Book Description
In this startling new book, New York Times bestselling author Robert Spencer, provides a warts-and-all portrait of the Prophet of Islam and draws out what his life implies for reforming Islam and repulsing Islamic terrorists. Spencer relies solely on primary sources considered reliable by Muslims and evaluates modern biographies to show how Muhammad has been changed for Western audiences, lulling them into consoling but false conclusions.
Customer Reviews:
Oh political bias..........2007-10-04
While it is certainly true that Spencer utilizes recognized primary sources to construct his arguments, he fails entirely to place the sources in context, or interpret them in a manner consistent with the vast majority of Muslims. I find it heavily amusing that he believes so strongly in Islam's intolerance that he includes it in his title. The reason for this amusement is that up until modern times (Ottoman Empire forward), Islam was arguably the most tolerant of the three religions of the book. In addition to this, Islam is the only one of the three which allows for Muslims, Christians, and Jews to be judged equally (Al-Baqarah 112). When compared to Christianity's views on salvation, and its history of Conversion by the sword (1st-5th crusades, Spanish Inquisition), Islam looks quite tolerant.
take Spencer with a grain of salt. His citations of the hadiths, Qur'an, and other primary sources may be correct, but his conclusions are massively off. You would be better off reading the Qur'an yourself and making your own decisions, as it is fairly obvious that Spencer is merely playing off of America's current ignorance of Islam to paint a picture consistent with our stereotypes.
A Very Eye Opening Book!.......2007-10-03
This is a very eye opening book about the founder of one of the world's most dominant religions. The author uses Muslim references to obtain his facts. He also quotes Muslim scholars and what they have to say. It is not a long book, but it is packed with very informative and very eye opening information about Muhammad and his followers. This book will help people understand the ideas and motivation behind why so many Muslims in the Middle East and elsewhere can be dangerous. This is not a book on Muslims today, as a rule, but does greatly help one understand why many radical Muslims act as they do. It is an easy read and very informative. He explains why the Jewish people are looked down upon along with the Christians, and goes into why the various areas like Medina and Mecca are so important to Islam. I think this is a very good book for anyone wanting to greater understand the reasoning behind Islam, and the man that founded it.
Wht Everyone Needs to Know.......2007-10-01
This is a detailed exploration of the meaning of the Qur'an, and the sayings of Muhammad. Spencer informs the reader that the Qur'an is not set down in chronological order. Rather, it is arranged from longest verse to shortest verse.
As the word of God, the Qur'an can never be amended by man, but verses can be abrogated by God. God can change His mind, and make earlier verses void. However, those same voided verses must remain in the Qur'an, as God did not direct that the voided verses should be removed.
Spencer guides the reader through this confusion, by explaining which verses are still in effect. The reader needs to obtain one of the translations of the Qur'an, referenced by Spencer, inorder to be able to to lookup the Qu'ranic verses to which he refers.
The peaceful verses of the Qur'an, with regard to the treatment of nonbelievers, date from the Meccan period, when Islam was struggling to get established. Those verses of the Qur'an, added after Muhammad fled to Medina, exhort the believers to make war upon the nonbelievers, and to spread the religion by force.
Those who mantain that Islam is a religion of peace, are referenceing verses which have been abrogated, or voided,and are no longer in effect.
A must read for anyone seeking to understand Islam.
A Must Buy for those Intolerant of Islam and Muslims........2007-10-01
This is a good book for anti-Islamic enthusiasts. But if one is looking for a good book on Islam and Islam's Prophet Muhammad, I'm afraid one will have to look elswhere.
Firstly, many non-scholars who write books about Islam will not use normal hermeneutical principles when reading and interpreting Quran passages, even if they are biblical scholars who believe the Bible must be interpreted according to specific principles. For instance, several there are passages in several chapters of the Quran that give rules for defensive warfare. The early Muslim state was attacked by the rulers of Mecca who didn't want to remove the idols from the Kaaba because of the prestige Mecca had being the focus of worship for all the tribes of the Arabian Penninsula. Thus, the Meccan rulers declared war on the early Muslims, continuing the persecution against the early Muslims on a larger scale now that there was an Islamic state in Medina. It was not until then that Muslims fought any wars. Some chapters of the Quran will have passages without conditions when discussing warfare, but these passages must be interpreted by those passages which have conditions. Certainly, not all who call themselves Muslims follow that interpretative principle. But then, not all Christians have at all times and places have followed the traditional Christian view of a just war, either.
Secondly, after the death of Islam's prophet, the Islamic Government soon became imperialist. The Myth is that Islam was spread by the sword. However, later caliphs (successors to the Prophet) conquered lands so they get get the taxes from the Christians and Jews and Zoroastrians and others, despite the Quranic teaching that warfare must be defensive. Traditional Sunni Muslims usually believe their were only 4 very good Caliphs, the first 4 after the death of Islam's Prophet (Abu Bakr, Umar, Uthman, and Ali Ibn Talib). Traditional Shia Muslims believe only Ali Ibn Talib (cousin of Muhammad and husband of his daughter Fatima) was a very good caliph. After the murder of Ali, the Caliphate became a dynasty of the Ummayad family. The first Ummayad ruler, Muhawiya, was the son of Abu Sufyan, the leader of the Meccans who became a Muslim after a treaty between the Muslim State and Mecca was broken by agents of the Meccans. Muhawiya's son, Caliph Yazid, demanded fealty from Ali's son Husain and would not let Husain and his followers go into exile. When Husain refused to give fealty to a Caliph that Husain believed openly did not emulate the Prophet, Yazid's army fought and killed Husain small group of follows and all but one of his sons. In the time of the Ummayad dynasty, the name of Ali was cursed within the Islamic caliphate. Many histories which came to be used by Sunni Muslims were written at the time of the Ummayads that sometimes have different accounts of early Islamic history than in the Shia books. These books are considered "authentic" by the Sunnis but are not considered to always be reliable by Shias.
Some examples of differences between one Sunni history or another, and one Sunni history and Shia history follow: Some Sunni histories say that Muhammad had a speck of "black" taken from his heart by the Angel Gabriel. Shias state that never happened. Some Sunni books state that that Muhammad didn't know he was supposed to be a Prophet and also that he was afraid and thought he was demon-possesed. Not so according to Shia books. One Sunni history states that Muhammad consumated his marriage to Aisha the daughter of future caliph Abu Bakr when she was 9 years old. What many anti-Muslim scholars will not tell you is that other Sunni histories say she was 14 or 15 years old, and that Shia books say she was 18, and that Muhammad was not really interested in marrying her but did so to please Abu Bakr and his party. Now, why would histories that paint Muhammad in a bad light be written during the Ummayad dynasty? Perhaps to undermine Ali and Husain and their supporters (who became know later as the Shia Muslims).
Thus, The Truth about Muhammad does not really give the whole truth about Muhammad. Why not buy the classic Sunni histories and read them for yourself. They are available in English translation. One can buy Shia books that discuss Muslim history from the Shia viewpoint (although not all the histories have been translated into English).
However, for those who don't want to understand Muslims, one can read this book. There are those who call themselves Muslims who don't want to try to understand Christianity or the West. What happens when one group doesn't want to understand the other? I believe the answer is too obvious to state here.
Muhammad was a con artist.......2007-10-01
Perhaps it was the sequence of presentation, but I marvaled at the great number of revelations allegedly from Allah,conveniently acquired that Muhammad used to find answers to simple daily problems. I can't believe that. It is too convenient for the man.
Book Description
In the run-up to the invasion of Iraq, Scott Ritter's War on Iraq was embraced by the antiwar movement in America even though his claims that Iraq had been effectively disarmed were ignored by both the Bush administration and the mainstream media. In the wake of the debacle, Ritter has been vindicated. Now Ritter, a former United Nations weapons inspector, has set his sights on the White House's hyping of Iran's alleged nuclear weapons program. In Target Iran he once again sets the record straight.
