Taught by God: Making Sense of the Difficult Sayings of Jesus

by Daniel Fanous

Few would dispute that the sayings of Jesus were and are important. But though important, these very same sayings are difficult at best and incomprehensible at worst. Sayings like, "The kingdom of heaven suffers violence," or, "I did not come to bring peace but a sword," have confused readers of the Gospels for thousands of years. Others such as, "My Father is greater than I," and, "My God why have You forsaken Me?" have sparked theological infernos that have plagued Christianity from its beginnings. From the greatest theologians to the smallest child, the same question is always What did Jesus really mean? In considering only the most difficult of the sayings of Jesus, Taught by God brings together the academic rigour of modern biblical scholarship and the profound wisdom of the early Church Fathers in a unique, lively, and dramatic synthesis.

Genres: Religion

260 pages, Paperback

First published December 13, 2010

Reviews

[Saint Katherine BookstoreVA]

"The people of Israel fell over the stone that makes people stumble, just as God says in the Scriptures, “Look! I am placing in Zion a stone to make people stumble and fall. But those who have faith in that one will never be disappointed.” (Romans 9:32-33)

Just as so many of the Israelites stumbled, so do we. Christ did not (and does not!) conform to the notions accepted by the larger culture. The more deeply we look, the more He challenges our shallow and rigid understanding. Jesus forces us to answer for ourselves, But who do you
say that I am?, but how can we avoid tripping over challenging and seemingly inconsistent utterances such as these: It is not good to take the children's bread and to throw it to dogs, I did not come to bring peace, but a sword, or My Father is greater than I?

Taught by God helps clear the way to understanding these and a dozen more daunting sayings of Jesus. When reading a Fanous book, one can only be impressed by the depth of degree to which he can simultaneously convey history, theology, and pastoral concerns. His prose is straight-forward and his reasoning is deep, but usually easy to follow.

Regarding the Syrophoenician woman begging healing (“bread”) for her daughter, Fanous suggests:

"Without realizing, the woman was begging to be seated under the table of the kingdom. . . . If one was within the kingdom of God, even as a dog, then one was necessarily not in the kingdom of Satan. The crumbs she sought were crumbs of life. This woman found a place within the kingdom through her humility “having changed what she was” (p. 103).

On “not peace, but a sword”, he writes: Jesus comes wielding a sword to destroy all that is false,
to destroy each and every false construct that stands between man and his neighbor, so that they might live in Him as one, as His body. It is through this swords and division that “the one real (for it is Divine) unity enters into the world . . . through it every division is overcome and shall be fully conquered, so that God may be all in all (Schmemann, p. 129).

Fanous succeeds by placing all these sayings in the context of Jesus’ Jewish heritage and His ministry to His people. Then he shows how the Church, in reflecting on these teachings as it grew in the Spirit, came to the only conclusions that fit the life and words of Christ as a totality. Fanous goes on to assess the thoughts of modern Christian and Jewish theologians and scholars on these sayings and their first-century context. All in all, Fanous provides a thoroughly documented and well thought out foundation for his analysis

[jolina · Rating 4 out of 5]

it was a good book like i learned a LOT, but i did not like how this author wrote- too complicated as in he would ask a question, answer himself, asks another that’s OPPOSITE his answer which made zero sense. good book tho

[Holy Transfiguration Bookstore · Rating 4 out of 5]

The people of Israel fell over the stone that makes people stumble, just as God says in the Scriptures, ‘Look! I am placing in Zion a stone to make people stumble and fall. But those who have faith in that one will never be disappointed.’(Rm 9:32-33)

Just as so many of the Israelites stumbled, so do we. Christ did not (and does not!) conform to the notions accepted by the larger culture. The more deeply we look, the more He challenges our shallow and rigid understanding. Jesus forces us to answer for ourselves, “But who do you say that I am?”, but how can we avoid tripping over challenging and seemingly inconsistent utterances such as these: “It is not good to take the children's bread and to throw it to dogs.”, “I did not come to bring peace, but a sword.”, or “My Father is greater than I.”?

Taught by God helps clear the way to understanding these and a dozen more daunting sayings of Jesus. When reading a Fanous book, one can only be impressed by the depth of degree to which he can simultaneously convey history, theology, and pastoral concerns. His prose is straight-forward and his reasoning is deep, but usually easy to follow.

Regarding the Syrophoenician woman begging healing (“bread”) for her daughter, Fanous suggests:

Without realizing, the woman was begging to be seated under the table of the kingdom. … If one was within the kingdom of God, even as a dog, then one was necessarily not in the kingdom of Satan. The crumbs she sought were crumbs of life. This woman found a place within the kingdom through her humility ‘having changed what she was’.” (103)

On “not peace, but a sword”, he writes:

Jesus comes wielding a sword to destroy all that is false, to destroy each and every false construct that stands between man and his neighbor, so that they might live in Him as one, as His body. It is through this swords and division that ‘the one real (for it is Divine) unity enters into the world …through it every division is overcome and shall be fully conquered, so that God may be all in all.’ (Schmemann) (129)

Fanous succeeds by placing all these sayings in the context of Jesus’ Jewish heritage and His ministry to His people. Then he shows how the Church, in reflecting on these teachings as it grew in the Spirit, came to the only conclusions that fit the life and words of Christ as a totality. Fanous goes on to assess the thoughts of modern Christian and Jewish theologians and scholars on these sayings and their first-century context. All in all, Fanous provides a thoroughly documented and well thought out foundation for his analysis.

