Kelley Mathews
Review
Through the eyes of the apostle Paul’s comrade Priscilla, Ben Witherington, III, historian, lecturer, and popular professor at Asbury Theological Seminary, offers a tantalizing look at first-century Christianity. Presented as imaginative historical fiction, with Priscilla dictating her memoirs to her daughter, Julia, the story serves as an educational tool for readers. An elderly Priscilla, prompted by disturbing dreams of Rome burning, sketches out scenes from her life while Julia acts as her scribe. With the literary license allowed a novelist, Witherington creates a fictitious but plausible backstory for this influential woman of faith. He places her in Jerusalem during Pentecost, explains the common placing of her name before her husband’s as the result of her higher social status, and includes her in many of Paul’s adventures. She displays an intelligence expected of one so successful at evangelizing and leading house churches in the years following Jesus’s resurrection.
Through Priscilla’s memories, Witherington incorporates ample background on historical events, common household items, and opinions on why certain biblical events happened. He includes photos of archaeological finds: mosaics, pottery, jewelry, cave paintings, and more. Such additions to what purports to be historical fiction reveal the author’s intent to teach history more than to tell a good story. Those seeking a true historical novel will be left wanting, but the substantive research scattered throughout the story adds a rich level of authenticity. Most readers will forgive the merger of genres, recognizing the bright light it shines upon the lives of first-century Christians.
*Originally published in Bible Study Magazine, January/February 2020. Book link is affiliate.
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