"The book meets the needs of scholars and students of New Testament Studies, Rabbinics, Patristics/Byzantine Studies, and Galilean Studies for information on the localized historical development of Jewish-Christian interaction in the town of Capernaum through the integration of archaeological and literary sources"--

This book takes the established fields of orality, performance, and first-century Christian healthcare studies further by combining analogues of praise performances to Apollo, Asclepius, and those from the Dondo people of South Eastern Zimbabwe to propose that Jesus’s healing stories in Mark’s Gospel are praise-giving narratives to Jesus as the best folk healer within the region of Capernaum. The book argues that the memory of Jesus as the folk healer from Capernaum survived and possibly functioned in similar contexts of praise-giving within early Christian households. The book goes through each healing story in Mark’s Gospel and imaginatively listens to it through the ears of analogue from praise-giving given to Greek healers/heroes and similar practices among the Dondo people. The power, completeness, and effectiveness in which Jesus healed each of the mentioned conditions provoke praise-giving from the listeners to the best folk healer in the village. In each instance, while Mark is calling for attention to the new healer, more so, he is raving praise-giving.

Imagine going to sleep and waking up in a dream. In your dream you are meeting people from the past and the future, from all over the world. They have arrived the same way you have. Imagine you find yourself in the presence of Jesus Christ. Imagine being there to hear the teachings of the Lord. Imagine being there for the crucifixion. Imagine each night you dream it is the continuation of the same dream, as if you are in someone else’s movie. Imagine the dreams hold great danger for you. Imagine what would happen if you gazed into the eyes of the Lord. Imagine each time you wake up no one believes you, no one believes you. What do you do, who do you tell? Imagine.

The carpenter of Nazareth becomes the teacher and healer of Capernaum. But how do ordinary folks perceive the young rabbi? Amos, the baker of the village, struggles to reconcile his old ideas about the Messiah with the image of his new friend Yeshua, hailed by some as the Son of God. Soon a devastating loss makes Amos world crumble. Judas Iscariot and the butcher, Barabbas, are among the suspects. Comforted by Yeshua, Amos airs the question that many have uttered in despair: Why are nasty burdens laid upon nice people? In his search for answers, the abduction of Amos friend, Mary Magdalene, brings them in contact with Bedouins in the Negev. They discover that these nomads, too, search for clarity about the Messiah. At the Hanukkah feast, the Great One stuns Jews and Arabs alike with new perspectives on the first and second coming of the Messiah. Amos soon witnesses how the worst is laid upon the best at the Place of the Skull. This seemingly tragic end of a good life spawns astounding blessings for Amos, his friends, and even his former enemies."