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Jesús en su tiempo
"Jesus in his time," Daniel-Rops, the presentation is both more accessible and more complete life of Jesus, in the light of contemporary works of historical and exegetical science.
« Jésus en son temps », de Daniel-Rops, est la présentation à la fois la plus accessible et la plus complète de la vie de Jésus, à la lumière des travaux contemporains des sciences historique et exégétique.
« Jésus en son temps », de Daniel-Rops, est la présentation à la fois la plus accessible et la plus complète de la vie de Jésus, à la lumière des travaux contemporains des sciences historique et exégétique.
632 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1945
About the author
Henri Daniel-Rops
391 books40 followersDaniel-Rops (Henri Petiot's literary pseudonym) was born in Épinal in 1901 and died in Chambéry in 1965. He was professor of history and director of Ecclesiae magazine (Paris), and became world-famous mainly for works of historiography: (1943), Jesus in his time (1945), and the ten volumes of the History of the Church of Christ (1948 - 1965). He has also authored several essays, works of children's literature and historical novels, among which are Death, where is your victory? (1934) and The Sword of Fire (1938). He was a voter for the French Academy in 1955.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
May 25, 2011
Great mix of historical, archeological and biblical information, with many explanations of Jewish customs and enlightening explanations of biblical events which differ from Gospel to Gospel, for example, what was the sequence of events on Easter morning--best explanation I have ever read. Detailed explanation of the dates given for the life of Christ, tying into the cycles of the moon for dating the final Passover, and tying into the reigns of monarchs and governors for the birth of Christ. St. Mark's Gospel is identified as most probably the recollections of St. Peter as recorded by Mark. Overall, although published in 1956, worth multiple readings for its information and inspiration.
March 19, 2021
I really enjoyed this and it wound up becoming my main Lenten reading. Henri Daniel-Rops gives us a look at Jesus's life which is a pleasing blend of the factual and inspirational. He would stop along the way to ponder the actual dates of particular events, look at archaeological evidence, and inform about Jewish and Roman customs. This gives us historical context. He also occasionally considered deeper reflections about the salvation story and Jesus himself in ways that both enlightened and inspired me.
This book was written in 1956 so some of the factual information may be a bit out of date but, if so, it is not enough to really matter. I'll be reading this one again.
This book was written in 1956 so some of the factual information may be a bit out of date but, if so, it is not enough to really matter. I'll be reading this one again.
August 26, 2024
A FRENCH CATHOLIC WRITER & HISTORIAN LOOKS AT JESUS' LIFE
Daniel-Rops (1901-1965; real name "Henri Petiot") was a French writer and historian, who wrote many books such as 'Daily Life in the Time of Jesus,' 'The book of Mary,' 'The Church in the Dark Ages,' etc. This book was written in 1956.
He observes of the gospels, "Yet more remarkable than the similarities are the differences, for these are many and not all are to be explained by the differing temperaments and literary skill of the writers. Some of them are in fact inexplicable... Other passages, although the profound meaning is not affected, show differences of detail...
"These differences, however, are not very formidable. In fact they support rather than tell against the credibility of the Gospels, for whereas in essentials the three accounts conform with each other, the small differences that we are dealing with are three separate testimonies given by men who are not slavishly copying each other." (Pg. 40-41)
He adds, "So there is a double difference between the synoptic Gospels and the Fourth. The latter includes a certain number of facts which the others do not mention... It seems as though the author of the Fourth Gospel ... sought to supplement them by reference to another and different testimony... It is obvious that the writer was a mystic, concerned not merely with faith but with metaphysical speculation." (Pg. 42)
He suggests that "With regard to [Mt 2:23], it may as well be admitted that the words, 'he shall be called a Nazarene,' cannot be found in any part of the Old Testament... The etymology of the word Nazareth, however, is related to a root meaning branch, shoot or seed, and possibly, with an Oriental's love of word play and imagery, St. Matthew was referring to those prophecies where the Messias is announced as 'a scion'...'" (Pg. 105-106)
With regard to the date of the Last Supper, he admits, "the great feast day must have been the fifteenth day of Nisan. The Passover lamb was eaten on the evening of that day. The synoptics, however, suggest that the Last Supper... was the Passover feast, but St. John says plainly that the day of the paschal meal (not the day Jesus ate the meal) was the day on which he died... St. John himself states that the Pharisees ate the Passover after the death of Jesus (18:28).
