In this popular play-cycle, Sayers makes the Gospels come alive. "Her Jesus can bring tears to your eyes. You will be deeply moved--a powerful experience."--Sheldon Vanauken, A Severe Mercy.
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52 of 53 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
After reading this play cycle, you'll never look at the Gospels in the same way again. Sayers writes in her introduction that she believed the story "should be handled, not liturgically or symbolically, but realistically and historically: 'this is a thing that actually happened.'" It is this matter-of-fact treatment of the story that makes her plays different from almost all the "Jesus movies" that we know today. We're confronted with the shattering truth that God actually came to earth, in a time very much like ours in many ways, and lived among us. We also have to face the fact that humanity -- for reasons of politics and personal pride -- rejected and killed God. So much for the theory that man is basically good! Yet as Sayers writes, "Short of damnation ... there can be no Christian tragedy," and she clearly shows how the love and hope offered by the risen Christ can save us from ourselves. I've been a Christian for many years, and I can still say that this book changed my life. If you have questions or doubts about Jesus of Nazareth, please give it a try.
36 of 37 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I came to this play-cycle not knowing what to expect, as did almost all of Sayers' contemporaries. There was a political firestorm when the project was proposed. Clergymen of every stripe rose up to denounce it as un-Christian, distorted, dishonorable. Needless to say, they had not read the script or heard the audio plays, which aired on the BBC during World War Two.
These plays inspired ordinary dock-workers and High Church bishops alike to examine the Christian faith. People who never gave a second thought to some guy named Jesus were confronted with a living, throbbing reality in these plays.
Sayers did her work conscientiously, as in her translation of Dante, by not making any use of any terms which were theologically inaccurate but dramatically potent. That is, she was faithful to the letter and spirit of her original- the Gospel story of Jesus. These plays contained, at times, shocking insight- and at times, human warmth.
Just as Jesus is supposed to be the meeting of Godhood and manhood, these plays are where entertainment and theology, the natural and the supernatural meet. Miss that, and you'll miss the same thing which soon caused thousands of English to arrive late for church service because they were waiting to catch the last moments of these plays on the wireless.
I found that the dramas forced me to imagine the movements of characters and plot as on a stage, something more difficult to do with the Biblical text itself. That made these stories come alive for me, and refreshed and enriched my grasp of these stories, "old bones in new flesh".
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
This is by far the best dramatization of the life of Christ I have ever read. By far. It moved me to tears and reminded me of the true power of a story too often obscured by platitutes and time.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
Fantastic Book
Never before have I been so moved by the truth of the Life, Death, and Ressurection of Christ. Dorothy Sayers hits home every character and message of the gospels.
Published on August 17, 2009 by S. Harder
Not the Jesus of history
In writing this book, I believe Sayers intended to make the Gospel stories of Jesus more accessible. Read more
Published on July 25, 2001 by R. Michael Friends
Inside This Book
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First Sentence:
Historical reality . . . is above all a concrete and not an abstract reality; and no concrete reality other than the historical does or can exist. . . . Read the first page Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
upper table Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
High Priest, Jesus of Nazareth, Son of Man, Judas Iscariot, King Herod, Simon Peter, John the Baptist, Pontius Pilate, Kingdom of God, Joseph of Arimathaea, Baruch the Zealot, Kingdom of Heaven, Rabbi Solomon, Governor of Judaea, Herod the Great, Messiah of Israel, Brother Nicodemus, Captain Elihu, Feast of Tabernacles, Brother Shadrach, Captain of the Temple Guard, Captain Proclus, Hail Caesar, Jesus Messiah, King of Israel New!
Concordance | Text Stats Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
Historical reality . . . is above all a concrete and not an abstract reality; and no concrete reality other than the historical does or can exist. . . . Read the first page Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
upper table Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
High Priest, Jesus of Nazareth, Son of Man, Judas Iscariot, King Herod, Simon Peter, John the Baptist, Pontius Pilate, Kingdom of God, Joseph of Arimathaea, Baruch the Zealot, Kingdom of Heaven, Rabbi Solomon, Governor of Judaea, Herod the Great, Messiah of Israel, Brother Nicodemus, Captain Elihu, Feast of Tabernacles, Brother Shadrach, Captain of the Temple Guard, Captain Proclus, Hail Caesar, Jesus Messiah, King of Israel New!
Concordance | Text Stats Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
Citations (learn more)
This book cites 8
books:
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90
books
cite this book:
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- Who Moved the Stone? by Frank Morison in Front Matter (1), Front Matter (2), and page 233
- The Twelve Days of Christmas (Little Golden Readers) by Mike Eagle on page 37
- The Screwtape Letters: Includes Screwtape Proposes a Toast by C.S. Lewis on page 202
- Where is Jesus?: Easter (Hear Me Read Big Book) by Mary Manz Simon on page 138
- The Screwtape Letters by C. S. Lewis on page 202
See all 8 books this book cites
- Writing Performances: The Stages of Dorothy L. Sayers by Crystal Downing on 15 pages
- British Radio Drama by John Drakakis on 12 pages
- C.S. Lewis In A Time Of War by Justin Phillips on 11 pages
- The Gospel of John: Introduction, Exposition, Notes by F.F. Bruce on 6 pages
- Kregel Pictorial Guide to Christian Heritage in England (Kregel Pictorial Guides) (The Kregel Pictorial Guide Series) by Daniel A. Scalberg on 4 pages
See all 90 books citing this book
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