Sue Monk Kidd has written a book which imagines that Jesus had brothers and a sister, and was married at the time of his crucifixion. The book is written in the voice of Ana, the young woman who became his wife. Her own story is compelling, too. Born into a wealthy family, her father allowed her to have a tutor to teach her to read and write, which led her to write stories of women, because women's stories were so often left untold. Ana's father's sister, Yaltha, and Ana's cousin, Judas (yes, that Judas, whose father was killed by the Romans and whose mother was enslaved), were her most beloved family members. When Ana was 14, a marriage was arranged against her will. After Ana's intended husband's death, she was allowed to marry Jesus, going with him to live in Nazareth with his family.
I'm not a biblical scholar, but the weaving of the storyline of Ana into the storyline of Jesus seems to work well. Yaltha's own history is revealed over time, adding to the fullness of the story. However, we're left to imagine the last two years of Jesus's life because of a forced separation of the couple when Ana is threatened with arrest by Herod Antipas and flees to Egypt. By the time Ana can return to Galilee, the events of Jesus's arrest are underway. This book is riveting in its entirety, in spite of knowing in advance how Jesus's life would end.
No comments:
Post a Comment