A Marginal Jew, Rethinking the Historical Jesus: Volume One

A Marginal Jew, Rethinking the Historical Jesus: Volume One, the Roots of the Problem and the Person.
John P. Meier.
Doubleday. 1991.
ISBN: 9780385264259.
 
A Marginal Jew, Volume 1 lays out Meier’s method for studying Jesus historically, focusing first on the sources and the problem of reconstructing Jesus from limited evidence. It also examines what can be said about Jesus’ early life and identity using historical-critical methods. Meier’s project is influential because he tries to build a consensus portrait of Jesus that would be acceptable to historians of different religious commitments. The title “Marginal Jew” reflects his view that Jesus stood on the margins of his society, even though his influence later became central in Western history.
 
John P. Meier was an American Catholic priest and biblical scholar, born in New York City in 1942 and died in 2022 at age 80. He taught New Testament and theology at St. Joseph’s Seminary, the Catholic University of America, and later the University of Notre Dame, where he became professor emeritus. He was widely regarded as one of the leading historical Jesus scholars of his generation.