Lost Letters of Pergamum, The: A Story from the New Testament World [Paperback]

Bruce W. Longenecker (Author), Ben Witherington (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 1, 2002

Travel back two thousand years and get an insider's view of the early church with this historically accurate, fascinating novel. Antipas, a Roman civic leader, encounters the writings of Luke and begins to correspond with him-until a gladiatorial contest forces Antipas to make difficult decisions.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

The Lost Letters of Pergamum is another unique attempt at biblical fiction. Longenecker conjures an epistolary relationship between Luke and a figure from Revelation about whom little is known: Antipas. A loyal Roman, Antipas is converted to Christianity through Luke's letters and becomes a martyr. The story's greatest charm, however, may be its careful scholarship on all things Roman, making it of great appeal to those amateur scholars who read Josephus and love to draw lessons from the Roman Empire.

John Mort
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

From the Back Cover

ìUsing the time-honored form of a collection of letters, Longenecker provides, by means of an informative and delightful fiction, a remarkably clear and accurate picture of Christian existence in the eastern Mediterranean world of the first century. One comes away from this bookóa ëhistorical novelí in the best senseóboth charmed and informed. It is a thoroughly delightful read, from which both beginners and experts will profit.î óPaul J. Achtemeier, emeritus, Union Theological Seminary in Virginia ìThrough the device of an extended correspondence between the evangelist Luke and Antipas, a resident of Pergamum, Bruce Longenecker brings early Christianity to life. The characters are vivid and believable, and they introduce the reader to a rich historical and cultural context. Those familiar with early Christianity will admire the imaginative way Longenecker builds on the best of modern scholarship, and those new to the field will learn a good deal as they eavesdrop on this conversation. This book is both a delight to read and a reliable guide to the beginnings of Christianity.î óFrederick J. Murphy, College of the Holy Cross ìLongeneckerís Letters present in a fascinating and compelling way the contexts of Second Temple Judaism and Greco-Roman urban life. And the narrative he weaves is not only believable but also engaging, both academically and personally. This untraditional presentation deserves a wide readership among all concerned more traditionally with the ethos of New Testament backgrounds.î óJoel B. Green, Asbury Theological Seminary ìThis book is a creative and enjoyable story that is true to much of what we know about early Christianity in its environment. The narrative both teaches and engages the imagination as to how events in late-first-century Pergamum might have happened.î óCarolyn Osiek, Catholic Theological Union Bruce Longenecker (Ph.D., University of Durham) is lecturer in New Testament Studies at the University of St. Andrews, Scotland.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 192 pages
• Publisher: Baker Academic (December 1, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0801026075
• ISBN-13: 978-0801026072
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.6 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (21 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #16,834 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #53 in Books > Christian Books & Bibles > Worship & Devotion > Meditations

More About the Author

Bruce W. Longenecker is Professor of Religion (New Testament) at Baylor University, where he holds the W.W. Melton Chair of Religion in the Department of Religion.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

28 of 28 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Want to know how it was be a Christian in ancient Rome?, November 6, 2004

By 

C. Price "Layman, Lawyer, Blogger" (Southern California) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Lost Letters of Pergamum, The: A Story from the New Testament World (Paperback)

Having a strong interest in New Testament history and being a fan of historical fiction, I was immediately interested in this book. I was a bit surprised to find it was not a narrative, but simply a fictional collection of ancient letters between Luke -- the author of the Gospel of Luke and the Acts of the Apostles -- and a Roman nobleman named Antipas. This format, though, is well used. Indeed, it is compelling.

We follow Antipas' and Luke's correspondence, which begins with a chance introduction. As Antipas reads Luke's Gospel, he discusses it at first from a very Roman point of view. But as he reads more and begins to spend time with Christians of his city, Antipas gradually sees the faults in his Roman upbringing, his pagan worldview. He is drawn to Jesus both through the writings of Luke and through the witness and lives of the Christians with whom he fellowships. Ultimately, he joins them and dies the truly noble death of a martyr. (The reference to the death of Antipas in Rev. 2:13 is the inspiration of the story).

The value of this book is that it places the reader in the early Christian world like nothing else I have ever read. Longenecker has taken all the books about New Testament History, Jewish history, and the larger Roman world of the time, and used them to create an authentic exchange of late first century correspondence between a pagan and a Christian. Beyond the obvious monotheism v. paganism, Longenecker does an excellent job of bringing out the differing attitudes of Roman and Christian charity. Of Christian brotherhood and its foreignness to the Roman world. Of the worship of the emperor. In short, Longenecker does an effective job of placing the reader back into the Roman world and communicating the challenges that Christians faced in it (especially Christians of any social standing).

This book is emotionally moving at times, especially in its depictions of Christian charity in a harsh world. It is also an easy read. It does not get bogged down and you find yourself looking forward to seeing how Luke responds to one of Antipas' questions or comments. Or how Antipas responds to certain passages he reads in Luke's Gospel. Unlike some historical fiction, it does not have moments of preachiness or contrived depictions intended to prove a point.

Very enjoyable. And, very profitable.

39 of 42 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fascinating, May 15, 2008

By 

emerson "have at em" (usa) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Lost Letters of Pergamum, The: A Story from the New Testament World (Paperback)

Longenecker certainly came up with a creative idea when he wrote this book. Two New Testament figures predominate - Luke the famous (at least in our day) physician and author of the Gospel of Luke and the Acts of the Apostles exchanges correspondence with a lesser known NT individual Antipas (the faithful witness of Revelation Chapter 2).

The only perhaps more creative "what if and maybe so" story would be a 12 year-old Paul and Jesus (they were about the same age) discussing theology together in the temple together -perhaps at Gamaliel's feet.

Buy this - it is fascinating

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Sanctified and informed imagination, May 17, 2004

By 

Glen Ridge - See all my reviews

This review is from: Lost Letters of Pergamum, The: A Story from the New Testament World (Paperback)

Longenecker uses a "sanctified" and informed imagination to recreate a possible correspondence between Luke (of Gospel fame) and Antipas (Rev 2:12-13). Using historical fiction, this work introduces the reader to the way in which Christianity would have been perceived in a 1st century world dominated by Roman culture. Longenecker creates a scenario where ancient letters are discovered in an archeological dig in the city of Pergamum. These letters reveal a correspondence between Antipas, a nobleman originally from Tyre and Cesarea, with first Calpurnius, the son of Theophilus (Luke 1:3), and then Luke himself. The result is the introduction of Antipas to Christianity and a house church that is meeting in Pergamum. The result for the reader is that she will be introduced to not only the way in which Roman noblemen perceived Christianity, but also some possible apologetic reasons that occasioned Luke to write the Gospel that bears his name.
This book would be a good resource for a pastor to recommend to his congregation in order to help them connect the New Testament to its historical setting (Along with "The Shadow of the Galilean" by Theissen). Unlike much Christian fiction that has two dimensional characters involved in predictable plots, Longenecker has created a scenario that accurately immerses the reader into the 1st century Roman world by way of an intriguing plot with believable characters. As Longenecker writes in his introduction, "this account probably did not happen, but it could have."