Book Review: The Shadow of the Galilean by Tamice Spencer

The Shadow of the Galilean: The Quest of the Historical Jesus in Narrative Form

New Testament scholar and German theologian, Gerd Thiessen writes a gripping narrative about first-century Palestine using intrigue, kidnapping, and espionage in his novel: The Shadow of the Galilean: The Quest of the Historical Jesus in Narrative Form.  The reader is immediately thrust into the middle of the political and religious drama that created the backdrop for the ministry of Jesus of Nazareth.

The narrative follows a Jew called Andreas who deals in fruit and grain, and who is arrested in conjunction with a demonstration against the Romans. He is questioned and given an ultimatum to be punished for his crimes or to be enlisted as a roman spy to keep those in power abreast of threats to their rule. Reluctantly, Andreas agrees to the deal and must report his findings to his Roman overseer: Metilius. Andreas is given the eventual task of discovering whether one of John the Baptist’s supposed followers, …