This book offers Ritter's “national intelligence assessment” of the Iranian imbroglio. He examines the Bush administration's regime-change policy and the potential of Iran to threaten U.S. national security interests. The author also considers how the country is seen by other interested parties, including the United Kingdom (Tony Blair may once again be called upon by Bush to provide an international “cover” in any confrontation), Israel (the Israelis view Iran as their number one threat today), and the International Atomic Energy Agency (responsible for inspecting the alleged nuclear program).
Customer Reviews:
The story still goes on!.......2007-08-29
This book has many merits and is surely the best you can find if you are looking for a good overview of the Iranian nuclear issue up to the end of 2006. Included is the critical role of Israel, the US policy toward Tehran, the IAEA efforts (and some of its techniques) and many more. The problem is that the story is still going on and none knows how (and when) it will end. Thus I think it's rather premature to buy a book only for a synopsis of the US-Israel-Iran crisis, while new developments happen nearly every day. Mr Scott has also no comments on the possible "military solutions" (except a few lines stating that they will be catastrophic as a choice), something that I found disappointing to say the least.
A must read.......2007-06-10
The subject matter is of increasing importance for Americans and the world. Mr. Ritter once again lays open the myths that surround another nation that is very misunderstood by the U.S. government and the people. As the U.S. moves closer and closer to a possible confrontation with Iran this book becomes increasingly important for Americans to be able to equip themselves with the facts so they can see through the rhetoric that is put forth by an increasingly hostile administration.
It is essential that we are not caught ignorant once again while this administration leads this country into another blunder in the Middle East. Mr. Ritter does an excellent job laying out what the international community has done to confront Iran's intransigence, and how the U.S. has hindered and complicated matters behind the scenes and publicly. His message once again seems prescient hopefully this time his warnings will be heeded, but the only way that will happen is if American's acquaint themselves with the facts so they won't succumb to the fear tactics yet again.
The main criticisms I have with this book is its choppy narrative and the lack of sources noted. The narrative seems to bounce around a lot which can be a little confusing at times. The lack of noting his sources becomes problematic when discussing the book or the issue because you can't point to Mr. Ritter's source and say that's where he gets his information. Mr. Ritter's earlier works gives him the credibility needed to pull this off, but for those that are die hard interventionists it would have helped to be able to see the sources.
These are the reasons I could not give this book five stars, but the importance of the subject makes this book a must read. I would certainly recommend this book to everyone.
Different nation, same US Foreign policy: Regime change.......2007-05-23
Just a few points to consider:
1. Iran was determined to have Nuclear capability by 2006.
2. Ahmadinejad is all bark, and no bite (literally, since he doesn't control Iran's nuclear forces and is NOT the man with the ultimate power in Iran, whic resides in the hands of Khamenie who has declared that the use of atomic bombs under any circumstances is not legitimate under Islam).
The book is well written and not only tells you about the politics involved, but also the technology of developing nuclear capability. The chapters are very long, and I noticed atleast twice that the publisher printed "Iraq" when the author meant to say "Iran" (see top of page 200)
More pics/maps would have been nice.
Great book, but read the conclusion first........2007-02-09
READ THE CONCLUSION AND POSTSCRIPT FIRST.
This is a very important book. Based on its rank in Amazon sales (in the 4000s or so), it's being purchased by quite a few people.
But there are only ten (ten) Amazon reviews. Only ten reviews of a book that gives authoritative, on-the-ground facts about Iran's nuclear capabilities.
Why so few Amazon reviews? Here's our guess. Readers get totally bogged down in the minutiae of weapons inspection, of Mossad spy disinformation, of EU vacillation, of the UN teetering on a Security Council resolution . . ..
But who reads the entire book? It's a total drudge read until you get to the CONCLUSION and POSTSCRIPT on pages 197-219. Those 22 pages tell the whole story.
We strongly recommend that you read these pages first. After you read the Conclusion and Postscript, then go back and read the knowledgeable detail in the first 196 pages. This is a great book, showing what's actually gone on, step by step, in the inspections done by Mohammed EI Baradei, IAEA Director, and his team.
The Iranians are nowhere close to having nuclear capabilities.
This is the conclusion of Scott Ritter, one of the men who took part in the Iraqi inspections, announced that Saddam had NO "weapons of mass destruction," and was completely ignored by a war-hungry Bush administration. And Scott Ritter was completely right. We went to war with Iraq for NO REASON AT ALL.
So, read the conclusion and the postscript first. Here he says with admirable clarity what others are saying--including Stephen Walt and John Mearsherimer (book forthcoming), James Petras, and Jimmy Carter.
We need to take back our country.
Israel and America are two separate countries. Iran is no danger to the US. It's Israel's problem (if it is a threat, which evidently it is not), but, as Ritter says, "Once again [as in Iraq], the world finds itself on the brink of another Middle East war in which the United States is using trumped-up charges centered around false threats of weapons of mass destruction. . ." ( p, 201) As Ritter shows, all these false threats are being orchestrated by Israel and its friends in the United States.
Israel itself has a formidable nuclear arsenal, uninspected by anybody--IAEA in particular. And they are not even members of the NPT (Non-Proliferation Treaty).
Ritter acknowledges Israel's feelings of paranoia, but points out that in this case those feelings will lead to its own destruction.
And what about the United States? What could be the outcome for the US of such a war? This is the most disturbing part of the book. Anyone who is familiar with the location of Iran knows that they are strategically placed to stop the flow of a great deal of the oil that reaches the West. Result? Our economy would grind to a miserable slowdown when the price of oil goes to $150-200 a barrel. Other results, equally horrifying, are described by Ritter.
Scott Ritter is a patriot who knows what he is talking about. He has all the credentials to be credible. We had better listen to him.
We'd better listen to him soon.
The word is out that an attack is being planned for this spring. Let's hope it's not true.
A Must Read!!.......2007-02-08
While the country debates the troop "surge" the administration and its Israeli "Ally" plan the next war right under our noses. Too bad there is such little discussion of this in the mainstream press.
Ritter's book is well written and authoratative.
Book Description
Lt. General Mike DeLong, deputy commander of the U.S. Central Command during the Afghanistan and Iraq wars, was second only to General Tommy Franks in conducting the war on terror. From his vantage point at the center of discussions between President Bush, Donald Rumsfeld, Paul Wolfowitz, and Tommy Franks, General DeLong offers the frankest and most authoritative look yet inside the wars--how we prepared for battle, how we fought, how we toppled two regimes--and what's happening now on these two crucial fronts. DeLong made a significant retort of those critical of having a more streamlined, technological force in a recent New York Times op ed and on CNN. This book builds on his argument: in war, expect the unexpected. Mistakes will be made, and no amount of war-gaming can create instant harmony and peace in a region that has never known it.
Customer Reviews:
Filled me with new respect.......2007-06-30
Every now and then I'll read a book and wish that I could meet the author for dinner. A General Speaks Out was one of those books. General DeLong is a fascinating person. He comes across as a no nonsense type of guy but clearly has a sense of humor as well and this book is about his time in one of the hardest jobs on earth. Between dealing with Secretary Rumsfeld, General Franks-- a guy you would NOT want to get on the bad side of, and running a war it's a wonder he made it retirement without collapsing.
The most interesting part of the book was the wild contrast between the stuff the media was printing and they way things actually were. If the media scandals of recent years didn't make you question everything you read in the newspaper then this book should.
Finally, I was really moved by the dedication and calmness of our military. Thank you General DeLong for your service.
A book from Rumsfeld's biggest fan.......2007-05-03
Mike DeLong is the former second in command at US Central Command. He is also among the most die-hard supporters of Don Rumsfeld. When six retired generals called for Rumsfeld to resign in the sprint of 2006 over the situation in Iraq, Mike DeLong took the other side and became the public defender of Rumsfeld and the "stay the course" strategy in Iraq.
