Awards

• Commended for Christianity Today Book Award (History/Biography) 2010

Overview

In 1892, two sisters, identical twins from Scotland, made one of one of most important scriptural discoveries of modern times. Combing the library of St. Catherine's Monastery at Mount Sinai, they found a neglected palimpsest: beneath an unpreposessing life of female saints, they detected what remains to this day among the earliest known copies of the Gospels, a version in ancient Syriac, the language spoken by Jesus. ""The Sisters of Sinai"" is the enthralling account of how two ladies in middle age and without university degrees uncovered and translated this text, bringing a great biblical treasure to world attention. Janet Soskice takes us, via the lives of Agnes and Margaret Smith, on a quintessentially Victorian adventure. It is partly a physical journey: when Westerners generally feared to tread in the region, the sisters Smith traversed the Middle East, sleeping in tents, enduring temperamental camels and unscrupulous dragomen, and facing uncertain welcome from monks deceived by earlier travellers. It is also a journey of the mind: in an era when religious faith was under attack, when new discoveries in science and archaeology were rewriting the accepted understanding of the Bible's origins as well as those of humankind, a great contribution to knowledge was made by two whose only natural advantage was an astonishing gift for languages, modern as well as classical. Finally, and most movingly, it is a progress of the human spirit. Unwilling to let their lack of formal training or the disdain and jealousy of male scholars stand in their way, Agnes and Margaret became renowned scriptural authorities, in joyful pursuit of their lifelong passions for adventure and learning. Here, rousingly recounted, is the story of two unlikely and unsung heroines of the continuing effort to discover the Bible as originally written.

Full Product Details

9781400041336

Table of Contents

Reviews

PRAISE FOR JANET SOSKICE'S SISTERS OF SINAI <br> Soskice deftly positions the twins' story in the wider and more profound context of ideas and discoveries of their age. With great clarity, she steadily and captivatingly unwinds the complicated threads of her narrative, explicating formidable scholarship while keeping the twins at the fore....[T]he redoubtable twins--sturdy, steady, passionately curious, generous as well as thrifty--will win the reader.... Sisters of Sinai is a bracing and moving book, not only a story of adventure, but also a reminder of the ardor, hardship and energy invested in the pursuit of knowledge in that endlessly inquiring and industrious Victorian age. <br>- Caroline Alexander, New York Times Book Review <br> You needn't follow a particular religion to become engrossed in this enthralling narrative. The Sisters of Sinai is a tale of grand adventure and far-flung travels, and it proves appealing even on that level. Soskice is so adept at making a

PRAISE FOR JANET SOSKICE'S SISTERS OF SINAI <br> Soskice deftly positions the twins' story in the wider and more profound context of ideas and discoveries of their age. With great clarity, she steadily and captivatingly unwinds the complicated threads of her narrative, explicating formidable scholarship while keeping the twins at the fore....[T]he redoubtable twins--sturdy, steady, passionately curious, generous as well as thrifty--will win the reader.... Sisters of Sinai is a bracing and moving book, not only a story of adventure, but also a reminder of the ardor, hardship and energy invested in the pursuit of knowledge in that endlessly inquiring and industrious Victorian age. <br>- Caroline Alexander, New York Times Book Review <br> You needn't follow a particular religion to become engrossed in this enthralling narrative. The Sisters of Sinai is a tale of grand adventure and far-flung travels, and it proves appealing even on that level. Soskice is so adept at making a rarefied subject accessible and vivid that the narrative seems almost cinematic.... Thanks to Soskice's compelling, well-researched book, these extraordinary women have been given the tribute they deserve. <br>- Carmela Ciuraru, Christian Science Monitor <br> [L]uminous....by turns a rattling adventure yarn...and a testament to the power of perseverance. <br>- Matthew Shaer, The Washington Post<br> <br> Soskice's fine, fascinating account....gives us...a rich portrait of the Smiths and all the circumstances in their lives that led them, link by link, to their startling discovery. <br>- Nick Owchar, Los Angeles Times <br> The Sisters of Sinai sets the extraordinary life story of two plucky women traveling in the Middle East--at a time when few people did--against the backdrop of swashbuckling Bible hunters, racing each other around the world to find the latest clue in the mystery of how the Bible was first written. <br>- Colleen O'Connor, The Denver Post <br> The S

Author Information

Janet Soskice grew up in western Canada and has lived for some years in England, where she is Professor in Philosophical Theology at the University of Cambridge and a Fellow of Jesus College. She lectures around the world and is a frequent contributor to radio and television programs.

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