Reading Jesus: A Writer's Encounter with the Gospels

by Mary Gordon

In the introduction to this remarkable book, Mary Gordon is riding in a taxi as the driver listens to a religious broadcast, and she reflects that, though a lifelong Christian, she is at odds with many others who identify themselves as Christians. In an effort to understand whether or not she had “invented a Jesus to fulfill my own wishes,” she determined to read the Gospels as literature and to study Jesus as a character. What results is a vibrantly fresh and personal journey through the Gospels, as Gordon plumbs the mysteries surrounding one of history's most central figures.

In this impassioned and eye-opening book, Gordon takes us through all the fundamental stories—the Prodigal Son, the Temptation in the Desert, the parable of Lazarus, the Agony in the Garden—pondering the intense strangeness of a deity in human form, the unresolved more ambiguities, the problem posed to her as an enlightened reader by the miracle of the Resurrection. What she rediscovers—and reinterprets with her signature candor, intelligence, and straightforwardness—is a rich store of overlapping, sometimes conflicting teachings that feel both familiar and tantalizingly elusive.

It is this unsolvable conundrum that rests at the heart of Reading Jesus and with which Gordon keeps us in thrall on every page.

Genres: Religion, Nonfiction, Christian, Christianity, Theology, Audiobook, Catholic

240 pages, Hardcover

First published October 27, 2009

About the author

Mary Catherine Gordon is an American writer from Queens and Valley Stream, New York. She is the McIntosh Professor of English at Barnard College. She is best known for her novels, memoirs and literary criticism. In 2008, she was named Official State Author of New York.

Reviews

[Erin · Rating 2 out of 5]

A little slow and more like reading the author's diary than anything else. While reading the book I couldn't help but think that, especially in the sections that cross-compare similar Gospel accounts, the text could have profited from pulling in research, etc. from additional sources. The book is not wrong when it calls itself a writer's "encounter". It's just that, an "encounter" that doesn't go anywhere.

[Mary Helene · Rating 5 out of 5]

Why did I never think of this? To read the Gospels with the same kind of attention I give to poetry or a good novel! I had not expected this wonderfully piquant mixture of personal and critical. The first chapters and the last ones are the best, but she did her homework on all of it. There were no easy outs. Some of her middle chapters of things that bother her - such as "The Problem of Ascetism" - are not problems for me. But her chapter which reflects on whether a sacred text itself is responsible (for anti-Semitism, for example) is explosive stuff. I brought it up at a dinner table of 8 committed Christians, and while it's likely I presented the idea badly the reaction was fierce and negative. It hit some kind of nerve. Worth a read, this text, to see what response it draws.

[Margaret · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was disappointed! I took a fascinating "Bible as literature" course in college (20+ years ago--gulp!) and thought this sounded like an interesting refresher course. But it was brief & didn't go deep enough. She presented the different gospels' varying versions of a story but often didn't fully discuss all the differences. And it was mostly opinion & literary interpretation; I appreciate when the culture & history are brought into the picture, too.

[Courtney Cutshall · Rating 4 out of 5]

Felt like such an easy read to tear through. Gordon is so open with her thoughts - whatever they may be. While I disagree with many of her conclusions, I appreciate the questions she poses, as well as her openness to be changed in the process of reading and writing this work. A happy book to line my bookshelf, and hope it lends itself to many more conversations of this nature in my life.

[Edward · Rating 4 out of 5]

The essential question in this very readable book ("readable" for believers and unbelievers alike)that Gordon asks is why she is able to tolerate ambiguity and confusion in the Four Gospels when so many readers demand certainty. Christians, she points out, generally bowdlerize the Gospels, conveniently leaving out whatever doesn't make any sense to them. Thomas Jefferson is a prime example with his "rationalist" Bible. To her credit, Gordon has no easy answers. Like the Biblical Jacob, she wrestles mightily, and at worst, gets a draw as to a meaningful interpretation. The beauty of this book is that she's just a lay reader with no predisposed notions about what is believable and what is not. I found her refreshing

[Wil Roese · Rating 2 out of 5]

Mary Gordon my be a good writer but as demonstrated by this book she has a very shallow understand of the Gospel. She quotes from a passage in the Gospel than gives her superficial interpretation of what it means. She than shows the problems and questions her interpretation causes, but rather than admit she may have the wrong interpolation she leads the reader to beleive the problem is with the teaching of Christ.

[Ron Charles · Rating 3 out of 5]

Smart and candid reflections on the Gospels by a Roman Catholic writer who's not afraid to ask tough questions about faith:

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[Nick · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great book, Mary Gordon has read the Gospels closely and wrestled with the words and stories. I wanted her to write about every word of the four Gospels.

