{"product_id":"heretic-jesus-christ-and-the-other-sons-of-god-isbn-9780358652915","title":"Heretic: Jesus Christ and the Other Sons of God","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e\"A brilliant book...illuminates a forgotten world.\" —\u003ci\u003eThe Times\u003c\/i\u003e, Best of the Year\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e\"\u003ci\u003eHeretic\u003c\/i\u003e tells a moreish intellectual story and shakes up your understanding of Western history. At the same time, somewhat improbably, it supplies at least one good joke per paragraph; you have to keep turning back to enjoy them again.\" ―\u003ci\u003eThe Economist\u003c\/i\u003e, Best of the Year\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eFrom a celebrated classicist and author of \u003ci\u003eThe Darkening Age\u003c\/i\u003e (“[a] ballista-bolt of a book”—\u003ci\u003eNew York Times Book Review\u003c\/i\u003e), a landmark work of religious history about the many, diverse variations of Jesus who thrived in early Christian traditions—and how they were lost until just one “true” Christ survived.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eContrary to the teachings of the church today, in the first several centuries of Christianity’s existence, there was no consensus as to who Jesus was or why he had mattered. Instead, as a wealth of apocryphal gospels and forgotten texts reveal, there were many different Christs. One had a twin brother and traveled to India; another consorted with dragons. One particularly terrifying Christ scorned his parents and killed those who opposed him.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eMoreover, in the early years of the first millennium there were many other saviors, many sons of gods who healed the sick and cured the lame. But as Christianity spread, they were pronounced unacceptable – even heretical – and they faded from view.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eHeretic\u003c\/i\u003e unearths the different versions of Christ who existed in the minds of early Christians, and the process of evolution—and elimination—by which Jesus became the singular figure we know today. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“\u003ci\u003eHeretic \u003c\/i\u003ehas the mother lode of tales too hot for Christendom. Nixey has carefully wrung out a number of apocryphal texts for scandal.” —\u003ci\u003eHarper's Magazine \u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003eCatherine Nixey’s electrifying account of early Christian history reveals the fascinating, shocking, and often hilarious stories that were deliberately buried:\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cb\u003eLost Gospels:\u003c\/b\u003e Explore the texts that were left out of the Bible, from a gospel featuring a murderous child Jesus to another where he sells his own twin brother into slavery.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cb\u003eThe Birth of Heresy:\u003c\/b\u003e Discover how the concept of “heresy” was forged as a weapon to create a single orthodoxy, eliminating competing saviors, including one who consorted with dragons.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cb\u003eGnosticism and Rival Faiths:\u003c\/b\u003e Delve into the rich world of Gnosticism and other Roman Empire beliefs, where many gods, goddesses, and saviors competed for followers.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cb\u003eA New History of Early Christianity:\u003c\/b\u003e A meticulously researched and shockingly entertaining account that overturns traditional narratives about the origins of the faith.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e | \u003cp\u003e“[A] scintillating history. . . . The author gives due to the diverse and fascinating yet sometimes invisible threads hidden in the history of Christianity, enriching her study with intriguing arcana and close analysis. The result is an illuminating reassessment of the world’s largest religion.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003ePublishers Weekly (starred review)\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"A thought-provoking look at a religiously tumultuous era.\" - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eKirkus Reviews\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"An irreverent reassessment of the Jesus stories.\" - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe New Yorker, Adam Gopnik\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"A brilliant book—sometimes frightening, occasionally funny, frequently unsettling and always a thrill to read\u003cem\u003e. \u003c\/em\u003eIt probes painfully into the pathology of belief.\" - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Times (UK)\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"Enthralling...Nixey handles all this diffuse and refractory material with aplomb and good sense...With style, wit and scholarship, Nixey shows how, 'had history tilted slightly, it could all have been very different. [\u003cem\u003eHeretic\u003c\/em\u003e] illuminates a forgotten world—and it's an absolute pleasure to read.\" - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Sunday Telegraph\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"Unexpectedly relevant...Nixey speculates how differently Christianity might have developed otherwise, sharing tantalizing anecdotes of ancient Christian practices that were later reclassified as heretical.\" - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eBooklist\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“\u003cem\u003eHeretic \u003c\/em\u003ehas the mother lode of tales too hot for Christendom. Nixey has carefully wrung out a number of apocryphal texts for scandal.” \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eHarper's Magazine\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e","brand":"Mariner Books","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":44889950519525,"sku":"NP9780358652915","price":32.5,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1842\/7735\/files\/9780358652915.jpg?v=1730232249","url":"https:\/\/k12savings.com\/products\/heretic-jesus-christ-and-the-other-sons-of-god-isbn-9780358652915","provider":"K12savings","version":"1.0","type":"link"}