I had a great time this weekend signing books at Half Price Books in Rockwall, TX - a great store where I always sell a good many books and have a lot of fun in the process. I have my own personal standard for what makes a successful signing. If I sell ten books or more, I call it a good day. If I sell more than fifteen, it's a great day. Over twenty - well, that's a stellar day for me (my books cost $20 a pop, so that's a nice chunk of change when I have such a day!). Saturday was a twenty book day, so I was a pretty happy camper when it was all said and done. I love socializing and talking to people anyway, and I get so many great questions (and some not-so-great) at these occasions, so I thought I'd share a few of them with you tonight.
Q: How long does it take you to write a book?
A: On average, 9-10 months per book. My current WIP may be finished even sooner; the story line is flying and I'm three quarters done after starting on October 12. But, I am coming up on my busiest time of year at work, so who knows?
Q: Did you write this yourself?
A: Yes, that's why my name is on the cover. (Seriously, people ask me this all the time and it amuses me. Why else would I be sitting at this little table in an uncomfortable chair asking you if you'd like to check out my novels?)
Q: Where are your self-help books?
A: I could tell you, but that would defeat the purpose. (OK, I only got to answer this once, but I'd been saving that reply for over a year at that point.)
Q: Where do you get your ideas?
A: This one I will take some time to answer. As of now, I have three books in print. THE TESTIMONIUM was inspired, in part, by a monologue I performed one Easter describing the Resurrection from Pontius Pilate's point of view, and also by an assignment I gave my freshman Bible class - asking them to write a letter after the Resurrection from Pontius Pilate to Tiberius, explaining what on earth just happened! And finally, by my discovery that such a letter once existed, and was referred to by Justin Martyr barely a century after the Crucifixion of Jesus. That got me wondering - what if a copy of that letter survived and was found today?
My second story was inspired by my first one. I found myself wondering - what happened to Pilate after the events of the Passion Week? Did presiding over the trial of Jesus change his life? What kind of man was he? How did he wind up in Judea, anyway? History provides few answers to these questions, so I made some up.
Finally, MATTHEW'S AUTOGRAPH was inspired by a loyal friend and Beta reader who kept wondering (as did I) what happened to Josh, Isabella, and the rest after the events of THE TESTIMONIUM. So yes, this is a good question and one I never get tired of answering.
Q: Do you have the whole story mapped out in your head before you start writing?
A: Heavens, no. Sometimes there is a single scene that's burned into my brain, and sometimes I know where the story ends but not how it gets there. I compare writing a story to hopping on the back of a big and stubborn horse: you may think you know where you're going, but your transport has a mind of its own and will take you where it wants you to go before it gets you to your destination.
Q: Are you famous? (I get this one from kids a lot)
A: Not yet, but I'm trying! With three books in print, I seem to be stuck somewhere between "rookie" and "up and comer".
Q: I've always wanted to write a book. Any advice?
A: Read a LOT. Then start writing. and keep writing. If your first story sucks, file it away somewhere and start another. I started and abandoned two novels and wrote a dozen or more short stories before I finished my first book. You can do this. And, to quote Billy Crystal in THROW MOMMA FROM THE TRAIN: "A writer writes - always!"
Q: Will this store be carrying your books later?
A: (If it's my local Hastings, Lord bless them!) "Yes, they are on the rack up next to the cash register!" (Anywhere else) "Nope, sorry, today only, unless you want to get it off of Amazon! And I can't sign that copy!"
Q: Is this book OK for kids?
A: Well, for teens, I'd say yes. Pre-teens, well, REDEMPTION is basically a PG-13. I'd read it first if I were you, because I don't know what you let your kids read. But if you're OK with them reading THE HUNGER GAMES, then this should certainly be fine.
Q: Who are your favorite writers?
A: For fiction, Lincoln Preston, Douglas Child, Harry Turtledove, Stephen King, and James Rollins. For non-fiction, Lee Strobel, Josh McDowell, David McCullough, and H.W. Brands.
Book signings are a lot of fun. I always keep a dish of candy at my table for the kids and for store employees - as well as customers, or anyone who wants to stop by and visit. I hear great stories, meet fellow authors and pastors, and generally enjoy myself (although, I will ask anyone who wants to drop by, remember I am here to sell books. As much as I am enjoying our theological/political/historical debate, I need to make eye contact and make a sales pitch to everyone who comes in the door if I am going to have a successful day!
And there is always that one fellow or gal whose random comments make my day. One nice gentleman from Dallas won the day from me Saturday with this exchange:
Him: "So why did you want to write about Pontius Pilate?"
Me: "Well, for one thing, I just love Roman history . . . "
Him: "Me, too! When I am stranded in a lifeboat in the middle of the Pacific with one other person, that is ALL we talk about!"
People. Gotta love em!
Tuesday, February 16, 2016
Tuesday, February 9, 2016
SEX AND VIOLENCE IN CHRISTIAN FICTION - How Far Is Too Far?
One of the biggest objections that non-Christians have about Christian fiction is that it is, well, boring. Of course, much of that criticism comes from people who have never actually read much Christian fiction - but there is still a grain of truth to their assertion. What the most popular works of fiction, whether in print or on the big screen, generally share in common is that they dish out both violence and sexuality with a pretty generous ladle - and readers and viewers eat it up, hence the popularity of writers like Stephen King, James Rollins, Ken Follett, and others, as well as TV shows like GAME OF THRONES and BREAKING BAD.
As believers, we are called to walk a higher path than the world around us. But does that mean, for us writers who are believers and want to use our books to draw others towards a walk of faith, that we should ignore the realities of the world we live in? It's a vexing question.
For the most part, Christian writers and producers have a much higher tolerance for violence than they do for sex. It makes sense, on one level - after all, our salvation was purchased by one of the most horrific acts of violence imaginable! An innocent man - indeed, the only sinless man who ever lived - was savagely beaten with whips and hung on a wooden cross to die, then skewered with a spear after the life had left his body. Throughout the long history of the Church, martyrdom has been held up as the highest status a believer can achieve - laying down his life for the One who laid down his life for us. So millions of believers streamed into theaters to watch THE PASSION OF THE CHRIST, perhaps the most graphic and brutal depiction of crucifixion ever brought to the screen, without a second thought.
