While Christianity teaches that Jesus is the Son of God whose death saved humanity from its sins, Jesus has also been the subject of considerable historical interest. Most scholars in relevant fields (religious studies, classics, etc.) agree that Jesus was a real person, as he is referenced in contemporaneous or near-contemporaneous Jewish and Roman accounts. His baptism and execution are considered particularly well attested to. Beyond this, however, the question of the Gospels’ accuracy has been subject to debate, and attempts to piece together a biography have yielded a wide variety of interpretations. 

Rather than attempting to prove or disprove the supernatural events described in the gospels, In Miracles and Wonder, Pagels investigates their literary, cultural, and theological significance. Her work examines how stories about Jesus were constructed and what they meant to early communities. Pagels describes her method as a “two-way quest,” aiming to “recover, as far as possible, what actually happened, and look forward to see how the gospel writers developed their sources in a way that was powerful and even more compelling than straightforward historical writing” (10). Her primary interest is the cultural meaning behind the miracles and the story’s enduring power for the Jewish and Christian communities.

This focus on narrative sets Pagels apart from other scholars’ work on the same subject. She both incorporates and critiques the works of writers like N. T. Wright, Bart Ehrman, and Morton Smith in Miracles and Wonder, treating their analysis of Jesus through historical fact, biblical manuscript, and extra-religious comparison as a continuation of the basic goals of the anonymous gospel writers: namely, to meaningfully place the life and works of Jesus in an existing socio-cultural framework. By prioritizing the social function of storytelling and the evolution of Christian text, practice, and philosophy, Pagels engages with the historical mystery of Jesus by exploring why these ancient stories have remained so compelling for two millennia.