Press, USA. 2006. ISBN 0-19-531460-3.I have read several of Bart D. Ehrman's books before and found them to be exceptionally readable and well researched. When I got the chance to obtain this book, I bought it. I had no idea what to expect from it and was surprised at what was in it. This book came on the heels of the National Geographic Special on the Gospel of Judas in 2006.
I am not a Christian, but I read English and American literature and one must have a background in Christianity in order to understand many of the references in it. I have read the Bible in college or at least parts of it in Western Civilization and on my own. All this did help in preparing me for this book but not completely. I had questions in my mind regarding the New Testament as well as the character of Judas Iscariot. What this book did for me was give me the information that is available especially from the Gospel that was recently found.
The book should be interesting to anyone whether Christian or not but interested in the dynamics of the period and of the history of the early Christian Church. There is a deeper mystery, one that was briefly touched upon by such novels as "The DaVinci Code" by Dan Brown and other novels about early Christian mysteries. The total understanding of Jesus and his life along with the people who lived it with him will never be completely understood, but this book is a intriguing look at it.
(information gathered from Wikipedia)
Name of author: Bart D. Ehrman
Dates of birth and death (if applicable): 1955-
Place of birth: Lawrence, Kansas USA
Education: Ph.D and M.Div. from Princeton Theological Seminary,
Literary movement associated with author:Evangelical Christian -> New Testament textual critic -> agnostic
Nationality: American
Notable ideas: Textual errors in the New Testament.
Books and years when published:
- Didymus the Blind and the Text of the Gospels (The New Testament in the Greek Fathers; No. 1). Society of Biblical Literature. 1987. ISBN 1-55540-084-1.
- The Text of the New Testament in Contemporary Research: Essays on the Status Quaestionis. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company. 1995. ISBN 0-80284-824-9.
- The Orthodox Corruption of Scripture: The Effect of Early Christological Controversies on the Text of the New Testament. Oxford University Press, USA. 1996. ISBN 0-19-510279-7.
- After the New Testament: A Reader in Early Christianity. Oxford University Press, USA. 1998. ISBN 0-19-511445-0.
- Jesus: Apocalyptic Prophet of the New Millennium. Oxford University Press, USA. 1999. ISBN 0-19-512474-X.
- Lost Scriptures: Books that Did Not Make It into the New Testament. Oxford University Press, USA. 2003. ISBN 0-19-514182-2.
- The New Testament and Other Early Christian Writings: A Reader. Oxford University Press, USA. 2003. ISBN 0-19-515464-9.
- The Apostolic Fathers: Volume I. I Clement. II Clement. Ignatius. Polycarp. Didache. Harvard University Press. 2003. ISBN 0-674-99607-0.
- The Apostolic Fathers: Volume II. Epistle of Barnabas. Papias and Quadratus. Epistle to Diognetus. The Shepherd of Hermas. Harvard University Press. 2003. ISBN 0-674-99608-9.
- Ehrman, Bart; Jacobs, Andrew S. (2003). Christianity in Late Antiquity, 300-450 C.E.: A Reader. Oxford University Press, USA. ISBN 0-19-515461-4.
- The New Testament: A Historical Introduction to the Early Christian Writings. Oxford University Press, USA. 2003. ISBN 0-19-515462-2.
- Lost Christianities: The Battles for Scripture and the Faiths We Never Knew. Oxford University Press, USA. 2003. ISBN 0-19-514183-0.
- A Brief Introduction to the New Testament. Oxford University Press, USA. 2004. ISBN 0-19-516123-8.
- Truth and Fiction in The Da Vinci Code: A Historian Reveals What We Really Know about Jesus, Mary Magdalene, and Constantine. Oxford University Press, USA. 2004. ISBN 0-19-518140-9.
- Metzger, Bruce M.; Ehrman, Bart (2005). The Text of the New Testament: Its Transmission, Corruption, and Restoration. Oxford University Press, USA. ISBN 0-19-516667-1.
- Misquoting Jesus: The Story Behind Who Changed the Bible and Why. HarperSanFrancisco. 2005. ISBN 0-06-073817-0.
- Peter, Paul, and Mary Magdalene: The Followers of Jesus in History and Legend. Oxford University Press, USA. 2006. ISBN 0-19-530013-0.
- The Lost Gospel of Judas Iscariot: A New Look at Betrayer and Betrayed. Oxford University Press, USA. 2006. ISBN 0-19-531460-3.
- God's Problem: How the Bible Fails to Answer Our Most Important Question – Why We Suffer. HarperCollins, USA. 2008. ISBN 0-06-117397-5.
- Jesus, Interrupted: Revealing the Hidden Contradictions in the Bible (And Why We Don't Know About Them). HarperCollins, USA. 2009. ISBN 0-06-117393-2.
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