The book isn't very good. DeLong mostly just repeats Rumsfeld's ideas and tries to defend the Iraq war. He is all for transformation of the military along the lines Rumsfeld wanted. But he doesn't bother to think about the implications of how a small high-tech army can ever win an insurgency war like Iraq. In fact, for an ex-general, he doesn't give much thought to how to do things better in Iraq at all.
On the lead-up to the Iraq war, he might as well be Rumsfeld or Cheney. He repeats all the disproved alligations of links between Bin Laden and Iraq. In interviews he also has claimed that Al Queida had its own chemical weapons plant in Kurdistan.
As far as WMDs, he is convinced that everything said in the lead-up to the war was true. The only reason they didn't find the weapons is that they were taken to Syria. Along the same lines, the book gives the impression that the "solution" to Iraq that he sees is invasions of Syria and Iran. I would not doubt though that if such invasions occured that the WMDs would again not be found he would tell us that they are in Sudan or Lebannon. He basically doesn't retreat an inch from the worst of the disproved pre-war claims.
If the pro-Rumsfeld politics of the book are the bad part, the good part of the book is when he talks about the actual mechanics of leading the war effort in Iraq from the perspective of his job (second in command). But even in that part, this is his second book and after "inside Centcom", there isn't all that much new to say.
The truth as he saw it........2007-04-04
The writer of this book is a retired Naval Aviator, US Marine Corps Leutenant General who writes as he sees it. It is of his experiece as the number 2 officer in the US Central Command who kept the home fires burning during te 2003 invasion of Iraq. This revised and renamed editon serves a real purpose in that his view on events of major signifiance vary from other writers and remain unchallenged. It is an important writing because it shows that in any modern day military venture, there is much political, logistical and other work in the background during both the planning and the operational phases. Written in a simple style which adds to it value Well worth reading. The cost is right.
the men there know the truth.......2007-03-21
Excellent book by a man who was there, and helped set up everything. Easy to complain and knock things down when you HAVEN'T been there and know all that is going on. The General is honest and forthcoming with success's and failures.
Book Description
A riveting exposé of international corruption—and what we can do about it, from the author of Confessions of an Economic Hit Man, which spent over a year on the New York Times bestseller list.
In his stunning memoir, Confessions of an Economic Hit Man, John Perkins detailed his former role as an “economic hit man” in the international corporate skullduggery of a de facto American Empire. This riveting, behind-the-scenes exposé unfolded like a cinematic blockbuster told through the eyes of a man who once helped shape that empire. Now, in The Secret History of the American Empire, Perkins zeroes in on hot spots around the world and, drawing on interviews with other hit men, jackals, reporters, and activists, examines the current geopolitical crisis. Instability is the norm: ItÂ's clear that the world weÂ've created is dangerous and no longer sustainable. How did we get here? WhoÂ's responsible? What good have we done and at what cost? And what can we do to change things for the next generations? Addressing these questions and more, Perkins reveals the secret history behind the events that have created the American Empire, including:
• The current Latin-American revolution and its lessons for democracy
• How the “defeats” in Vietnam and Iraq benefited big business
• The role of Israel as “Fortress America” in the Middle East
• Tragic repercussions of the IMFÂ's “Asian Economic Collapse”
• U.S. blunders in Tibet, Congo, Lebanon, and Venezuela
• Jackal (CIA operatives) forays to assassinate democratic presidents
From the U.S. military in Iraq to infrastructure development in Indonesia, from Peace Corps volunteers in Africa to jackals in Venezuela, Perkins exposes a conspiracy of corruption that has fueled instability and anti-Americanism around the globe. Alarming yet hopeful, this book provides a compassionate plan to reimagine our world.
Customer Reviews:
Not What I expected.......2007-09-25
I picked this book up expecting it to be a direct explanation of how the international monetary system works. I was greatly disappointed to find it's just a memoir of the author's experiences, with no hard facts, and innuendos about how horrible the US is, how many people paid him not to write this book, how many threats he's received, etc. The author spends extensive time talking about specific experiences with famous people, preening himself as an important person, and absolutely no time discussing hard facts. He spends an entire chapter talking about how he was offered a controlling position in an energy company.
The author has no clue what Biblical Christianity is, based on his descriptions (it's not about the "social gospel," no matter what church happens to believe that--anyone who bothers to read the actual Bible can tell you that). He praises Che, and says Che was smeared as a communist--in reality, I don't know of anyone who's bothered by Che's communism, but rather by his terrorism, and slaughtering of thousands of people for no particular reason--the very people he claimed to be "fighting for."
Overall, very short on facts, very much about "me," and very disappointing.
Read and learn about the U.S.A........2007-09-20
A vary eye opening book.
It's every caring U.S. citizens duty to read this book.
Mr Tom Clancy goes to Harvard Business School.......2007-09-12
John Perkins' The Secret History of the American Empire is not scholarly "history". History here is just the backdrop. It is the frame story for a lyrical ballad on global corporatism. Perkins commences: "More than half the world's population lives on less than two dollars a day; 24,000 people die each day through hunger and hunger-related diseases; the United States has 5% of the world's population but consumes 25% of the world's resources; the United States' military is preeminent as is the English language; the United States has controlling interest in both the World Bank (16%) and the International Monetary Fund (17%)". (In short, the United States is ideally positioned to exploit all hungering peoples and their rich resources.) Global corporatism's reliance on "jackals" (assassins) and "geishas" (professional escorts) is mentioned, also. Clearly, Perkins' "history" is the proverbial yesterday's paper. It's nothing new. What makes the book engaging, however, is the entrance into global corporatism of a young man emerging from teen angst determined to snare more women and earn more cash (by Perkins' admission) than the high school football team captain. Perkins draws you in at once:
"Confessions of an Economic Hit Man [Perkins' previous work] became my insurance policy; the jackals knew that if anything unusual happened to me, sales of the book would skyrocket" (page xv).
The book's premise mirrors the premise of numerous, far more scholarly works (eg, Ezra Pound's Cantos, and Naomi Klein's Shock Capitalism): "Most US citizens are not aware that national disasters are like wars: They are highly profitable for business" (page 48).
Global backdrop and premise aside, it is hard to tell whether the lyric personal escapades chronicled in this book are fictional. The engaging style is highly reminiscent of science fiction author Roger Zelazny. Indeed, if John Perkins eventually declares this book to be as fictional as Roger Zelazny's sci-fi classic Lord of Light it will be no surprise. For example, Perkins reports that his life of dark corporate skullduggery turned completely around after a chance meeting seated next to His Holiness the Thirteenth Dalai Lama on a 737 commercial flight:
"I made a vow right then and there that I would devote the rest of my life to turning things around" (page 65).
If not true, certainly a fine plot twist. And while it is totally believable a good heart-to-heart with His Holiness might indeed raise a dead soul ghoulishly serving global corporatism to the life more abundant - and while it would be unkind to disparage such an event and such a vow were they true - again, this reads more like good fiction than history.
A curious read.
A little to conspiracy laced for my taste but still a must read........2007-09-11
Perkins sounded a little too much like a conspiracy theorist in this book compared to his first Hitman book but it is still a must read. We all know that the majority of American's believe what they want to believe and do not care about people in the third world. I was not aware of America's history of disastrous foreign policies and was truly fascinated to here it from John Perkins's point of view. I hate how multi-national corporations profit at the expense of the environment and workers of third world nations. I am as conservative as they come, but I hate greed with a passion and even though this book is not completely free of bias it still was a utterly fascinating read.
A good read.......2007-09-06
This book was well-written, and the author very clearly illustrates his points. The only problem I had with it was that I had already read Confessions, and this book is a reiteration of those ideas with some new (and some old) examples. It is ultimately building off of the last book. It is not a must-read, but it is a good read. I am now faced with the dilemma, however, that every time I want to buy something I end up thinking about how many people have been adversely affected by its existence. It is certainly an eye-opener.
