tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7132206171945839649.post4604951014544990987..comments2024-02-13T11:11:28.246+00:00Comments on Bishop Alan’s Blog: The Goodman Philip and the Scoundrel Pullman?Bishop Alan Wilsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13879516755776951638noreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7132206171945839649.post-74536608115028690282010-04-08T12:59:14.244+01:002010-04-08T12:59:14.244+01:00Hadn't commented earlier because I wanted to r...Hadn't commented earlier because I wanted to read the book first. It was an enjoyable read but I think in the end I found myself being more critical of the book than I'd intended. The reason is that Pullman's almost complete demythologisation of Jesus removes something of the tension from the story. At no stage do I have the impression that Jesus could have done the things that Christ wants him to do. This undermines the sense of real temptation which I found so powerful in Kazantzakis's Last Temptation. <br /><br />Perhaps I'm being unfair and looking for something from the book that isn't meant to be there, but the narrative does suggest that Christ wants Jesus to be something that he can't actually be, rather than something he choses not to be.Philip Ritchiehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05912352719196616923noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7132206171945839649.post-18808033193479540152010-04-07T16:58:10.073+01:002010-04-07T16:58:10.073+01:00Thank you: a helpful — and hopeful — review.
Deli...Thank you: a helpful — and hopeful — review.<br /><br />Deliberate typo in the opening sentence, "Godman Jesus"? Or Freudian slip?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7132206171945839649.post-7522145196432959242010-04-05T10:05:58.478+01:002010-04-05T10:05:58.478+01:00totally agree - I loved the dark materials, and I ...totally agree - I loved the dark materials, and I think people see Pullman and instantly think 'dawkins'. What is interesting is that pullman does not denigrate spirituality (he has the i-ching, and the afterlife after all!), just a straw man version of Christianity. Mind you, it is possible to see why he might come up with that if only a cursory glance is given to OT vs NT God.GrumHhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06915155210764783727noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7132206171945839649.post-64259982543512164302010-04-05T10:00:26.772+01:002010-04-05T10:00:26.772+01:00Some people will just abominate Philip Pullman and...Some people will just abominate Philip Pullman and all his works, no doubt, but take away the spit-personality assumption and I think this challenging read can help us to a more humble and realistic view of what we should be about as disciples of Jesus Christ.Bishop Alan Wilsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13879516755776951638noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7132206171945839649.post-15339812212956611982010-04-05T03:32:24.295+01:002010-04-05T03:32:24.295+01:00Thanks for the review, this is now on my must read...Thanks for the review, this is now on my must read list.Sallyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01759963926280667938noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7132206171945839649.post-64873239637469085532010-04-03T22:39:10.969+01:002010-04-03T22:39:10.969+01:00G — thanks for raising the tone of the review abov...G — thanks for raising the tone of the review above ’Sherlock Holmes' smarter brother.’You're right about the basic idea, except Zeldis' figure, shaped by the Antisemitism he suffered as a boy, is more hard-edged and nasty.<br /><br />A/M it arrive on my Kindle on Friday morning, I think. Philip Pullman's a fascinating man with challenging insights for believers and nonbelievers alike; though it does help with this one to remember the brief to which he was writing for the Ashgate series, which was to take a myth and play with it, rather than produce anything historical.Bishop Alan Wilsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13879516755776951638noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7132206171945839649.post-16803119180266481992010-04-03T22:07:50.207+01:002010-04-03T22:07:50.207+01:00Wow you read fast. Wasn't it just out this wee...Wow you read fast. Wasn't it just out this week? I was wondering if you'd write a comment on it when I stumbled upon it's intended release on Pullman's site the other week. Sounds like an interesting read (as I thought it would be). Thanks for your review. Now off to wiki more things from your post.(Starting to feel less well read than I thought)...Acetate Monkeynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7132206171945839649.post-10466982732645159792010-04-03T20:32:29.542+01:002010-04-03T20:32:29.542+01:00sounds like a reworking of 'Brothers' by C...sounds like a reworking of 'Brothers' by Chayym Zeldis. Ah well... nothing new under the sun.GrumHhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06915155210764783727noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7132206171945839649.post-76277088911236186352010-04-03T16:24:24.430+01:002010-04-03T16:24:24.430+01:00Thanks, Ann — I think the book is well worth readi...Thanks, Ann — I think the book is well worth reading, and would love to know what you make of it. The honest answet to your Texan question is “only very, very few really, in the way they do there.” The Myers-Briggs terminology is mine not Philip Pullman's. I hope I’ve got the characterisations right...Bishop Alan Wilsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13879516755776951638noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7132206171945839649.post-21172610077953249782010-04-03T15:21:02.037+01:002010-04-03T15:21:02.037+01:00Thanks for the review - have been thinking about r...Thanks for the review - have been thinking about reading this book. I loved These Dark Materials trilogy, especially Pullman's ideas of afterlife. <br />A couple of questions - Don't you have hard-ball evangelicals in the UK? or is it easier to lampoon Texans?<br />Is your use of Myers-Briggs terminology in the book or is that your shorthand for the review?Annhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07287169546184325690noreply@blogger.com