A New Life of Christ
The Public Life of Our Lord Jesus Christ : an Interpretation.
ARCHBISHOP GOODIER observes in his. introduction that there are three main ways in which- the life of Christ can be approached ; the. devotional, the scientific, and—so to speak —the realistic, which tries to answer the question—" What was -our Lord, as a Man, like ? " It is the last, as he truly says; which- makes the strongest appeal in our day ; and in it he wishes his own work to be placed. Coming- from a devout
Roman Catholic scholar, it need hardly be said that Arch- bishop Goodier's interpretation differs widely from those
of Dr. Glover, Dr.. Warschauer, or Mr. Middleton Murry;; which take us by successive steps to the " extreme -left " of New - Testament study. The Archbishop belongs to the central block,. which accepts- the Synoptics more or less as they stand, and is not afraid to use the Fourth Gospel as a historical -document. This said, however, we must add that there is little in this book -beyond the use of the Douay version of the Bible, which is peculiar to the doctrine and outlook of the Latin Church. Though critical .minds will find in it plenty of opportunities for disagreement, it can—and surely. will—be read and enjoyed by " ordinary " Christians of every type. If now and then the author strays into the devotional field and draws a moral which can hardly be justified from his biographical and historical material (e.g., Vol. ;I., pp. 286-7), in this, after all, he _ is but following the example of earlier fathers of the -Church. On the whole, the •book gives a won- derful picture of the _human Jesus, untainted by sentimen- tality ; and also of those other, mysterious, more than human moments when " for a- moment it seemed as if another soul than His was looking through His eyes ; and as if the words that came from. His lips belonged to that other world, by
ears such as theirs scarcely to be understood." It is the full, detailed narrative of a deeply interested narrator, able by a touch to suggest human character (e.g., the Blessed Virgin "that valiant little handmaid of the Lord "), and even coloured her and there by a dry humour, the more effective from its unexpectedness. Here, for instance, is the description of Simon the Pharisee's attitude to his guest
" He was a Pharisee, but; of course, 'had broader views than his friends in Judaea. He had heard that the countrymen up the road held Jesus for a prophet ; indeed, the other day, at Nairn across the valley, they had openly proclaimed Him to be one. On the ether hand, He was unlike other propheta ; particularly was He unlike the 'Baptist, who had been such an interesting figure the year before. For whereas the Baptist lived-the-life of a fanatic, eating nothing but the produce of the desert, this Man was known to be quite amenable to a good dinner, and did not seemto mind the kind of company He met at table. Altogether, said Simon to himself, the Man was worth meeting ; to have Him to dinner would be an _in, • experience. But, of course, it would not do to let Him give Himself airs. Though He might dine, by special invitation, with the aristocracy of Magdala, it mustnot be forgotten, it would be unfair on the Man to forget, that after all He was only a. carpenter and, of all places, from Nazareth. He had had no education, He had lived only with country people, He was bound to be a little rough. No doubt His manners would be uncouth, that would be only what one should expect ; perhaps, suddenly finding Himself among so many of His betters, He might be a little shy, or again a little extravagant. Simon would make it as easy for Him as he could, for Simon was 'above all things a gentleman. He would dispense -with 'the usual ceremonies performed in receiving guests. He would pass over the washing of the feet at the door, the formal embrace inside ; Jesus, in His degree of life, would be unaccustomed to these things and might find them awkward."
Beginning at the Baptism, and ending on the -eve of -the Passion, it is chiefly Christ the Teacher, Messiah, and Worker of Signs, as He appeared to His Jewish contemporaries, who is put before us ; the two main issues of Christology, though present by implication, 'are not discussed. Great emphasis is laid on the close connexion between the Old and New Testaments ; in fact, one of the most interesting points in the Archbishop's method is his habit of constant apt citations from the Prophets and Psalms. Altogether, this book, in spite of its avoidance of critical problems, and of much which many of its readers would place among the assured results of textual research, makes a distinct contribution to our understanding of the historical Christ. -EVELYN UNDERHILL.
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