Revelation of the Magi: The Lost Tale of the Wise Men's Journey to Bethlehem Hardcover – Deckle Edge, November 2, 2010

Brent Landau translated this ancient text that was unearthed from the Vatican Library. The tale was written in ancient Syriac text, a language spoken by ancient Christians in the Middle East and Asia. It is always interesting to find new documents that show different visions of early Christian belief.The one thing I did not like about the book was the use of black-and-white photographs of early Christian art related to the Maji and their trip. It was hard to see and appreciate the finer points of these early artists and their understanding of the story of the Maji.One of the most significant values of this text in today's milieu is that this text shows that God's mercy is available to all. According to early Christians, if you did not believe what they believed, you were wrong. This text sees all revelation as coming from God; thus each person's unique experience of God can be valid.Reading this text with one hand in the notes (at the end of the book) is critical for the first reading. Landau's analysis is fascinating reading -- I just wish there were more pages included. 4.5 stars

she liked it

The Revelation of the Magi has two parts. The first part includes Landau's explanation of how he "discovered" the ancient manuscript, his work in translating it and his interpretation of its meaning. The second part is his English translation of the text which was originally written in ancient Syriac. He also includes explanatory notes. It is always interesting to read about how scholars go about analyzing and interpreting ancient texts and this was no exception. Actually I wish Landau had gone into a bit more detail about this aspect of his work. The interpretation of the "revelation" is intriguing and thought provoking, that "Christ" (for lack of a better word to indicate the phenomenon) has appeared to many different peoples and that all religions have received the message of the light. This interpretation is not one that Christians who believe that the Bible is the literal word of God will accept easily. (How they can believe that God spoke in the 17th century English of the KJV has always surprised me.). However, Christians and others who have studied the history of the compilation of the New Testament and know about the many other Gospels and writings will appreciate this Revelation as another example of the complexity of early Christian beliefs.

I saw a short piece on the news about this book and decided to check it out. It's a short read - less than 100 pages - so you can digest it in a few hours. Let me make it clear that I do not have the background needed to certify or refute Landau's positions established in the introduction. I have an interest in early Christianity and read a good bit.I read the book with an open mind but was left with the impression that the Revelation were developed after Christianity was established. Landau points out that the ending was definitely written or revised well after the fact. However, there are a number of phrases in the earlier portion of the book that are just too similar to existing new testament phrases. Is that the translation? I don't know. There are aspects of the Revelation dealing with the religious practices and beliefs of the Magi's culture which do not seem to be derived from standard biblical writings. Again, I'm not an expert so there may be writings dealing with the cave, the spring, etc. I would guess that the base story existed but was modified/embellished over time to bring it more in line with other Christian writings.I enjoyed the read and recommend it to those curious about early Christian history.

I read every additional note and reference looking for more. This is excellent. The idea of twelve kings fits nicely with the twelve tribes of israel. This is a realistic translation from a book claimed tohave been written by the Magi themselves. The star the Magi followed was actually an angel! I always wondered why the angel didn't also warn them not to visit the wicked king, but this book answered my question. It sounds like the group of 12 magi were apprehended as they were passing through Jerusalem to get to Bethlehem. The kings servants opened the scrolls and read aloud the prophesies written in their own storage places in Jerusalem. The king seemed amazed that the prophecies were coming to pass before his eyes. However, his lust for power seemed to overcome him after he realized he'd been tricked when the Magi didn't return. Makes one wonder if the Magi would have been killed if they had returned. The angel did warn them not to go back by the same route.

I purchased this book on my Kindle just in time for Christmas. I'm not a religious person but I found it very interesting. After reading it I understood all those "three wise men" and related stories that's actually not in the Bible but in Christian tradition. It seems this book was downplayed by Bible editors over centuries.The books contains author's description on how he found the manuscript, analysed it and then translated for the first time to English. The later part is the translation text itself - translated into very modern English, can be read like a fantasy story.The book does not require from you to be religious, and it's not written from the religious point of view, that's why some people are giving it bad reviews, download the sample and decide for yourself.

This is an interesting book but I recommend the paper copy instead of the Kindle version. It's a bit like reading someones research paper because the author spun this out of research he did. On the kindle version it's hard to navigate other than to read straight through. In some ways the story validates the Christ birth story, but it also examines other religions and there is a bit of conjecture too. I think some Christians might find that part is a strong variance on typical Christianity. The basic story was woven from his research, he admits he was unable to prove or verify if the story line truly came from the supposed Magi who wrote of it long ago, but it is an interesting read.

good book

I bought this book because I was curious about the Magi story. However, either Landau's translation is lacking or this simply isn't a very profound text. Whichever it is, it's far from being engaging and is often repetitive. I think Landau's translation could have used a wider variety of English words to convey the original. Using the same words repeatedly makes the text dull and uninteresting to read. English is a rich language with a wide variety of interchangeable words that should be used whether the original changes up the words or not. Sadly, such writing techniques were not used here, perhaps to stay unnecessarily true to the text or simply because Landau isn't much of a writer himself. Perhaps, too, it's like many of the other apocryphal texts---they simply aren't that well written. That said, it makes me wonder how much of the Bible itself (especially the New Testament) in its many translations was originally not all that impressively written as well.

Great book if you want to dive deeper into the history of the wise men. Easily read and understood. The summation at the end is particularly helpful

After all the hype I was a bit dissapointed by what the book actually contains.I WAS intrigued by the illustrations of early images of the Magi wearing trousers and phrygian caps.But wether we are any closer to knowing who they really were I doubt that this book helps.It is good to have a decent translation of this work but to say that it sheds much light on the Magi is overdoing it.Wikipedia is more helpful I found!

Interesting narrative and insightful analysis by the author, but I do not believe or agree on much of the book, to me it reads more like a product of human imagination.