Seeing Jesus: Visionary Encounters from the First Century to the Present

by Robert Hudson

Jesus ascended to heaven. End of story. But then how do we explain the many Christians, in nearly every century since, who claimed to have seen, heard, met, and touched Jesus in the flesh? In Seeing Jesus , Robert Hudson explores the larger-than-life characters throughout Christian history who have encountered the actual face or form of the resurrected Christ--from the apostles Thomas and Paul in the first century to Charles Finney in the nineteenth and Sundar Singh in the twentieth. Hudson combines history, biography, spiritual reflection, skepticism, and humor to unpack awe-inspiring and sometimes seemingly absurd stories, from a surprise sighting of Jesus in a cup of coffee, to Christ appearing to Julian of Norwich during a life-threatening illness to assure her that "all manner of thing shall be well." Along the way, he uncovers deeper meaning for us today. Through Hudson's quirky and lyrical prose we get to know people of unflinching faith, like Francis of Assisi, Teresa of Avila, Silouan the Athonite, and Sojourner Truth--those who claim radical encounters with Jesus. The result is a fascinating journey through Christian history that is at once thoroughly analytical and deeply devotional.

Genres: History

315 pages, Hardcover

Published November 23, 2021

Reviews

[Fergus, Weaver of Autistic Webs]

If you can't put a Face to the Name, put it down to Faith. Faith is Faceless, just as the devil's in the details. The details, once conjured up, confuse our understanding of Jesus' message - because that message constantly strides BEYOND itself in its sheer transcendence.

If you consider yourself a devout believer, don't go NEAR this one. If you're a sceptic, though, you'll be entertained. I'm not, so I wasn't.

Its attempts at lame irreverent light detail in the spirit of sanitized postmodern scepticism - like an oozing, overflowing brand-new dumpster outside of a snazzy Burger King on a detour off an unremarkable freeway in the middle of a no man's land - bear no sort of resemblance to any kind of Faith I know.

Our culture washes some pretty weird wreckage on its beach, and, being a pretty sad reflection on us all, it makes me jittery. No rest for the wicked.

That its author worked at Zondervan is no proof of its wretched pudding: for its taste is sadly lacking, and nowhere bears the nutritious gravitas of real faith.

If Dostoevsky were to read this he'd think all his work was in vain. Probably because we now all refuse to untie society's knots. He wasn't afraid of that, and found peace in the truth.

But of course that doesn't make that truth about life any less indigestible. But guess what? I saw a writeup on the book in this week's New Yorker - and this being Christmas thought I'd treat myself... If everyone else can lighten up why can't I?

I was deceived. Obviously the Grinch beat Santa down the chimney!

Don't believe everything you see in print...

This book won't boost your faith. And it might just deep-six it.

In that department, it's dead in the water.

DNF - Did not finish.

No, still better, make that RTF -

REFUSE to finish.

Now, where's that DUMPSTER, folks?

[Susan Fox · Rating 5 out of 5]

Some have seen Jesus. Some have not. Some say they have, but have they? Does it matter? Robert Hudson ably guides readers through the centuries, through the accounts of those many visionaries whose encounters with a risen Jesus both intrigue and challenge. What did they see? How, when, where and in what form did they meet Christ? Why, in fact, did they come to see Him at all? With journalistic precision, Hudson examines some of the many stories we have, from those of the disciples who met the newly resurrected Jesus, like Thomas who saw but insisted on physically touching Jesus’s wounds, to that of Sojourner Truth to whom a form “radiant with love” and heavenly beauty came as a friend. Included as well in Seeing Jesus are testimonies and examples from numerous others, like “God’s Grouch” Jerome, the mystics St. Francis of Assisi and Julian of Norwich, the “Shaking Quaker” Mother Ann Lee, and many more. Not to be forgotten are notable figures of our more contemporary times, such as Oral Roberts, who found himself surrounded by the “holy presence,” and Maria Morales Rubio who beheld Jesus in her miraculous tortilla. Much of the depth and the power of Hudson’s strikingly original book lies in the very diverse nature of the people set forth who claim to have seen Jesus as well as in the author’s quite honest, half-believing and half-skeptical look at what these disparate people have had to say, and to experience. In neither firmly denying nor firmly accepting as “real” the visionary accounts he examines, the author frees readers to indulge their own thoughts, to investigate more fully the mysterious and inexplicable, to ask themselves, in new ways, perhaps, what they, too, can “see.”

[Paula · Rating 4 out of 5]

Watson's focus on the visionaries themselves is insightful and informative. Watson admits to being "skeptical of those across the centuries who claim to have seen him. . .although I'm intrigued by the possibility," Watson presents without preaching while sharing each claim and its fruits. While there may be doubt about the claim, each vision changed that person and "others at the time and for centuries afterward."

Thoughtful and thought provoking read.

[Jose Legaspi · Rating 4 out of 5]

A seeker of faith

As I walk around I attempt to see His face. Do I see it? At the end, Robert Hudson shares his conclusion which in the face of faith, what is true, may be true, but then how do we know. His story telling is good. What is better is finding gems within the book, like the one of St. Silouan, the Athonite. His search of answers comes through clearly.

[Elsa · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’ll enjoy dipping into this book again, especially to my favourite chapters about Julian of Norwich, Sojourner Truth and Sadhu Sundar Singh, all fascinating and brave people. The writer has a really interesting mix of scepticism and hesitant faith, which offered some surprising and new perspectives for me.

[Chris · Rating 3 out of 5]

Aardig boek over visioenen van Jezus bij verschillende heiligen. Maar het blijft allemaal wat oppervlakkig en vrijblijvend helaas. Wel leuk dat er zoveel mystici besproken worden.

[Traci Rhoades · Rating 5 out of 5]

A closer look at the ways Christians have seen Jesus over the centuries. The author does a good job of including his personal stories in the work as well.