I have been accused by some of being unnecessarily brutal in my storytelling, especially in THE REDEMPTION OF PONTIUS PILATE. My defense against this charge is simple historical accuracy - the first century Roman Empire was a very violent place, and life was cheap in the provinces. Judea was one of the most turbulent and rebellious provinces in the Empire, and Rome ruled it with a very firm hand. I didn't shrink from describing the scenes of battle, violence, and death that I chronicled in Pilate's story, but I didn't relish them either. I think the end result was a realistic picture of the world that Jesus and his disciples lived in, and of the government that they lived under.
However, when it comes to any description of human sexuality, it seems to me that many Christian writers who will describe in gruesome detail every strike of the hammer on the nails that pinned Jesus to the cross will flinch away from even the mildest description of a sexual encounter between characters - unless the sex is portrayed in a negative way, as that Awful Thing We Must Not Do. Parents who will take their seventh graders to see THE PASSION will flip out if those same students catch a brief glimpse of a bare human body on HBO at a neighbors house!
Now, let me be clear. I am certainly not advocating a whole new field of Christian erotica. (Besides, would anybody in their right mind want to read a Baptist version of "Fifty Shades of Grey"? Eeeewww!!!) However, to act as if the single strongest urge that God placed within the human body doesn't even exist is not good writing. God made us to be sexual creatures, and Jesus was perfectly clear that "a man should leave his father and mother, and cleave unto his wife." The very first command that God gave mankind in the Book of Genesis was "be fruitful and multiply." There is nothing inherently sinful in our sexuality, it's what we choose to do with it that makes it sacred or profane.
So why not, in our writing, celebrate the beauty of sexual relations in a Christian marriage? Not with graphic descriptions - I'm a big fan of closing the bedroom door, both in real life and in my books. But it doesn't hurt, especially when writing about characters who are married to one another and deeply in love, to acknowledge what is, after all, one of the most important and blessed aspects of marriage! So, in my stories, I create characters who have very human feelings and desires, who sleep together and have children together, couples who tease and banter with each other (just like nearly every married couple I know!), but who also love and honor God in their relationship with each other and with their friends. My unmarried characters wonder about married life, pursue their love interests, and some of them, before finding the Lord, indulge their desires in ways that are not particularly Biblical - only to realize later that such encounters are not fulfilling or meaningful. But the rule of thumb, in all my works, is to portray my characters' sexuality in a way that is consistent with Christian conduct and Scriptural teaching.
I did promise myself, when I started writing, that I would never write anything I would be embarrassed for my Mom to read. She's read all my books so far, and I haven't heard a word of complaint yet! In fact, in all honesty, I haven't had a single reader complain about that aspect of my writing. So I guess my final question is, how do you think I did?
Of course, to answer that, you'll need to read my books if you haven't. So, here's a link to my personal favorite - a historical novel set in ancient Rome, that recounts the origins of Christianity from the perspective of the man whose name will forever be associated with the crucifixion of Jesus:
http://www.amazon.com/Redemption-Pontius-Pilate-Lewis-Smith/dp/1632131404/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1431997963&sr=8-1&keywords=THE+REDEMPTION+OF+PONTIUS+PILATE
Feel free to comment on this or any entry, and thanks for reading!
As believers, we are called to walk a higher path than the world around us. But does that mean, for us writers who are believers and want to use our books to draw others towards a walk of faith, that we should ignore the realities of the world we live in? It's a vexing question.
For the most part, Christian writers and producers have a much higher tolerance for violence than they do for sex. It makes sense, on one level - after all, our salvation was purchased by one of the most horrific acts of violence imaginable! An innocent man - indeed, the only sinless man who ever lived - was savagely beaten with whips and hung on a wooden cross to die, then skewered with a spear after the life had left his body. Throughout the long history of the Church, martyrdom has been held up as the highest status a believer can achieve - laying down his life for the One who laid down his life for us. So millions of believers streamed into theaters to watch THE PASSION OF THE CHRIST, perhaps the most graphic and brutal depiction of crucifixion ever brought to the screen, without a second thought.
I have been accused by some of being unnecessarily brutal in my storytelling, especially in THE REDEMPTION OF PONTIUS PILATE. My defense against this charge is simple historical accuracy - the first century Roman Empire was a very violent place, and life was cheap in the provinces. Judea was one of the most turbulent and rebellious provinces in the Empire, and Rome ruled it with a very firm hand. I didn't shrink from describing the scenes of battle, violence, and death that I chronicled in Pilate's story, but I didn't relish them either. I think the end result was a realistic picture of the world that Jesus and his disciples lived in, and of the government that they lived under.
However, when it comes to any description of human sexuality, it seems to me that many Christian writers who will describe in gruesome detail every strike of the hammer on the nails that pinned Jesus to the cross will flinch away from even the mildest description of a sexual encounter between characters - unless the sex is portrayed in a negative way, as that Awful Thing We Must Not Do. Parents who will take their seventh graders to see THE PASSION will flip out if those same students catch a brief glimpse of a bare human body on HBO at a neighbors house!
Now, let me be clear. I am certainly not advocating a whole new field of Christian erotica. (Besides, would anybody in their right mind want to read a Baptist version of "Fifty Shades of Grey"? Eeeewww!!!) However, to act as if the single strongest urge that God placed within the human body doesn't even exist is not good writing. God made us to be sexual creatures, and Jesus was perfectly clear that "a man should leave his father and mother, and cleave unto his wife." The very first command that God gave mankind in the Book of Genesis was "be fruitful and multiply." There is nothing inherently sinful in our sexuality, it's what we choose to do with it that makes it sacred or profane.
So why not, in our writing, celebrate the beauty of sexual relations in a Christian marriage? Not with graphic descriptions - I'm a big fan of closing the bedroom door, both in real life and in my books. But it doesn't hurt, especially when writing about characters who are married to one another and deeply in love, to acknowledge what is, after all, one of the most important and blessed aspects of marriage! So, in my stories, I create characters who have very human feelings and desires, who sleep together and have children together, couples who tease and banter with each other (just like nearly every married couple I know!), but who also love and honor God in their relationship with each other and with their friends. My unmarried characters wonder about married life, pursue their love interests, and some of them, before finding the Lord, indulge their desires in ways that are not particularly Biblical - only to realize later that such encounters are not fulfilling or meaningful. But the rule of thumb, in all my works, is to portray my characters' sexuality in a way that is consistent with Christian conduct and Scriptural teaching.
