Description
The only hope of keeping his brother from a gruesome death is James’ cordial relationship with the Roman governor, Pontius Pilate, who turns to him for guidance in matters of Jewish law and custom. Indeed, Pilate views James with the utmost respect, even seeing him as a possible successor to the corrupt high priest, Caiaphas. And why not? While James hails from rural Galilee, his family is no bunch of hill country peasants. This is a family of substance, descended from King David, with kinship ties to the great temple priest Zacharias. James himself is the famous scholar and counselor known as James the Just. Fulfilling his pledge to protect Jesus becomes the consuming focus of James’ life as his brother runs afoul of the temple authorities, and Zealot rebels attempt to exploit his popularity — their goal to foment a revolution against the hated Romans. But even such a widely admired man of honor and learning as James can’t calm the fears of change stirred by Jesus and his movement, or counter the forces of politics, greed and corruption that loom over a First-Century Palestine ready to explode. MY BROTHER’S KEEPER is a riveting historical/religious novel in the tradition of such bible-based classics as Ben Hur, The Robe, and The Silver Chalice. It offers a sweeping vision of a nation at its tipping point — a proud and ancient people facing economic stress, political division, and the specter of radicalism and violence, conditions not unlike those of our own time. Inspired by writings handed down from the earliest days of Christianity, it tracks the lives of individuals instantly recognizable as religious/cultural icons, but it presents new insights into who those people were, how they lived, and what was going on around them. This is a sprawling tale with a fresh and compelling perspective on Jesus and his family that will make you reconsider the story that’s at the very heart of Western Civilization.
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“From the opening words of Bill Kassel’s novel we are drawn into the complex and colorful world of First Century Israel. The reader is caught up in the drama of Christ through the eyes of Jesus’ natural family. Kassel’s work is unconventional, exciting and controversial, offering fresh insights and inspiration for believers and non-believers alike.” — Fr. Dwight Longenecker, blogger and author of The Romance of Religion
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“It takes unusual skill to imaginatively strive to get behind the eyes of those closest to Jesus. Or to sympathetically profile the reactions of the Pharisees who, we often forget, were the most devout of the Jewish sects …. Kassel elaborates, adapts and embroiders but never contradicts the biblical material. This is a creative and stimulating form of meditation that entertains like a novel but edifies like a prayer. Enjoy it.” — Al Kresta, Host, “Kresta In the Afternoon,” Ave Maria Radio/EWTN
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“Bill Kassel has taken a very different approach to the Christian story. His is not the conventional Christmas card portrait of the Holy Family. Rather, he has delved deeply into the earliest writings in Church Tradition and offered some compelling suppositions about what was going on around Jesus and how the people closest to him might have been effected by it. He has crafted a plot that’s engaging to the modern reader and, surprisingly, doesn’t contradict Scripture.” — Fr. Joe Krupp, Columnist, Faith Magazine
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“Bill Kassel tries to fill in the gaps of the Gospels regarding the life of Jesus. Through pious tradition and some information garnered from the Apocryphal Gospels Kassel provides a remarkably orthodox tale covering some things that have challenged the Christian imagination over the millennia.” — Fr. Michael P. Orsi, author and frequent contributor to Homiletic and Pastoral Review
