Crucial Fiction

Synopsis

A pioneering exploration of the mythology, history, and enduring legacy of Jesus Christ

'Fact or fiction?' For centuries, scholars have debated this single question: was Jesus Christ a historical figure or a mythic creation? In Crucial Fiction, Jasun Horsley argues that an even more important question remains: what does Christ mean to, and for, humanity? Analysing the point at which myth becomes history and history becomes mythology, Crucial Fiction deftly unravels the mysteries surrounding this elusive yet domineering figure in an attempt to discover the truth of Jesus Christ and answer the age-old questions: is Jesus the way, the truth, and the light of the world? And if so, how?

Whether he was a living man who was crucified and subsequently rose from the dead, or a symbolic catalyst, it is impossible to deny the influence of Christ on the human psyche, culture, and the course of history. Drawing directly on scripture alongside key works of Christology, Crucial Fiction illuminates the complex relationship between the historical figure and the mythic Christ, revealing how this enduring tension continues to shape modern consciousness. Readers will find discussions on the nature of confession, the failings of the Church in understanding Jesus, Paul the Gnostic, the metaphysics of resurrection, salvation, magical thinking, Lucifer, and more.

In this thought-provoking study, Horsley explores the nature of trauma, sin, sacrifice, and belief, so that readers can better understand their own 'crucial fictions', as well as those that shape our collective history.