I did promise myself, when I started writing, that I would never write anything I would be embarrassed for my Mom to read. She's read all my books so far, and I haven't heard a word of complaint yet! In fact, in all honesty, I haven't had a single reader complain about that aspect of my writing. So I guess my final question is, how do you think I did?
Of course, to answer that, you'll need to read my books if you haven't. So, here's a link to my personal favorite - a historical novel set in ancient Rome, that recounts the origins of Christianity from the perspective of the man whose name will forever be associated with the crucifixion of Jesus:
http://www.amazon.com/Redemption-Pontius-Pilate-Lewis-Smith/dp/1632131404/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1431997963&sr=8-1&keywords=THE+REDEMPTION+OF+PONTIUS+PILATE
Feel free to comment on this or any entry, and thanks for reading!
Tuesday, February 2, 2016
Truth, Fiction, and Truth in Fiction - What Do I Write?
(Before I get to tonight's blogging topic - welcome to all my new readers! I don't know who you are or where you came from, but my page views have shot up over the last month, from 40-60 a week to nearly 300 this last week. Keep coming back for more! Updates every Tuesday.)
So how much of what I write in my stories is really true? I get that a lot when people come to my table at book signings and read the synopsis of my novels.
"Is this real??" they ask.
"Well, it's a novel," I explain.
"So it really happened?"
Sigh.
That being said, what I try to do in all my stories is to use fiction to convey larger truths. So, with that in mind, let me explain a bit about what is true and what is not in my three published works. Incidentally, this blog post contains a few spoilers about my books, so if you don't like knowing stuff in advance, I would recommend that you go out, RIGHT NOW, buy all three books, read them, then come back and finish my post. Here's the Amazon link to the first one, click on the author name and it'll take you straight to the other two:
http://www.amazon.com/The-Testimonium-Lewis-Ben-Smith/dp/1632130440/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1411331078&sr=8-1&keywords=THE+TESTIMONIUM
Back? Good. Now that you're in the loop . . .
In THE TESTIMONIUM, I describe the discovery of Pontius Pilate's long-lost report to Tiberius Caesar regarding the trial and execution of Jesus. What we know for sure is this: There was apparently such a report, and it supported the claims of the early church about the death and resurrection of Christ. How do we know this? The quote I shared at the beginning of the book from Justin Martyr, who lived around 145 AD - a little over a century after the time of Christ. He wrote a lengthy letter to the Emperor Antoninus Pius, appealing for the legalization of Christianity, which was known as the "First Apology." In it he described the crucifixion of Jesus in some detail, and then told the Emperor of Rome: "And that these things did happen, you can ascertain from the Acts of Pontius Pilate." ("Acts", in the terminology of the time, meant an official report of someone's deeds.) That Justin would make such a bold appeal to the ruler of the Empire meant that he was pretty confident of two things: first, that the report still existed, and second, that it would verify his claims as to the manner of Christ's death.
Now, Pilate's report has been lost for two thousand years. There were a few later forgeries made during the medieval era, purporting to be the original, but they contain such glaring anachronisms that it's obvious they were fabricated many years later. But, supposing a copy of the report actually survived? And suppose it were found today, and published? That's the crux of my tale.
In the course of the story, I reference several other archeological discoveries. Some of them are real; however, the discoveries that I attribute to my characters themselves are obviously fictitious. The greatest literary license I took was in the sped-up timeline of the scroll being removed, translated, and published. I did try to provide myself some cover by referencing the public site where the discovery was made and the pushy publicity director for the Italian Antiquities Bureau, but honestly, a scroll like that would take a year or two to be opened, translated, studied, and published. So THE TESTIMONIUM is a fictitious tale about the rediscovery of a document now lost for nearly two thousand years, rediscovered and revealed to the world, but it does contain some references to real events.
My second novel (and my favorite of the three I have currently in print) is called THE REDEMPTION OF PONTIUS PILATE and is a historic novel set entirely in the ancient world. I tried to imagine what the beginnings of Christianity would have looked like to a cruel, arrogant Roman aristocrat who was not too happy to be stuck in the desert province of Judea. This book is closely based on real historical events and contains nearly everything we know about the real Pontius Pilate, as gleaned from the works of Josephus, Philo of Alexandria, and the New Testament. The following events described in the novel are real: The crisis over the Legion standards, the controversy over the aqueduct, the appearance of John the Baptist, the Zealot movement, the trial of Jesus, and the Samaritan revolt that Pilate crushed at the end of his tenure in Judea. Also, some of the events in the life of Tiberius Caesar are accurately described, including his tempestuous relationship with his family and the death of his nephew, Germanicus, and his own son, Drusus, and finally the death of Tiberius. Pilate's involvement in these events, however, is purely speculative on my part, as is Pilate's consulship and his marriage alliance with the Imperial family.
In my third novel, MATTHEW'S AUTOGRAPH, I try to provide one possible explanation for the so-called "Synoptic Problem" - that is, the inter-relationship and possible interdependency of the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke. In this story, I also postulate the discovery of a doctored copy of Matthew's Gospel and the controversy it creates. Most of this novel is fanciful, although the technologies of pollen analysis and facial reconstruction are both accurately portrayed. I tried to slow the timeline of discovery, excavation, and translation down somewhat in this story. It's a fun and fast moving archeological thriller!
Ultimately, what I try to do in all my works is convey important truths about God, man, and the reliability of the Gospels in the context of an entertaining story that can be read by those who share my beliefs and those who do not with equal enjoyment. Let me know how I did, and I'll see you next week!
PS: I will be doing book signings these next two weekends. Saturday, Feb. 6, I will be at Living Water Christian Bookstore in Paris, TX, and on Feb. 13, I will be in Rockwall, TX, at Half Price Books. Come out, say hi, and get your signed copies!
