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When Jesus was crucified, the Roman soldiers on duty cast lots for his robe. This book follows the story of the Roman who won the robe. Marcellus, the young Roman Tribune, who crucified Jesus, is least interested about the Jews, their language, beliefs and lifestyle. He has no clue why this young Jew is being crucified. But he notices how Jesus comes across as an exceptionally brave man at the face of isolation, hatred and impending death. His Greek slave Demetrius informs him how he won Jesus' robe. From then on, the lives of Marcellus and Demetrius, and everyone they came in contact with, including their families and loved ones, change forever.
Douglas' historical fiction is set in Rome, Athens and Judea (now Israel). The key historical points around Jesus' death, like the reign of King Herod in Judea, the reign of Emperor Tiberius in Rome, his grandson Prince Gaius Drishy Agrippa, and the reign of the evil emperor Caligula have been kept consistent in this story. But it also presents a detailed and accurate narration of the social, political and religious conditions which existed during that time; especially the early Christian movement which erupted and spread across Judea, Rome, Greece and other places.
The early Christian movement is the key theme of this book, set under the backdrop of Jesus' crucifixion. It narrates how initially the Jewish king and authorities were the only ones trying to curb Christianity, until it hit Rome. Caligula succeeded Tiberius and Christianity was now akin to sedition and outlawed, and anyone professing this new belief was to be persecuted and put to death. A great portion of the book basically summarizes the work of the apostles.
But this book doesn't merely narrate historical incidents. As Marcellus and Demetrius travel across the 3 nations trying to learn more about Jesus, this book covers the core messages delivered by Jesus, which formed the foundation for Christianity. Douglas takes a religious tone when he writes from the Christian's perspectives, and from a non - believer's attempt at logical explanations and drawing parallels to ancient philosophies of the Romans, the Greeks and humanity itself, when he writes from the perspective of Marcellus and Demetrius.
Being a 500+ paged book, it gets lengthy and slow at times. The characters take a long time discussing certain points, sometimes it even gets repetitive. Douglas took some liberty with the miracles done by Jesus and their interpretation. For a non - Christian, the portions related to religion may get lengthy and boring. But what appealed to me the most was the detailed description of people and their lifestyle: Caesars Tiberius and Caligula, the various Roman officers and senators, their slaves, the common people living in Greece, Rome and Judea, and most importantly the Jews who believed and became the early Christians: their secret meetings in designated households and the infamous catacombs, the fish symbol used by them to identify their faith, the stoning of Stephanos and the arrest and freeing of Simon Peter. It helps understand how this significant religion spread out its first roots amidst poverty, persecution and death, until it became so strong a revolution that the Roman Empire had to embrace it and then modify and influence it.
I'd recommend it to anyone interested in Christian literature, theology and history.
Douglas' historical fiction is set in Rome, Athens and Judea (now Israel). The key historical points around Jesus' death, like the reign of King Herod in Judea, the reign of Emperor Tiberius in Rome, his grandson Prince Gaius Drishy Agrippa, and the reign of the evil emperor Caligula have been kept consistent in this story. But it also presents a detailed and accurate narration of the social, political and religious conditions which existed during that time; especially the early Christian movement which erupted and spread across Judea, Rome, Greece and other places.
The early Christian movement is the key theme of this book, set under the backdrop of Jesus' crucifixion. It narrates how initially the Jewish king and authorities were the only ones trying to curb Christianity, until it hit Rome. Caligula succeeded Tiberius and Christianity was now akin to sedition and outlawed, and anyone professing this new belief was to be persecuted and put to death. A great portion of the book basically summarizes the work of the apostles.
But this book doesn't merely narrate historical incidents. As Marcellus and Demetrius travel across the 3 nations trying to learn more about Jesus, this book covers the core messages delivered by Jesus, which formed the foundation for Christianity. Douglas takes a religious tone when he writes from the Christian's perspectives, and from a non - believer's attempt at logical explanations and drawing parallels to ancient philosophies of the Romans, the Greeks and humanity itself, when he writes from the perspective of Marcellus and Demetrius.
Being a 500+ paged book, it gets lengthy and slow at times. The characters take a long time discussing certain points, sometimes it even gets repetitive. Douglas took some liberty with the miracles done by Jesus and their interpretation. For a non - Christian, the portions related to religion may get lengthy and boring. But what appealed to me the most was the detailed description of people and their lifestyle: Caesars Tiberius and Caligula, the various Roman officers and senators, their slaves, the common people living in Greece, Rome and Judea, and most importantly the Jews who believed and became the early Christians: their secret meetings in designated households and the infamous catacombs, the fish symbol used by them to identify their faith, the stoning of Stephanos and the arrest and freeing of Simon Peter. It helps understand how this significant religion spread out its first roots amidst poverty, persecution and death, until it became so strong a revolution that the Roman Empire had to embrace it and then modify and influence it.
I'd recommend it to anyone interested in Christian literature, theology and history.