Experience Holy Friday from the perspective of those who watched Jesus die: Mary his mother; the Beloved Disciple from the Gospel of John; Mary Magdalene and the other women from Galilee; the two men, usually identified as thieves, crucified with Jesus; the centurion and the soldiers; Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus. Jews and Romans, friends and strangers, the powerful and the powerless, the hopeful and the despairing.
The story of Jesus’s death is not something we just read: we think about it, and we experience it; we hear the taunts of the soldiers, the priests, and the passersby even as we hear the famous “seven last words” from the cross.
In Witness at the Cross, Amy-Jill Levine shows how the people at the cross each have distinct roles to play. Each Evangelist presents a distinct picture of the death of Jesus. Each portrays different individuals and groups of people at the cross, each offers different images and dialogues, and so from each, we learn how those meanings and messages cross the centuries to any who would come to the cross today.
Each Gospel has its own story to tell, all the witnesses have their own memories, and every reader comes away with a new insight. The witnesses at the Crucifixion watch Jesus die, and we watch with them, and we watch them. And we come away transformed.
Additional components are available for a six-week study include a DVD featuring Dr. Levine and a comprehensive Leader Guide.
Amy-Jill Levine does it again! What I especially appreciate is how Levine doesn’t just explain the text, she lays out its richness by connecting it to history, other scripture, and social context. This book is substantive, funny, robust, and engaging, and I hope that churches take advantage of this incredible opportunity to learn from one of the best teachers and scholars alive.
— Rev. Katie M. Ladd Pastor, Queen Anne United Methodist Church/The Well, Seattle, WA
In each chapter of Witness at the Cross, Levine parses out the Gospel’s witness accounts of Jesus’s crucifixion and invites readers to be transformed by this theological symphony of the cross. This informative, witty, and accessible study provides a welcome preaching and teaching resource for clergy and laity. Small group leaders will also appreciate its six-chapter format ideal for a Lenten study.
— Rev. Dr. Deborah Appler, Professor of Hebrew Bible, Moravian Theological Seminary
Amy-Jill Levine reminds us that the story of Jesus’s death is something we do not just read; we are meant to experience it. In Witness at the Cross, she takes us by the hand and walks with us through the story, pausing alongside each of the characters to see and hear and feel how they individually experienced it, how each was affected by it. This is not just a fresh retelling of the Crucifixion narrative; it is a remarkably personal immersion and participation in the narrative. Amy-Jill Levine breaks open new dimensions and possibilities of the story’s meaning for all of us.
— Larry J. Beasley, Presbytery Leader and Stated Clerk, Presbytery of Utica
This is a timely and important introduction to the events of Holy Friday. Levine’s approach is scholarly yet personal, theologically sophisticated yet devotional. She does a masterful job sorting through the perspectives of the Gospel writers, showing readers what each evangelist accentuates and the things each writer wants us to think more deeply about and to question when it comes to our own experience of the world today. This is the best possible resource for either reflective reading or a study group.
— Rev. Dr. John S. McClure, Charles G. Finney Professor of Preaching and Worship, Emeritus, Vanderbilt Divinity School
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Place yourself as a witness of the cross and determine what your own testimony will be!Experience Holy Friday from the perspective of those who watched Jesus die: Mary his mother; the Beloved Disciple from the Gospel of John; Mary Magdalene and the other women from Galilee; the two men, usually identified as thieves,...
Place yourself as a witness of the cross and determine what your own testimony will be! Experience Holy Friday from the perspective of those who watched Jesus die: Mary his mother; the Beloved Disciple from the Gospel of John; Mary Magdalene and the other women from Galilee; the two men, usually identified as thieves,...
Place yourself as a witness of the cross and determine what your own testimony will be! Experience Holy Friday from the perspective of those who watched Jesus die: Mary his mother; the Beloved Disciple from the Gospel of John; Mary Magdalene and the other women from Galilee; the two men, usually identified as thieves,...
Amy-Jill Levine (“AJ”) is Rabbi Stanley M. Kessler Distinguished Professor of New Testament and Jewish Studies at Hartford International University for Religion and Peace and University Professor of New Testament and Jewish Studies Emerita, Mary Jane Werthan Professor of Jewish Studies Emerita, and Professor of New Testament Studies Emerita at Vanderbilt University. An internationally renowned scholar and teacher, she is the author of numerous books including The Difficult Words of Jesus: A Beginner's Guide to His Most Perplexing Teachings, Short Stories by Jesus: The Enigmatic Parables of a Controversial Rabbi, Entering the Passion of Jesus: A Beginner’s Guide to Holy Week, Light of the World: A Beginner’s Guide to Advent, Sermon on the Mount: A Beginner’s Guide to the Kingdom of Heaven, and Signs and Wonders: A Beginner’s Guide to the Miracles of Jesus. She is also the coeditor of the Jewish Annotated New Testament. AJ is the first Jew to teach New Testament at Rome’s Pontifical Biblical Institute. In 2021 she was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. AJ describes herself as an unorthodox member of an Orthodox synagogue and a Yankee Jewish feminist who until 2021 taught New Testament in a Christian divinity school in the buckle of the Bible Belt.