Average customer rating:
- History's best bits
- An excellent overview of early English history
- Thouroughly enjoyable as an audiobook! (A history teacher's review)
- as fun as history gets.
- Handy guide for non-Brits
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Great Tales from English History: The Truth About King Arthur, Lady Godiva, Richard the Lionheart, and More
Robert Lacey
Manufacturer: Little, Brown and Company
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Binding: Hardcover
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ASIN: 031610910X |
Book Description
From ancient times to the present day, the story of England has been laced with drama, intrigue, courage, and passion-a rich and vibrant narrative of heroes and villains, kings and rebels, artists and highwaymen, bishops and scientists.Now, in Great Tales from English History, Robert Lacey captures some of the most pivotal moments: the stories and extraordinary characters that helped shape a nation. This first volume begins in 7150 BC with the intriguing life and death of Cheddar Man and ends in 1381 with Wat Tyler and the Peasants' Revolt.We meet the Greek navigator Pytheas, whose description of the woad-painted Celts yielded pretannik ('the land of the painted people'), which became the Latin word Britannia. We learn what the storytellers really meant when they described Lady Godiva's 'nakedness.'And we discover the truth behind the tales of King Arthur and the infamous Hobbehod, later to be known as 'Robin Hood.'
Download Description
From ancient times to the present day, the story of England has been laced with drama, intrigue, courage, and passion-a rich and vibrant narrative of heroes and villains, kings and rebels, artists and highwaymen, bishops and scientists. Now, in Great Tales from English History, Robert Lacey tells those remarkable stories as only a great writer can: combining impeccable accuracy with the timeless drama that has made these stories live for centuries.This volume begins in 7150 BC with the life and death of Cheddar Man and ends in 1381 with Wat Tyler and the Peasants' Revolt. We meet the Greek navigator Pytheas, whose description of the woad-painted Celts yielded pretanniké ("the land of the painted people"), which became the Latin word Britannia. We learn what the storytellers really meant when they described Lady Godiva's "naked" ride through town. And we discover the truth behind the tales of King Arthur and the infamous Hobbehod, later known as Robin Hood.With insight, humor, and fascinating detail, Robert Lacey brings brilliantly to life the stories that made England. From Ethelred the Unready to Richard the Lionheart, the Venerable Bede to Piers the Ploughman, this is, quite simply, history as history should be told.
Customer Reviews:
History's best bits.......2007-10-10
A few days ago I finished Great Tales From English History by Robert Lacey. When I first saw this book I knew it had potential; to me, presentation has a lot to do with my overall love for a book and this one is beautiful. After checking it out from my library when I worked there, I found Mr. Lacey's writing to be exciting, interesting, and informative. A few weeks ago I set to reading the whole thing and I'm glad I did. The book presents short stories about moments from English history that you may or may not have heard of.
From the introduction: "Brief though each chapter is, Great Tales seeks to create a coherant, chronological picture of our island story, while following the guiding principle that all men and women have heroism inside them - along with generous and fascinating measures of incompetence, apathy, evil and lust." The book is also beautifully illustrated by Fred van Deelen and Mr. Lacey has included fantastic end notes and bibliographies that you can investigate if you find a particular subject interesting. If you have any interest in English history, pick this one up at your local library and you'll probably find yourself reading the short chapters in just a few minutes each. You'll not be dissapointed! (And if you finish this and want more, try Great Tales vol. 2 and Great Tales vol. 3).
An excellent overview of early English history.......2007-09-15
The first of three volumes, this narrative presents the history of the British Isles in a way that reminds one of how folktales must have once been told. The tales begin with Cheddar Man and end with the story of Wat Tyler, spanning the years of 7150 BC to 1381.
Lacey intersperses stories of famous royals with little known people, which makes this a truly unique book. I really like learning stories that explain various parts of the English culture.
I highly recommend this series!
Thouroughly enjoyable as an audiobook! (A history teacher's review).......2007-03-25
Robert Lacey has done something that many writers have failed to do (unfortunately) - he has written history in a fun, accessible, easy to grasp manner. After all, as Lacey points out in his introduction, the "history" and "story" come from the same Latin root word. Essentially, history should be the simple story of how things happened, to the best of the teller's knowledge.
Lacey's power as a storyteller is highlighted here in spades. He narrates his audiobook as well so there is the added bonus of hearing the author add nuance to the reading - essentially reading it the way he meant it to be heard.
The stories are short and entertaining. Only a couple of times in 5 hours and 45 minutes of listening did I find my attention wandering. This is a terrificly fun experience for any history lover. Full of interesting tidbits but not lacking in the larger themes or commentaries.
I am going to look for volumes 2 & 3 and hopefully he has written or is writing his volumes on Scotland and Ireland as well.
Bravo!
I give this one an enthusiastic A+.
as fun as history gets........2007-02-12
this book covers english history from 7150 BC up to 1381 AD, and is about as fun as history gets. short chapters touching on the big names and incidents, as well as some little known ones, fly by too fast owing to the lively writing that makes this a complete page-turner. I finished it in 2 days and immediatley picked up its successor volume. wonderful.
Handy guide for non-Brits.......2007-02-08
This volume and its two companions are a handy guide to major events and people in England's history. In this volume, Lacey skirts around some of the earliest events and people, not providing much in depth and ignoring even a mention of some facts that might help him be a little less dismissive of some of the stories. But once he gets to 1066 and the battle of Hastings, his details become much clearer, and he is a good help to non-Brits who might want to hone up on names and events with some but not too many details. The three volumes end in the 20th century, so you know it covers a lot in a small space (or three small spaces). The chapters are all short - two to six pages - and are a handy guide for non-Brits. Even Brits could use them as a refresher course.
Book Description
Joining many other recently found and publicized ''gospels,'' the Gospel of Judas has found its way into the limelight as the subject of some recently published books and some recent television programming. The ancient manuscript is genuine-so what are Christians to make of the claims therein? Claims such as: Judas was doing what Jesus asked him to do when he betrayed Jesus; Jesus came to offer secret knowledge of how to escape this earthly world, rather than to usher in God's kingdom on earth; Jesus felt no pain on the cross, and more. This timely and necessary response to the Gospel of Judas is the authoritative, orthodox word on what it really tells us--and does not tell us--about Jesus, Judas, early Christianity, and Gnosticism. Tom Wright, as both a bishop and an historian, is uniquely qualified to speak on the subject and answers the questions Christians have after encountering this ''new gospel.''
Customer Reviews:
The Gnostic Gospels .......2007-10-01
This book was really helpful in giving me an insight into, not only the gospel of Judas, but also the topic of Gnosticism and the way in which it varies from what could be regarded as main stream Christian teaching. It was extremely readable and answered by questions on the topic. A valuable addition to my library.
Topsy Turvy.......2007-08-10
New Testament scholar and Anglican Bishop N. T. Wright admits that when first hearing of the recently published Gospel of Judas his initial reaction was something on the lines of "Not another one of those gospels!" This was not to dispute the importance of the find for historical scholarship which Wright concedes is significant. It merely reflects his understanding that cranks, pseudo-scholars, and a gullible and willing press would turn the find into an attack on traditional Christian beleifs and use it to "prove" their were viable alternatives to the four gospels included in the New Testament. In this judgment, Wright has been unfortunately been proven correct.
Wright responds to the hysteria generated by the media coverage in Judas and the Gospel of Jesus: Have We Missed the Truth About Christianity? - a clear, concise exposition of what this new "gospel" is and what it is not. Those familiar with Wright's rebuttals of radical revisionist New Testament "scholarship" know that he does not suffer fools gladly and so it is the case he as he completely skewers the claims of those promoting this newly discovered text as challenging the preconceptions about the Christian faith. As Wright points out repeatedly, this text comes from a period nearly a century after the New Testament gospels and so while they can tell us much about what was going on in the gnostic movement, they can tell us nothing about the real Jesus and Judas.
