is written in a serene and prayerful manner - a serenity and a prayerfulness that is conveyed to the heart and mind of the reader. This book fulfills Pope Benedict's ardent desire - that it would "be helpful to all readers who seek to encounter Jesus and to believe in him."
— Thomas G. Weinandy, O.F.M., Cap., Executive Director for the Secretariat for Doctrine, United States Conference of Catholic Bishops

"On the Day of Pentecost, Peter sought to explain to the assembled multitude what God had done through Jesus of Nazareth, crucified and risen. Peter's successor, Benedict XVI, here undertakes the same urgent task, in fruitful dialogue with the historical-critical biblical scholarship that dominates contemporary academic study of Jesus. Charting the path of the new evangelization, Pope Benedict XVI uncovers for us the living source of Peter's evangelizing mission: Jesus, in whom God gives hope to the world."
— Matthew Levering, Ph.D., Co-Editor, Nova et Vetera, and Co-Director, Center for Catholic-Evangelical Dialogue

"This theological masterpiece courageously confronts head-on two centuries of historical exegesis and establishes a fresh way of reading the Gospels as both biography and theology in a coherent way. The author explains, "I set out to discover the real Jesus, on the basis of whom something like a Christology from below would then become possible. The quest for the historical Jesus, as conducted in mainstream critical exegesis in accordance with its hermeneutical presuppositions, lacks sufficient content to exert any significant historical impact. It is focused too much on the past for it to make possible a personal relationship with Jesus. "Here we find  a compelling model for the presentation of  the life of holy rabbi, Hillel or Aqiba, in the same context as we account for the life of Jesus."."
— Jacob Neusner, Distinguished Service Professor of the History and Theology of Judaism; Senior Fellow, Institute of Advanced Theology - Bard College

"In Jesus of Nazareth Pope Benedict reflects on the Gospel witness to Jesus in a way that "can indeed lead to personal encounter "with Him. Just as Jesus' redemptive mission is universal, these reflections include every category of human being: for Jews, dialogue with the Old Testament; for Greeks (all seeking to know life's meaning), dialogue with reason; for Scripture scholars, approbation of truthful insights, and corrections to whatever obscures the apostolic witness to Jesus. For all men and women of all times, especially our own, who Jesus is and what He lived is set forth as entirely for them, for us. By leading the reader to discover this for us, Peter's Successor continues the ministry of strengthening the faith of the Church (Lk 22:32) so that all my come to "believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in his name" (Jn 20:31)."
— Douglas G. Bushman, S.T.L., Director and Associate Professor, Institute for Pastoral Theology Ave Maria University

From the Publisher

Popes are known for writing encyclicals and papal bulls, not popular works on the historical Jesus, which is in any case a field well-trod by countless other authors. But Pope Benedict XVI, a.k.a. the German theologian Joseph Ratzinger, has now written the second volume in his "Jesus of Nazareth" series. (A third may be in the offing.) And this book, as with the first, is a worthy contribution to the field not only because it was written by a pope, but also because it combines solid scholarship with deep spirituality. As such it joins the Jesus of history to the Christ of faith in an accessible narrative. This volume explores the drama of Holy Week, yet it is relatively bloodless compared with other treatments. The focus is on the meaning of the events, with a strong reiteration of recent church teaching against imputing guilt for Jesus' death to the Jews of that time or now. But Benedict's explanation of the Resurrection and his phrase "evolutionary leap" to help conceive it may be the most fascinating and enduring aspect of the book. The Resurrection opens "a new dimension of human existence," the pope writes; it "points beyond history but has left a footprint within history." The same could be said of this book. (Mar. 10)

Publishers Weekly