Jesus in Twentieth Century Literature, Art, and Movies

Paul C. Burns is Associate Professor Emeritus of Classical, Near Eastern and Religious Studies at the University of British Columbia, Canada.

"Burns has gathered a group of well-written scholarly reflections on 20th-century books, paintings, and movies that center on the person and purpose of Jesus. The scholars represented here are a distinguished international group from the United States, Great Britain, and Canada, and the level of writing throughout is elevated, but relatively jargon-free, making these essays more accessible than many written by specialists. The book is thus appropriate for most readers with an interest in the depiction of Jesus in modern art, literature, and cinema." - Greg Garrett, The Living Church, September 14, 2008

• IntroductionChapter One: Nino Ricci's Testament: A Creative Re-examination Using the Jesus SeminarChapter Two: Norman Mailer's Gospel: Intertextuality and Conflicted DivinityChapter Three: Kazantzakis' Passion: Tension in the Human ChristChapter Four: Lawrence's Man Who Died: A Sexualized Risen ChristChapter Five: Saramago's Gospel: "Kakaggelia," the Badspell according to Jesus ChristChapter Six: Bulgakov's Master and Marguerita: Jesus Subverts a Marxist StateChapter Seven: Jewish Portrayals of Jesus: Reclamation of Presentation and TransformationChapter Eight: Potok's Asher Lev: Crossing Crucifictional BoundariesChapter Nine: al-'Aqqad's Genius of Christ: An Innovative Muslim Approach to Christ