James Tabor
"James D. Tabor is chair of the department of religious studies at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. He holds a Ph.D. in biblical studies from the University of Chicago and is an expert on the Dead Sea Scrolls and Christian origins. The author of several previous books, he is frequently consulted by the media on these topics and has appeared on numerous television and radio programs.
He has studied the earliest surviving documents of Christianity for more than thirty years and has participated in important archeological excavations in Israel. Drawing on this background, Tabor reconstructs for us the movement that sought the spiritual, social, and political redemption of the Jews, a movement led by one family. The Jesus Dynasty offers an alternative version of Christian origins ..." From:http://www.jesusdynasty.com/
Hear James speak about the book and his personal experiences:
http://www.jesusdynasty.com/Audio-Features-The-Jesus-Dynasty.html
The Jesus Dynasty:The Hidden History of Jesus, His Royal Family, and the Birth of Christianity(Hardcover) by James D. Tabor.
If I wanted you to read any book this year and I only had one to choose, it would be this one! Jessika
Was Jesus conscious of his ministry? Was John the Baptist the teacher of Jesus or did they plan their ministry together? Was Mary a virgin or not? How many children did she have? Were the Herodians out to get Jesus and John from the beginning? How did the Temple authorities view Jesus? Were Jesus and John Essenes, or not? What is the Christian faith based upon, what Jesus taught according to the Gospels, or something else? The book, The Jesus Dynasty: The Hidden History of Jesus, His Royal Family, and the Birth of Christianity answers many of these questions. At present the book is being translated into over twenty languages, among them, French, German, Spanish, Portuguese, Russian, Chinese, Dutch, Japanese, and Italian, spreading through this year and into 2007and it is no wonder, why! It's a great read!