My Neighbor Jesus - in the Light of His Own Language, People and Time

Neighbor Jesus In the Light of His Own Language, People, and Time by GEORGE M. LAMSA. Originally published in 1932. Contents include: Prefatory Note Ix Introduction xiii I. Nearer to Jesus i II. God Our Father 1 1 IIL The Healer 18 IV. A Test Case 32 V. The Courageous Challenge 37 VI. True Treasure 48 VII. Oriental Hospitality 55 VIII. Rich Men 59 IX. Let the Dead Bury the Dead 68 X. Days of Gloom 73 V1H CONTENTS XL At the Gate 85 XII. Washing the Feet 97 XIIL The Betrayal 104 XIV. Before Pilate 122 XV. On the Cross 129 XVI. The Resurrection 140 Prefatory Note The author of this book is an Assyrian. His people, now struggling for bare existence in a non-fertile corner of Iraq, are the pitiful surviving remnant of that conquering race which for thousands of years dominated the fertile heart of Asia Minor, living and writing mighty volumes of world art and world history. They that once came down like a wolf on the fold are themselves today scattered Christian sheep, harried by their fierce neighbors. These present Assyrians, largely mixed with the blood of the captive Tribes, represent the old est existing Christian Church. Their bishops claim an unbroken succession stretching back practically to the time of Jesus. Their Gospel text dates from the second century, nearly two hundred years closer to the event than the Greek MSS. on which our version is based, and free from that translation into a foreign idiom which proverbially de stroys the integrity of the written word. Their native tongue, alone of all spoken now, is that Aramaic Jesus spoke. They still live and think and talk as did the people among whom Jesus was born and to whom he revealed his message. Mr. Lamsa grew up and was trained for the priesthood amid these unchanged ancient cus toms and traditions. From this background of a peculiar intimacy, and with tireless study of the neglected old Aramaic MSS., the author has drawn a portrait of Jesus through native eyes, bringing fresh illumination on many points to Western readers. Again and again dark and troublesome passages, on which commentators have produced libraries of labored explanation, become clear and obvious in the light of the colloquial speech, which the writer knows as only a native knows a language, and the local Oriental habits of thought of those for whom our Gospels were first recorded. Strangely enough, considering the vast literature on the subject, this seems to be the first such presentation of the historical Jesus by one who speaks Aramaic. HENRY WYSHAM LANIER