Despite the fact that the various gnostic movements did not have the internal cohesion to put forward a unified doctrinal synthesis, Wright correctly points out that there were defining tenets that identified a movement as gnostic. The key among these were the following four points: the belief that the material world is inherently bad; the belief that the material world is the work of an inferior - and perhaps evil - god; the belief that salvation is achieved by escaping the material world for a higher plane of existence; the belief that the salvific escape from the evils of this world is gained through the knowledge provided by the group's leaders. Naturally, such an outlook would take a dim view of the Jewish emphasis on the redemption of the material world and thus would see the God of the Old Testament as the material world's capricious creator. Considering one of the claims against by contemporary apologists for the gnostics against traditional Christianity is its alleged anti-Semitism, Wright quite correctly replies that it was the gnostics who rejected any Jewish influence and the orthodox Christians who kept the link to Judaism alive and would identify the God of the Old Testament with the Triune God of the Christian faith.
It is in fact the anti-Jewish elements of gnosticism that make the Gospel of Judas possible. Given that they saw the Apostles' maintanence of the link to Judaism objectionable and their belief in a bodily ressurection as abhorent, there was an inherent desire to turn everything topsy-turvy. Figures such as Judas, Cain, and in some cases even Satan himself are turned into heroes while the Apostles, Moses, and the prophets become distorters of the true faith.
In analyzing the two possiblilties of Jesus founding a movement steeped in Jewish belief in the Kingdom of God or something akin to the gnostic view, Wright forcefully asserts the belief in a gnostic Jesus, when the evidence is weighed, as incredible and forced. The "spin" given to gnosticism is the creation of a new myth of Christian origins that gives pride of place to those outside orthodox Christianity despite the overwhelming evidence against it. It is in many ways a reflection a type of gnostic leaning that has infected American Protestantism for some time. It is an elitist view that places self-fulfillment over religious tradition and is manifested in both liberal revisionism and conservative individualism.
Wright makes a plea to avoid the errors in both ends of the theological spectrum. The trail blazed by modern neo-gnostics is one hewn of ignorance and merely repeats distortions of the message of Christ discarded cneturies ago. Yet those to whom these neo-gnostics oppose - the fundamentalist who cling to "prosperity theology" or "the rapture" - are no less distorters of the Gospel message. We must return to being the Church that "responds in gratitude and obedient faith to the powerful word that announces Jesus as the world's true Lord, and to discover in following Him and beloging to His sacramentally constituted family a new dimension of life in the world rather than to escape from the world."
N. T. Wright has proven again that he is the greatest debunker of revisionist movements within the Church. Much of this is no doubt due to the fact that among orthodox writers, he is among the most intellectually curious and willing to give unconventional ideas a fair hearing. Yet he is not one to suffer fools in silence and when faced with poorly researched theses that are presented merely to undermine confidence in the message of the Holy Scriptures, he is more than able to leave the follies of their supporters exposed. In Judas and the Gospel of Jesus, he not only debunks the idea that it presents anything authentic about Judas or Jesus, he also debunks the entire construction of novel new ideas on the origins of the Church. It is a powerhouse of a presentation that should be read by any seeking the truth on such "alternate" gospels.
Solid and timely effort from Tom Wright .......2007-05-14
Tom Wright, as few can, "quickly" responds in depth to the recently published, Gospel of Judas. He takes on the proposed "Alternative Jesus" and broadens our understanding of gnosticism, the gnostic gospels and their proponents. Another solid effort by Bishop Tom; very readable.
No more Mr. Nice Guy.......2007-05-01
In this book Rev. Wright irrefutably demonstrates the absolute incompatibility of Christianity and Gnosticism. It also exposes the egregious dishonesty of those (Ehrman, Pagels, Meyer, etc.) who pretend that Christianity and Gnosticism are philosophically akin or can be reconciled somehow.
I never thought NT Wright was someone who could even get angry but he really comes out swinging in this one. Not only does he hack away at the obvious offenders above but also at other surprising culprits including: 1) Mistrust of the Catholic Church which has been the hallmark of Protestantism. Such distrust has undermined the credibility of the Early Church Fathers and has provided fertile ground for evil Gospel-suppression conspiracy theories to take root. 2) North American Fundamentalism and its' emphasis on personal salvation epitomized by "going to heaven" and rejection of this world, which echoes the objectives of Gnosticism.
This book is not a scholarly argument over the authenticity (or lack thereof) of any given Gospel. Rev. Wright makes clear that is a settled issue which does not warrant further effort. Given his credentials and track record, he really needs to say no more.
On the other hand, in contrasting Christianity vs Gnosticism he submits a beautifully clear and simple summary of the former which I believe every Christian will find edifying, whether or not they care about the whole Gnosticism deception.
answering the modern heretics.......2007-02-10
Thorough treatment of the present excitement over the 'new' discovery of an 'authentic' gospel. Love this guys work.
Amazon.com
It was not long after the first Japanese bombs fell on the American naval ships at Pearl Harbor that conspiracy theories began to circulate, charging that Franklin Roosevelt and his chief military advisors knew of the impending attack well in advance. Robert Stinnett, who served in the U.S. Navy with distinction during World War II, examines recently declassified American documents and concludes that, far more than merely knowing of the Japanese plan to bomb Pearl Harbor, Roosevelt deliberately steered Japan into war with America.
Stinnett's argument draws on both circumstantial evidence--the fact, for example, that in September 1940 Roosevelt signed into law a measure providing for a two-ocean navy that would number 100 aircraft carriers--and, more importantly, on American governmental documents that offer apparently incontrovertible proof that Roosevelt knowingly sacrificed American lives in order to enter the war on the side of England. Although obviously troubled by his discovery of a systematic plan of deception on the part of the American government, Stinnett does not take deep issue with its outcome. Roosevelt, he writes, faced powerful opposition from isolationist forces, and, against them, the Pearl Harbor attack was "something that had to be endured in order to stop a greater evil--the Nazi invaders in Europe who had begun the Holocaust and were poised to invade England." Sure to excite discussion, Stinnett's book offers what may be the final word on the terrible matter of Pearl Harbor. --Gregory McNamee
Book Description
Pearl Harbor was not an accident, a mere failure of American intelligence, or a brilliant Japanese military coup. It was the result of a carefully orchestrated design, initiated at the highest levels of our government. According to a key memorandum eight steps were taken to make sure we would enter the war by this means. Pearl Harbor was the only way, leading officials felt, to galvanize the reluctant American public into action.
This great question of Pearl Harbor--what did we know and when did we know it?--has been argued for years. At first, a panel created by FDR concluded that we had no advance warning and should blame only the local commanders for lack of preparedness. More recently, historians such as John Toland and Edward Beach have concluded that some intelligence was intercepted. Finally, just months ago, the Senate voted to exonerate Hawaii commanders Admiral Kimmel and Lieutenant General Short, after the Pentagon officially declared that blame should be "broadly shared." But no investigator has ever been able to prove that fore-knowledge of the attack existed at the highest levels.
Until now. After decades of Freedom of Information Act requests, Robert B. Stinnett has gathered the long-hidden evidence that shatters every shibboleth of Pearl Harbor. It shows that not only was the attack expected, it was deliberately provoked through an eight-step program devised by the Navy. Whereas previous investigators have claimed that our government did not crack Japan's military codes before December 7, 1941, Stinnett offers cable after cable of decryptions. He proves that a Japanese spy on the island transmitted information--including a map of bombing targets--beginning on August 21, and that government intelligence knew all about it. He reveals that Admiral Kimmel was prevented from conducting a routine training exercise at the eleventh hour that would have uncovered the location of the oncoming Japanese fleet. And contrary to previous claims, he shows that the Japanese fleet did not maintain radio silence as it approached Hawaii. Its many coded cables were intercepted and decoded by American cryptographers in Stations on Hawaii and in Seattle.
