Life of Jesus Critically Examined, The by David Friedrich Strauss (1808 - 1874)

by LibriVox

Strauss was an early pioneer in the ongoing 'Quest of the Historical Jesus' movement, and his Life of Jesus is one of the few landmarks in the field. The first edition of Strauss' book was published in Germany in 1835, when he was only 27 years old. He focused his attention on battling two theological fronts which were current at the time - the biblical Literalists who believed the miracles in the Gospels were to be taken as literal history, and the Rationalists, who believed that the Gospel miracles were true but could be explained by natural and rational causes. Strauss rejected both camps and, in a historical analysis of the Gospels that was scrupulous and exhaustive, concluded that our knowledge of the Historical Jesus is hopelessly buried under layers of legend and myth.

The price that Strauss paid for publication was high – his book scandalized Europe, and cost him his job as Chair of Theology at the University of Zurich, and ultimately his career. Dozens of books, mostly from Germany, were written in rebuttal. The school of Rationalism died in the 19th century, due in no small part to Strauss' criticism. The school of Literalism that Strauss criticized evolved into Fundamentalism in the early 20th century, which was in large part a reaction to the groundbreaking path started by Strauss and his revolutionary book.

Medical missionary Albert Schweitzer described Strauss' Life of Jesus as, "one of the most perfect things in the whole range of learned literature. In over fourteen hundred pages he has not a superfluous phrase; his analysis descends to the minutest details, but he does not lose his way among them; his style is simple and picturesque, sometimes ironical, but always dignified and distinguished". (Introduction by JoeD)