[Kelly Brill · Rating 4 out of 5]

I so appreciated this honest and literary reflection on the gospels. Mary Gordon, a writer of both fiction and non-fiction, and an English professor at Barnard College, found herself turned off one day by the sound of an evangelical/fundamentalist yelling on the radio, spewing an interpretation of the gospels she found quite offensive. Then she realized, "I've never really read the gospels. Growing up Catholic, we were basically told not to." So she immediately read all four gospels, then re-read them in different versions of the Bible, and then was inspired to write these reflections.

The first section is a look at the Bible stories she remembers well from childhood, and it was my favorite. As someone who has read most of these texts hundreds of time, I was excited to see the way Gordon's sharp attention to word and detail illuminated new meaning in these familiar passages. In the second section, she grapples with difficult texts and ideas (miracles, apocalypticism, perfection), and she concludes with a short chapter on the passion story.

Mary Gordon writes as both an academic who is not afraid to ask tough questions and a person of faith who has found inspiration in the stories of Jesus throughout her life. Highly recommended for anyone who is interested in the Bible, especially those of us who are eager for new insights.

[Kristel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reason Read: American author challenge and this one was available.
I was a bit afraid to read this but I have to admire the author for deciding to read the Gospels after she realized that she did not know enough to support her opinions. I appreciated how she read the Gospels and how she wrote about her reading. It's what we all should do. Read it, ponder, and write about it. I also enjoyed how she pulled in literature into her experience and her comments. Mary Gordon is a Catholic. Her father was Jewish but converted to Catholic. She is against prosperity preachers as am I but I think she thinks all protestants are of that ilk. I definitely differ from the Ms Gordon's ideas but I applaud her for reading the Gospel and writing about that experience. Don't just accept her thoughts, read the Gospels yourself.

[Brian Martin · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a very enjoyable, honest, and readable account of a writer's impression of the gospels. Mary Gordon approaches the gospels as most people do, not as a scholar of the New Testament. She is up front about this, and her book is not about pretending to have the correct interpretation to the gospels. The value of this work, for me, was in the questions she asks, and in her ability to capture her reactions to passages she read.

[Christine · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 Stars

[Becky Maddox · Rating 2 out of 5]

While there are a few insights, this book mostly feels like a stream of consciousness piece. It does not add much in the way of scholarship.

[Kathryn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Inspires one to do the same. See Jesus as a character and how one's reading and writing life flavor religious views

[John · Rating 2 out of 5]

I have just this very minute made the decision to abandon this audiobook 2/3 of the way through. Part of the problem lay with my misunderstanding that this is not a New Testament "sequel" to David Plotz's Good Book LP: The Bizarre, Hilarious, Disturbing, Marvelous, and Inspiring Things I Learned When I Read Every Single Word of the Bible; instead, Gordon analyzes the words of Jesus himself, no "commentary" or interpretation (of Paul, etc.) allowed.
Still, this might've proved interesting enough to follow through in print, but on audio I just can't manage any more enthusiasm. The author provides the same account, with minor variation, three or four times in succession in different Gospels, which might be okay to read, but highly irritating to listen to (see also: jingle variations in The Prize Winner of Defiance, Ohio: How My Mother Raised 10 Kids on 25 Words or Less). As the book went on, her "analysis" became progressively more abstract ... shall we say. She's about to launch into the topic of "asceticism", in which I have almost zero interest.
The narrator, Renee Raudman, did a good job of reading Homer's Odyssey: a Fearless Feline Tale, or How I Learned About Love and Life with a Blind Wonder Cat, but here she gets tripped up on words I'd expect a professional narrator to handle, which lessened the experience a bit.
So, I can recommend the (print) book only for folks truly interested in Biblical dissection and examination.

[katie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Color me disappointed. I wanted more. Hard to know whether I would have liked this book more as an actual page-turning, hold-in-hand book, rather than an audiobook read by a narrator who pronounces every one of Jesus' lines in a low, raspy, DirtyHarry whisper. For not being a Bible scholar, Gordon writes (at times) in a very dry, academic tone; I would prefer a non-expert at things biblical to be a little more of a poet or a regular-gal. It ended up coming off as "Well, I'm no Scripture expert, but now I'm going to write a whole book pretending I am one." During certain parts, I was left wondering, What's the point? There were moments that had me leaning in with interest for a second, but then I would eventually slump back with a sigh.

[Carrie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I happened upon this book while browsing at the library, and I've have another Mary Gordon book on my to-read list for a while, so I picked it up.

