The Fire Gospel: The Myth of Prometheus in Into the Forest

Nov 24, 2011 Christine rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy-myth-and-fairy, religion

Fairy tale? Myth? Legend? Religion? What do thses terms means?

Well, I'm not answering the question. You figure it out. But Faber does deal with the question in this book.

Part modern morality tale, Faber's Canongate volume attacks the play of religion in the media? What play I hear you ask? You mean 24 and its Muslim terrorists?

No, though one of the best sections of the book have a Muslim and Christian working together. I mean the whole Shroud of Turin, Da Vini Code, tomb of Jesus' brother, gospe Fairy tale? Myth? Legend? Religion? What do thses terms means?

Well, I'm not answering the question. You figure it out. But Faber does deal with the question in this book.

Part modern morality tale, Faber's Canongate volume attacks the play of religion in the media? What play I hear you ask? You mean 24 and its Muslim terrorists?

No, though one of the best sections of the book have a Muslim and Christian working together. I mean the whole Shroud of Turin, Da Vini Code, tomb of Jesus' brother, gospel of Judas thing. Each time something like that comes out it gets news time and magazine covers, yet it doesn't really seem to affect anyone who believes in a certain way, if you know what I mean. It doesn't distrub, I guess is what I'm trying to say.

The title of this book comes from an alternate title to the discovered "Fifth Gospel" which Theo finds, and publishes, more concerned about translation then religion. Reactions vary, and the novel is far more a critque of the media then of religion. If you are reading this and thinking it is anti-Christian or religious, I would still reccomend the book. There is something about the last page of the book. Something that can be taken many different ways. Faber is closer to the Terry Pratchett way exploring religion than the Phillip Pullman.

Actually this book seems to be really about fame and the truth behind the ideas of truth. Which is what the Canongate series seems to be really about.

Think about it. We live in a meida flooded society, at least most of us. Yet, few people can grasp the allusions that flood us everyday. I'm not talking just about Disney version of stories. I'm talking about an Ice Age Christmas (Christ wasn't born then, so how is there Christmas?), a song about irony with examples that are not ironic, comparing any mainstream politican to Hitler, and Lady Gaga's "Judas" song. People don't understand terms like Samson Scenrio, or see a connection to 13 and Christ and his Apostles (forget about Balder). How about the "let's boycott Snapple because there are slaves on the label"? (Ever hear of the Boston tea party?) Here in America, people root for sports teams and do not see or know about the references of the names - Baltimore Ravens, Green Bay Packers, Sixers (okay, Utah I'll give you. But the Utah Jazz was the New Orleans Jazz). They don't know why the Trojan man is the Trojan man.

Or that Puss in Boots predates Shrek.

The media convinces us that we know more, when in fact we know less. Here in America, for instance, we have Thanksgiving for Black Friday (which I heard a newscaster on the BBC say was named for the traffic. Huh?).

This is what Faber is writing about. ...more

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Apr 03, 2016 Melanti rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: religion, 2016, cannongate

I'm not a huge "silly" fan to begin with...

Add in a historically inaccurate text, an implausible premise, and a complete disregard for the existence of apocryphal texts and you've got a book I didn't like in the slightest.

There's a couple of decent bits in there - particularly some jokes about the ridiculousness of our news media - but that wasn't nearly enough to save the book in my eyes. ...more

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