Biblical studies and theology for some time now have operated as idependent fields of study, but recent developments have opened up new avenues for them to engage one another. Both fields must now address the question: what is the value of religion for the future? Here Galston draws upon two types of theology for his response. The first, Covenant theology, arises from the Hebrew Bible, iwht its image of God in agreement or covenant with a nation. The second, Enlightenment theology, arises from the wisdom tradition where the divine finds reality in the lifestyle of individuals and communities. After the Council of Nicaea in 325 CE, Christianity came to be defined not by the parables of Jesus, which are open to many different interpretations, but rather by the belief that history will end in apocalypse. With the rise of the sciences, Western culture has kept this apocalyptic outlook but replaced religion with human reason. Galston rejects the belief that religion can be reduced to scientific ideas. Instead, he argues that religion, like poetry, holds value because it expands one's vision of life. Understood in this light, religion, though a human creation, is certainly not a waste of time.

Embracing the Human Jesus is a sincere effort to think anew about Christianity and Christian practice on the foundation of a purely human Jesus. Against the inevitable criticism that such a Jesus undermines the historic faith of the church, David Galston finds a human Jesus who inspires a new era of honesty in the practice of Christianity. The book expresses the awareness held by many scholars that the historical Jesus was an end-time prophet not well suited to the contemporary world. Galston counters that, by pointing out that whether taking the apocalyptic or non-apocalyptic view, virtually all scholars see Jesus as a participant in the Jewish wisdom tradition. On this often marginalised foundation, Galston proposes that the trajectory of the ancient wisdom of Jesus can be grasped in the contemporary world and can find life in the thinking and practices of a new church. The book combines both academic theory and basic Christian experience to offer a simple model that will help communities take the historical Jesus to church.

What happens to faith when the creeds and confessions can no longer be squared with historical and empirical evidence? Most critical scholars have wrestled with this question. Some have found ways to reconcile their personal religious belief with the scholarship they practice. Others have chosen to reconstruct their view of religious meaning in light of what they have learned. But most have tended not to share those views in a public forum. And that brings up a second question: At what point does the discrepancy between what I know, or think I know, and what I am willing to say publicly become so acute that my personal integrity is at stake? Being honest about what one thinks has always mattered in critical scholarship. In the pages of ""When Faith Meets Reason"", thirteen scholars take up the challenge to speak candidly about how they negotiate the conflicting claims of faith and reason, in hopes that their journeys will inspire others to engage in their own search for meaning.