God, Jesus, Mary, and gang.... the real story:
Out of Egypt
Slowly, quietly, and over a considerable span of years, Ahmed Osman has carved out a niche as one of the credible bridges between the orthodox and speculative history genres. His impressive portfolio includes Stranger in the Valley of the Kings (1987); Moses: Pharaoh of Egypt (1990) The House of the Messiah (1992), and most recently, Out of Egypt (1998).
As one of the genres most respected scholars, Osman excels at associating biblical legends with real historical personalities. In Out of Egypt, we see Osman identify the likes of Solomon, David, Moses, and Jesus (amongst others), with an 'I can name that Pharaoh in two chapters' type of approach. Seriously though, this is a highly readable piece of work.
Like Professor Avar Ellegard, Osman submits that the real historical Jesus lived far earlier than conventional chronologies would have us believe. Unlike Ellegard, who places the historical Jesus in the late 2nd century BCE, Osman puts the historical Jesus figure even further back in time. Osman tells us that 'Although the Glory of Christ appeared to his disciples in the early part of the 1st century AD, the historical Jesus had lived and died 14 centuries earlier.'
Out of Egypt builds gradually, slowly adding layers of credibility to each new association: Tuthmosis III as David, Joseph the Patriarch as Yuya, Amenhotep III as Solomon, and of course, Akhenaten as Moses. Before long, it starts to read like the film credits to some long lost biblical epic by Cecil B. De Mille.
At risk of spoiling the entire plot, I'll refrain from revealing the personality Osman identifies as the true historical Jesus. You'll want to discover that on your own. Having said that, the story Osman presents of Jesus' ultimate demise is fascinating. He submits that Jesus 'was put to death at the foot of Mount Sinai, at the same position as the present monastery of St Catherine'. Victim, it would seem, of a reconciliation gone sour. Gone sour, but not forgotten that is. In Osman's words 'his followers kept his memory alive over the centuries, awaiting his return'.
I mentioned earlier that Ahmed Osman's work provides a literary bridge between the orthodox and speculative ancient history genres. I know of few better examples of this fact than our next book, Jesus: Last of the Pharaohs, by Ralph Ellis. In other words, for those of you who enjoy Osman's work, odds are you'll like this as well.
Rating: 4 out of 5 Benben stones
Out of Egypt is available through Amazon UK in hardcover or in paperback.
From: dailygrail.com
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