So how much of what I write in my stories is really true? I get that a lot when people come to my table at book signings and read the synopsis of my novels.
"Is this real??" they ask.
"Well, it's a novel," I explain.
"So it really happened?"
Sigh.
That being said, what I try to do in all my stories is to use fiction to convey larger truths. So, with that in mind, let me explain a bit about what is true and what is not in my three published works. Incidentally, this blog post contains a few spoilers about my books, so if you don't like knowing stuff in advance, I would recommend that you go out, RIGHT NOW, buy all three books, read them, then come back and finish my post. Here's the Amazon link to the first one, click on the author name and it'll take you straight to the other two:
http://www.amazon.com/The-Testimonium-Lewis-Ben-Smith/dp/1632130440/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1411331078&sr=8-1&keywords=THE+TESTIMONIUM
Back? Good. Now that you're in the loop . . .
In THE TESTIMONIUM, I describe the discovery of Pontius Pilate's long-lost report to Tiberius Caesar regarding the trial and execution of Jesus. What we know for sure is this: There was apparently such a report, and it supported the claims of the early church about the death and resurrection of Christ. How do we know this? The quote I shared at the beginning of the book from Justin Martyr, who lived around 145 AD - a little over a century after the time of Christ. He wrote a lengthy letter to the Emperor Antoninus Pius, appealing for the legalization of Christianity, which was known as the "First Apology." In it he described the crucifixion of Jesus in some detail, and then told the Emperor of Rome: "And that these things did happen, you can ascertain from the Acts of Pontius Pilate." ("Acts", in the terminology of the time, meant an official report of someone's deeds.) That Justin would make such a bold appeal to the ruler of the Empire meant that he was pretty confident of two things: first, that the report still existed, and second, that it would verify his claims as to the manner of Christ's death.
Now, Pilate's report has been lost for two thousand years. There were a few later forgeries made during the medieval era, purporting to be the original, but they contain such glaring anachronisms that it's obvious they were fabricated many years later. But, supposing a copy of the report actually survived? And suppose it were found today, and published? That's the crux of my tale.
In the course of the story, I reference several other archeological discoveries. Some of them are real; however, the discoveries that I attribute to my characters themselves are obviously fictitious. The greatest literary license I took was in the sped-up timeline of the scroll being removed, translated, and published. I did try to provide myself some cover by referencing the public site where the discovery was made and the pushy publicity director for the Italian Antiquities Bureau, but honestly, a scroll like that would take a year or two to be opened, translated, studied, and published. So THE TESTIMONIUM is a fictitious tale about the rediscovery of a document now lost for nearly two thousand years, rediscovered and revealed to the world, but it does contain some references to real events.
My second novel (and my favorite of the three I have currently in print) is called THE REDEMPTION OF PONTIUS PILATE and is a historic novel set entirely in the ancient world. I tried to imagine what the beginnings of Christianity would have looked like to a cruel, arrogant Roman aristocrat who was not too happy to be stuck in the desert province of Judea. This book is closely based on real historical events and contains nearly everything we know about the real Pontius Pilate, as gleaned from the works of Josephus, Philo of Alexandria, and the New Testament. The following events described in the novel are real: The crisis over the Legion standards, the controversy over the aqueduct, the appearance of John the Baptist, the Zealot movement, the trial of Jesus, and the Samaritan revolt that Pilate crushed at the end of his tenure in Judea. Also, some of the events in the life of Tiberius Caesar are accurately described, including his tempestuous relationship with his family and the death of his nephew, Germanicus, and his own son, Drusus, and finally the death of Tiberius. Pilate's involvement in these events, however, is purely speculative on my part, as is Pilate's consulship and his marriage alliance with the Imperial family.
In my third novel, MATTHEW'S AUTOGRAPH, I try to provide one possible explanation for the so-called "Synoptic Problem" - that is, the inter-relationship and possible interdependency of the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke. In this story, I also postulate the discovery of a doctored copy of Matthew's Gospel and the controversy it creates. Most of this novel is fanciful, although the technologies of pollen analysis and facial reconstruction are both accurately portrayed. I tried to slow the timeline of discovery, excavation, and translation down somewhat in this story. It's a fun and fast moving archeological thriller!
Ultimately, what I try to do in all my works is convey important truths about God, man, and the reliability of the Gospels in the context of an entertaining story that can be read by those who share my beliefs and those who do not with equal enjoyment. Let me know how I did, and I'll see you next week!
PS: I will be doing book signings these next two weekends. Saturday, Feb. 6, I will be at Living Water Christian Bookstore in Paris, TX, and on Feb. 13, I will be in Rockwall, TX, at Half Price Books. Come out, say hi, and get your signed copies!
Tuesday, January 26, 2016
What Do You Mean By "Apologetics"?
One consistent theme that runs through my writing, my teaching, and my pastoral work is my love of New Testament Apologetics. A lot of folks are unfamiliar with the term, so I thought I'd spend a little time explaining what apologetics are, and why I find the field so fascinating.
First of all, "Apologetics" doesn't mean that I am somehow apologizing for the contents of the New Testament. That's a much more modern usage of the word. In this context, "Apologetics" refers to the field of study in Christian scholarship that focuses on defending the historical accuracy, authority, and inspiration of the Scriptures. Given the wholesale assault on the Bible waged in pop culture, academia, and the media for the last century or more, it's a field that has more and more relevance as young Christians demand to know: How much of what I was taught to believe is really true?
I discovered apologetics right out of high school, when I read some of Josh McDowell's early works. I've heard Josh speak twice in person and even got to have a short conversation with him once, years ago, and he was and is a most impressive and eloquent man. His personal story is very compelling: the son of an abusive, alcoholic father whom he despised, McDowell was an angry young man who bitterly resented religion in general and Christianity in particular. After debating some students who were involved with Campus Crusade for Christ, Josh set out write a book demolishing the historical claims of the Bible once and for all and proving Christianity to be an outright fraud. But, the more research he did, the more he found the evidence leading him in the opposite direction. In the end, his book, EVIDENCE THAT DEMANDS A VERDICT, showcased the many, compelling arguments in favor of the Bible's accuracy. Since then, McDowell has authored many books and spoken and debated all over the world in defense of the faith. I've read many of his books and they are all remarkable. He has been an enormous intellectual and spiritual inspiration to me.
