I’ve never encountered a book about the person of Jesus so delightful to read as that of Albert Nolan’s.  There are many parts or aspects there that I would say rich material for reflection and contemplation.  But I would like to focus my attention on Part II of the book that focuses on the praxis of Jesus’ life.  The imagery that the book conjures up is so vivid that I can picture in my mind the situation, which Jesus finds himself in his time.  The prevailing social classes and the plight of the marginalized sector of Jewish society has touched my heart to the core.  It made me appreciate the Gospel more having understood the backdrop and how Jesus courageously without pretensions, made himself in contradiction to the common Jewish culture that distorts the true meaning of God’s love and what it means to be truly human person.

I observed that amidst his struggles to bring awareness to his fellow men and women, he did not lose his gentleness and his single-hearted devotion for the poor and the persecuted members of his society.  Jesus’ striking qualities that made me stop and think for a while are his gentleness, compassion for others, his unwavering faith and hope, his cheerfulness, his joy that according to Nolan’s words is remarkably infectious.   The qualities of Jesus’ personhood are so compelling that these rouse me into a deeper admiration for him and an interest to know him more.  Jesus indeed was an agent of change in his time.  There are loads of things that came into my mind as this new insights came… I am reflecting on my life now, as a person who experienced many frustrations and disappointments in life, times when I felt rejected.  The most painful was the unsuccessful attempt to carry out my life project.  I felt that those painful moments were slowly robbing me of my own self-worth.  In fact, I fell into depression during those times thinking of my own failure.  I felt that life was meaningful only when the plans and dreams I have for myself are put into a successful motion.  How badly I needed someone like Jesus who can accept me as I am and make me feel that I am still important and precious despite my failures.  Someone who can make me feel strong again when my strength and hope for a meaningful life begins to fade away.

Jesus made the marginalized feel safe and secure.  He dispelled their fear and healed their infirmities.  He freed them from their worries and anxieties.  He restored them to what they ought to be: beloved children of God who are truly loved without conditions, qualifications, works or achievements to present in order to be loved and appreciated.  I want to experience this not only in an intellectual way but also in an existential manner.  This reminds me of my own faith.  Jesus’ faith was the kind that heals, the kind that liberates; the faith that moves mountains.  Perhaps my faith needs to be infected with the faith of Jesus.  I realized that my faith has not yet reached to the point of transforming my life.  I need Jesus to set my faith ablaze and change every fiber of my being consuming every crippling fear and timidity.

For me, Albert Nolan’s picture of the human Jesus is the image of a person fully human, fully alive.  Someone who truly experienced the joy of living without traces of bitterness and has the zest for life, Jesus really turned the commonplace into extraordinary.   In my quest for a meaningful life I am inspired to look up to him and find the truly loving God in the ordinary events of everyday life whether in moments of success or failure.