Luke's Presentation of Jesus: A Christology

This study uses composition criticism to consider everything that Luke wrote about Jesus. Jesus was a human being and a prophet, yet Luke wished to say much more. He has a very extensive and developed portrayal of Jesus as a saviour. His roles as Servant of Yahweh and Son of Man play a real part in explaining a number of Jesus' experiences and actions, including his passion. Jesus' identification as the Christ can be associated with the being Son of God, but each of these identifications has its own nuances. Luke 1:35 proves crucial for a correct understanding of Son of God and guides the reader's comprehension of Jesus' identity. The OT background of Lord leads to a correct interpretation of this title when applied to Jesus, and Luke willingly predicates similar things of God and of Jesus. Robert F. O'Toole, S. J., was born and raised in St. Louis and entered the Jesuits in 1954. He holds an M. A. in Greek and Latin and he is licentiated in both philosophy and theology. He did his doctorate in Sacred Scripture at the Pontifical Biblical Institute in Rome; his director was the then Fr. Carlo Maria Martini, S. J., later Cardinal-Archbishop of Milan. Fr. O'Toole taught at St. Louis University for 17 years and in 1991 moved to the Biblical Faculty at the Pontifical Biblical Institute, where he was also Superior of the community and then Rector of the Institute. In September of 2003, he was named the President of the Gregorian University Foundation. Fr. O'Toole has published extensively. Most of his publications are studies on Luke-Acts, and he has also done numerous book reviews. This, his fourth book, addressed a topic that for years has captured his intellectual interest.