The Left Hand of God: Biography of the Holy Spirit.

Adolf Holl .

ISBN 10: 0385492847 / ISBN 13: 9780385492843

Published by Doubleday, New York, NY, 1998

About this Item

Fine in Fine DJ: The Book is flawless, but is a REMAINDER, showing a tiny dot at the bottom edge of the text block; the binding is square and secure; the text is clean. Free of any ownership names, dates, addresses, notations, inscriptions, stamps, plates, or labels. A handsome, like-new copy, showing a single, very minor flaw. A virtually 'As New' reading copy. The DJ is flawless; unclipped; mylar-protected. As New. NOT a Remainder, Book-Club, or Ex-Library. 8vo. (9.5 x 6.6 x 1.25 inches). xi, 352 pages. Translated from the German by John Cullen. Language: English. Weight: 1 pound, 7.9 ounces. First Edition (1998); First Printing indicated. Hardback with DJ. First Edition (1998); First Printing indicated.

Seller Inventory # 49321

Bibliographic Details

• Title: The Left Hand of God: Biography of the Holy Spirit.
• Publisher: Doubleday, New York, NY
• Publication Date: 1998
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0385492847
• ISBN 13: 9780385492843
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition: 1st Edition
• Dust Jacket Condition: Dust Jacket Included
• Seller catalogs:
  • Religion: Christianity

About this title

Synopsis

Adolf Holl's divine biography examines the life of the Holy Spirit in the context of the history of Christianity, Judaism, and Islam.  Interweaving scholarship with religion, myth, and culture, Holl expertly traces the influence of the Holy Spirit on men and women from all walks of life, over the course of centuries.  The result is quite unlike anything written before.

The Holy Spirit inspired a few Galilean fishermen to find the courage to preach a new world religion.  The Jews recognized it as the breath of God.  Mohammed was inspired by it in the dictation of the Koran.  Yet this same spirit has moved individuals to rebel against convention, authority, and even sanity.  Through Holl's freewheeling yet always crystal-clear discourse, we see how the Holy Spirit informs an incredible array of beliefs (including those underlying the rituals of Appalachian snake handlers) and ideas (the works of Freud and James Joyce are among the many discussed).

When the book was published in Germany, Der Spiegel wrote, "Holl has presented a formidable history, linking together the most distant things in a surprising way and leaving the whole as a paradox.  He leaves it to the reader to judge the encounter with the Holy Spirit as a manifestation of the divine in the human being--or as a case for the psychiatrist."

Whatever the reader's conclusion may be, The Left Hand of God is sure to be hailed as a major religious publishing event.

About the Author

Adolf Holl lives in Vienna, where he was Chaplain of the University of Vienna and a lecturer in its Department of Catholic Theology.  Because of conflicts with Church authorities, he was suspended from his teaching and priestly duties.  He is the author of more than twenty books, including Jesus in Bad Company, Death and the Devil, and The Last Christian: A Biography of St. Francis of Assisi.