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A review by muhavipi
The Malta Exchange by Steve Berry
3.0
Steve, I enjoy your books, and I am most open to a lot of novel ideas for a story, but this one is a bit absurd at the end. Constantine's gift has too many historical errors to be used as a nice alternative history, and those errors are not essential to the idea.
1. The notion of the Council of Nicaea "creating" the New Testament is off, as what occurred was more of consensual selection of various texts already in use and circulation. They obviously went down the Pauline path, which dramatically altered the face of the Church, but they didn't invent the New Testament.
2. The idea of an Angry, Vengeful God is much more evident in the Old Testament than the New. In fact, the development of an understanding of God as love and as a Father comes as an evolution of theology from Old to New.
3. Original sin was not a theological idea at the time of Nicaea. It was developed by St. Augustine, drawing heavily as he loved to do, from St. Paul, who offered his own queasiness with human sexuality that Augustine shared.
4. The Catholic Church does not teach that only priests can baptize. Literally anyone can baptize, even non-Christians, as long as baptism is the intent and the proper formula is followed.
5. Reincarnation was not a prominent belief among Greeks and Latins, although the idea of it was toyed with by certain philosophers. Hell is a later development that shows Greek and Zoroastrian thought on the Jewish faith development and especially Christian faith. Jews did not hold to reincarnation, so the point would be moot.
6. The Adversary was not a novel Catholic thought. It is found in Old Testament texts as well as other Jewish texts, and even from Zoroastrian emphasis on the gods of light and darkness.
7. Spiritual abilities were not condemned, and were in fact often used in the determination of sainthood.
8. Sacraments follow the life cycle and even have similarities to tribal practices that move people from childhood to adulthood. They developed over time and were not all in place by the 4th century.
9. Baptism and confirmation and First Communion were imposed on the faithful as children or babies in the 4th century. They did not separate into separate acts done at different times in the Western Church until many centuries later. The Eastern Church still retains them as one act in infancy.
10. Last rites are not performed on the dead, but on the dying.
Gosh, anything else? This unfortunately took away from the value of the story for me. Although this is a work of fiction, I think it is important to make your premise as believable as possible. Constantine' Gift, unfortunately, failed to deliver.
1. The notion of the Council of Nicaea "creating" the New Testament is off, as what occurred was more of consensual selection of various texts already in use and circulation. They obviously went down the Pauline path, which dramatically altered the face of the Church, but they didn't invent the New Testament.
2. The idea of an Angry, Vengeful God is much more evident in the Old Testament than the New. In fact, the development of an understanding of God as love and as a Father comes as an evolution of theology from Old to New.
3. Original sin was not a theological idea at the time of Nicaea. It was developed by St. Augustine, drawing heavily as he loved to do, from St. Paul, who offered his own queasiness with human sexuality that Augustine shared.
4. The Catholic Church does not teach that only priests can baptize. Literally anyone can baptize, even non-Christians, as long as baptism is the intent and the proper formula is followed.
5. Reincarnation was not a prominent belief among Greeks and Latins, although the idea of it was toyed with by certain philosophers. Hell is a later development that shows Greek and Zoroastrian thought on the Jewish faith development and especially Christian faith. Jews did not hold to reincarnation, so the point would be moot.
6. The Adversary was not a novel Catholic thought. It is found in Old Testament texts as well as other Jewish texts, and even from Zoroastrian emphasis on the gods of light and darkness.
7. Spiritual abilities were not condemned, and were in fact often used in the determination of sainthood.
8. Sacraments follow the life cycle and even have similarities to tribal practices that move people from childhood to adulthood. They developed over time and were not all in place by the 4th century.
9. Baptism and confirmation and First Communion were imposed on the faithful as children or babies in the 4th century. They did not separate into separate acts done at different times in the Western Church until many centuries later. The Eastern Church still retains them as one act in infancy.
10. Last rites are not performed on the dead, but on the dying.
Gosh, anything else? This unfortunately took away from the value of the story for me. Although this is a work of fiction, I think it is important to make your premise as believable as possible. Constantine' Gift, unfortunately, failed to deliver.