Skeleton in God's Closet

by Paul L. Maier

Book Overview

When an ancient manuscript that seems to undermine the story of the Resurrection is followed by an archaeological discovery that seems to support it, Dr. Jonathan Weber, a Harvard biblical scholar, is determined to find out whether they are part of an elaborate hoax.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0840777213
• ISBN13: 9780840777218
• Release Date: January 1994
• Publisher: Nelsonword Publishing Group
• Length: 352 Pages
• Weight: 1.05 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.2" x 6.4" x 9.3"

Customer Reviews

The Ultimate Test of Faith

This is the first novel I read by Mr. Maier and was extremely pleased. It is useless in telling what the plot is about since others have explained it and the main review gives it away. This book is first rate for its outstanding attention to detail in terms of religious philosophy and archeological terminology and methodology. The character development, including some startling twists and turns along the way, does not leave the reader asking "What else is there to this character?" It's like Maier was watching the actors live out his story. Rare is it to find an author willing to develop charcters' background and personality to the extent Maier does.Maier, a scholar, is a treasure not only to history, religious studies, and philosophy, but also to literature and story telling. Above all, Maier challenges the readers' own faith with each turn of the page. A great story that deserves reading.

Christian fiction thriller!

This is so good, I wish I had the means to bring this into film. It would be better than any Indiana Jones thriller with it also being so accurate in its details.Maier keeps you really hanging on this one -- I mean the whole of Christianity rides in the balance, unless you're one of those that skips ahead.Top of the list of Christian fiction!

Riveting!

While I do agree with other reviewers that the archaeological techno-babble got a bit tedious at times, I can't help but give the book five stars. I guess it's because I'm a wanna-be archaeologist, who knows.Anyway, onto my review... When I first heard about this book, it was because my Grandmother was a subscriber to the Guideposts condensed books, and this happened to be in a volume. Well, I had read another book in the volume, and decided this one looked interesting -- since I was a fan of archaeology anyway -- and I decided to read it.My, what a surprise it was. You really don't know quite what to expect when you get into a book that handles such a controversial topic, but the author did it beautifully.I could scarcely put the book down, and when I was able to find the full version, I bought it immediately and read it from cover-to-cover in a day.Even if you're not a fan of Christian fiction, I must highly recommend this book. Even if your knowledge of archaeology comes from seeing a single Indiana Jones movie. I think if you give it a try, you'll really like it.

Questions

This is my second reading of the book...the first being when I was about 12 and bored, therefore catching NOTHING important. But this time around, everything was different. Although I knew how things would turn out, I couldn't get rid of the sinking in my stomach at the "proofs" that Christianity would die. It was eye-opening to think about how I personally would react to such a crisis. But the book itself...wonderfully written, one of those you really can't put down. Very few other authors have presented characters this realistically and still maintained their ability to write an "intelligent" book. I hate books where I feel like I am being talked down to. The technical language was sometimes difficult, but it gave a better realistic grasp. Also, the inclusion of several subjects--linguistics, history, romance, etc.--makes for a good change when all the talk of the procedures behind carbon-14 dating does get old. All in all, Maier wrote an awesome book that presents difficult questions about religion and then provides a basis of faith on which they can certainly be answered.

AMAZING

This is the best fiction book I've ever read. I recommend it to everyone I can. It is thought- provoking, intense, well written (with an amazing attention to detail...which must have required years of research), and inspiring. What if?? Nothing prepared me for the surprising ending.