More
Recent Episodes
  • 000 - Introduction by Professor Otto Pfleiderer, Latin prologue, Preface
    – 01:03:36
  • 001 - Introduction §1 Inevitable Rise of Different Modes of Explaning Sacred Histories
    – 00:04:21
  • 002 - Introduction §2 Different Explanations of Sacred Legends Among the Greeks
    – 00:03:05
  • 003 - Introduction §3 Allegorical Interpretations Among the Hebrews - Philo
    – 00:03:09
  • 004 - Introduction §4 Allegorical interpretations among the Christians - Origen
    – 00:08:15
  • 005 - Introduction §5 Transition to More Modern Times, Deists and Naturalists of the 17th and 18th Centuries, The Wolfenbüttel Fragmentist
    – 00:11:18
  • 006 - Introduction §6 Natural Mode of Explanation Adopted by the Rationalists. Eichhorn. Paulus
    – 00:18:19
  • 007 - Introduction §7 Moral Interpretation of Kant
    – 00:05:19
  • 008 - Introduction §8 Rise of the mythical mode of interpreting the sacred history, in reference first to the Old Testament
    – 00:21:33
  • 009 - Introduciton §9 The mythical mode of interpretation in reference to the New Testament
    – 00:08:22
  • 010 - Introduction §10 The notion of the mythus in its application to sacred histories not clearly apprehended by theologians
    – 00:17:30
  • 011 - Introduction §11 The application of the notion of the mythus too circumscribed
    – 00:09:10
  • 012 - Introduction §12 Opposition to the mythical view of the gospel history
    – 00:15:44
  • 013 - Introduction §13 The possibility of the existence of mythi in the New Testament considered in reference to the external evidences
    – 00:27:37
  • 014 - Introduction §14 The possibility of mythi in the New Testament considered on internal grounds
    – 00:47:48
  • 015 - Introduction §15 Definition of the evangelical mythus, and its distinctive characteristics
    – 00:05:05
  • 016 - Introduction §16 Criteria by which to distinguish the unhistorical in the Gospel narrative
    – 00:19:24
  • 017 - Part 1 - History of the Birth and Childhood of Jesus, Chapter 1 - Annunciation and Birth of John the Baptist §17 Account given by Luke. Immediate, supernatural character of the representation
    – 00:20:41
  • 018 - Part 1 - History of the Birth and Childhood of Jesus, Chapter 1 - Annunciation and Birth of John the Baptist §18 Natural explanation of the narrative
    – 00:15:17
  • 019 - Part 1 - History of the Birth and Childhood of Jesus, Chapter 1 - Annunciation and Birth of John the Baptist §19 Mythical view of the narrative in its different stages
    – 00:14:20
  • 020 - Part 1 - History of the Birth and Childhood of Jesus, Chapter 2 - Davidical Descent of Jesus, According to the Genealogical Tables of Matthew and Luke §20 The two genealogies of Jesus considered separately and irrespectively of one another
    – 00:18:57
  • 021 - Part 1 - History of the Birth and Childhood of Jesus, Chapter 2 - Davidical Descent of Jesus, According to the Genealogical Tables of Matthew and Luke §21 Comparison of the two genealogies. Attempt to reconcile their contradictions
    – 00:18:54
  • 022 - Part 1 - History of the Birth and Childhood of Jesus, Chapter 2 - Davidical Descent of Jesus, According to the Genealogical Tables of Matthew and Luke §22 The genealogies unhistorical
    – 00:06:24
  • 023 - Part 1 - History of the Birth and Childhood of Jesus, Chapter 3 - Announcement of the Conception of Jesus. Its Supernatural Character. Visit of Mary to Elizabeth §23 Sketch of the different canonical and apocryphal accounts
    – 00:10:25
  • 024 - Part 1 - History of the Birth and Childhood of Jesus, Chapter 3 - Announcement of the Conception of Jesus. Its Supernatural Character. Visit of Mary to Elizabeth §24 Disagreements of the canonical gospels in relation to the form of the annunciation
    – 00:20:41
  • 025 - Part 1 - History of the Birth and Childhood of Jesus, Chapter 3 - Announcement of the Conception of Jesus. Its Supernatural Character. Visit of Mary to Elizabeth §25 Import of the angel's message. Fulfilment of the prophecy of Isaiah
    – 00:18:19
  • 026 - Part 1 - History of the Birth and Childhood of Jesus, Chapter 3 - Announcement of the Conception of Jesus. Its Supernatural Character. Visit of Mary to Elizabeth §26 Jesus begotten of the Holy Ghost. Criticism of the orthodox opinion
    – 00:12:51
  • 027 - Part 1 - History of the Birth and Childhood of Jesus, Chapter 3 - Announcement of the Conception of Jesus. Its Supernatural Character. Visit of Mary to Elizabeth §27 Retrospect of the genealogies
    – 00:18:48
  • 028 - Part 1 - History of the Birth and Childhood of Jesus, Chapter 3 - Announcement of the Conception of Jesus. Its Supernatural Character. Visit of Mary to Elizabeth §28 Natural explanation of the history of the conception
