Joseph of Nazareth's Tale

The first hand account of Joseph of Nazareth, carpenter, step-father of Jesus - his life as a family man and builder/carpenter and guardian of the Messiah. As translated from a bound papyrus document (codex) excavated at Nag Hammadi, Lower Egypt in 1945CE by Mohammed Ali al- Samman, recently re- discovered in the 'Trade and Shipping Accounts' archive in The Institute of Antiquity and Christianity in the Coptic Museum, Cairo, Egypt. Original translation into French by post graduate student Ms. Nadia Exe, Laval University, Quebec, Canada, 2011. This translation from the French and from Ms, Exe's photographed pages of original codex source by Ustaz Fitrah, 2021.
Joseph recounts parts of his own life story to the scribe Zofar in an attempt to have his version of his own life story recorded before he is written out of history.
The book is speculative historical thoroughly researched fiction.
Joseph of Nazareth’s Tale

Pre-publication comments by interested reader, Angie Barber, who is personally unknown to author.

A proof reader suggested sending Angie, a friend of his, a copy for comment a copy as a former life-long devout and scholarly Christian, now atheist/agnostic – long before reading this book though!!
Via e-mail:
Mon, 29 Apr 2024 at 06:21

Hi Ustaz

Thank you so much for letting me read your MS. I found it fascinating and thought provoking. It’s an original idea to approach the childhood of Jesus through the lens of Joseph. And it’s also a very challenging concept, because so little is known about Joseph or the childhood of Jesus. So you are writing a story about the ‘what ifs’ of family life. That’s a fascinating approach and I can immediately see just how much research you must have had to do to get your facts correct.

I can’t see how anyone, except a fanatic, would be offended by your book. It is interesting and I find the subject matter absorbing.

I was interested to see how closely you actually kept to the official Bible version and, for example, kept the virgin birth story in ambiguously. I’m pretty sure the virgin birth was interpreted later and comes from the OT prophecy being mistranslated; ‘maiden’ being translated as ‘virgin’ because the Son of God had to have had an immaculate conception.

Very little is known about Joseph, and I liked your portrayal of him. I think you succeed in giving him an Everyman voice. He comes across as a person the reader can relate to. I was slightly more bothered by ‘The Lady’. I found that phrase put a distance between me as a reader and made her rather unreal and shadowy. Maybe it’s because the Catholics call her ‘Our Lady’ that I found the phrase rather off putting. She was just a teenager with an older husband. I guess I resist the church’s preferred version of women either being a ‘temptress’ (Eve) or a ‘pure virgin’ (Mary). So, I’d have preferred her to be called Mariam/Miriam/Mary.

Have you read ‘The good man Jesus and the scoundrel Christ’ by Philip Pullman? He takes a sideways look at the life of Christ in a fictitious form. It’s an interesting read. There’s also a new non fiction book, just out, called ‘Heresy: Jesus Christ and the other sons of God’ by Catherine Nixey. I’m trying to resist the urge to buy the hardback, because it looks brilliant. I’m fascinated in why/ how Jesus made history as the Messiah when he was just one of many messiahs around at the time and how a small Jewish sect following him became a worldwide religion.

Again, thank you for letting me read your book. I wish you all the best with it and am always happy to read anything else and give an opinion.

Best wishes,
Angi