The First Coming

Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly

Far from believing that he was founding a new religion, Jesus of Nazareth, according to Sheehan, a Loyola theologian, preached the end of religion and the living presence of God among men and women. ``This controversial and important book rethinks the origins and meaning of Christianity,'' reported PW. (August)

Library Journal

Sheehan, professor of philosophy at Loyola, argues that Jesus dispensed with literal gods and formal religions, preaching a Kingdom of God within. He did not regard himself as divine but was made Savior and Son of God by the church. To recover His Kingdom, we must realize that ``God has disappeared into justice and mercy''; ours is ``the worldly task of human liberation.'' Sheehan follows an argument long present in liberal theology, though one new wrinkle is his emphasis on Simon Peter's role in the misinterpretation of Jesus. Those interested in the ongoing efforts to reinterpret Jesus for the 20th century will want to read this scholarly book. Recommended for large public and academic libraries. BOMC and Quality Paperback alternate. C. Robert Nixon, M.L.S., West Lafayette, Ind.