[mRizk · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such an informative and reconciling piece, filled with treasures and epiphanies.

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

I first heard from Rev. Dr. Daniel Fanous when he was interviewed on Ancient Faith Radio's "Ancient Faith Today with Kevin Allen" live call-in show. This was several years ago, and I remember being fascinated by his discussion of some of the confusing statements in the Gospels. This year I came across his *Taught by God* in a list of books available from St. Barbara Monastery, and I decided to purchase it. My husband, Ariel, and I really want to understand everything we read, and, in the Bible, that especially matters! We read the book together, and it was truly fascinating!

I absolutely loved the methodical way in which the author built each of his arguments. He illuminates the context of the Gospels, which modern readers struggle to understand simply because we don't live in the same time and place. While the details of the explanations could get confusing at times, the author laid everything out step by step so that I was able to follow his logical progressions. I felt like he thinks the way I do, and I found that I had a much greater understanding of a topic once I finished reading his discussion of it.

One of my favorite sections sheds light on the scene in Mark 7 and--the more detailed version--Matthew 15, when Jesus is approached by a Syro-Phoenician woman, who begs him for healing for her demon-possessed daughter. First the author describes in detail why the passage is confusing and can even cause embarrassment for Christians at Jesus's seemingly harsh response to the Gentile woman. He talks about suggestions that some people have made for interpreting the scene in a less shocking way, and he explains why he thinks those approaches miss the mark. Then, he lays out his interpretation: the Lord is giving the woman an opportunity to develop and demonstrate humility and faith, so that she can become a believer and be able to receive His healing for her and her daughter. As Fr. Fanous writes, "He seeks not to hurt a woman in need, but to bring her to glory. He places her in abandonment, and watches in amazement as the mustard seed within her becomes a majestic forest. As he insults her, his heart weeps. As she grows, his heart rejoices" (p. 115). I love that this section demonstrates how God allows struggle in our lives *in His love for us*, so that we can become more fully the holy people He created us to be.

I highly recommend *Taught by God: Making Sense of the Difficult Sayings of Jesus* for anyone who wants to think carefully through the difficult-to-understand parts of the Gospel. This book deepened my ability to connect with the Gospel text and, most importantly, with Who Jesus is, from my own time and place that are so far removed from Jesus's earthly context. I was very impressed with Fr. Daniel Fanous's work, and I am looking forward to reading more from him.

[Радостин Марчев · Rating 4 out of 5]

Това е една добра книга съдържаща солидна егзегетиката почерпана от някои от най-добрите съвременни книги и автори – използваната библиография е много стойностна. Не мога да се сетя за нещо основно, с което да не съм съгласен.
Големият недостатък на книгата за мен е липсата на какъвто и да е принос от страна на автора. Под това нямам в предвид просто използването на материали развити от други автори – това е неизбежно при такъв вид изследване – всъщност да не се направи би било изключително глупаво. Но аз оставам с впечатлението, че той е чел много и след това е издал книга състояща се от copy/paste на части от прочетеното без да вложи нищо свое. По този начин човек, който се занимава с донякъде по-сериозно с новозаветна егзегетика трудно ще намери нещо ново в нея – като цяло почти всичко е добре известно в полето. От тази гледна точка смисълът на подобен труд ми се струва донякъде съмнителен и със сигурност не бих го оценил като "принос" към темите, които разглежда. Точно заради това се колебаех дали да дам 3 или 4 звезди на иначе много добре проученото съдържание.
От друга страна нещата могат да бъдат погледнати и от различен ъгъл. Аз давам сметка, че вероятно за доста хора подобно събиране на информация на едно място би могло да бъде полезно. Ако това е така и трудът на автора реално помага на “редовите” християни то книгата си е съвсем “наред” и има своя смисъл и място – без значение, че според мен не носи никакъв реален научен принос. Така че оценката до голяма степен би зависела от гледната точка и от целта, която си поставя автора.

[Baher Mikhail · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a must read book for any Christian; it poses the difficult questions of the most challenging sayings of Jesus. He takes us back to the society of the first century Palestine. He journeys with us through the pages of the Torah, the Church Fathers, and modern and Jewish scholars, to decode Jesus most difficult sayings.

[Ted · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked the book - good Orthodox hermeneutics, looking at both Patristic and modern commentaries on the difficult texts. I liked his willingness to approach and think through the sayings of Christ. Very much on par with other excellent biblical scholarly commentaries.