Resurrection Logic: How Jesus' First Followers Believed God Raised Him from the Dead

by Bruce Chilton

Death does not speak the final word. Resurrection does. Christianity stands or falls with this central God raised Jesus from the dead. Bruce Chilton investigates the Easter event of Jesus in  Resurrection Logic . He undertakes his close reading of the New Testament texts without privileging the exact nature of the resurrection, but rather begins by situating his study of the resurrection in the context of Sumerian, Egyptian, Greek, and Syrian conceptions of the afterlife. He then identifies Jewish monotheistic affirmations of bodily resurrection in the Second Temple period as the most immediate context for early Christian claims. Chilton surveys first-generation accounts of Jesus’ resurrection and finds a pluriform―and even at times seemingly contradictory―range of testimony from Jesus’ first followers. This diversity, as Chilton demonstrates, prompted early Christianity to interpret the resurrection traditions by means of prophecy and coordinated narrative. In the end, Chilton points to how the differing conceptions of the ways that God governs the world produced distinct understandings―or "sciences"―of the Easter event. Each understanding contained its own internal logic, which contributed to the collective witness of the early church handed down through the canonical text. In doing so, Chilton reveals the full tapestry of perspectives held together by the common-thread confession of Jesus’ ongoing life and victory over death.

319 pages, Hardcover

Published September 1, 2019

About the author

Bruce Chilton (sometimes Bruce D. Chilton) (born 1949) is an American scholar of early Christianity and Judaism.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bruce_C...

Reviews

[David Graieg · Rating 2 out of 5]

I gave it two stars because I found the book to be okay. But it probably is a four-star book, in terms of its academic research. Anyways Chilton argues that Jesus rose bodily, but not physically. Chilton basically understands the different resurrection accounts to be presenting contradictory accounts of Jesus' resurrection. For instance, Jesus was present with Peter in the sense that Peter felt forgiveness and went on to offer forgiveness to others. Or to the Pentecost believers, Jesus is with God and able to send the Spirit, hence, he is raised. In the case of the 12 (11), Jesus is present because he continues to teach them, and they are able to develop his teaching and hand it on to others. The disciples on the road to Emmaus were able to interpret scripture as Jesus did; hence, Jesus is symbolically present. Therefore, Jesus, as a living presence, is experienced in a variety of ways.