Marcus Borg states that much of the New Testament, if not all, should be understood as metaphor. He claims that we should not take the written accounts of Jesus' life and ministry as true historical fact. We should look for the meaning behind the stories. He understands The Bible not as a divine work of God but written by a group of people, Israel for the Old Testament and the early Christian community for the New Testament, about how they see God. He calls it a lens in which we can get a glimpse of how we understand God.
N.T. Wright takes the opposite view and states that the gospels express the reality of Jesus' life and how we can learn from those true stories.
Borg has the ability to write about difficult subjects in a way that a non-theologian/scholar will understand in one reading. N.T. Wright writes in a way where it seems as if you're sitting in on one of his lectures - basically he's more difficult to understand.
What is very nice about this book is that these two men are friends. They do not belittle one another when they disagree. The purpose of this book is to present two different opinions on the life of Jesus and how we should read and understand the gospel accounts and to make up on our minds.
I think there are other books out there that may be easier to grasp as you read, but this book provides two views in one book. Which is very convenient. It may also get you interested in reading some of their other works.
4 out of 5 stars.
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