The lively interest today in the historical figure of Jesus is rarely matched by theological advances in understanding his person and significance for our own time and worldview. Gordon Kaufman takes up this challenge in this bold, speculative work. Despite the fabled difficulties of traditional Christological terms, few theologians since Tillich and Teilhard have sought to re-envision the symbol of Jesus within the contemporary scientific worldview. Building on his notion of God as simply creativity, Kaufman here locates the meaning of Jesus salvific story within an evolving universe and a threatened planet. Outside the dualistic categories of the biblical worldview, he finds, the enormously creative and influential figure of the historic Jesus can have a vital role in the emergence and development of the cosmos and human history. Within that role, he argues, Jesus, his relation to God, and his centrality to Christian faith become clearer and our own lives This book contributes significantly to discussing: (1) Why cannot "serendipitous," which actually becomes personal in the human embodiment of it where human freedom and creativity coalesce, be itself personal? (2) Why cannot one hope for eternal life, if one can hope for a better human future on the basis of "creativity's record? --Robert Haight, Union Theological Seminary, New York Gordon D. Kaufman is Edwin Mallinckrodt Jr. Professor of Theology Emeritus at Harvard Divinity School. His many important theological works include God-Mystery-Divinity (1996, 0-8006-2959-0) and In the beginning....Creativity (2004,0-8006-3684-8).