The evidence is overwhelming. At the highest levels--on FDR's desk--America had ample warning of the pending attack. At those same levels, it was understood that the isolationist American public would not support a declaration of war unless we were attacked first. The result was a plan to anger Japan, to keep the loyal officers responsible for Pearl Harbor in the dark, and thus to drag America into the greatest war of her existence.
Yet even having found what he calls the "terrible truth," Stinnett is still inclined to forgive. "I sympathize with the agonizing dilemma faced by President Roosevelt," he writes. "He was forced to find circuitous means to persuade an isolationist America to join in a fight for freedom....It is easier to take a critical view of this policy a half century removed than to understand fully what went on in Roosevelt's mind in the year prior to Pearl Harbor."
Day of Deceit is the definitive final chapter on America's greatest secret and our worst military disaster.
Download Description
Twenty years ago Robert Stinnett set out to answer the question that the Congressional investigations of 1945 and 1995 could not: Did President Roosevelt know that the attack on Pearl Harbor was coming? Using evidence that has never been released before now, Stinnett describes Japanese activities documented by the American government that prove that FDR knew in advance about the attack, and deliberately did nothing to stop it. For decades it has been believed that the Japanese fleet maintained strict radio silence as it approached Hawaii. But Stinnett reveals that it did not -- in fact, no coordinated fleet could have done so -- and more explosively, he proves that allied listening stations intercepted and decoded dozens of the fleet's military messages, as they had been doing long before December 1941. Stinnett produces several devastating cables, tracing their path from the cryptographers who deciphered them directly to the White House. Here at last is the archival evidence that has been denied for half a century.
Customer Reviews:
Nonsense.......2007-06-27
Does anyone use plain ole common sense anymore? Are we really to believe that the president of the United States would deliberately let thousands of Americans be killed, let half of our Pacific Fleet be crippled, and leave the west coast of America open to attack, all for the sake of winning support for a war that we would eventually be dragged into anyway? And this from a president that loved the Navy? What a bunch of hogwash. There is no doubt many things things about Pearl Harbor have been left out of history, but c'mon folks, use your brains..
What is the truth?.......2007-05-21
This is a well documented history of events leading up to Pearl Harbor which gives a lot of credibility to FDR manipulating events to pull the US into WWII. I will try to find out how Mr. Stinnett is viewed by other noted WWII historians. This book presents a different light on FDR than I have heard before and I wonder if this view and Mr. Stinnett are credible rather than having an agenda to prove. It is well written and an easy read for the most part. It certainly caught my attention as it should anyone that has an interest in FDR's legacy and how his administration operated prior to WWII.
9/11--The New Pearl Harbor.......2007-02-17
See on Google Video--LOOSE CHANGE
This video does for 9-11 what this book does for Pearl Harbor.
Disturbing.......2006-09-16
Gives overwhelming proof that FDR provoked the Japanese attack primarily through denying access to natural resources in Indonesia via the Dutch government in exile, and also by giving support to Chinese resistance fighters. The motive behind the provocation was to ensure that the American people would support a war against Nazi Germany, Italy and Japan that they did not wish to be involved in prior to December 7, 1941. Instead of trying to convince the American people that war would be inevitable against Fascism; condescendingly assured of their stupidity, FDR sacrificed 2500 sailors in order to mobilize the nation for war.
The intelligence services were aware of false Japanese diplomats mapping out Pearl Harbor in preparation for the bombing. They were being monitored but allowed to operate. The secret Japanese communications codes were also cracked early on, so that military and government intelligence were aware of Japanese preparations. The `purple' diplomatic code was also cracked, so that Washington was deciphering communications between Berlin and Tokyo.
Once a military attack became inevitable, Washington hid the fact from military commanders in the Pacific to ensure the attack would be more devastating, and Pearl's base commander would take the blame for being unprepared. I find it truly troubling that only warships that were outdated were left at anchor in Pearl that morning on December 7. The Navy knew that the modern aircraft carriers would be extremely useful during modern naval war, so the USS Enterprise and USS Lexington were out to sea on maneuvers and safe from the bombing. Only ships 27 years old, relics from World War I, were left at anchor and vulnerable.
A Review of Someof the Reviews........2006-08-09
There is a strong political bit to the negative reviews. It reminds me a little of creationists reviewing an evolutionary biology work.
Historians use the concept of convergence when evaluating the truth/falsity of claims. For example, we know the holocaust happened and that the nazis ordered the killing of jews because there is an overwhelming amount of evidence. There is disagreement about certain aspects, some bits have been proved wrong (eg. the soap made out of people), but we can be as close to certain that it happened as is possible. But that hasn't stopped smart people from trying to proved it didn't. You can do some research on how their thinking is flawed in debunking books.
Another enlightening topic is how biblical literalists have attempted to create 'creation science'. Smart people actually believe things that aren't true, and there are very human reasons for it. It's quite enlightening looking at people who are 100% certain about things they cant possibly be sure about.
So who are you to believe? Believe no one. If you are interested in the topic, read the book. It is immaculately footnoted, primary source riddled, and intellectually rigorous (i.e. honest, not hard to read), although its hardly a page turner.
So why do people who cannot possibly know with 100% certainity, with no education in historiographical evaluation, with only a superficial grasp of the subject (ret navy code crackers included), etc state with absolute conviction the author is a liar, idiot, etc and that there is no way the prez knew about this? It's almost like the author is insulting their mothers. Afterall, the author spent years going over primary sources and has never been shown to be untrustworthy. Can any of these naysayers say the same? No, they just like to be prejuidiced and judgemental and pretend they know everything. People like that bug me...rant over.
So be like me, read the book, look at the arguements and evidence, and make up your own mind. And no I am not 100% sure the prez knew. But pretty sure. Afterall, buddy used a nuke when he didn't have to...
Ps, if you want some more fun looking at prejuidiced reviews, check out anything written about hillary clinton. Man that woman sends some people in to rage-goofy-land. Oh and al gore, and noam chomsky's good too (not as funny though).
pps you people who use your real names have more guts then i do!
Book Description
Talk-show host Boortz's in-your-face brand of Libertarian politics addresses nagging social and political issues, such as the true definitions of democracy and racism, and the Social Security system.
Customer Reviews:
A great book!.......2007-03-15
Short and to the point. Boortz as usual has pragmatic, common sense ideas and tells it like it is. He hits the nail on the head as far as the connection between liberals basing their ideas on feelings and emotions rather than stats and logic. Not to say there isn't a segment of conservatives that are exactly like this also, however liberals are more likely to display this. Hardcore liberals and leftists (as opposed to moderate ones) will probably not enjoy this book because of its truthful stance on the need to be an individual rather than be associated with a conceptual group.
About Time - Finally, a professional conservative opinionist........2007-02-22
I like my news and political science filtered through entertainers, so this book was great! Large print and short paragraphs, just like I like. Even a nitwit like me can follow politics now thanks to people like Neal Boortz!
So true.......2007-02-08
Neil rocks. So much of what he says I agree with.
Can't wait for his new book.
Nobody says it better.......2007-01-20
This is a must read for anyone that wants to understand the liberal mindset. He doesn't solve the problem but he makes is more understandable about why liberals think and act the way they do and why they are slowly ruining everything that is great about this country. Why do most college professors, journalists, and entertainers become liberals? Boortz has some brilliant ideas on this. Read the chapter on why America was not really meant to be a democracy, the founding fathers feared the effects of democracy.
One thing I don't understand......................2006-12-14
the one thing I don't understand about this book is the fact that boortz doesn't point out the fact that all liberals are mentally retarded and suffer from what doctors call the anti-american gene. it is quite amusing to me to hear all of the liberals whine and complain about a rich white man and this and that. maybe if you would get off your you know what you could make something of yourself. oh, but then you wouldn't have time to complain. I have a better solution for you though. since you are unhappy with the amount of dollars in your wallet, go down to mexico and exchange them for some pesos and salute the red, white, and green.