    – 00:12:56
  • 029 - Part 1 - History of the Birth and Childhood of Jesus, Chapter 3 - Announcement of the Conception of Jesus. Its Supernatural Character. Visit of Mary to Elizabeth §29 History of the conception of Jesus viewed as mythus
    – 00:13:36
  • 030 - Part 1 - History of the Birth and Childhood of Jesus, Chapter 3 - Announcement of the Conception of Jesus. Its Supernatural Character. Visit of Mary to Elizabeth §30 Relation of Joseph to Mary. Brothers of Jesus
    – 00:24:38
  • 031 - Part 1 - History of the Birth and Childhood of Jesus, Chapter 3 - Announcement of the Conception of Jesus. Its Supernatural Character. Visit of Mary to Elizabeth §31 Visit of Mary to Elizabeth
    – 00:14:51
  • 032 - Part 1 - History of the Birth and Childhood of Jesus, Chapter 4 - Birth and Earliest Events of the Life of Jesus §32 The census
    – 00:18:48
  • 033 - Part 1 - History of the Birth and Childhood of Jesus, Chapter 4 - Birth and Earliest Events of the Life of Jesus §33 Particular circumstances of the birth of Jesus. The circumcision
    – 00:25:21
  • 034 - Part 1 - History of the Birth and Childhood of Jesus, Chapter 4 - Birth and Earliest Events of the Life of Jesus §34 The Magi and their star. The flight into Egypt, and the murder of the children of Bethlehem. Criticism of the supranaturalistic view
    – 00:32:30
  • 035 - Part 1 - History of the Birth and Childhood of Jesus, Chapter 4 - Birth and Earliest Events of the Life of Jesus §35 Attempts at a natural explanation of the history of the Magi. Transition to the mythical explanation
    – 00:17:39
  • 036 - Part 1 - History of the Birth and Childhood of Jesus, Chapter 4 - Birth and Earliest Events of the Life of Jesus §36 The purely mythical explanation of the narrative concerning the magi, and of the events with which it is connected
    – 00:21:08
  • 037 - Part 1 - History of the Birth and Childhood of Jesus, Chapter 4 - Birth and Earliest Events of the Life of Jesus §37 Chronological relation between the visit of the Magi, together with the flight into Egypt, and the presentation in the temple recorded by Luke
    – 00:13:08
  • 038 - Part 1 - History of the Birth and Childhood of Jesus, Chapter 4 - Birth and Earliest Events of the Life of Jesus §38 The presentation of Jesus in the temple
    – 00:13:28
  • 039 - Part 1 - History of the Birth and Childhood of Jesus, Chapter 4 - Birth and Earliest Events of the Life of Jesus §39 Retrospect. Difference between Matthew and Luke as to the original residence of the parents of Jesus
    – 00:30:08
  • 040 - Part 1 - History of the Birth and Childhood of Jesus, Chapter 5 - The First Visit to the Temple, and the Education of Jesus §40 Jesus, when twelve years old, in the temple
    – 00:21:48
  • 041 - Part 1 - History of the Birth and Childhood of Jesus, Chapter 5 - The First Visit to the Temple, and the Education of Jesus §41 This narrative also mythical
    – 00:10:42
  • 042 - Part 1 - History of the Birth and Childhood of Jesus, Chapter 5 - The First Visit to the Temple, and the Education of Jesus §42 On the external life of Jesus up to the time of his public appearance
    – 00:11:00
  • 043 - Part 1 - History of the Birth and Childhood of Jesus, Chapter 5 - The First Visit to the Temple, and the Education of Jesus §43 The intellectual development of Jesus
    – 00:21:37
  • 044 - Part 2 - History of the Public Life of Jesus Chapter 1 - Relations Between Jesus and John the Baptist §44 Chronological relations between John and Jesus.
    – 00:22:43
  • 045 - Part 2 - History of the Public Life of Jesus Chapter 1 - Relations Between Jesus and John the Baptist §45 Appearance and design of the Baptist. His personal relations with Jesus.
    – 00:23:42
  • 046 - Part 2 - History of the Public Life of Jesus Chapter 1 - Relations Between Jesus and John the Baptist §46 Was Jesus acknowledged by John as the Messiah? and in what sense?
    – 00:52:58
  • 047 - Part 2 - History of the Public Life of Jesus Chapter 1 - Relations Between Jesus and John the Baptist §47 Opinion of the evangelists and of Jesus concerning the Baptist, with his own judgment of himself. Result of the inquiry into the relationship between these two individuals
    – 00:18:38
  • 048 - Part 2 - History of the Public Life of Jesus Chapter 1 - Relations Between Jesus and John the Baptist §48 The execution of John the Baptist.
    – 00:08:16
  • 049 - Part 2 - History of the Public Life of Jesus Chapter 2 - Baptism and Temptation of Jesus §49 Why did Jesus receive baptism from John?
    – 00:11:12
Recent Reviews
Similar Podcasts
Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork on this page are property of the podcast owner, and not endorsed by UP.audio.