From various indications in the synoptics it seems clear that the day when Jesus died was not a holy day when normal activities were proscribed... We cannot go into all the interpretations in order to force the two versions to a mathematical coincidence... We still have to explain why Jesus and the Pharisees should not have celebrated the feast on the same day... it is enough to say that most modern authorities accept the chronology of St. John." (Pg. 344-345)
Of Jesus' trial before Caiphas, he comments, "It was not blasphemy to state that he was the Messias. Caiphas put forward that Jesus had no right to say so, but there was no legal justification of his case... The accusation of blasphemy in fact was groundless. The appeal of Caiphas to the court to consider Jesus condemned was even more flagrantly illegal than the rest of the proceedings... But forms can always be disregarded when it is a question of overthrowing a political adversary..." (Pg. 367)
He asserts, "There can be no critical justification for accepting the joint evidence of the four Evangelists down to the death of Jesus and refusing to do so after the Resurrection for the reason that the facts reported are disconcerting to our habits of thought. There is, however, one reservation to be made and it is important. The four Evangelists record very briefly the events following the Resurrection... There is an obvious disproportion between the significance of the fact and the brevity with which it is related... The restraint of the record in the four canonical Gospels is in fact a strong proof of their authenticity." (Pg. 427)
For those Catholics wanting a historically-detailed, traditional history of Jesus' life, this book will be of keen interest.
Daniel-Rops (1901-1965; real name "Henri Petiot") was a French writer and historian, who wrote many books such as 'Daily Life in the Time of Jesus,' 'The book of Mary,' 'The Church in the Dark Ages,' etc. This book was written in 1956.
He observes of the gospels, "Yet more remarkable than the similarities are the differences, for these are many and not all are to be explained by the differing temperaments and literary skill of the writers. Some of them are in fact inexplicable... Other passages, although the profound meaning is not affected, show differences of detail...
"These differences, however, are not very formidable. In fact they support rather than tell against the credibility of the Gospels, for whereas in essentials the three accounts conform with each other, the small differences that we are dealing with are three separate testimonies given by men who are not slavishly copying each other." (Pg. 40-41)
He adds, "So there is a double difference between the synoptic Gospels and the Fourth. The latter includes a certain number of facts which the others do not mention... It seems as though the author of the Fourth Gospel ... sought to supplement them by reference to another and different testimony... It is obvious that the writer was a mystic, concerned not merely with faith but with metaphysical speculation." (Pg. 42)
He suggests that "With regard to [Mt 2:23], it may as well be admitted that the words, 'he shall be called a Nazarene,' cannot be found in any part of the Old Testament... The etymology of the word Nazareth, however, is related to a root meaning branch, shoot or seed, and possibly, with an Oriental's love of word play and imagery, St. Matthew was referring to those prophecies where the Messias is announced as 'a scion'...'" (Pg. 105-106)
With regard to the date of the Last Supper, he admits, "the great feast day must have been the fifteenth day of Nisan. The Passover lamb was eaten on the evening of that day. The synoptics, however, suggest that the Last Supper... was the Passover feast, but St. John says plainly that the day of the paschal meal (not the day Jesus ate the meal) was the day on which he died... St. John himself states that the Pharisees ate the Passover after the death of Jesus (18:28).
From various indications in the synoptics it seems clear that the day when Jesus died was not a holy day when normal activities were proscribed... We cannot go into all the interpretations in order to force the two versions to a mathematical coincidence... We still have to explain why Jesus and the Pharisees should not have celebrated the feast on the same day... it is enough to say that most modern authorities accept the chronology of St. John." (Pg. 344-345)
Of Jesus' trial before Caiphas, he comments, "It was not blasphemy to state that he was the Messias. Caiphas put forward that Jesus had no right to say so, but there was no legal justification of his case... The accusation of blasphemy in fact was groundless. The appeal of Caiphas to the court to consider Jesus condemned was even more flagrantly illegal than the rest of the proceedings... But forms can always be disregarded when it is a question of overthrowing a political adversary..." (Pg. 367)
He asserts, "There can be no critical justification for accepting the joint evidence of the four Evangelists down to the death of Jesus and refusing to do so after the Resurrection for the reason that the facts reported are disconcerting to our habits of thought. There is, however, one reservation to be made and it is important. The four Evangelists record very briefly the events following the Resurrection... There is an obvious disproportion between the significance of the fact and the brevity with which it is related... The restraint of the record in the four canonical Gospels is in fact a strong proof of their authenticity." (Pg. 427)
For those Catholics wanting a historically-detailed, traditional history of Jesus' life, this book will be of keen interest.
April 10, 2022
This is one of the best life of Christ that I have read. Henri Daniel-Rops was knighted by Pope Pius XII for this book, which tells you how influential it was in the middle of the 20th century. He was a fallen away Catholic turned agnostic who found his way back to the Church. His encyclopedic knowledge and clear writing are a testament to a man who has clearly meditated much on the life of Christ and has integrated his many experiences into his lens. He refers frequently to French churches and art museums referring to works of art that come close to elucidating a particular aspect of Christ's life. He also brings in his knowledge and experience of visiting the Holy Land. Most of all, he reflects and gives his take on difficult passages and on heretical opinions. He is always charitable and frequently uses the words of others to show the babel of inconsistencies. There is much fruit for good meditation here.
February 22, 2023
Une étude complète du contexte dans lequel a vécu Jésus. L'auteur y mêle habilement sa connaissance archéologique et artistique qui permet de voir comment les facettes de la vie de Jésus ont été exprimées par les peintres et les artistes au long des siècles. Daniel Rops vaut d'être connu pour son oeuvre monumentale sur le christianisme.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews