How Jesus Became God: The Exaltation of a Jewish Preacher from Galilee

by Bart D. Ehrman

Overview

In a book that took eight years to research and write, leading Bible scholar Bart D. Ehrman explores how an apocalyptic prophet from the backwaters of rural Galilee crucified for crimes against the state came to be thought of as equal with the one God Almighty Creator of all things.

Ehrman sketches Jesus's transformation from a human prophet to the Son of God exalted to divine status at his resurrection. Only when some of Jesus's followers had visions of him after his death—alive again—did anyone come to think that he, the prophet from Galilee, had become God. And what they meant by that was not at all what people mean today.

As a historian—not a believer—Ehrman answers the questions: How did this transformation of Jesus occur? How did he move from being a Jewish prophet to being God? The dramatic shifts throughout history reveal not only why Jesus's followers began to claim he was God, but also how they came to understand this claim in so many different ways.

Written for secular historians of religion and believers alike, How Jesus Became God will engage anyone interested in the historical developments that led to the affirmation at the heart of Christianity: Jesus was, and is, God.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780062252197
Publisher:	HarperCollins Publishers
Publication date:	03/25/2014
Sold by:	HARPERCOLLINS
Format:	eBook
Pages:	416
Sales rank:	28,928
File size:	624 KB

About the Author

Bart D. Ehrman is one of the most renowned and controversial Bible scholars in the world today. A master explainer of Christian history, texts, and traditions, his work continues to drive debate among supporters and detractors alike. Ehrman is the James A. Gray Distinguished Professor of Religious Studies at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, and is the author of more than twenty books, including the New York Times bestselling Misquoting Jesus; God's Problem; Jesus, Interrupted; and Forged. Ehrman has appeared on Dateline NBC, The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, CNN, the History Channel, and top NPR programs, and he has been featured in Time, the New York Times, The New Yorker, The Washington Post, and more.

Editorial Reviews

Bart Ehrman (Misquoting Jesus; Jesus, Interrupted) has written more than a score of books about the New Testament, but his latest addresses perhaps the most important issue yet: How did Jesus become regarded as the divine Son of God? The product of eight years of research and writing, How Jesus Became God traces the process by which a crucified apocalyptic prophet became recognized as the universal savior. Ehrman's accessible, closely argued narrative is certain to be controversial and much discussed.

02/10/2014
Challenging traditional notions about Jesus and the New Testament with biblical scholarship is something that Ehrman, professor of religious studies at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, and prolific author (Misquoting Jesus) has been doing for years. This book will likely ruffle the same feathers with its discussion of how the man from Galilee came to be seen as God. Appealing to nonexperts interested in historical questions about the development of Christianity’s central and most basic tenets, Ehrman traces ancient ideas about divinity that likely informed Jesus and his followers, through the biblical record, and into early Christianity. In the process, he shows how claims about Jesus’ divinity as it was understood by Jesus and his followers demand nuance. The material leads to some arguments from silence, but Ehrman is careful to note what we can and cannot know, especially where history leaves off and faith begins. As it makes strong scholarship on fundamental issues available to general readers, this is an important addition to the corpus of books about the historical Jesus. (Apr.)

Publishers Weekly

Ehrman writes very personally, especially in the beginning, and this approach draws the reader into a subject that is littered with curves and contradictions... This fascinating discussion will engage—and provoke—a wide audience.

Booklist

This careful book starts where the ‘historical Jesus’ accounts ends and lays outhow this absorbing story continued for centuries. Candid and direct, it unfoldswhat often seem to be the unnecessarily complicated controversies that dividedearly Christians in a fair and understandable manner.

Harvey Cox

Ehrman’s book raises questions that should interest us all... [and] represents a genuine conversation among informed scholars.

Christian Century

Bart Ehrman has made a career of zeroing in on some of the most difficult questions at the intersection of faith and history.

Boston Globe

How did ancient monotheism allow the One God to have a ‘son’? Bart Ehrman tells this story, introducing the reader to a Jewish world thick with angels, cosmic powers, and numberless semi-divinities. How Jesus Became God provides a lively overview of Nicea’s prequel.

Paula Fredriksen

In this lively and provocative book, Ehrman gives a nuanced and wide-ranging discussion of early Christian Christology. Tracing the developing understanding of Jesus, Ehrman shows his skills as an interpreter of both biblical and nonbiblical texts. This is an important, accessible work by a scholar of the first rank.

Michael Coogan

HOW JESUS BECAME GOD makes the most astonishing and complex topic in the history of Christianity accessible to every reader, and offers a clear and balanced discussion of how various Christians–and non- Christians-see Jesus.

Elaine Pagels

Ehrman writes with vigor and clarity, but above all with intellectual honesty.He demystifies a subject on which biblical scholars too often equivocate. Bothbelievers and non-believers can learn much from this book.

John J. Collins

This careful book starts where the ‘historical Jesus’ accounts ends and lays outhow this absorbing story continued for centuries. Candid and direct, it unfoldswhat often seem to be the unnecessarily complicated controversies that dividedearly Christians in a fair and understandable manner.

Hollis Research Professor of Divinity at HarvardHollis Research Professor of Divinity at HarvardHarv