Zealot

Sifting through centuries of mythmaking, Reza Aslan sheds new light on one of history's most influential and enigmatic figures by examining Jesus within the context of the times in which he lived: the age of zealotry, an era awash in apocalyptic fervour. Balancing the Jesus of the Gospels against historical sources, Aslan describes a complex figure: a man of peace who exhorted his followers to arm themselves; an exorcist and faith healer who urged his disciples to keep his identity secret; and the seditious 'King of the Jews', whose promise of liberation from Rome went unfulfilled in his lifetime. Aslan explores why the early Church preferred to promulgate an image of Jesus as a peaceful spiritual teacher rather than a politically conscious revolutionary, and grapples with the riddle of how Jesus understood himself. Zealot provides a fresh perspective on one of the greatest stories ever told. The result is a thought-provoking, elegantly written biography with the pulse of a fast-paced novel, and a singularly brilliant portrait of a man, a time and the birth of a religion.

Reza Aslan is an internationally acclaimed writer and scholar of religions. His first book, No God but God: The Origins, Evolution, and Future of Islam, has been translated into thirteen languages and was cited by Blackwell's as one of the 100 most important books of the decade. He is also the author of Zealot: The Life and Times of Jesus of Nazareth (The Westbourne Press), How to Win a Cosmic War: God, Globalization and the End of the War on Terror and God: A Human History, as well as the editor of Tablet & Pen: Literary Landscapes from the Modern Middle East. Born in Iran, he lives in Los Angeles with his wife and two sons.

Contents: Map: First-Century Palestine xiii The Temple in Jerusalem xv Author's Note xvii Introduction xxiii Chronology xxxiii Part I Prologue: A Different Sort of Sacrifice 3 Chapter One: A Hole in the Corner 10 Chapter Two: King of the Jews 17 Chapter Three: You Know Where I Am From 25 Chapter Four: The Fourth Philosophy 34 Chapter Five: Where Is Your Fleet to Sweep the Roman Seas? 46 Chapter Six: Year One 57 Part II Prologue: Zeal for Your House 73 Chapter Seven: The Voice Crying Out in the Wilderness 80 Chapter Eight: Follow Me 90 Chapter Nine: By the Finger of God 103 Chapter Ten: May Your Kingdom Come 115 Chapter Eleven: Who Do You Say I Am? 127 Chapter Twelve: No King but Caesar 146 Part III Prologue: God Made Flesh 163 Chapter Thirteen: If Christ Has Not Been Risen 172 Chapter Fourteen: Am I Not an Apostle? 183 Chapter Fifteen: The Just One 197 Epilogue: True God from True God 213 Acknowledgments 217 Notes 219 Bibliography 273 Index 283