The Voice From The Jordan

About the Book

This book deals with the life and deeds of St. John the Baptist. Due to the paucity of historical sources on the subject - early Palestinian historian Flavius Josephus plus the four Gospels of the Bible's New Testament-the author chose to handle the subject as a historical novel. This approach answered two purposes: to more deeply dig into historical research of that time while also weave a story that would seem both truthful and humane to the reader, as a more complete picture of the locale and circumstances would allow a fuller perspective of the central figure of the Baptist.

The development of early Christianism makes for a most interesting story. The novel's title - The Voice from the Jordan-is of course the voice of John the Baptist preaching on the banks of the Jordan river. Jesus' baptism by John is one of the story's most emotive scenes. Another high point is John's death by order of Palestine's Tetrarch Herod Antipas while John was jailed by Herod. John's beheading was the result of a Machiavellian intrigue deisigned by Herod's wife Herodias, who held a grudge against the Baptist for his publicly berating her on the couple's marriage, which John considered sinful and illegal according to Jewish law. Herodias had a teenage daughter called Salome by his former husband, who was also Antipas' brother. Both Herodias and Salome were Antipas' nieces. Antipas had a lustful desire for Salome; this was well-known to the cunning Herodias, who took advantage of the celebration of Herod's birthday party to conceive a plot that would lead to the execution of the Baptist.

Herod was a superstitious man who believed that John had unknown supernatural powers and feared him. The sight of the blood-dripping head of the Baptist became a recurrent vision that would haunt Herod to the last day of his life.

Shortly afterwards, Herod fell in disgrace with Rome and was dethroned and exiled to Gaul (France) where he was accompanied by Herodias and Salome. The exile life was harsh for those people who had lost power and riches. Exile life had a bitter taste for the Herods whose fortunes kept on an up-and-down fashion until the final day of accounting reached them.

On occasion of Antipas' birthday party at the Machaerus fortress (where the Baptist had been thrown into a dungeon with no apparent cause) Herodias' adolescent and beautiful daughter Salome danced so alluringly before Herod and his guests, that he offered her whatever she asked as a prize in token of his appreciation, even half of his kingdom. Goaded by her cunning mother, Salome asked for the head of John the Baptist delivered to her on a platter. Bound be a solemn oath before the movers and shakers of the land, Herod had to comply.

Political changing fortunes afflicted the Herods by dethronement and banishment to Gaul in a disgraced and servitude condition.

Ever since the Baptist's beheading, a superstitious Antipas, who had always felt an inexplicable fear for what he considered as supernatural powers of the Baptist, was haunted by terrifying night visions of a blood-dripping severed head staring directly at his eyes. In time those visions were compounded, to accidental beheading while crossing an ice-covered river.

The Herod eventually settle in the Roman settlement of Baelo Claudia in Southern Spain, and appear to be heading a semblance of happiness, their past vicissitudes having been left behind. In the end, the reader is left to ponder that the God of love is also the God of justice.

The book contains 261 pages divided into 20 chapters and is set in clear, easy-to-read type.

About the Author

The author, a U.S. citizen born in Spain, migrated to South America after the Spanish Civil War in 1940's, pursuing a career as a journalist, teacher and translator. Now residing in South Florida after retirement, The Voice from the Jordan is Mr. Ruiz's first venture as a novelist.