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A review by bristoni74
Damascus by Christos Tsiolkas
4.0
Christos Tsiolkas is a Greek Australian author who can be polarizing with his writing. I think he is a wonderful writer but he can be very explicit in his depiction of sex and violence and use of crude language. I would love to rate this novel a 5 for his accomplishment of this book but the world he depicts (whilst likely true) wasn't always enjoyable as a reader - it was too graphic at times.
I had wanted to read this book when it was first released in 2019 but it was only after recently reading Zealot: Life and Times of Jesus of Nazareth that I felt I had the historical context and understanding to attempt it. I would recommend reading Tsiolkas's author's note first to understand why he wrote this and the research he undertook. As a homosexual he had a crisis of faith as a young man given Paul's teachings in the New Testament about homosexuality. It was only after a crisis in his late 20's that he returned to Paul's teachings.
Tsiolkas has depicted Paul (Saul in the novel) as a repressed homosexual who persecutes heretics to the Jewish faith because of his shame. As we know Saul became Paul when he converted to Christianity and is instrumental in establishing what was a small Jewish cult into one of the largest religions in the world today.
The ancient world isn't a "nice" one. In fact, Tsiolkas depicts it so vividly I could almost see, touch and taste the stench, dirt, filth, violence and cruelty. Jesus provided an alternative - a God of love and tolerance, a God that valued all human life - that didn't force mothers to abandon their baby daughters, or children that were disabled, that gave hope to the poor and destitute, that slaves and other outcasts would be part of a Kingdom when Jesus returned. But Christianity didn't have an easy path with many think the Jewish cult that believed in a Christ who was a peasant and died on the cross for them were fools. Many were persecuted (horrifically by the Romans).
An epic novel and Tsiolkas has helped me to understand why the people of that time were looking for a Messiah to "save" them to give them hope when many of their lives were so oppressed and subjugated.
I had wanted to read this book when it was first released in 2019 but it was only after recently reading Zealot: Life and Times of Jesus of Nazareth that I felt I had the historical context and understanding to attempt it. I would recommend reading Tsiolkas's author's note first to understand why he wrote this and the research he undertook. As a homosexual he had a crisis of faith as a young man given Paul's teachings in the New Testament about homosexuality. It was only after a crisis in his late 20's that he returned to Paul's teachings.
Tsiolkas has depicted Paul (Saul in the novel) as a repressed homosexual who persecutes heretics to the Jewish faith because of his shame. As we know Saul became Paul when he converted to Christianity and is instrumental in establishing what was a small Jewish cult into one of the largest religions in the world today.
The ancient world isn't a "nice" one. In fact, Tsiolkas depicts it so vividly I could almost see, touch and taste the stench, dirt, filth, violence and cruelty. Jesus provided an alternative - a God of love and tolerance, a God that valued all human life - that didn't force mothers to abandon their baby daughters, or children that were disabled, that gave hope to the poor and destitute, that slaves and other outcasts would be part of a Kingdom when Jesus returned. But Christianity didn't have an easy path with many think the Jewish cult that believed in a Christ who was a peasant and died on the cross for them were fools. Many were persecuted (horrifically by the Romans).
An epic novel and Tsiolkas has helped me to understand why the people of that time were looking for a Messiah to "save" them to give them hope when many of their lives were so oppressed and subjugated.