Jesus was a skilled storyteller and perceptive teacher who used parables from everyday life to effectively convey his message and meaning. Life in first-century Palestine was very different from our world today, and many traditional interpretations of Jesus' stories ignore this disparity and have often allowed anti-Semitism and misogyny to color their perspectives.
In Short Stories by Jesus, Amy-Jill Levine analyzes these "problems with parables" taking readers back in time to understand how their original Jewish audience understood them. With this revitalized understanding, she interprets these moving stories for the contemporary reader, showing how the parables are not just about Jesus, but are also about us—and when read rightly, still challenge and provoke us two thousand years later.
The six-session DVD features Amy-Jill Levine offering a fresh, timely reinterpretation of Jesus’ narratives. The video segments are approximately 10-12 minutes each and, when combined with the six book chapters, make an ideal six-week group study. All videos sessions are closed captioned.