Apostle by Tom Bissell

Apostle by Tom Bissell

A profound and moving journey into the heart of Christianity that explores the mysterious and often paradoxical lives and legacies of the Twelve Apostles a book both for those of the faith and for others who seek to understand Christianity from the outside in.
Peter, Matthew, Thomas, John: Who were these men? What was their relationship to Jesus? Tom Bissell provides rich and surprising answers to these ancient, elusive questions. He examines not just who these men were (and weren t), but also how their identities have taken shape over the course of two millennia.
Ultimately, Bissell finds that the story of the apostles is the story of early Christianity: its competing versions of Jesus s ministry, its countless schisms, and its ultimate evolution from an obscure Jewish sect to the global faith we know today in all its forms and permutations. In his quest to understand the underpinnings of the world s largest religion, Bissell embarks on a years-long pilgrimage to the supposed tombs of the Twelve Apostles. He travels from Jerusalem and Rome to Turkey, Greece, Spain, France, India, and Kyrgyzstan, vividly capturing the rich diversity of Christianity s worldwide reach. Along the way, he engages with a host of characters priests, paupers, a Vatican archaeologist, a Palestinian taxi driver, a Russian monk posing sharp questions that range from the religious to the philosophical to the political.
Written with warmth, empathy, and rare acumen, Apostle is a brilliant synthesis of travel writing, biblical history, and a deep, lifelong relationship with Christianity. The result is an unusual, erudite, and at times hilarious book a religious, intellectual, and personal adventure fit for believers, scholars, and wanderers alike.

Tom Bissell was born in Escanaba, Michigan, in 1974. After his stint in the Peace Corps he worked for several years in book publishing in New York City. His criticism, fiction, and journalism have appeared in publications including Harper's Magazine, The Virginia Quarterly Review, GQ, Granta, McSweeney's, The Boston Review, The Believer, Best American Travel Writing 2003, and other publications. He has been nominated for several awards and not received any of them. He lives in New York City.

SKU	Unavailable
ISBN 13	9780375424663
ISBN 10	0375424660
Title	Apostle
Author	Tom Bissell
Condition	Unavailable
Binding Type	Hardback
Publisher	Pantheon Books
Year published	2016-03-01
Number of pages	432
Cover note	Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary.