Read more
Through a careful study of the scrolls, historical analysis, and interviews w ith scholars, the authors establish a view of Christianity that challenges the Church's adamantly defended "facts". Photographs.
List of contents
ContentsAcknowledgments
Map of Qumran and the Dead SeaPreface
I THE DECEPTION
1 The Discovery of the Scrolls
2 The International Team
3 The Scandal of the Scrolls
4 Opposing the Consensus
5 Academic Politics and Bureaucratic Inertia
II THE VATICAN'S REPRESENTATIVES
6 The Onslaught of Science
7 The Inquisition Today
III THE DEAD SEA SCROLLS
8 The Dilemma for Christian Orthodoxy
9 The Scrolls
10 Science in the Service of Faith
11 The Essenes
12 The Acts of the Apostles
13 James 'The Righteous'
14 Zeal for the Law
15 Zealot Suicide
16 Paul -- Roman Agent or Informer?
Postscript
Notes and References
Bibliography
Index
About the author
Michael Baigent graduated from Canterbury University, Christchurch, New Zealand, Richard Leigh followed his degree from Tufts University with postgraduate studies at the University of Chicago and the State University of New York at Stony Brook. Together the authors have also written
Holy Blood, Holy Grail; The Messianic Legacy; and
The Temple and the Lodge. Both writers live in England.
Summary
The oldest Biblical manuscripts in existence, the Dead Sea Scrolls were found in caves near Jerusalem in 1947, only to be kept a tightly held secret for nearly fifty more years, until the Huntington Library unleashed a storm of controversy in 1991 by releasing copies of the Scrolls. In this gripping investigation authors Baigent and Leigh set out to discover how a small coterie of orthodox biblical scholars gained control over the Scrolls, allowing access to no outsiders and issuing a strict "consensus" interpretation. The authors' questions begin in Israel, then lead them to the corridors of the Vatican and into the offices of the Inquisition. With the help of independent scholars, historical research, and careful analysis of available texts, the authors reveal what was at stake for these orthodox guardians: The Scrolls present startling insights into early Christianity -- insights that challenge the Church's version of the "facts." More than just a dramatic exposé of the intrigues surrounding these priceless documents, The Dead Sea Scrolls Deception presents nothing less than a new, highly significant perspective on Christianity.
Additional text
Chicago Tribune Not for the theologically faint of heart.
