God's ghostwriters : enslaved Christians and the making of the Bible / Candida Moss.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Moss, Candida, 1978- author.

Contributor:

Rosengarten Family Fund.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Bible. New Testament--Authorship.

Bible.

Jesus Christ.

Church history.

Slavery--Religious aspects--Christianity.

Slavery.

Slavery--Religious aspects--Disciples of Christ.

Church history--Slavery.

church history.

Physical Description:

ix, 319 pages : illustrations, maps ; 24 cm

Edition:

First edition.

Place of Publication:

New York : Little, Brown and Company, 2024.

Summary:

"For the past two thousand years, Christian tradition, scholarship, and pop culture have credited the authorship of the New Testament to a select group of men: Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, and Paul. But hidden behind these named and sainted individuals are a cluster of unnamed, enslaved coauthors and collaborators. These essential workers were responsible for producing the earliest manuscripts of the New Testament: making the parchment on which the texts were written, taking dictation, and refining the words of the apostles. And as the Christian message grew in influence, it was enslaved missionaries who undertook the arduous journey across the Mediterranean and along dusty roads to move Christianity to Rome, Spain, and North Africa--and into the pages of history. The impact of these enslaved contributors on the spread of Christianity, the development of foundational Christian concepts, and the making of the Bible was enormous, yet their role has been almost entirely overlooked until now." -- Provided by publisher.

Contents:

Invisible hands: Essential workers

Paul and his secretaries

Rereading the story of Jesus

Messengers and craftsmen: Messengers of God

Curators of the word

The faces of the gospel

Legacies: The faithful Christian

Punishing the disobedient

Epilogue.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Local Notes:

Acquired for the Penn Libraries with assistance from the Rosengarten Family Fund.

ISBN:

9780316564670

0316564672

OCLC:

1389606739

Publisher Number:

99996100493