The Priest: Aaron (Sons of Encouragement Series #1) [Paperback]

Francine Rivers (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 1, 2004

Discover what God has to say about the particular needs of women and how he longs to fulfill them every day of the year.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In her Lineage of Grace series, the award-winning Rivers successfully explored the lives of five biblical women. Here, in the first of her Sons of Encouragement series, she turns her attention to the life of Aaron with less stellar results. A jealous Aaron grows up in the shadow of his younger brother Moses. Yet when God calls him to assist Moses in leading the enslaved Israelites to freedom, Aaron finds love for his brother. In the wilderness, disastrous disobedience to God follows, and Aaron must come face-to-face with the knowledge of his own unworthiness and the sins of the Israelites. "It would take a bigger miracle than plagues and parting the Red Sea to change the hearts of these people," he realizes. When he's chosen as high priest, the daily sacrifices Aaron makes torment him, and he dreams of fire and blood. The first portion of the book feels flat, as if Rivers may have relied too heavily on the scriptural text. Her ability to weave sexual tension throughout her novels has been one of the talents of this former general market romance writer, but she fails to take advantage of several opportunities here. By the last third of the book, however, the narrative improves, as Rivers convincingly envisions the emotions and intrigue that surely permeated the biblical events. Rivers is a deservedly popular author, and her loyal fans will likely embrace her new series despite some shortcomings.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

About the Author

Francine Rivers began her literary career at the University of Nevada, Reno, where she graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in English and journalism. From 1976 to 1985, she had a successful writing career in the general market, and her books were highly acclaimed by readers and reviewers. Although raised in a religious home, Francine did not truly encounter Christ until later in life, when she was already a wife, a mother of three, and an established romance novelist.

Francine and her husband, Rick, live in Northern California and enjoy the time spent with their three grown children and every opportunity to spoil their grandchildren.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 230 pages
• Publisher: Tyndale House Publishers (July 1, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1414302800
• ISBN-13: 978-1414302805
• Product Dimensions: 6.9 x 5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (19 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,564,082 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Francine Rivers began her literary career at the University of Nevada, Reno, where she graduated with a bachelor of arts degree in English and journalism. From 1976 to 1985, she had a successful writing career in the general market, and her books were highly acclaimed by readers and reviewers. Although raised in a religious home, Francine did not truly encounter Christ until later in life, when she was already a wife, a mother of three, and an established romance novelist. Shortly after becoming a born-again Christian in 1986, Francine wrote "Redeeming Love" as her statement of faith. First published by Bantam Books and then rereleased by Multnomah Publishers in the mid-1990s, this retelling of the biblical story of Gomer and Hosea, set during the time of the California Gold Rush, is now considered by many to be a classic work of Christian fiction. Redeeming Love continues to be one of the Christian Booksellers Association's top-selling titles, and it has held a spot on the Christian best-seller list for nearly a decade. Since "Redeeming Love," Francine has published numerous novels with Christian themes--all best sellers--and she has continued to win both industry acclaim and reader loyalty around the globe. Her Christian novels have been awarded or nominated for numerous honors, including the RITA Award, the Christy Award, the ECPA Gold Medallion, and the Holt Medallion in Honor of Outstanding Literary Talent. In 1997, after winning her third RITA Award for inspirational fiction, Francine was inducted into the Romance Writers of America's Hall of Fame. Francine's novels have been translated into over 20 different languages, and she enjoys best-seller status in many foreign countries, including Germany, the Netherlands, and South Africa. Francine and her husband, Rick, live in northern California and enjoy time spent with their three grown children and taking every opportunity to spoil their grandchildren. Francine uses her writing to draw closer to the Lord, and she desires that through her work she might worship and praise Jesus for all He has done and is doing in her life.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

30 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars fine biographical biblical fiction, April 27, 2004

By 

Harriet Klausner - See all my reviews
(#1 Hall OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Priest: Aaron (Sons of Encouragement Series #1) (Hardcover)

At three years of age a jealous Aaron misses his mama who seems to spend all her time with one year old brother Moses. His older sister Miriam tries to provide solace, but that fails to ease the ache in the little boy's heart perhaps because she too misses her mama. Three years later, a heartbroken mama tells her two oldest children that the daughter of the Pharaoh loves Moses and he will live with her as his mother.

Years later, God speaks to Aaron to go to the wilderness and help Moses lead the enslaved Israelites to the Promised Land. Putting aside his jealousy, Aaron becomes Moses' right hand man as they seek freedom. Over time he becomes the First High priest only to watch his flock fail God. Though feeling undeserving of his role and a failure, Aaron in his low key manner encourages his people to properly worship the Lord. While performing the seemingly impossible but critical tasks without acclaim, he also finds a brotherly love to his charismatic younger brother, leader of the wandering Hebrews.

Starting with Aaron, Francine Rivers, in her Sons of Encouragement series, is telling the tales of five influential individuals who in the background of a charismatic superstar shaped religion. The first novel, THE PRIEST, is a biblical fiction work fans will enjoy though the book starts off a bit slowly as readers are introduced to the key players as described in the Torah. This historical fiction novel turns into a deep character study in the second half of the novel as the audience feels the emotions especially self doubts, disbeliefs and concerns during forty years of wandering.

Harriet Klausner

32 of 33 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Well weaved tale, September 2, 2004

By 

Timothy Daiss, M.A. (Metro-Manila, Philippines (Atlanta, GA USA)) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Priest: Aaron (Sons of Encouragement Series #1) (Hardcover)

In "The Priest," author Francine Rivers brings together an oft quoted/written about story (the Exodus story and subsequent events) and brings new life to them. First, I note that she does, indeed, rely heavily on Scripture (I state this to nullify the Publisher's Weekly review and criticism about this). Moreover, this actually adds to the story's authenticity. Rivers also sheds light on the Exodus events that few if any other writers have done before. Namely, she tells them through the eyes, not of Moses, but of his younger brother Aaron. In doing so she does a service to people who enjoy reading fiction and those who are serious students of Scripture.

For those interested in applying the life lessons from Aaron, she includes a study guide in the back of the book.

In all, it is an enjoyable read, and often an inspiring one also. Well worth, the price of admission.

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The Priest, October 10, 2006

By 

Monty Rainey (New Braunfels, TX) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Priest: Aaron (Sons of Encouragement Series #1) (Hardcover)

This is the first of this series by Francine Rivers that I have read, and though it was a good read, I felt it fell a little short of the high standard she has set for herself. I guess the adage that you cant hit a homerun every time holds true. Perhaps my disappointment comes form the subject itself. The subject being Aaron, who, in many ways could be considered a poster child of Biblical failure. They Bible presents Aaron as somewhat of a "side kick". He was Moses' Tonto, if you will. And certainly one of the countless perplexing questions I intend to ask God when I stand before the throne is, "Why Aaron?" Why was he chosen to be the High Priest of the Jews? He was certainly not a mature believer and seemed a rather bad choice for the position. Was he the most prepared candidate? Surely Caleb, or even on good days, Joshua, was more qualified.

At any rate, I digress. The book is meticulously accurate, as with all of River's works, but failed to have that page turning passion that her books normally provide. It follows the life of Aaron from childhood to death and Rivers clearly illustrates Aaron's many failures and weaknesses along the way.

I'll certainly read the other books in this series. I just hope to see a return of the type narrative I've come to expect from the very gifted writer.