Another writer who deeply influenced me is Lee Strobel. Like McDowell, Lee was a former atheist - a journalist of some repute, serving as chief legal correspondent for the Boston Globe at one point - who decided to investigate the claims of the New Testament after his wife became a Christian (an event that irritated him a great deal at the time). The more he studied, the more experts he interviewed, the more he became convinced that the New Testament did indeed accurately preserve the words and deeds of Jesus and His apostles. So Lee also became a noted author and speaker in the field of apologetics. I own four of his books that I have read over and over - THE CASE FOR CHRIST, THE CASE FOR FAITH, THE CASE FOR A CREATOR, and THE CASE FOR THE REAL JESUS. One thing I love about Lee's books is that while he keeps his narrative on a very easy to follow level for the layman, he also references scholarly works that back up his summaries with years of research by scientists, scholars, and archeologists. I would challenge anyone who believes that life on earth evolved by pure chance to read THE CASE FOR A CREATOR. Unlike Dr. McDowell, I have never had the privilege of meeting Lee Strobel - but I certainly hope to some day!
These two, and many other authors have inspired a passion for apologetics in me, but at the same time, what can I offer on this subject that other, more qualified men have not already done? I don't have the expertise in Greek, Hebrew, and Syriac to research the primary source documents, I don't have the budget to travel to the Middle East for extended visits to research and look for new clues to the Gospel narrative. I wanted to strike a blow for the authenticity of Scripture - but how?
Well, there is one thing I can do, and that is tell stories. So in 2012, I sat down and began writing THE TESTIMONIUM - a tale of faith, archeology, romance, and terrorism. But in the narrative of the exciting dig on Capri and the discovery of Pontius Pilate's long-lost report to Rome about the crucifixion of Jesus, I wove into the dialogue many of the arguments on apologetics that I had absorbed and engaged in over the years. My hope was that many people who might not pick up a non-fiction work purporting to defend Christianity might instead pick up a thrilling story about a team of archeologists making an earth-shattering discovery and winding up in the crosshairs of an Al Qaeda assassin. And when they do, maybe the will find the apologetics dialogue between my characters intriguing enough to make them want to do a little digging of their own . . .
Did I succeed? Read for yourself and find out!
http://www.amazon.com/The-Testimonium-Lewis-Ben-Smith/dp/1632130440/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1411331078&sr=8-1&keywords=THE+TESTIMONIUM
First of all, "Apologetics" doesn't mean that I am somehow apologizing for the contents of the New Testament. That's a much more modern usage of the word. In this context, "Apologetics" refers to the field of study in Christian scholarship that focuses on defending the historical accuracy, authority, and inspiration of the Scriptures. Given the wholesale assault on the Bible waged in pop culture, academia, and the media for the last century or more, it's a field that has more and more relevance as young Christians demand to know: How much of what I was taught to believe is really true?
I discovered apologetics right out of high school, when I read some of Josh McDowell's early works. I've heard Josh speak twice in person and even got to have a short conversation with him once, years ago, and he was and is a most impressive and eloquent man. His personal story is very compelling: the son of an abusive, alcoholic father whom he despised, McDowell was an angry young man who bitterly resented religion in general and Christianity in particular. After debating some students who were involved with Campus Crusade for Christ, Josh set out write a book demolishing the historical claims of the Bible once and for all and proving Christianity to be an outright fraud. But, the more research he did, the more he found the evidence leading him in the opposite direction. In the end, his book, EVIDENCE THAT DEMANDS A VERDICT, showcased the many, compelling arguments in favor of the Bible's accuracy. Since then, McDowell has authored many books and spoken and debated all over the world in defense of the faith. I've read many of his books and they are all remarkable. He has been an enormous intellectual and spiritual inspiration to me.
Another writer who deeply influenced me is Lee Strobel. Like McDowell, Lee was a former atheist - a journalist of some repute, serving as chief legal correspondent for the Boston Globe at one point - who decided to investigate the claims of the New Testament after his wife became a Christian (an event that irritated him a great deal at the time). The more he studied, the more experts he interviewed, the more he became convinced that the New Testament did indeed accurately preserve the words and deeds of Jesus and His apostles. So Lee also became a noted author and speaker in the field of apologetics. I own four of his books that I have read over and over - THE CASE FOR CHRIST, THE CASE FOR FAITH, THE CASE FOR A CREATOR, and THE CASE FOR THE REAL JESUS. One thing I love about Lee's books is that while he keeps his narrative on a very easy to follow level for the layman, he also references scholarly works that back up his summaries with years of research by scientists, scholars, and archeologists. I would challenge anyone who believes that life on earth evolved by pure chance to read THE CASE FOR A CREATOR. Unlike Dr. McDowell, I have never had the privilege of meeting Lee Strobel - but I certainly hope to some day!
These two, and many other authors have inspired a passion for apologetics in me, but at the same time, what can I offer on this subject that other, more qualified men have not already done? I don't have the expertise in Greek, Hebrew, and Syriac to research the primary source documents, I don't have the budget to travel to the Middle East for extended visits to research and look for new clues to the Gospel narrative. I wanted to strike a blow for the authenticity of Scripture - but how?
Well, there is one thing I can do, and that is tell stories. So in 2012, I sat down and began writing THE TESTIMONIUM - a tale of faith, archeology, romance, and terrorism. But in the narrative of the exciting dig on Capri and the discovery of Pontius Pilate's long-lost report to Rome about the crucifixion of Jesus, I wove into the dialogue many of the arguments on apologetics that I had absorbed and engaged in over the years. My hope was that many people who might not pick up a non-fiction work purporting to defend Christianity might instead pick up a thrilling story about a team of archeologists making an earth-shattering discovery and winding up in the crosshairs of an Al Qaeda assassin. And when they do, maybe the will find the apologetics dialogue between my characters intriguing enough to make them want to do a little digging of their own . . .
Did I succeed? Read for yourself and find out!
http://www.amazon.com/The-Testimonium-Lewis-Ben-Smith/dp/1632130440/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1411331078&sr=8-1&keywords=THE+TESTIMONIUM
Monday, January 18, 2016
Why the fascination with archeology?
