Book Review: Why Jesus? by William H. Willimon

Title: Why Jesus
Author: William H. Willimon
Publisher: Abingdon Press
Release Date: 10/01/2010
ISBN: 9781426700286





"Be warned: In reading this book you are taking a risk of getting discombobulated, commandeered, and befriended by the most interesting person in the world."

Often highly informative & occasionally humorous, Willimon's Why Jesus? manages to not only hook in the readers but to also entertain as well. In this book Willimon dares to ask why exactly so many people have been entranced & lead by the Bible's most well known character (well, aside from God, but that's a given).

Willimon focuses on several key aspects of Jesus's character, such as Jesus as vagabond, savior, & ultimate party dude. (I kid you not- there's a section entitled "Party Person".) Through focusing on these certain aspects Willimon manages to create an entirely readable book about someone that many will admit that they probably don't know as much about as they'd like to think they do.

It isn't all fun & games though- through this book the reader is also challenged with the notion that we should constantly be on the move to do good by ourselves & by others. Willimon also manages to challenge himself, often humbling himself & his writing during the course of the book.

Just as the warning above states, many readers will find themselves challenged by Willimon's viewpoints. I myself wasn't expecting to see "Jesus as a party guy" in this book & I wasn't expecting to be as entertained as I was. People will read this once to absorb all of the information about Jesus, but they'll return because the book manages to be one of those that keeps them thinking & entertained long after they've turned the final page.

(ARC provided by Netgalley)