Journal: Global Journal of Classical Theology
Volume: GJCT 10:3 (Feb 2013)
Article: Marcus Borg: A New Vision Of Jesus
Author: Nicole Christine Frazer

Marcus Borg: A New Vision Of Jesus

Nicole Christine Frazer

Patrick Henry College

I. Biography

Marcus J. Borg was born in Fergus Falls, Minnesota on March 11, 1942. He earned his Bachelor of Arts at Concordia College and both his Masters of Theology and Doctorate of Philosophy at Oxford University. Teaching at universities across the nation, Borg spent his longest tenure at Oregon State University, where he taught for over twenty years and retired in 2007 as the Hundere Distinguished Professor. The author of dozens of books on Jesus, Christian theology, and other religions, Borg is a fellow of the Jesus Seminar and has lectured throughout the nation. Currently, Borg lives in Portland, Oregon, where he is Canon Theologian at Trinity Episcopal Cathedral and continues to write and lecture.1

Evolving throughout his lifetime, Borg’s faith today stands in stark contrast to the faith that he was born into. Raised in the Lutheran church in a small town, Borg was exposed to mainstream evangelical Christianity at the time, and readily accepted it.2 As he moved through adolescence and his teenage years, Borg was thrown into personal turmoil and doubt over his faith as he discovered a conflict between science and faith. Overwhelmed with guilt, he went to college and then a liberal seminary, where his guilt wore off and he became first an agnostic and then an atheist. However, Borg continued to be fascinated by Jesus as a historical and political figure. While in his thirties, Borg returned to a semblance of Christianity after experiencing a series of mystical occurrences. According to Borg, these experiences “gave me a new understanding of the meaning of the word God.”3 Personally, Borg is self-described as a nonliteralistic and nonexclusivistic Christian who is committed to the Christian tradition.4

II. Exposition

Borg’s scholarship covers a wide variety of topics, including eschatology, mysticism, Christian living, Christmas, Jesus, the content of the Bible, and world religions. Due to the limited scope of this paper, only Borg’s view of Jesus—the area of scholarship for which he is best known5 —will be examined. First, the portrayal of Jesus in the Bible through the Gospels will be discussed. Second, Borg’s vision of God will be touched upon. Third, Borg’s understanding of Jesus will be expounded upon. For, if we are to understand the basis of Borg’s faith, we must first understand the type of Jesus that it is centered on.

Borg’s Bible: A Historical-Metaphorical Doc...

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