The Logia of Yeshua: The Sayings of Jesus

Davenport and Urrutia have approached the sayings of Jesus--the logia of Yeshua--with the eyes and ears of poets and linguists who seek to encounter the itinerant street preacher and poet who lies behind the mythic figure of "the Christ." They read his sayings as pithy, ironic, often shocking; they seek to present them without softening their harshness or smoothing their sharp edges. This is not a scholarly or academic work, though there are notes for readers who wish to pursue sources. It is more nearly akin to a volume of poetry reconstructed from fragments, and readers should expect to encounter the translators as collaborators of the poet--as in a reading of Sappho or (as Davenport notes) Heraclitus. They are sensitive collaborators, and the encounter will prove revealing, especially for readers who believe they know Yeshua well. Steve Schroeder