Book Description
In The Lost Apostle award-winning journalist Rena Pederson investigates a little known subject in early Christian history—the life and times of the female apostle Junia. Junia was an early convert and leading missionary whose story was “lost” when her name was masculinized to Junias in later centuries. The Lost Apostle unfolds like a well-written detective story, presenting Pederson’s lively search for insight and information about a woman some say was the first female apostle.
Customer Reviews:
feminism and the early church.......2007-08-23
A reasonable read, which is well written. Whilst it does make a reasonable introduction to the subject of the role of women in the early church, it lacks academic depth and is rather one-sided in its views.
Well written.......2007-03-08
Pederson claims that the impetus for her book, The Lost Apostle, was to highlight an "invisible woman" who was written out of the pages of history, yet in less than 20 pages we learn that there are books on the subject and dozens of authoritative sources with facts and figures who are more than willing to talk about the missing Junia. One has to wonder then, what is the purpose of the book if there is already a sizable literature devoted to Junia.
Actually, the title of the book and the opening paragraphs are somewhat deceiving. Only a small part of the book is about Junia. The bulk of the book is about female issues in general, and goes on to discuss Mary Magdalene, Thecla, Priscilla, etc. Then, right in the middle of the book, there is a mini novel about the Templars. All very interesting and well written, although not exactly germane to Junia (there is an ever so slight relationship because the 13th Century Bishop who translated Junia as a masculine name helped another Bishop who later, when he became Pope, conspired with the King of France to bring down the Templars).
Pederson's background as a newspaper reporter creates a problem when it comes to a scholarly text. Apparently she believes that scholarship involves counting up who is for or against a position and then making a summary judgment. For example, she tells us whom she interviewed who believed that Junia was an esteemed apostle, and who believes she was known to the apostles, but not an apostle herself (page 39). In this case, there are two for "no" and five for "yes". While this is useful to a point, science (or scholarship) should not be reduced to a sums game.
Pederson also has the annoying habit of quoting from telephone conversations she's had with various scholars, rather than referencing their scholarly works. Of course it's easier to call someone on a Saturday afternoon and get a quick sound bite, rather than spending endless hours pouring over their books.
Then there's the mistakes. By relying on phone conversations for the bulk of her research, Pederson is prone to errors. Here's a few:
- "We know she [ Mary Magdalene] came from the town of Magdala... (p. 50)." Actually we don't know any such thing. There was no town called Magdala at that time. Some scholars also make this mistake. Refer to the works of Margaret Starbird for a proper understanding.
- "She [Mary Magdalene] first appears on the biblical scene in Capernaum... She has apparently heard of Jesus' healing powers and has come for help...(p. 50)." Actually, no. We never hear of Mary Magdalene in Capernaum. She is in Bethany and she is in Jerusalem, and she is said to follow Jesus from Galilee, but that's the extent of our knowledge of Mary. She never appears in Capernaum.
- "The Gospels place her at the crucifixion, along with Mary, the mother of Jesus, and John, the beloved disciple (p. 50)." Actually, no. The Gospel of John is the only gospel that has the "beloved disciple" at the crucifixion, and it is certainly not clear that John is the beloved disciple. In any event, "the gospels" place about a dozen people there, including several Marys and a bunch of "other women."
- Pederson writes - "Chapter 11 of the gospel of Nicodemus also says that Mary Magdalene, weeping about the death of Jesus...said `I shall go alone to Rome, to the Caesar...(p. 54)." Chapter 11 of Nicodemus does not mention Mary Magdalene. [...]
- "Mortality charts show that less than 10 percent of the population lived beyond the age of fifty...(p. 82)." Although technically true, that figure is misleading, because of the enormous number of infant and child deaths.
Now despite all these problems, this is a pretty good book with lots of useful information, and only a few mistakes. None of it is particularly new nor startling, but it is nicely put together and well written. There really isn't all that much to learn about Junia whose total description is found in less than a paragraph in Paul's letter to the Romans, but there's lots of stuff about early Christianity, women's roles, apostleship, etc. There's even the added bonus about the Templars.
It's difficult to rate a book like this. As a scholarly book about Junia, it comes up short (very short). As an interesting piece about women in Christianity it gets high marks.
A Reporter's Revelations into the Early Church Mother.......2007-02-03
By her own admission, Pederson is a reporter, and not a theologian. This books reads as an extended newspaper article. It is easy for the layman to comprehend, without complicated theological ideas or terms, as the author goes through her experiences and emotions in pursuit of the information. This is a journey of discovery, discovery both of Junia and who the author sees herself to be as a woman. I found it very easy to relate to her and was immersed in her travels and thoughts. I could clear picture places she's been to; those that I also have visited in Rome were accurately and imaginatively described.
Readers looking for novel theological insights should look elsewhere. This is a very personal look at Junia. There is a tendency in this book to be too accepting of hagiophora- where stories of powerful women are considered credible despite their lack of historical verifiability. Sometimes Pederson's lack of theological training shows in misunderstandings of subtle nuances, but most of the time she has done her homework. Thus her work becomes a compendium of others thoughts, and this becomes the go-to book for information on Junia.
While at times it felt that Pederson was trying to fill in the pages with extraneous information (like the chapter on Thecla), the book is so full of the stories of Junia that it becomes a necessary and central document for any research on this apostle. There really isn't much verifiable information out there on her, beyond the one verse in Romans. Of particular interest therefore is Pederson's extended look into the culture of ancient Rome and what it would have been like to be a married Christian Jewish woman in Junia's time.
Pederson has done an admirable job of looking into all the ramifications of this one verse. Using the primary research of others, Pederson proves without doubt that this was a woman, and that she was likely an apostle (and not just liked by the apostles). For the question of apostleship Pederson relies more on the consensus of modern theologians and ancient church fathers, rather than a clear indication in the Greek (for the Greek could provide either reading). Indeed, through Pederson's research into the gender-reversals of Junia through the centuries, a clear picture comes out of where the revisionist history comes from. The revision is clearly not in making her female, but in making her male- by the unanimous agreement of Christian theologians through the first 1000 years. Pederson traces how different translations will use different genders for Junia, based on how closely they adhere to the original Greek or not. She shows a copious provenance for the various translations to clearly illustrate why we have both male and female Junia's today. Through the research the reader will finally realize that feminism is an original Christian idea- an idea of Christ and Paul- that is lost as the centuries go on and the msyogyny of the early Church Fathers sets in. The modern world then battles that sexism of later Church elders, rather than the vision of the original Church.
After reading this book there really can't be any doubt as to Junia's gender. There have been perhaps some doubts because of the desire to remain traditional, and not to try to rewrite the Bible. Pederson has here shown that the rewrite is actually making a female apostle into a male.
Fascinating and Highly Readable.......2006-09-17
The Lost Apostle is fascinating and highly readable. It is a historical detective story -a search for the apostle Junia, whose story was lost because her name was changed in church literature to make her appear to be a man. Junia in fact was an apostle of high regard mentioned by Paul in his letters
Pederson finds in the person of Junia, the role model provided by the early church for today's women. The tragedy is, of course, that Junia's identity became obscured as responsibility for transcribing and editing the Bible moved through the generations, and generations of women were deprived of her positive image of women in the church.
Pederson also brings to life a dynamic early church, where both men and women both held leadership roles. I think everyone should read this book, but women in particular would benefit from its relevance today to their current issues in the church. It also puts into context the discrimination against women in the church over the centuries.
I was especially impressed with the breadth and depth and credibility of the sources used in researching this book. This is not only a wonderful read for the casual reader, it is also an excellent addition to the growing literature on early church history.
