Jesus and Justice: Organizing for God’s Reign on Earth Then and Now

by John Dominic Crossan and Michael Okinczyc-Cruz

Jesus and Justice presents the life of the historical Jesus as a bold and transformative call to action, inviting readers to actively follow his nonviolent and revolutionary example. Grounded in rigorous historical analysis, the authors show how Jesus organized a grassroots movement of poor and marginalized peasants to confront the Roman Empire’s economic, political, and ideological domination—an imperial system with striking parallels to today’s corporate-driven global order.

The book reveals Jesus’ message as a radically anti-imperial vision of God’s Reign: a collaborative, egalitarian and justice-centered alternative to systems built on scarcity and oppression. Drawing connections to modern movements led by figures like Martin Luther King Jr. and Dolores Huerta, Crossan and Okinczyc-Cruz offer a powerful spiritual and theological framework for confronting contemporary injustice. Jesus and Justice challenges readers to embrace Jesus’ original revolutionary program of love, mercy and nonviolent action and equips them to respond to God’s call for participatory protagonism through committed, organized action for God’s Reign on Earth.