Alternative Culture: The Third Jesus Review

One of the most intriguing things about Jesus is that he attracts so many people to him. One of the latest views about him was highlighted in this book, The Third Jesus.

The premise
Deepak Chopra, as the title states presents us with his view of Jesus, the third Jesus. The first, historical Jesus is apparently unknowable and lost to history.

The second Jesus is the one the church presents. Deepak Chopra asserts that this Jesus had been hijacked by the church who wanted an "abstract, theological creation".

Here Deepak Chopra presents the third Jesus-- a Jesus who suits his worldview. This includes a Jesus who accepts the reality of karma, encourages a joining to the world-consciousness and attained enlightenment.

My gripes
Let me be fair to the author-- this book is not an apologetic. Deepak does not defend any of his views, and just states how his view of Jesus was useful to his life.

However, as a Christian who has a commitment to truth, I am not merely interested in what is useful; I am more interested in what is true. There are many issues I take issue with, but I real highlight a few.

1) We cannot know who the real, historical Jesus
I cringed as I read his assertion that we cannot know Jesus. There is an overwhelming evidence that attests to Jesus of the Bible. Even if he were to disregard the gospels, he has to consider extra-biblical sources such as Tacitus, Josephus and Pliny the Younger.

2) Pot calling kettle black
Even if Deepak Chopra is correct in claiming that the church manipulated Jesus to fit their views, the author fails to realise he is doing the exact the same thing. The author portrays Jesus to fit his own karmic and universal-consciousness worldview.

For instance, he claims that Jesus usage of the world "light" (based on John 14:6) refer to enlightenment-- if we are thinking about going to movie, this was a thought that "came from the light". Even a cursory read of John 14:6 reveals that Jesus was saying that he was the way to God, not some inner light.

Conclusion
It is a real pity-- Deepak Chopra is a fluent writer, and I enjoyed his writing style. However his nonchalant approach to something as important as the divinity of Christ was utterly disappointing. I wished he was more academic in his book.

References
Chopra, D. (2009). The Third Jesus