Paul the Traveller

Rating:
Summary: Immerses reader in details of time and place of Paul's life.
Review: A reader curious about Paul would be unlikely to find a better guide to the places and cultural forces that formed his life. The book begins with descriptions of man, ship, and ports, an almost journalistic reporting of the transport of a man to Rome for trial -- "a man of consequence", treated with deference by his guards, middle-aged, educated,"a Levantine -- possibly a Jew." The author then describes, quoting occasionally from ancient historians, the city of his birth, Tarsus, typical familial life of one of his community (Pharisees), his probable education in Jerusalem, and extensive detail on the political and decadent social millieu of this Roman era. The author peppers the story of Paul with facts of the lives and foibles of other influential personalities of the period, including the Caesars and the scholars who tutored them. Gives one a very real sense of the small world of the new Christian sect, within the small world of Judea and Jewish culture, overwhelmed by the forces of the Roman Empire at the height of it's power and corruption. After the initial flashback the author hypothesyzes Paul's travels and missionary/revolutionary work with a continuation of detail, rich with knowledge of the places and cultures visited.