Jesus: A Story of Enlightenment (Enlightenment Series, 2)

Now here's a fascinating concept: fill in the blanks for one of the largest figures in the history of Western civilization. As you probably know, there is very little written about Jesus between the time he was twelve and the time he came on-scene again in Galilee in his early thirties. The gospels are largely silent about this period, at least those that have survived to make it into print. And CNN wasn't around in the first century AD to record events in its more objective digital format. (Well, somewhat more objective, anyway; I'm not going to argue that point.) So... this period of Jesus' life is fair game for speculation, I guess...I really enjoyed the book. The plot? It's more of a metaphysical journey, a chronology of how Jesus evolved from manhood to godhood, with doubts and questions all along the way. Traditional Biblical scenes are woven seamlessly into the storyline, but with some license taken; for example Mary Magdalene is named as the object of the incipient punishment that draws Jesus' challenge of "... let him who is without sin cast the first stone". The characters? Jesus is very human, with the usual foibles but also with a driven determination to seek out God. Mary Magdalene is an unwilling whore. Judas is a devious and unscrupulous zealot. They're both very human too. And they fit neatly into the settings Chopra describes for those times.Chopra's story stops short of where the Gospels pick up, leaving Jesus to wander out of the mountains and back down into the Galilee of the Bible to meet his fate. It deals with those later events such as the Crucifixion only inferentially. This is a pretty smart move, I think: it allows the reader to mentally jump the gap to the modern era. Where, for example...The Dalai Lama, by all accounts a most open-minded fellow, endorses a neurological study of Buddhist meditators. And where, yes indeed, objective scientific results (fMRI brain scans) indicate these monks have a much higher level of control over their minds and bodies (and presumably spirits) than the rest of us mortals. But that's control of themselves. Can they control externalities? The physical world? Turn water into wine? Chopra doesn't ask such questions of his fictional Jesus, he just goes with the flow of Biblical scripture, positing the miracles quite comfortably right alongside his very human characterizations of Jesus and Mary Magdalene and Judas and others. I loved it, the rationality and the ambiguity in contrapuntal doses.Why write a book like this? As it turns out, it's not just a writer's whimsy, a fiction wrapped around a mythos; the book has a philosophical point. But that comes at the very end, after the epilogue. All through his Jesus story, Chopra scrupulously keeps his own philosophical views out of it. (Must've been tough, but I think that was appropriate; it would have detracted from the story.)The philosophical point -- several points actually -- are in the Reader's Guide, titled Jesus and the Path to Enlightenment on the last few pages. In a nutshell, Chopra holds (among other things) that:* God is within us, all of us -- Christian, Buddhist, Muslim, Jew.* Jesus wouldn't be too happy to see his teachings about the above co-opted into what have become the formal traditions and structures of Christianity.* We have the capacity, even as mere mortals, to transform and transcend to the God within, and indeed there are ways to approach that in this mortal life.Now, these points may be anathema to the more orthodox Christians, but they're nothing really new in the modern world: Copernicus, Protestantism, Eastern-Western tradition blends, a Course in Miracles... they all had problems with the form taken by Christianity, and so chased its substance instead. With varying results, of course, but still there's been a pretty steady evolution of thought, and steadily more acceptance of divergent religious views. For example, not so many generations ago, Chopra, and Christopher Hitchens (God is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything), and Dan Brown (The Da Vinci Code), and even William Young (The Shack) all would have been in deep doo-doo for their books. Today... they're best-selling authors.And also today... a Pew Report ([...]) I just stumbled across says that most Americans who practice a religion reject the exclusivity principle -- they think that folks with beliefs other than theirs are still allowed into heaven.Even atheists. Fancy that.My, my. This is progress, n'est-ce pas?Now that Chopra has filled in the blanks on Jesus, and on Buddha (in a prior similar book), I'm anxiously awaiting his take on Muhammad...Denning(aka Lee Denning, author of Monkey Trap and Hiding Hand)[...]Monkey Trap (Nova Sapiens, Book 1)Hiding Hand

Let me start by saying that if you are a Hard nosed Christian who believes Sola Scriptura, and that the bible is completely inerrant - This book is not for you. If however you enjoy thinking and are willing to have your understanding of the events between the Biblical account of Jesus being whisked away at age 2 and his return around 30 with only one biblical notation of his life at age 12... where did he go? what did he do? who was he? Does any one know for certain?? Probably not anymore, this book is a work of historical fiction, yes, but it makes the reader wonder if being the "Son of God" was no more than the value of being a human being a "child of God" or if his seemingly divine power did not in part come from his own personal enlightenment... after all the kingdom of God is within...Like it, hate it, doesn't matter - Dr Chopra makes you think!Keep an open mind, think for yourself... but try not to leave it open at both ends!

