Path: utzoo!utgpu!watmath!iuvax!rutgers!aramis.rutgers.edu!athos.rutgers.edu!christian From: apctrc!gpb6!zcnj01@uunet.uu.net (Cecil N. Jones) Newsgroups: soc.religion.christian Subject: Re: Testament (was Re: nicaean council) Message-ID:Date: 12 Aug 89 02:14:44 GMT Organization: Amoco Production Company, Tulsa Research Center Lines: 53 Approved: christian@aramis.rutgers.edu An earlier poster wrote: > i watched a show on the discovery channel last night called 'testament'. > i suspect it's a series, but this is the first one i ever saw > or even heard about. I too saw one episode of this series. It is based on a new book entitled "TESTAMENT" by John Romer (Holt). A brief review from the newspaper: ------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Bible has had more influence upon Western civilization than any other book. So splendid are its phrases that many have taken them to be the unmediated word of God. Since its texts were gathered, the Book has been venerated and en- shrined, execrated and burned. But whether we are believers or not, the Bible still remains the linchpin of modern Western culture. "Testament" describes the making of the Bible, the creation of both the Old and New Testaments, and charts the book's survival through the long centuries of its life. John Romer uses his considerable experience of the worlds of art, history and archaeology to advantage as he unravels the story of the making and the use and misuse of the world's most influential volume. From the silty plains of Mesopotamia, on whose floods many Noahs set sail, to the quiet Valley of the Nile, whose somber temples were filled with a sense of the holy, Romer traces the seeds of Judaism and Christianity. The story of "Testament" is enormous and fascinating, stretching as it does from the ancient Israelites to the archaeologists who sought them. Its characters include the Rabbis who fought and died for their sacred texts; Jesus of Nazareth, whose preachings inspired St. Paul and whose life and death became a cornerstone of the Church; Constan- tine, who formalized the faith and made the Holy Land special; Irenaeus, who classified the Holy Scriptures; fiery St. Jerome, who translated them; and later, Martin Luther and King James. These are just a few of the people who held the thread of the Bible's story in their hands. "Testament" tells all of their stories - and ours. ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Cecil N. Jones Amoco Production Co. Tulsa, OK cjones@trc.amoco.com _or_ uunet!apctrc!cjones The opinions expressed are solely my own.