In 2005, a disgruntled archivist at the Vatican Library made contact with revisionist historians Timothy Freke and Peter Gandy, claiming that the Vatican was secretly housing a number of unpublished “heretical” Gnostic Christian texts. He presented Freke and Gandy with a facsimile copy of an ancient manuscript, which is presented to the public for the first time in this book. This gospel will shock academics and Christians alike. It makes the extraordinary claim that the long-awaited “Second Coming of Christ” has already happened; and it also explores the intimate relationship between Mary Magdalene and Jesus, his “Beloved Disciple.” And, perhaps most controversial of all, it reveals Jesus as a Gnostic master with a zany sense of humor and an upbeat message. As Jesus says himself in the text: “Death is coming. Life is foreplay.”
Details: Timothy Freke and Gandy do an excellent job of rewriting the wisdom and lessons provided by the spiritual leadership of antiquity into a readable humorous narative. Sometimes a bit corny, but clear and concise with its points. The informatin this book provides will literally change the way you see the world around you. I highly recommend it to anyone who might be asking 'is there anything more to religious life than church every sunday?'
Review Summary: tremendous!
Date: 2008-11-10
Details: I have been reading Timothy Freke's books now for a couple of years. They have always given me something to look forward to.
This latest book,is by far, one of his best, if not the best. I highly recommend it to everyone.
Review Summary: Laugh along with Jesus
Date: 2008-11-03
Details: It's good to read something that seeks to pull us all out of the nonsense and hypnosis of day to day "culture". It's easy to imagine an off broadway play as you work your way the dialogue. The three way exchange between Mary, Peter and Jesus is a great forum for airing out much of the old world mind-set. What makes reading the book a healing and nourishing process is the intent of Freke and Gandy to contribute to the general awareness of "The Story of Jesus". Thank You for the excellent effort. I'd love to see this some day as an hour TV special. Hey ... maybe a TwilightZone or Outerlimit :o)
Review Summary: Loved it!
Date: 2008-09-08
Details: I loved this book. It was entertaining from start to finish and yet held so much information as well. I was raised as most, a christian, to believe in a loving & merciful God that somehow would send you to the depths of hell, fire and brimstone if you did not do everything just right. This book was an excellent and fun way to help clear the fog in my head from all that childhood "brainwashing".
Review Summary: Failed Attempt at Humor
Date: 2008-08-09
Details: This was an attempt to be funny by writers not talented at being funny. Humor is really hard to pull off, and these two don't manage it. They do what many people who are not naturally funny do when they want to be funny. They have their characters (Jesus and company, in this case) say things that only modern people would say or understand, like modern slang expressions. And this is supposed to make us laugh because it's coming from biblical Israelites. But it doesn't. Humor requires more than the juxtaposition of two disparate elements. The two elements have to somehow actually turn out to be related in a way that makes you laugh.
Now, I like and highly recommend their other books. Serious works on gnosticism. You can find some of their conclusions from those books scattered throughout this book, but you have to put up with the "humorous" parts to get to them. So just read their other books instead. But if you don't beleive me, read an excerpt from this. If you find it funny, then by all means read on.
out of 18 Reviews
