About this item
In 1535, William Tyndale, the first man to produce an English version of the Bible in print, was captured and imprisoned in Belgium. A year later he was strangled and then burned at the stake. His co-translator was also burned. In that same year the translator of the first Dutch Bible was arrested and beheaded. These were not the first, nor were they the last instances of extreme violence against Bible translators. The Murderous History of Bible Translations tells the remarkable, and bloody, story of those who dared translate the word of God.The Bible has been translated far more than any other book. To our minds it is self-evident that believers can read their sacred literature in a language they understand. But the history of Bible translations is far more contentious than reason would suggest. Bible translations underlie an astonishing number of religious conflicts that have plagued the world.Harry Freedman describes brilliantly the passions and strong emotions that arise when deeply held religious convictions are threatened or undermined. He tells of the struggle for authority and orthodoxy in a world where temporal power was always subjugated to the divine, a world in which the idea of a Bible for all was so important that many were willing to give up their time, security, and even their lives.
About the Author
My latest book is Leonard Cohen: The Mystical Roots of Genius. It explores the religious folklore, spiritual ideas and mystical concepts that run all the way through Leonard Cohen's music.Anyone who has listened carefully to Leonard Cohen's music will know that songs like Hallelujah, Story of Isaac and By the Rivers Dark are based on biblical narratives. But Leonard Cohen's music contains many more songs based on ancient lore. The Window is packed with kabbalistic insights, Who by Fire is based on both an ancient mystical text and a synagogue prayer, and You Want it Darker is one of the most powerful challenges ever written to the God whose presence Leonard Cohen was always aware of, whose purpose baffled him and whose world he struggled to come to terms with.Cohen was deeply learned in both Judaism and Christianity; they helped shape his self-identity and the way he made sense of the world. In the book I explore twenty of his songs that are rooted in ancient biblical or kabbalistic sources. I explain the sources he drew upon, discuss their original context and the stories and ideas behind them, and show how Leonard Cohen has harnessed them for his own purposes. The book is not a biography, though it contains biographical information. I hope that it will offer an insight into the soul and imagination of one of the greatest singers and lyricists of our time.My previous book was Reason to Believe, the authorised biography of Rabbi Dr Louis Jacobs. Louis Jacobs was Britain's most gifted Jewish scholar. A Talmudic genius, outstanding teacher and accomplished author, cultured and easy-going, he was widely expected to become Britain's next Chief Rabbi.Then controversy struck. The Chief Rabbi refused to appoint him as Principal of Jews' College, the country's premier rabbinic college. He further forbade him from returning as rabbi to his former synagogue. All because of a book Jacobs had written some years earlier, challenging from a rational perspective the traditional belief in the origins of the Torah.The British Jewish community was torn apart. It was a scandal unlike anything they had ever previously endured. The national media loved it. Jacobs became a cause celebre, a beacon of reason, a humble man who wouldn't be compromised. His congregation resigned en masse and created a new synagogue for him in Abbey Road, the heart of fashionable 1970s London. It became the go-to venue for Jews seeking reasonable answers to questions of faith.A prolific author of over 50 books and hundreds of articles on every aspect of Judaism, from the basics of religious belief to the complexities of mysticism and law, Louis Jacobs won the heart and affection of the mainstream British Jewish community. When the Jewish Chronicle ran a poll to discover the Greatest British Jew, Jacobs won hands down. He said it made him feel daft.Reason To Believe tells the dramatic and touching story of Louis Jacobs's life, and of the human drama lived
