Reflections on Jesus and Socrates

Living more than four centuries apart in very different cultures, Jesus and Socrates wrote nothing themselves, but they inspired their followers to set down words that continue to shape western consciousness. In this meditation, Paul Gooch reflects on enduring themes that arise from the lives of these two pivotal figures: death and witness, silence as the limit of language, prayer, obedience, and love. Focusing on the Jesus of the Gospels and the Socrates of Plato's dialogues, Gooch does not debate the historical realities of either figure but seeks to understand their fundamental commitments to philosophy and to God.