A recurring theme in my books - especially THE TESTIMONIUM and MATTHEW'S AUTOGRAPH - is archeology. In these books I deal with Biblical archeology in particular, but all my literary characters are fascinated with bits of the past. Joshua Parker is probably the closest of all of them to a literary alter ego for me, and his fascination with history and archeology mirrors my own - as does much of his back story. I suppose I should go ahead and say I am not an archeologist by training, but I am fascinated by the science and most of all by what archeology enables us to do. Who knows? If I had followed my fascination and majored in archeology, I might have had a career like Joshua's!
My dad collected Indian arrowheads when I was little, and when I was five years old I found my first point - a Yarbrough style dart point from the Middle Archaic period, some 3,000-4,000 years old, in a pile of fill dirt in my neighbor's yard. Of course, I didn't know any of that at the time. I just knew that it was an arrowhead, and that Indians had made it. As I grew older and started collecting on my own, these little sharpened bits of stone came to fascinate me more and more. After I learned how fantastically old some of these points are (I have found three Clovis points during my years of collecting, and they date back around 12,000 years!) it really got my imagination going. All of recorded human history has elapsed since some of my finds were created by the primitive hunters who crafted them.
I am a historian by training, and the thought that every single person I have ever read about or taught about was born, lived, achieved notoriety, and died since most of the points in my collection were made is a source of endless wonder. When the pyramids were built around 4500 years ago, my Clovis points were already over six thousand years old! Archeology is the science that tries to connect these points to the people who made them, and as such this scientific discipline has my respect and ongoing interest.
Biblical archeology is a whole different ball game, though. The thought of excavating places and artifacts connected with the narrative of the Old and New Testaments absolutely fascinates me. So many places and names from the Bible have been confirmed by the work of archeologists in the Middle East over the last century, it has gone a long way towards confirming the historical accuracy of our Biblical accounts. There are still holes and gaps in our knowledge, especially surrounding the events of the Exodus, but it's amazing how much information we have been able to recover. People (like the Hittites) and places (like the pool of Bethesda) long thought to be mythical have been confirmed. Individuals like Pontius Pilate, Caiaphas, and Simon Peter have been confirmed as historical through archeological discoveries.
And there is so much waiting to be found! Every year new discoveries are made, ancient manuscripts unearthed, and more is learned about the world that Jesus and His disciples lived in. While the discoveries made in my novels are fictitious - for now! - they represent things that may very well be waiting out there to be found. And, like Josh and Father MacDonald, I firmly believe that, when carefully weighed, the archeological and historical evidence will prove that the narrative contained in the Bible is historically accurate and correct in its details.
If you would like to read more about my characters and the remarkable discoveries they've made, and the adventures they've had along the way, you can start by reading my first novel, THE TESTIMONIUM, where Isabella Sforza, Joshua Parker, Giuseppe Rossini, and Father MacDonald find a unique Biblical treasure on the Isle of Capri: the original report filed to Rome by Pontius Pilate about the trial and crucifixion of Jesus of Nazareth! You can buy THE TESTIMONIUM here:
http://www.amazon.com/The-Testimonium-Lewis-Ben-Smith/dp/1632130440/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1411331078&sr=8-1&keywords=THE+TESTIMONIUM
My dad collected Indian arrowheads when I was little, and when I was five years old I found my first point - a Yarbrough style dart point from the Middle Archaic period, some 3,000-4,000 years old, in a pile of fill dirt in my neighbor's yard. Of course, I didn't know any of that at the time. I just knew that it was an arrowhead, and that Indians had made it. As I grew older and started collecting on my own, these little sharpened bits of stone came to fascinate me more and more. After I learned how fantastically old some of these points are (I have found three Clovis points during my years of collecting, and they date back around 12,000 years!) it really got my imagination going. All of recorded human history has elapsed since some of my finds were created by the primitive hunters who crafted them.
I am a historian by training, and the thought that every single person I have ever read about or taught about was born, lived, achieved notoriety, and died since most of the points in my collection were made is a source of endless wonder. When the pyramids were built around 4500 years ago, my Clovis points were already over six thousand years old! Archeology is the science that tries to connect these points to the people who made them, and as such this scientific discipline has my respect and ongoing interest.
Biblical archeology is a whole different ball game, though. The thought of excavating places and artifacts connected with the narrative of the Old and New Testaments absolutely fascinates me. So many places and names from the Bible have been confirmed by the work of archeologists in the Middle East over the last century, it has gone a long way towards confirming the historical accuracy of our Biblical accounts. There are still holes and gaps in our knowledge, especially surrounding the events of the Exodus, but it's amazing how much information we have been able to recover. People (like the Hittites) and places (like the pool of Bethesda) long thought to be mythical have been confirmed. Individuals like Pontius Pilate, Caiaphas, and Simon Peter have been confirmed as historical through archeological discoveries.
And there is so much waiting to be found! Every year new discoveries are made, ancient manuscripts unearthed, and more is learned about the world that Jesus and His disciples lived in. While the discoveries made in my novels are fictitious - for now! - they represent things that may very well be waiting out there to be found. And, like Josh and Father MacDonald, I firmly believe that, when carefully weighed, the archeological and historical evidence will prove that the narrative contained in the Bible is historically accurate and correct in its details.
If you would like to read more about my characters and the remarkable discoveries they've made, and the adventures they've had along the way, you can start by reading my first novel, THE TESTIMONIUM, where Isabella Sforza, Joshua Parker, Giuseppe Rossini, and Father MacDonald find a unique Biblical treasure on the Isle of Capri: the original report filed to Rome by Pontius Pilate about the trial and crucifixion of Jesus of Nazareth! You can buy THE TESTIMONIUM here:
http://www.amazon.com/The-Testimonium-Lewis-Ben-Smith/dp/1632130440/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1411331078&sr=8-1&keywords=THE+TESTIMONIUM
Monday, January 11, 2016
ALL BOOKS LEAD TO ROME . . . But Why??
