Critically examine the role of the letters between Gerd Theissen and the fictional Dr. Kratzinger in this text. How do they shape the story? What worries does Theissen express through this fictional interlocutor, and how does he address them?

Jesus never appears directly in this story, except in dreams and when he is dead. What would have been the logistical and ethical challenges of including Jesus as a central character? How does Theissen use the fictional Andreas to achieve an appropriate narrative distance from Jesus?

Why is fiction a useful tool for investigating the Political and Religious Upheaval of Jesus’s lifetime? What advantages does it offer to Theissen as a historian?