John P. Meier

JOHN P. MEIER is Professor of New Testament in the Department of Biblical Studies, Catholic University of America, Washington, D.C. He received his License (Master's) in theology at the Gregorian University in Rome and his doctorate in sacred scriptures at the Biblical Institute in Rome. He is the author of numerous articles and books, including volumes one and two of a trilogy on the historical Jesus entitled A Marginal Jew.

The Miracles of Jesus: Three Basic Questions for the Historian

Articles/Essays – Volume 29, No. 4

Once upon a time, down Mexico way—actually down in San Diego in 1988—an unsuspecting editor from Doubleday offered me a contract to write a book on the historical Jesus for the Anchor Bible Reference Library…

Jesus Christ in the New Testament: Part One: The Historical Jesus behind the Gospels

Articles/Essays – Volume 30, No. 4

The author of the Epistle to the Hebrews sums up his Christian faith with the memorable cry (13:8): “Jesus Christ, the same yesterday, today, and forever!” The “yesterday” and “today” of this cry express well both the strong point and the problem of Christian faith. For Christian faith is nothing if not a historical faith. It is inevitably anchored in the historical life and death of one particular Jew of the first century A.D., and yet the meaning of that life and that death has been reinterpreted countless times down through the centuries. The yesterday and the today of Christian faith must always stand in a certain tension or dialectic.

Jesus Christ in the New Testament: Part Two: Various Images of Jesus in the Books of the New Testament

Articles/Essays – Volume 31, No. 1

I. Introduction My previous essay on the historical Jesus in the winter 1997 issue began with the famous cry of Hebrews 13:8 (“Jesus Christ, the same yesterday, today, and forever!”) and proceeded to focus on…