Why do so many of the books I write have to do with Rome? Right now I have three books in print, and another one finished, and I am working on number five. All of them have some connection to the Roman Empire: my Capri Team adventures focus around discoveries from the Roman era, and both THE REDEMPTION OF PONTIUS PILATE and the yet-unpublished LOVER OF GOD are set in the First Century AD - the first in the reigns of Augustus, Tiberius, and Caligula, and the last during the reigns of Claudius and Nero. Why am I so obsessed with the world of two thousand years ago?
There are two reasons, one of which is very obvious: my stories all deal with the early years of the Christian faith, and Christianity was born during the first century of the Roman Empire. Jesus and all of His disciples were born, lived, and died as subjects of Rome. It's one of the things that makes Christianity unique: our faith is inextricably linked to an actual moment in history, the middle part of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, to a real historical figure, Jesus of Nazareth, and to that incredible three year period when that man preached, taught, healed, was betrayed, arrested, killed, and then rose again. Unlike the teachings of Buddha or Muhammad, the truth of Jesus' words rests with the facts of His life: If He did indeed rise from the dead, as is claimed for Him, then he had to be the Son of God, and all the things He claimed for Himself were true. On the other hand, if He was crucified and His body was stolen, hidden, or simply rotted away in the ground somewhere, then He is just another dead philosopher, and all the claims of Christianity are built on "a throne of lies." I believe that the verdict of history and archeology, when carefully and reasonably considered, point us directly to one conclusion: the most logical explanation for the entire Resurrection story is that Jesus, did, in fact, rise from the dead. And all of that history and archeology that proves the case for my faith is centered in the first century of the Roman Empire.
There is another reason that I love to write about Rome, however, beyond the Biblical and religious connections I feel with the world of the Caesars: the Romans were amazing! This city-state on the Italian peninsula came to rule a quarter or the world's population in a remarkably brief period of time. By the First Century AD, you could travel from London to Libya and never be out of Caesar's jurisdiction. Remarkably advanced, the Romans built roads and buildings that still stand today. They sculpted statues that are as good (if not better) than anything any modern artist can create. They practiced banking, voting, taxation, administration, and all the burdens of governing with incredible efficiency. In the Second Century AD, they came within a cat's whisker of inventing the steam engine! They were the most advanced people of the ancient world, and the government they created endured for five hundred years as a Republic, five hundred years as an Empire, and then packed up, relocated to Constantinople, and endured for another thousand years as the Byzantine Empire. No other government in the world has enjoyed that kind of stability and longevity!
And yet . . . the Romans were as brutal and barbaric as any people that have ever lived. They watched gladiators slaughter one another for the amusement of the crowd. They killed hundreds of thousands of Gauls, Britons, and Germans in their wars of conquest. They practiced slavery on the widest scale ever seen until modern times. They brought peace in the wake of the sword - most of the lands they conquered became, over time, more prosperous and stable than before the Romans conquered them - but the price in blood was very high indeed. In short, the Romans, in all their savagery and splendor, in all their impressive civilization and horrific barbarism, were a microcosm of humanity. They were the best of us and the worst of us, boiled down to the most basic elements. For that reason, they fascinate me like no other ancient culture ever has.
Want to know more? Go to Amazon and buy my book, THE REDEMPTION OF PONTIUS PILATE. There you will see the birth of Christianity laid side by side with the formative years of this mighty Empire that ruled the world Jesus lived in . . . . and I promise, you will enjoy the story!
(If you don't believe me, scroll through and read the reviews from previous readers!)
http://www.amazon.com/Redemption-Pontius-Pilate-Lewis-Smith/dp/1632131404/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1431997963&sr=8-1&keywords=THE+REDEMPTION+OF+PONTIUS+PILATE
There are two reasons, one of which is very obvious: my stories all deal with the early years of the Christian faith, and Christianity was born during the first century of the Roman Empire. Jesus and all of His disciples were born, lived, and died as subjects of Rome. It's one of the things that makes Christianity unique: our faith is inextricably linked to an actual moment in history, the middle part of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, to a real historical figure, Jesus of Nazareth, and to that incredible three year period when that man preached, taught, healed, was betrayed, arrested, killed, and then rose again. Unlike the teachings of Buddha or Muhammad, the truth of Jesus' words rests with the facts of His life: If He did indeed rise from the dead, as is claimed for Him, then he had to be the Son of God, and all the things He claimed for Himself were true. On the other hand, if He was crucified and His body was stolen, hidden, or simply rotted away in the ground somewhere, then He is just another dead philosopher, and all the claims of Christianity are built on "a throne of lies." I believe that the verdict of history and archeology, when carefully and reasonably considered, point us directly to one conclusion: the most logical explanation for the entire Resurrection story is that Jesus, did, in fact, rise from the dead. And all of that history and archeology that proves the case for my faith is centered in the first century of the Roman Empire.
There is another reason that I love to write about Rome, however, beyond the Biblical and religious connections I feel with the world of the Caesars: the Romans were amazing! This city-state on the Italian peninsula came to rule a quarter or the world's population in a remarkably brief period of time. By the First Century AD, you could travel from London to Libya and never be out of Caesar's jurisdiction. Remarkably advanced, the Romans built roads and buildings that still stand today. They sculpted statues that are as good (if not better) than anything any modern artist can create. They practiced banking, voting, taxation, administration, and all the burdens of governing with incredible efficiency. In the Second Century AD, they came within a cat's whisker of inventing the steam engine! They were the most advanced people of the ancient world, and the government they created endured for five hundred years as a Republic, five hundred years as an Empire, and then packed up, relocated to Constantinople, and endured for another thousand years as the Byzantine Empire. No other government in the world has enjoyed that kind of stability and longevity!
And yet . . . the Romans were as brutal and barbaric as any people that have ever lived. They watched gladiators slaughter one another for the amusement of the crowd. They killed hundreds of thousands of Gauls, Britons, and Germans in their wars of conquest. They practiced slavery on the widest scale ever seen until modern times. They brought peace in the wake of the sword - most of the lands they conquered became, over time, more prosperous and stable than before the Romans conquered them - but the price in blood was very high indeed. In short, the Romans, in all their savagery and splendor, in all their impressive civilization and horrific barbarism, were a microcosm of humanity. They were the best of us and the worst of us, boiled down to the most basic elements. For that reason, they fascinate me like no other ancient culture ever has.
