Judas: The Biography of an Idea [Lingua Inglese]: The troubling history of the renegade apostle - Rilegato

Stanford, Peter

Rilegato

ISBN 10: 1444754726 ISBN 13: 9781444754728

Casa editrice: Hodder & Stoughton, 2015

Riassunto

The most famous traitor in all of history—who was he really, and what does he mean for us today?

In this fascinating historical and cultural biography, writer and broadcaster Peter Stanford deconstructs that most vilified of Bible characters: Judas Iscariot, who famously betrayed Jesus with a kiss. Beginning with the gospel accounts, Peter explores two thousand years of cultural and theological history to investigate how the very name Judas came to be synonymous with betrayal and, ultimately, human evil. But as Peter points out, there has long been a counter-current of thought that suggests that Judas might in fact have been victim of a terrible injustice: central to Jesus' mission was his death and resurrection, and for there to have been a death, there had to be a betrayal. This thankless role fell to Judas; should we in fact be grateful to him for his role in the divine drama of salvation? "You'll have to decide," as Bob Dylan sang in the sixties, "Whether Judas Iscariot had God on his side." An essential but doomed character in the Passion narrative, and thus the entire story of Christianity, Judas and the betrayal he symbolizes continue to play out in much larger cultural histories, speaking as he does to our deepest fears about friendship, betrayal, and the problem of evil. Judas: the ultimate traitor, or the ultimate scapegoat? This is a compelling portrait of Christianity's most troubling and mysterious character.

Su questo libro

Recensione:

JUDAS by Peter Stanford was named one of The Independent's Books of the Year in the biography and memoir category. (The Independent 2015-12-20)

A cracking piece of writing that posits such a great idea - a pilgrimage to Judas. (Frank Cottrell Boyce 2014-11-06)

I've been reading Peter Stanford's JUDAS. It's great. He's a beautiful writer (Author Jon Ronson 2015-03-16)

There is no better navigator through the space in which art, culture and spirituality meet than Peter Stanford. His biography of the Devil is a masterpiece. This is an easier book, written in a friendlier style, but the research is just as through... Despite the layers of confusion between the present day and what happened - or not - 2,000 years ago, he finds meaning, and spins a good yarn. (There is also an A to Z of Judas-related bits and pieces, from asparagus to the Zodiac, which is fun)... Stanford is more than willing to admit that some or all of this - including the character of Judas himself - may be fiction, as he picks apart the gospels beautifully and uncovers what appears to be home truths... This entertaining, enlightening biography serves the sympathetic old devil wonderfully well. (Cole Morton The Independent on Sunday 2015-04-05)

Peter Stanford's engrossing book shows that Judas is a man for all seasons, nearly all of them bad for him and those around him. Judas is a chameleon, though a chameleon in consistently dark colours, endlessly fertile as a symbolic figure, because he helps us to reflect on our own dark side.

Stanford, a journalist and broadcaster, says a lot about the many faces and other attributes of Judas and does so very engagingly: his book manages to be fun as well as sometimes profound, and it is as much an enjoyable tour of Christian art and thought as an account of a 2,000-year-old traitor.

(Diarmaid MacCulloch The Times 2015-04-04)

The biggest question has always been whether Judas was an "out-and-out traitor or cog-in-the-wheel of a divine plan", as Stanford puts it.

With Judas, as with other religious figures, you can and must believe just what you choose. One of the best moments in the book is when Stanford sees a sign outside the Basilica of the Agony in Jerusalem that reads, "Please: no explanations in the Church."

(Christopher Hart The Sunday Times 2015-04-05)

It's a fascinating subject. (Clare Balding BBC Radio 2 2015-03-22)

This is scary and thought-provoking stuff.

Curiously, thoughtfully and reassuringly English

(James Runcie The Independent 2015-03-20)

Wide-ranging and engaging ... Stanford, a much-respected commentator on Catholic affairs, has unearthed some fascinating material and left his readers with more than enough material to prompt some echo of the question "Is it I?" (Rowan Williams New Statesman 2015-03-16)

Stanford's book is ultimately a cultural history of the forces which subsumed Judas, leading unstoppably to the version of him - so close to 'Jew' or 'Yehuda' - that lent weight to the idea that the Jews were the murderers of Christ... this book provides, among many insights, a timely account of the origins of anti-Semitism. (Justin Cartwright The Spectator 2015-04-02)

Descrizione del libro:

Judas: the most famous traitor in all of human history. But who was he really - and what does he mean for us today?

Su questa edizione

• Editore: Hodder & Stoughton
• Data di pubblicazione: 2015
• ISBN 10: 1444754726
• ISBN 13: 9781444754728
• Rilegatura: Copertina rigida
• Numero edizione: 2
• Numero di pagine: 288