What People Are Saying

Now Featured in the Patheos Book Club
Becoming the Son
An Autobiography of Jesus
By C.D. Baker

"A first-person encounter with the Jesus who could have been is carefully researched and challenges tradition without disrespecting the biblical accounts."
—Publishers Weekly Select, December 2012

"I've struggled to comprehend a Jesus who is fully God and fully man. In this novel, C. D. Baker sets out to present ". . . fresh possibilities of who Jesus of Nazareth could have been." From his presentation, I emerge with a deeper understanding of what that may have looked like. The research in this book is meticulous. The author fills in Christ's childhood and adolescence and vividly recreates the Gospel story. He fearlessly creates detail (none of it contrary to Scripture) to bridge the gaps in the Bible, and he does so with sensitivity, heart, and scrupulous attention to the reality of life in those days. I highly recommend you read this book."
—Sheila Lagrand

"C.D. Baker has accomplished what few novelists have ever achieved. From his pen flows an engaging story about Jesus that resists literary, theological, or historical compromise. It is truly a rare gem."
—Dr. Bruce Longenecker, W.W. Melton Chair of Religion, Baylor University.

"When you first consider an 'Autobiography' by Jesus, it seems a dangerous and daunting task filled with the deepest of pitfalls and treacherous decisions. But if your approach is from a pureness of heart and a disciplined spirit, you may be blessed enough to have your courage rewarded. Such is the result of, Becoming the Son from C.D. Baker. He is a gifted writer who will cause you to laugh and to cry and most assuredly . . . think."
—Frank Liebert

"Becoming the Son is a revelation: a human Jesus we can know and love, a human Jesus who we accompany as he grows into the knowledge of his own divinity and the sacrifice which that eventually entails. Baker literally fleshes out a beautiful, sweeping, engaging narrative which carries you along with a refreshingly new look at well known scenes which have become faded with time and repetition. I found myself lingering over favorite characters and dialogues with the emotional involvement one gets with great storytelling."
—Jeffrey Thatcher

"Jesus is not a topic. He's a person who lived, breathed, walked, ate, spoke, related, emoted, and otherwise lived as any other human being. The problem many Christians face is not fully appreciating the utter humanity of Jesus. Baker does not make this tragic mistake. The book is culturally on mark and dripping with historical reliability. It is difficult to think of a more helpful book in regard to the human life of Jesus. Baker shows the human side of Jesus in a way that will lift your faith, test your intellect, and give you an invaluable lesson in the cultural life and times of Jesus all at once. I cannot recommend this book highly enough."
—Stephen O. Meidahl