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In II Thessalonians we are told the Holy Spirit will ‘hold back the lawless man until God takes him away.” What if the Holy Spirit indwells a man who has been granted immortality? What if that man became the target of the lawless one (Satan) and his demons?
The Order of St. Lazare; more myth than reality? As the class of Priests readies for graduation and parish assignments, rumors of previous graduates being assigned to the Order of St. Lazare are dismissed by the elders of the church as mere tales. Yes there was such an order, but it had faded away decades earlier. Then Father Stephen meets a stranger who extends an invitation that will forever change his life.
Buried for years, the immortal man waits for the Order to free him. But, once freed he is battle weary. He is immortal for sure, but the evil that permeates the world and has swept history with vicious, unthinkable acts proves he has not been successful at his task. This immortal man once touched the glory of heaven but was sent back. He longs for that place of beauty, light, peace and love. When he meets graduate student, Nora McPherson a new spark of life fires his spirit, and the battle ensues.
The humanness of the immortal man is at once refreshing and disappointing. Somehow we expect our spiritual leaders to be super human and when we discover they are flawed and fall victim to some of the same temptations we do, it is a real let down. So it is with this man. Yet, to know he has spiritual resources – a relationship with Jesus, angels to guard him etc., and yet he struggles with his sense of self, is comforting. We too have opportunity to embrace those resources, yet often we turn away or blow them off as being fables. And, other times we attempt to live up to what we believe He wants, and stumble along the way, feeling failure in the bumps on our spirits and bruised soul.
In the suspenseful manner of Frank Peretti’s This Present Darkness/Piercing the Darkness, and The Oath, this fresh voice infuses his writing with a keen insight into the spiritual realm where battles rage between good angels and evil demons. It’s something we don’t see with our physical eyes, but the Bible clearly tells us the battle will continue until the day Jesus returns. Mark Andrew Olsen blasts action into his story and keeps us up until the wee hours of the morning wanting to finish, yet, not wanting the story to end.
Mark Andrew Olsen is also co-author of the wonderful historical book, One Night with the King (based on the book of Esther). He is fast becoming my favorite author and I look forward to more enlightened, educational, satisfying books by this gifted author. His pen writes with spiritual ink that captures and captivates.
Reviewed by Linda Mae Baldwin
for The Road to Romance
May 28, 2004
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