Want to know more? Go to Amazon and buy my book, THE REDEMPTION OF PONTIUS PILATE. There you will see the birth of Christianity laid side by side with the formative years of this mighty Empire that ruled the world Jesus lived in . . . . and I promise, you will enjoy the story!
(If you don't believe me, scroll through and read the reviews from previous readers!)
http://www.amazon.com/Redemption-Pontius-Pilate-Lewis-Smith/dp/1632131404/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1431997963&sr=8-1&keywords=THE+REDEMPTION+OF+PONTIUS+PILATE
Monday, January 4, 2016
Looking Backward, Looking Forward . . .
2015 was a pretty good year for me and mine.
My lovely wife of 31 years finished her Master's Degree this summer - which means next year we can actually enjoy time off together, since she won't be in summer school! (Of course, the downside of that is her bizarre love for home improvement projects, but that's another story . . . I've pretty much gotten a pass the last three summers, so I guess I can't complain!)
My daughters are wrapping up their time in community college and preparing to enter the workforce. There comes a point, I am told, at which they move out of the house and we get to have money again. But I am pretty sure that is an urban legend.
I saw two of my books published this year, THE REDEMPTION OF PONTIUS PILATE in the spring and MATTHEW'S AUTOGRAPH in December. I finished my fourth book, LOVER OF GOD, and started another, which I am calling THE GNOSTIC LIBRARY. Little by little, I am becoming prolific!
In terms of amusement, I watched 219 movies (yes, I have a serious problem!) and read 71 books, and I added 101 artifacts to my collection (93 personal finds, 8 gifts). I also wasted a good many hours playing SKYRIM and other video games I love. But despite all that, I also found time to teach classes night and day, spend every Sunday in the pulpit, and have a lot of quality time with my family.
I'm blessed to have three siblings that I all get along with quite well, and my Mom and Dad are both still living and mean more to me than I can say. I have a job that I love (well, actually four of them - writing, pastoring, teaching by day at GCS, and nights at PJC!), and my health continues to be remarkably good for a fat guy who doesn't eat like he should.
So yes, 2015 was a good year for me!
Now, what will 2016 hold?
While the future is always in God's lap, I do have some plans for this year. By midsummer, I hope to be done with THE GNOSTIC LIBRARY. It's another adventure for the "Capri Team" - a group of archeologists that I created in THE TESTIMONIUM and have enjoyed following on the adventures I send them on. I rarely go more than a few months without working on something, so before the year is out I may begin my next book.
My biggest adventure this year - or at least the biggest one I have scheduled - is my upcoming trip to Israel in March. I will be leaving on the 9th, after school, for Austin, TX. From there I will fly out via New York to Tel Aviv, to begin a ten day scholarly tour which will take me to about thirty different archeological sites dating from two thousand to four thousand years of age - from the time of Abraham to the time of Christ! I'll even get to spend a day assisting on a dig at a 3,000 year old Jewish village that is mentioned in the Old Testament. I can't wait!
As for the rest? I'll continue to teach, read, watch horrible B-movies (and a few good ones to balance them out), hunt arrowheads when I can, raise goats, and enjoy walking through life with my one true love, my beautiful daughters, my wonderful church family, and the many good friends God has blessed me with. And all of you are invited along for the ride, whether you encounter me here on this page or somewhere out in the wide world.
As the very last Calvin and Hobbes comic strip once said:
"It's a magical world . . . let's go exploring!"
My lovely wife of 31 years finished her Master's Degree this summer - which means next year we can actually enjoy time off together, since she won't be in summer school! (Of course, the downside of that is her bizarre love for home improvement projects, but that's another story . . . I've pretty much gotten a pass the last three summers, so I guess I can't complain!)
My daughters are wrapping up their time in community college and preparing to enter the workforce. There comes a point, I am told, at which they move out of the house and we get to have money again. But I am pretty sure that is an urban legend.
I saw two of my books published this year, THE REDEMPTION OF PONTIUS PILATE in the spring and MATTHEW'S AUTOGRAPH in December. I finished my fourth book, LOVER OF GOD, and started another, which I am calling THE GNOSTIC LIBRARY. Little by little, I am becoming prolific!
In terms of amusement, I watched 219 movies (yes, I have a serious problem!) and read 71 books, and I added 101 artifacts to my collection (93 personal finds, 8 gifts). I also wasted a good many hours playing SKYRIM and other video games I love. But despite all that, I also found time to teach classes night and day, spend every Sunday in the pulpit, and have a lot of quality time with my family.
I'm blessed to have three siblings that I all get along with quite well, and my Mom and Dad are both still living and mean more to me than I can say. I have a job that I love (well, actually four of them - writing, pastoring, teaching by day at GCS, and nights at PJC!), and my health continues to be remarkably good for a fat guy who doesn't eat like he should.
So yes, 2015 was a good year for me!
Now, what will 2016 hold?
While the future is always in God's lap, I do have some plans for this year. By midsummer, I hope to be done with THE GNOSTIC LIBRARY. It's another adventure for the "Capri Team" - a group of archeologists that I created in THE TESTIMONIUM and have enjoyed following on the adventures I send them on. I rarely go more than a few months without working on something, so before the year is out I may begin my next book.
My biggest adventure this year - or at least the biggest one I have scheduled - is my upcoming trip to Israel in March. I will be leaving on the 9th, after school, for Austin, TX. From there I will fly out via New York to Tel Aviv, to begin a ten day scholarly tour which will take me to about thirty different archeological sites dating from two thousand to four thousand years of age - from the time of Abraham to the time of Christ! I'll even get to spend a day assisting on a dig at a 3,000 year old Jewish village that is mentioned in the Old Testament. I can't wait!
As for the rest? I'll continue to teach, read, watch horrible B-movies (and a few good ones to balance them out), hunt arrowheads when I can, raise goats, and enjoy walking through life with my one true love, my beautiful daughters, my wonderful church family, and the many good friends God has blessed me with. And all of you are invited along for the ride, whether you encounter me here on this page or somewhere out in the wide world.
As the very last Calvin and Hobbes comic strip once said:
"It's a magical world . . . let's go exploring!"
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