In his preface to Jesus, Chopra is very straightforward about his purpose in writing the book, saying "[there is] a Jesus left out of the New Testament - the enlightened Jesus. His absence, in my view, has profoundly crippled the Christian faith, for...making [Jesus] the one and only Son of God leaves the rest of humankind stranded...What if Jesus wanted his followers - and us - to reach the same unity with God that he had reached?"`Crippled' is a strong word, and this book will undoubtedly anger some. Yet Chopra's Jesus maintains the divinity at the heart of mainstream Christianity - he is not just some average Joe who happens upon God. Nor is he simply a spiritual teacher or `guru', as other Eastern teachers have characterized him. The novel mostly covers the 'lost years' of Jesus' life left out of the Bible - the years in which he transforms from a serious and insightful young man into the son of God - and throughout that period he is surrounded by signs of his future divinity.Chopra's Jesus himself is not comfortable with these signs, but they draw others to him. The early part of Jesus' spiritual journey is dominated by his relationships with Mary Magdelene and Judas - both of whom of course feature prominently in the later part of his life, as told in the New Testament. Chopra's earlier versions of these figures each have delusions about Jesus, and want to possess him for their own purposes. It is through them that he comes to understand the human condition, and the forces - both external and internal - that prevent many from pursuing a deeper relationship with God.After leaving Mary and Judas, Jesus studies with the Essenes, a mystic Jewish religious community now believed by many to have authored the Dead Sea Scrolls. Ultimately he disappoints them also, as he will not conform to their view of him as King of the Jews. After leaving them, Jesus travels to a mysterious holy man in distant mountains, also the story's narrator, and it is here that the path of Chopra's Jesus most closely resembles that of his Buddha (as told in his novel of Buddha's life.) Both struggle with their concepts of good and evil, and both are tempted by demons with promises of greatness. They both come to understand they must abandon all concepts and personal identity to truly allow God to work through them. As Jesus' mysterious teacher tells him, "Only someone who can see the demons as part of God is free. Good and evil dissolve. The veil drops away, and all you see is divine light - inside, outside, everywhere...Your soul is the world's soul. In your resurrection will be the resurection of the world."Jesus' awakening is powerfully told, and the new Jesus returns to his homeland as an agent of enlightenment. Encountering Judas and Mary once again, he transmits a grace that literally wipes away their past. Or, as Mary puts it when asked `what has he done to me' by others who receive Jesus' grace, "He killed who you were, so that who you are can be reborn."Chopra's Jesus is not a perfect book. Scenes change rapidly, and many conversations seem stunted in a way that occasionally left me disoriented. But it conveys a profound message in an accessible and passionate voice. If you are interested in considering a new vision of Christianity, and of all religions, give it a read, and consider reading Buddha: A Story of Enlightenment as well.

If I dared to write about the prophet Mohammed in this way I would be attacked. Far fetched and too unclear throughout. I had to force myself to finish it.

I loved reading this book so much that a read it again after the first read!

This was a book I read and enjoyed and wanted a copy for my self

I loved this book and I read it within 3 days which is rare. There were many aspects of this story which I loved but can’t say. Will definitely read it again

FANTASTIC READING. VERY TOUCHING. MAKES US APPRECIATE OUR NORMAL LIFE'S BLESSINGS, WHEN COMPARED TO THE COMMAN MAN'S LIF'S CONDITIONS DURING JESUS' time.

An inspirational glimpse into how it could have been. I liked how real Jesus seemed and how possible it would be for us to join him!

I liked this book very much because it is easy to read and in my perception more inspiring than many other books.One can see that even the Masters were not born as fully perfect beings but had to meet many challenges. The most interesting part was when it is told how Jesus felt the established connection with the source. I recommend this book if you like a bit of a metaphorical description of the path that we all have to go. I felt it is not so intimidating as many books I have read or teachers I have encountered.