Contents

Editorial Statement

Preface

Introduction

The Postcolonial Context of Jewish Scholarly Interest in the Historical Jesus

Jesus: Jewish Receptions

Chapter 1 Historical Jesus Research: A Reception History

The Modern Quest of a Historical Jesus as a Quest for His Reception

The Development of Reception History as a Tool

Reception History: Global Dimensions

Reception History as a Secularization of the Interpretation of Scripture

Reception Theory in Relation to the Jewish Quest

Creating Space: The Emergence of New Hermeneutical and Methodological Paradigms

Chapter 2 The Jewish Jesus Quest and the Wissenschaft des Judentums

The Pre-Enlightenment Jewish Jesus

The Emergence of the Wissenschaft des Judentums

The Wissenschaft des Judentums and the Historical Jesus

The Wissenschaft des Judentums and the Concept of a Personal Messiah

The Legacy of the Wissenschaft des Judentums

Chapter 3 Reclaimed or Reclaiming? Recent Jewish Approaches to Jesus’s Wirkungsgeschichte

Jewish Jesus Research: Where to Draw the Line?

My Previous Contribution

Géza Vermès: Concluding the Classical Era of Jewish Jesus Research?

Diversity in the Reception History of the Jewish Jesus

The Jewish Jesus in Literature

Recent Jewish Approaches to Jesus

The Contribution of Archaeology to Historical Jesus Studies

Chapter 4 Jewish Quests and Christian Problems

The Jewish Quest of the Historical Jesus: In Search for Equality and Acceptance

The Historical Jesus: Challenges to Jewish-Christian Dialogue

The Myth of the Judeo-Christian West

Jesus the Jew: Implications for Future Christian Theology

Back to the Roots? The Value of Christian Hellenism

Jewish Jesus Research: Paving the Way for Common Ground

Conclusion: Implications and Future Perspectives

Bibliography

Index