Twice Freed Review
TWICE FREED, by Patricia St John has made a real impact on our family. We read it aloud and found it both CAPTIVATING and INSTRUCTIVE. The author basically tells a story about Onesimus and his slave-master Philemon--two lesser known characters from the New Testament. The story line, depth of character development, and ease of reading will appeal to CHILDREN; The remarkable true-to-the-first-century AD grasp of early Christianity, history, social structure, geography and Bible characters will fascinate more MATURE READERS who have an interest the Bible.
Patricia St. John manages to follow Onesimus from Colosse to Ephesus, Laodicia, etc. and eventually to Athens and Rome. Along the way Onesimus keeps running into those who have been saved and caught up in this strange upstart religion: Christianity. Short of telling the whole plot, Philemon (the master) becomes a Christian as well as many in his household. Onesimus (the slave) resents/ hates his master and through the book is running not only from his master, but from the Christ whose people keep popping up in his life and demonstrating their Savior's love.
WE WERE ENCOURAGED by reading this book to be more like those Christian people who keep popping up in the lives of those running from the One we so love. We've read several of this author's books and have come to appreciate her ability portray real characters with an eye to what is going on at the level of the conscience.
I had a friend of mine who has a PhD in NEW TESTAMENT STUDIES and has visited these archeological sites numerous times read the book and tell me what he thought of the book in terms of historical details. He felt that they are very accurate in most cases.
I'M RECOMMENDING the book to Christians both young and old, but probably the intended audience is 10-25 range. PARENTS, especially--read it aloud to the family; talk about it. I pray that you'll be blessed by this book as we have been.
Twice Freed Overview
Onesimus is a slave. Eirene is a rich merchant's daughter. Onesimus longs to gain his freedom and Eirene's love. However, he doesn't realize where true freedom lies. He wants nothing to do with Jesus Christ. His master, Philemon, may follow the teachings of the Christ and his apostle Paul... but Onesimus has other plans.
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Customer Reviews
Good book, puts more "life" in the stories of Paul - L. Meyers -
Paul's journeys in the Bible go to different regions and different times, giving us a glimpse of what was happening. He refers to slaves but there are no "real life" information about that in his writing. This book begins with a fictionalized (but possibly historically accurate) portrayal of slavery in that time period and then the book introduces us to Paul and the new believers. Their lives cross paths and are forever changed. The slave also journeys to some of the other big cities at that time and tells us what is happening in Rome, Athens, etc.
Captivating instructive historically accurate - Charles Walton - Kanawha, IA United States
TWICE FREED, by Patricia St John has made a real impact on our family. We read it aloud and found it both CAPTIVATING and INSTRUCTIVE. The author basically tells a story about Onesimus and his slave-master Philemon--two lesser known characters from the New Testament. The story line, depth of character development, and ease of reading will appeal to CHILDREN; The remarkable true-to-the-first-century AD grasp of early Christianity, history, social structure, geography and Bible characters will fascinate more MATURE READERS who have an interest the Bible.
Patricia St. John manages to follow Onesimus from Colosse to Ephesus, Laodicia, etc. and eventually to Athens and Rome. Along the way Onesimus keeps running into those who have been saved and caught up in this strange upstart religion: Christianity. Short of telling the whole plot, Philemon (the master) becomes a Christian as well as many in his household. Onesimus (the slave) resents/ hates his master and through the book is running not only from his master, but from the Christ whose people keep popping up in his life and demonstrating their Savior's love.
WE WERE ENCOURAGED by reading this book to be more like those Christian people who keep popping up in the lives of those running from the One we so love. We've read several of this author's books and have come to appreciate her ability portray real characters with an eye to what is going on at the level of the conscience.
I had a friend of mine who has a PhD in NEW TESTAMENT STUDIES and has visited these archeological sites numerous times read the book and tell me what he thought of the book in terms of historical details. He felt that they are very accurate in most cases.
I'M RECOMMENDING the book to Christians both young and old, but probably the intended audience is 10-20 range. PARENTS, especially--read it aloud to the family; talk about it. I pray that you'll be blessed by this book as we have been.
Twice Freed - Alison C. Risher - Nashville, TN USA
Twice Freed by Patricia St. John deals with the subjects of consequences, and accepting responsibility for your actions. My fourth grader and I both enjoyed the adventures of Onesimus, a young boy in the Roman Empire.
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