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The Blurred Cross A Writer’s Difficult Journey with God Richard Bauckham
In early 2022, esteemed New Testament scholar Richard Bauckham nearly lost his ability to read—an alarming prospect for a man who considers reading, writing, and scholarly work to be his vocation from God. Despite it being one of the most difficult times of his life, it was also a period in which Bauckham felt closest to God. In this beautifully written book, Bauckham combines memoir, theological and biblical reflection, and poetry to offer profound insight into God’s providence amid life’s difficulties. He discusses relevant aspects of his earlier life, delves into the time when his eyesight began to deteriorate, and reflects on issues that arose during that period. The book also includes generous amounts of Bauckham’s own poetry. Throughout his experience, Bauckham maintained a close relation- ship with God and drew nearer to him. His journey with God during this time led him to contemplate God’s purpose for his life and how he can live in a way that reflects his overwhelming sense of gratitude. He shares his story as a way of encouraging others in their own unique walk with God. “Not only is Bauckham a world-class scholar and a poet of wisdom and subtlety, but—as demonstrated here—it seems he can write of a ‘difficult journey with God’ in a way that puts him alongside some of the great spiritual writers of the past. Weaving together auto- biography, poetry, and biblical and theological reflections, The Blurred Cross has all the makings of a fresh Christian classic. You will finish the book profoundly grateful, not only to Bauckham for having written it, but even more, to the God who so obviously inspired it.” —JEREMY BEGBIE, Duke Divinity School FROM THE BOOK Romans 8 is notable for its focus on Jesus Christ (Rom. 8:34, 35, 39). The way God works in “all things” for the ultimate “good” of those he loves and who love him is Christ-shaped. It has the contours of the cross and the resurrection. Therefore, sufferings, contradic- tions, and difficulties, far from being excluded, are the expected context in which God’s love will be experienced and his purpose worked out. There is a kind of solidarity between the passion of Je- sus and the sufferings of those who trust in him. The love of God for the world, which Jesus embraced and implemented when he went to his death on the cross, reaches above all those who embrace that love as followers of Jesus. Absolutely nothing at all “will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord” (8:39).
JULY 2024 • 208 pp. • paper • $21.99 • 9781540967435
Richard Bauckham (PhD, University of Cambridge) is emeritus pro- fessor of New Testament at the University of St. Andrews, Scotland, and senior scholar at Ridley Hall, Cambridge. He is a fellow of the British Academy and the author of numerous books, including Who Is God? , Gospel of Glory , The Testimony of the Beloved Disciple , The Christian World around the New Testament , The Jewish World around the New Testament , and Jesus and the Eyewitnesses .
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