I haven't been this involved in an inner dialogue with an author in quite a while. I was intrigued by the idea of reading the Gospels in one sitting and thought she did a good job raising questions. But just when I was vehemently disagreeing with a statement or premise, she'd take an unexpected turn back to the side of believing. I still disagree with some of what she said, but then I have to remind myself that she's an author, not a scripture scholar (for all I know, I may have had more formal training in scripture).

[Jan Mcginn · Rating 4 out of 5]

A scholarly look at the narrative of the four gospels as told by a writer of fiction. A thoughtful and careful examination of many of the passages, looked at from the vantage of each author's telling of a common tale - the prodigal's son, the woman at the well, the beautitudes, the sermon on the mount, Matthew 25, the agony in the garden, the passion. And looked at through many common themes - perfection, love, divinity, anti-semitism, life-after-death, the seven last words. A very different, more human, more forgiving reading of the sacred with the conclusion that love is timeless and transcendent. Consistent with her novels.

[Francine Apollo · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've always regretted that I have not had the opportunity to take on class on the Bible as Literature. Gordon fulfills some of that interest in this book.

Mary Gordon tackles many of the same topics I have grappled with...sometimes the stories told to us by the Gospel writers are confusing, even conflicting. She asks insightful questions which led me to thinking more about passages.

As one who hears the Gospels in fragments, really, in the Celebration of Eucharist, I enjoyed her discussions on topics.

I will read the Gospels straight through again soon and I will read more of Mary Gordon.

Highly Recommended.

[Krystal · Rating 1 out of 5]

I gave this book 50 pages and could not continue. I am not one to give up on books. It makes me disappointed and anxious because I don't know how it ends. With that said, I just had no gumption to pick this book back up after my initial reading. Being very familiar with the gospels, I feel that the author's interpretation is very superficial and subjective. There was no substance that I personally could grab onto or that was enticing enough for me to continue reading, which is unfortunate because I thought the premise was quite intriguing.

[Literary Chic · Rating 2 out of 5]

Great idea but a very dry execution. The author regularly used a nebulous "One." If "One read the passage more thoroughly "One" would realize "One" misjudged the intent of the epistle. It made "One" seem like a worn text abbreviation (OMG, LOL, WTH.)

The author also made a habit of recalling her junior religious experiences as life altering epiphanies. I don't want to belittle a child's perspective of God (it's probably more accurate than most adults) but using your elementary Mass memories as proofs for what is supposed to be a scholar's reading of the gospels is just inadequate.

[Karl Nehring · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book started out well but seemed to run out of energy as it went along. I give Mary Gordon credit for tackling an interesting subject, but wish that she had spent more time and effort on it. It is as though she had some good ideas, started writing, used up her good ideas early on, then just wanted to get the book over with. This is a shame, because her first few chapters are genuinely stimulating.

[LK · Rating 4 out of 5]

While I hoped for a greater knowledge and understanding of the historical context of the Gospels, Mary Gordon provided a thorough reflection of comparative passages within the Gospels.

This is not an easy read, or maybe anything with a biblical spin is never an easy read for me. However, if you are interested in learning more on a personal, spiritual, or literal level about the Gospels, then Reading Jesus is worthwhile.

[Milton Brasher-Cunningham · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is another re-read for me. Gordon's conversation with the gospel texts is personal and thoughtful and full of much more emotion than your average commentary. It is not a scholarly work, though she has done a lot of research. It is an account of her living with the texts and working to come to terms with what resonates and what does not, even as she works to articulate her faith in the process. She did a good job of inviting me to make the same journey.

[Kelly · Rating 2 out of 5]

I found Gordon's insights uninteresting and occasionally, offensive. While she seems to admire Jesus at times, she also calls him a tyrant, and a playground bully and says that his tears over the death of Lazarus were manipulative. Clearly, when we read the Gospels, she is seeing a different Jesus than the one I do.

[HQ · Rating 3 out of 5]

I technically didn't finish this book since I had 50 pages left when I had to return it to the library, but this isn't a book to read quickly. Gordon's poetic prose introduces new thoughts and insights, and is meant to be digested bit by bit, slowly, to appreciate and integrate all the new flavors.

[Barbarawp · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very scholarly. The book raised more questions than it answered...maybe by design. I liked the author's comments on her father's death and the question on the Resurrection. I'm happy that I plodded through it to the end.

[Joanne · Rating 2 out of 5]

Gordon shows us how the narrative of Jesus is revealed by examining some key passages of the New Testament's gospel writers. It's the kind of book that is best read slowly, a bit at a time, perhaps with your own journal at hand.

[NLK · Rating 2 out of 5]

If you’re going to write a book as unnecessary as this (5 pages with filler on some of the most read and written-about texts in history?) you better have a prose style less cloying and mawkish than Gordon’s.

[Janice]

1/20/10