I just read The Jesus We Missed: The Surprising Truth About the Humanity of Christ by Patrick Henry Reardon.
About the Author
Patrick Henry Reardon is pastor of All Saints’ Antiochian Orthodox Church in Chicago, Illinois, and a senior editor of Touchstone Magazine. He has penned several books, including Christ in the Psalms and The Trial of Job. Fr. Patrick was educated at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky; St. Anselm’s College in Rome; The Pontifical Biblical Institute in Rome; and St. Tikhon’s Orthodox Seminary in South Canaan, Pennsylvania.
It is quite remarkable to think about Jesus as a man and having human weaknesses. Reardon very intelligently describes Jesus as the sinless son of God while growing in knowledge about his own divinity.
He backs up all his claims with scripture. I love his command of language and the translations into Greek and Hebrew to better understand the scripture and nuances of why certain words were chosen over others.
I really love how Jesus’ mother, Mary, is portrayed and examples of their relationship are explained in human and spiritual terms. He discusses the events of 12 year old Jesus in the temple during Passover in Jerusalem and the wedding at Cana. Mary grows in her faith as Jesus grows into a man and learns about his calling and ministry.
Jesus had friends and favorites. Reardon mentions Lazarus and certain disciples and Jesus’ interactions with them to show his personality and humanity while he ministered here on earth. Jesus experienced human emotions, but never sinned. It helps us to know that Jesus was sad and angry at times. Emotions are good.
Jesus is, of course, an example to us all of how to be good Christians. Reardon uses Jesus’ temptations, disciples, and prayer life to exemplify Jesus’ relationship with his Father God and modeled for us how to overcome temptation, disciple others, and pray.
I really like contemplating how Jesus was as a man and how his mother might have reacted to her Son. I love historical and even fictional accounts of these events. The Scriptural references here add credibility to the claims and there is little speculation or opinion. A very intellectual and academic book, but easy to read.
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