Z.Monkey’s Blog

I finished up reading Christ our Lord: Out of Egypt by Anne Rice, and I can’t say that I enjoyed the experience.

First off, the writing style was tedious to get through. I am pretty sure the author was trying to make it sound like writing style of the authors from that period. But all the text she read were translations and all you have to do it read a set of VCR instructions or dan resignation letter to know that translations often sound a little off. The only biblical translation that I’ve read that even makes an attempt at anything other that ‘accuracy’ is the King James Version. [Example]

The story was written from the viewpoint of young Jesus (vs. Young Frankenstein which is much more amusing). I guess the whole idea was to highlight the human part of Jesus but still make him appear divine. She did this by making a really winnie kid with superhuman powers and knowledge. To get material for this Rice referenced the Infancy Gospel of Thomas, one of the few surviving gospels (not destroyed by the Catholic church) that deal with Jesus as a child… and had Jesus kill some kid. But in her version Jesus ‘knew’ what he did was wrong and hide behind his mother (then raised him from the dead). In the Gospel of Thomas… well read the section:

IV. 1 After that again he went through the village, and a child ran and dashed against his shoulder. And Jesus was provoked and said unto him: Thou shalt not finish thy course (lit. go all thy way). And immediately he fell down and died. But certain when they saw what was done said: Whence was this young child born, for that every word of his is an accomplished work? And the parents of him that was dead came unto Joseph, and blamed him, saying: Thou that hast such a child canst not dwell with us in the village: or do thou teach him to bless and not to curse: for he slayeth our children.

V. 1 And Joseph called the young child apart and admonished him, saying: Wherefore doest thou such things, that these suffer and hate us and persecute us? But Jesus said: I know that these thy words are not thine: nevertheless for thy sake I will hold my peace: but they shall bear their punishment. And straightway they that accused him were smitten with blindness. 2 And they that saw it were sore afraid and perplexed, and said concerning him that every word which he spake whether it were good or bad, was a deed, and became a marvel. And when they (he ?) saw that Jesus had so done, Joseph arose and took hold upon his ear and wrung it sore. 3 And the young child was wroth and said unto him: It sufficeth thee (or them) to seek and not to find, and verily thou hast done unwisely: knowest thou not that I am thine? vex me not.

Why make Jesus so sensitive? I guess it has something to do with making more human. But aren’t kids cruel? Has Rice never seen Nanny 911? Could you really punish a kid who could kill you with a prayer? I bet he’d be unruly.

I could probably go on for a while, but that’s enough. It was a good thing that the book was really short, because I don’t think I could have gotten all the way through it otherwise. Maybe the book disappointed me because I don’t believe any part of Jesus was divine… or that there is a divine but who knows? I wouldn’t bother with reading it.

My comments on the authors notes: This part was probably the most interesting part of the book as it briefly goes over her leaving the church, coming back to the church, and her interest in making the settings for her books as historically accurate as possible (which was one part of her book that did shine). But she argues against the idea that the gospels were written about 50 years after death of Christ (around 30 CE) simply because there were no references to the destruction of the temple in any of the gospels. Well it took me about 3 seconds to find Mark chapter 13.

(1) As he was making his way out of the temple area one of his disciples said to him, “Look, teacher, what stones and what buildings!” (2) Jesus said to him, “Do you see these great buildings? There will not be one stone left upon another that will not be thrown down.”

I wonder what that’s an allusion to?