Thomas Jefferson (1743–1826)

Finally, I have finished The Jefferson Bible, only took me two years to read a 169 page book. It's not for the lack on content or boring subject, I just kept losing my place over and over and over again... It's hard to find any organization that the original text had since Jefferson literally did a cut and paste job to produce this book, so I kept getting lost trying to follow the chapter verse layout.

Thomas Jefferson worked for a couple restless nights in Washington carefully extracting show more bible passages from the gospels to revile the true essence of religion; collecting them into a single common sense gospel narrative. A brilliant and enlightening take on the essential heart of the teachings of Jesus of absolute love and service to others. Mr. Jefferson eliminated the virgin birth, the miraculous healings, and the resurrection, leaving only the essential teachings and a very human biography of Jesus.

I found it fascinating to see which passages Jefferson felt were the correct telling of Jesus's life and what could be discarded. Then to try to piece those passages into a coherent biography. I think Jefferson did an admirable job, but parts still don't seem to fit quite right, often redundant information is conveyed in several places. I think that has far more to do with the structure of the gospels themselves then with Jefferson's edits. Overall, I feel this is one of the best ways to understand and grasp the true teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. show less

Quite possibly the best book of history I've ever read - the American Revolution, the Enlightenment, the French Revolution, shopping lists, child care instructions, treaty negotiations, rumination on religion, book reviews, art criticism, and too many more subjects to list. The complete correspondence between three of the founders (Abigail Adam's letters to and from Jefferson are included) constitutes in my humble opinion the best of history in the raw, the very stuff that still weaves it's show more way through our world two hundred years later. I cannot recommend this highly enough. show less

Only mildly interesting and less "enlightened" than moralistic. Jefferson's selections of "truth" are alternately redundant or contradictory, and his English translation of some words ill-chosen (e.g., "straight" when the context calls for "narrow"). The God of his Deism and his definition of morality are straight from the patriarchal Old Testament of the Jewish faith, despite his concentration on only the gospels, which is consistent with the fact that Jesus was a Jew but not necessarily show more with his message. show less

Raised by agnostics, I never had much of a religious education. This book, which was written to focus on the actions and words of Jesus which did not appear to be miraculous, seemed to be a good way to learn about the doctrine of someone who is arguably the most influential people in history. Stripping away the divine acts, the reader is left with a narrative about a man seeking to reform the morality of his time.

Some elements of his philosophy resonate more than others. I wasn't show more particularly moved by Jesus' proclamations on divorce and adultery. As one who has never has been compelled to change my behavior in the Sabbath, his early counsels not to refrain from doing good works on Sunday seem as a matter of course. Other ideas I appreciated more, such as his precepts to love - to love one's neighbor, to love one's enemy. If the world were occupied by more people who sought the betterment of the conditions of others, we would be doing better, I think. To the extent that he talks about money (and I was surprised to discover how much money was discussed), Jesus seemed to favor the rich over the poor, and believe in lifting up those who had the least. In this sense, I think I would have agreed with the person whose creed has become such a world-shaping force.

Ultimately, I was surprised at how brief the read was. Sans miracles, divinity, and awe, the Gospels are a remarkably brief text on a someone who appears to have been an influential, respected man of his time. I'm glad to have read the book, but I have to admit I wasn't much moved by it. show less