Casey (emeritus, New Testament languages and literatures, U. of Nottingham, England) presents material he has gathered and analyzed over many years on the historical Jesus, placing his life and teachings within the context of his time and culture. By independent, he signals that he does not belong to any religious or anti-religious group, but wields tools of a historian to find, evaluate, and interpret objective evidence and to seek valid historical conclusions. His topics include historically reliable sources, birth and upbringing, call and ministry, God, Jesus' ethical teaching, conflicts with his opponents, Christological terms, death in Jerusalem, and whether Jesus rose from the dead. Annotation ©2011 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)