The publication of the King James version of the Bible, translated between 1603 and 1611, coincided with an extraordinary flowering of English literature and is universally acknowledged as the greatest influence on English-language literature in history. Now, world-class literary writers introduce the book of the King James Bible in a series of beautifully designed, small-format volumes. The introducers' passionate, provocative, and personal engagements with the spirituality and the language of the text make the Bible come alive as a stunning work of literature and remind us of its overwhelming contemporary relevance.
Barry Hannah is not the one I would have picked to write the intro to Mark, and Barry Hannah is the perfect soul to write the intro to Mark.
“Mark is a book of utter realism, very uncomfortable. [Its] theme is very heavy on bafflement, misunderstanding, and grief. Even Jesus seems to misunderstand the capabilities of his chosen twelve. He constantly upbraids them and is surprised by their obtuseness. Simply, he has found the men too human— skeptical, cowardly, unimaginative, power seeking, weak. They have quit their profession to follow him, but they never intended to follow him into the precincts of death.”
Cue Barry Hannah referencing Robert Duvall in The Apostle, maybe my favorite movie in this same vein. We are on the same page with this one.
Reading updates
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Started reading
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26 October, 2014:
Finished reading
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26 October, 2014:
Reviewed