I've had always these conflicted thoughts about The Jefferson Bible (The Life and Morals of Jesus of Nazareth). It was one of those readings that pushed me to be baptized. But the underlying "cut and paste" mentality behind the book worries me. I have no idea exactly what Jefferson's intentions were, but Jesus' miracles have meaning too.
The other day an elder gave a lesson where he went through Matthew and just recounted the miracles. As a believer, it was a powerful. But as a non-believer, I don't think it would have been powerful. I needed the cold deism of The Jefferson Bible to see what Jesus was really about, what He really had to say.
I guess it gets back to the "what should be" versus "what is." Yes, we should take the Bible as a whole. But many people want rationality. The desire for rationality is a fact. Maybe it shouldn't, but if The Jefferson Bible gets one closer to Christ, then I am hesitant to condemn it.
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