Average customer rating:
- Affable, well-informed and devastating
- Needs balance
- Debunking Da Vinci
- Expert demolition
- After all, it is a novel!
|
Truth and Fiction in The Da Vinci Code: A Historian Reveals What We Really Know about Jesus, Mary Magdalene, and Constantine
Bart D. Ehrman
Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
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ASIN: 0195181409 |
Book Description
A staggeringly popular work of fiction, Dan Brown's The Da Vinci Code has stood atop The New York Times Bestseller List for well over a year, with millions of copies in print. But this fast-paced mystery is unusual in that the author states up front that the historical information in the book is all factually accurate. But is this claim true? As historian Bart D. Ehrman shows in this informative and witty book, The Da Vinci Code is filled with numerous historical mistakes. Did the ancient church engage in a cover-up to make the man Jesus into a divine figure? Did Emperor Constantine select for the New Testament--from some 80 contending Gospels--the only four Gospels that stressed that Jesus was divine? Was Jesus Christ married to Mary Magdalene? Did the Church suppress Gospels that told the secret of their marriage? Bart Ehrman thoroughly debunks all of these claims. But the book is not merely a laundry list of Brown's misreading of history. Throughout, Ehrman offers a wealth of fascinating background information--all historically accurate--on early Christianity. He describes, for instance, the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls (which are not Christian in content, contrary to The Da Vinci Code); outlines in simple terms how scholars of early Christianity determine which sources are most reliable; and explores the many other Gospels that have been found in the last half century. Ehrman separates fact from fiction, the historical realities from the flights of literary fancy. Readers of The Da Vinci Code who would like to know the truth about the beginnings of Christianity and the life of Jesus will find this book riveting.
Customer Reviews:
Affable, well-informed and devastating.......2007-09-10
Almost as amazing as the explosive phenomenon that was "The Da Vinci Code," is the explosion of books attacking its premises and conclusions. Bart Ehrman's book, "Truth and Fiction in The Da Vinci Code" is an able addition to the list.
Ehrman is a historian, a Protestant, with a mainstream viewpoint. His book examines 6 "codes" that appear in TDVC. These touch on the persons of Jesus and Mary Magdalene, the process of defining the canon or list of accepted books, the role of women in the early church and other topics germane to the discussion. Ehrman's examination and conclusions are logical, based on the evidence and (I thought) quite convincing. For instance, he discusses the supposed "fact" that since all rabbis had to be married, then Jesus (often called "Rabbi" by his disciples) must have been married as well. Ehrman demolishes this notion with easily-accessible facts. The apostle Paul himself was unmarried, as evidenced by his own letters. And the 1st-century Jewish historian Josephus speaks glowingly of the Essenes, noting that they do not marry. The term "rabbi" means "teacher," and can be applied to those who have undergone and official process as well as those (like Jesus) for whom the term is used as an honorific. And, unconvincingly to skeptics, the Gospels do not mention a married Jesus. Having made the case, Ehrman states that he has broken the code (that a married Jesus was probable) and moves on.
By far, Ehrman spends the most time with the so-called gnostic gospels, upon which the hopes of so many who attack the Church are based. These works of the early centuries of the current era were known mostly through the attacks upon them made by early Church Fathers like Irenaeus. Since the 1940s, with the discover of the Dead Sea Scrolls and the Nag Hammadi library, historians have had a field day studying the primary texts of the first, second and third centuries. Ehrman examines the texts themselves as well as the cosmology and theology they espouse. This section is long, confusing and hard to follow, not least because the texts themselves are contradictory and plain weird. Ehrman pays special attention to details that moderns have given special importance. There is, for instance the section in the Gospel of Phillip in which Jesus is said to have kissed Mary Magdalene often on the mouth. Ehrman shows how this text is a reconstruction, with key words missing, and that it is embedded in sections that have purely spiritual and symbolic significance. Those who see it as an example of a flesh-and-blood relationship often neglect these key aspects of the work. Not to mention that the text post-dates the canonical gospels by many decades.
"Truth and Fiction" is a careful and dispassionate critique of the fuzzy thinking of TDVC partisans. It is also an good-natured attack on best-selling authors like Elaine Pagels ("The Gnostic Gospels") who have gained prominence by championing the vision of the gnostics. But the book's ultimate attack is on the "code behind the codes" -- the attempt to make the doctrine of the gnostics equivalent to the orthodox view taught in the gospels. Ehrman's great contribution is in making clear that two gospels -- one that preaches a suffering, crucified and risen Lord, and another that preaches a Lord who did not suffer and die -- can not merely be considered alternatives of one another. They preach different realities and have different consequences for believers. One is a gospel for all, the other a gospel for the elite. One opposes the world, the other revels in it. One was passed down by those close the Jesus, the other was invented decades or centuries after his life.
Dan Brown's "The Da Vinci Code" was more than a work of fiction. It was an attack on the truth and on the hard-won and hard-kept beliefs of Christians over the last 2000 years. Ehrman's book is an educated, entertaining and accessible rebuttal that is well worth the read.
Needs balance.......2007-02-04
This is a good book with a lot of historical information and quotes, but it is the usual kind of scholarly approach that one finds to Christianity (like few other subjects): An investigation for which the author already knows the answer. I would rather see something a bit more open-minded than the sort of "writing the facts to fit the opinion" that usually comes to religion. For instance the entire concept of Jesus's "Kingdom of God" has only one possible meaning to the author; suffice it to say this is not so for a great many scholars, theologists and spiritualists. Rather disappointing for something that came through the Oxford University Press.
Debunking Da Vinci.......2007-01-08
It can't really be said that a scholar of Dr. Ehrman's magnitude was needed to demolish the historical claims of Dan Brown's piece-of-garbage novel. Any 12 year old Sunday school student could have blown down half the arguments of the Da Vinci Code while any intelligent person with a history book could have knocked over the other half. The value that Ehrman provides is that he delves deeper into Brown's claims and, rather than merely pointing out Brown's whoppers, gives us a very detailed education on Early Christianity, Biblical exegesis, the Gnostics, Mary Magdalene, Constantine, and all the other issues touching on the Da Vinci Code. It is a real pleasure for anyone interested in the Early Church and historical truth. However, Christians should be warned- although the vast majority of the book is unobjectionable, the born-again apostate Ehrman does indulge his agnosticism and judges the relative historical truth of the Gospels. If you can disregard that, the rest of the book contains some very valuable information.
Expert demolition.......2006-12-14
Bart Ehrman is a well-known historian of Christianity and chairman of the Religious Studies Department at UNC-Chapel Hill. This short book (it can be read in one long sitting) debunks Brown's plot and purported evidence from top to bottom. Better yet, it contains a lot of interesting material about early Christianity, the development of the NT scriptural canon, historical Jesus, what Constantine was and wasn't trying to do at Nicea, etc. I've read some of Ehrman's other books, which is why this one caught my eye. This one was clearly done in a hurry by pulling together parts of those other books, and a it's a bit padded with repetition. But Ehrman knows his stuff, and this is a nice, boiled down rapid-fire overview of that whole area of scholarship, how it proceeds (in a word, skeptically), and what kinds of conclusions it tends toward. Well worth the investment of time, even beyond the specifics about 'Da Vinci Code.'
The bottom line on Brown's book is that it's a page turner, but largely a mess in terms of historical accuracy, and a book that unfortunately promotes some really fundamental distortions and errors. Probably the two foundational inaccuracies are (1) Constantine did not decide the NT canon, and (2) the books that were left out of the NT were not books that over-emphasized Jesus' humanity, quite the contrary. There is much more wrong with 'Code,' (for example, it badly misrepresents both the Dead Sea Scrolls and the content of the books found at Nag Hammadi), but those two falsehoods pretty much destroy all its plot premises. 'Da Vinci Code' is an entertaining book that should not be taken seriously.
After all, it is a novel!.......2006-11-03
While I appreciate Bart's scholarship and have devoured other books he has written, I was disappointed in the tone of this book. As much as I champion feminine spirituality, the novel in question is, after all, a novel, for goodness sake! Enough already!
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