The Jefferson Bible: The Life and Morals of Jesus of Nazareth

It’s easy to carry and easy to read! Great book.

I have read the old and new testament from cover to cover and that this tiny book by Jefferson is such a refreshing read. The book contains a letter written by Jefferson in which he admits that he is a materialist, but he also makes it clear that more than anything else he is a truth seeker and wants to hear what Jesus the Messiah himself had to say. He shows great reverence for Jesus' message, as is evident in the painstaking care with which Jefferson plucks the precious flowers from the bible and collects them in this great book. No wonder the congress was given a copy up until recent times. Regrettably, he could perform his cut and paste treatment on the new testament only, but its understandable since he wanted to focus on Jesus the messenger instead of the events (old testament) before Jesus. The book really reflects the intense curiosity and the freshness of American mind, particularly by the intellectual class as personified by Jefferson. The culture of open inquiry, challenging the most deeply rooted conventional theories and beliefs, critiquing the bible itself and extracting from it what is truly moral, good and universal is an act only someone so notable as Jefferson could accomplish and he does it with aplomb. The introduction by Percival Everett is full of poisonous and racially charged tirade against the declaration of independence, US constitution and the personality of Thomas Jefferson. Sadly, 22 pages of Percival's hate propaganda continues to be included by the publishers which has nothing to do with the "life and morals of Jesus". Percival also includes an imaginary, fraudulent and hoax interview between himself and Jefferson to propagate his vitriol. I did a small Thomas Jefferson act myself by physically cutting out Percival's vitriol and that leaves us with what Jefferson historically wrote and critiqued without any outside hate propaganda. If Percival really wants to write something why don't the bigoted publishers, Akashic books of New York publish his tirade separately. Why include it with the Jefferson Bible? What is the agenda of this New York outfit? Very few individuals of Jefferson's stature have critiqued the bible, and even fewer might have made the effort to reform the book itself, so this book is truly a rare gem.

Good book for research, but by itself more a statement of the man who put it together.. No matter, a worthwhile book to be in the collection of serious studiers of faith & religion (and honest faith).

Thomas Jefferson didn't necessarily believe in miracles. But he certainly believed in morals, ethics, and character. His detractors on the Sally Hemmings farce, like author Joseph Ellis, have since been proven to be all wet. Like the other book of the same name, I enjoyed the book, Jefferson Bible, very much. But, it's only half the story, unfortunately. The other half involves Jefferson's values from the secular point of view. The best, perhaps only, book to read for that is (and don't be misled by the title), West Point: Thomas Jefferson: Character Leadership Education, by Norman Thomas Remick. It perfectly compliments Jefferson Bible. In any event, This book by Forrest Church is well presented and certainly well worth reading. It's a great read on TJ's religious beliefs, and a five-star effort.