Early Christianity

Suggested Readings

To find out more about everything there is to see in this section, including all content, books, Synopses, and photos, start by clicking on any book you choose. Then use the Next… links following each Synopsis to cycle through all the pages in this section of the site.

Neil Asher Silberman, The Hidden Scrolls: Christianity, Judaism, and the War for the Dead Sea Scrolls, Riverhead Books, New York, 1994.

John Davidson, The Gospel of Jesus: In Search of His Original Teachings, Element, Rockport, Ma, 1995.

Kenneth Hanson, Words of Light: Spiritual Wisdom from the Dead Sea Scrolls, Council Oak Books, San Francisco, 2000.

Robert Eisenman, The Dead Sea Scrolls and the First Christians, Element, Rockport, Ma., 1996.

Michael Baigent, The Jesus Papers: Exposing the Greatest Cover-Up in History. HarperCollins, New York, 1986. The “idea of a rigged crucifixion”, Michael Baigent writes, “has been around for a long time; even the Koran mentions it.” This is definitely still a controversial way to begin a life of Jesus. Over recent decades, however, a surprising number of works, beginning with Hugh Schonfield’s The Passover Plot in 1965, have explored this possibility. The underlying theme is always that Jesus’ followers managed to …More

Church of the Holy Sepulcher, Jerusalem

Morton Smith, Jesus the Magician: A Renowned Historian Reveals How Jesus was Viewed by People of His Time, Red Wheel/Weiser, San Francisco, 1978.

Morton Smith, The Secret Gospel: The Discovery and Interpretation of the Secret Gospel According to Mark, The Dawn Horse Press, Middletown, Ca., 1982.

John Dart & Ray Riegert, The Gospel of Thomas, Unearthing the Lost Words of Jesus, Seastone Press, Berkeley, Ca., 1998.

Joan O’Grady, Early Christian Heresies, Barnes & Noble, 1985.

James Cowan, Desert Father: A Journey in the Wilderness with Saint Anthony, Shambhala, Boston, 2002. James Cowan not only studied the life of Saint Anthony, he also literally followed in his footsteps in the Egyptian desert. Anthony was born in middle Egypt in 251 A.D. to parents who were prosperous farmers. At the age of 18, following the death of his parents, he heeded the admonition of Jesus, “If you be perfected, go sell what you possess …More

William Dalrymple, From the Holy Mountain: A Journey Among the Christians of the Middle East, Henry Holt, New York, 1998.

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