The Passionate Jesus: What We Can Learn From Jesus About Love, Fear, Grief, Joy, and Living Authentically

The author (Living Loved: Knowing Jesus as the Lover of Your Soul) is a gay Episcopal priest who looks at Christ through the lens of a Bible scholar. Knowing the text of the Bible is the key to knowing Jesus. “In all four gospels, strong and emotionally intense language dominates the Passion narratives,” Wallace writes. For the reader looking for a Bible study, the author goes deeply into the scriptures that convey a loving Christ, seeking to portray Jesus as a man with human characteristics, a Jesus who is vividly there in times of fear and grief and joy. The Jesus of anger appears to enter into even the Jesus of joy. While there is nothing groundbreaking, the “authentic” life the author wants the reader to lead is one of discernment and discovery in the manner of a living Christ. The writer himself is a passionate work in progress and he expects the reader will be, too. This book will appeal to the reader looking for a deep Bible meditation. (Jan.)