The life of Jesus has often been discussed and debated among scholars and authors since the time Jesus walked this earth. Gerd Theissen's work, The Shadow of the Galilean, takes the unique perspective of a grain merchant who was enlisted by Pilate to obtain information on various religious sects and report to him. After the first report from Andreas, the grain merchant, he is tasked with finding out more about this Jesus who is gaining many followers. Pilate and the Romans want to know if he poses a threat to them. This book follows Andreas as he goes on a journey to learn more about Jesus from various sources for his report to the Romans. Theissen begins this narrative with Andreas at a demonstration, once again Pilate and Andreas being forced to provide information about religious groups. Andreas was arrested for participating in the demonstration even though he himself was participating. He and his slave were put in prison until Andreas finally agreed to be an informant (Theissen 14-15). Pilate had actually left Andreas no choice since his only other option was to be imprisoned for the rest of his life. Even though Andreas didn't want to do it, he thought he could use it to his advantage so he could provide information without causing harm to anyone. Throughout the novel, Andreas always worries about others, whether it is his longtime friend, Barabbas, or his slave, Timon. He doesn't want to cause trouble for the people he is investigating and he always wants to complete his task in order to protect his family as well. The first group he is supposed to provide information about is the Essenes, a very private and autonomous desert group with strict rules that its members must follow. A...... middle of paper ......lly from his increase in knowledge as well as the discussions he had with various people along the way whether it was a Roman soldier or a couple selling olives. The Shadow of the Galilean offers readers a way to discover what people of the time might have thought of Jesus and how he affected everyone around him, in an engaging narrative form. Gerd Theissen not only focuses on one aspect of Jesus' ministry, but he addresses them all by giving examples of them throughout the book so that readers can fully understand what the characters are talking about. The author chose to focus more on those who were skeptical of Jesus or who disagreed with him, which allowed the audience to understand the thought process of why people didn't didn't like Jesus specifically, as opposed to the general reasons the reader can know through private study. or could have assumed otherwise.