About Thomas the Apostle, the novel

Revealing and uplifting, this stunning and epic debut novel set 2,000 years ago follows Thomas, the questioning apostle, as he makes his way  from Jerusalem through Parthia to South India.  Thomas the Apostle established many early Christian communities,  first in Parthia and then in India.    Parthia referred to the entire area between the Tigris River and the Indus River. India referred to the entire area east of the Indus River, including China.    

Spiritual and highly informative, this historical fiction is a powerful debut based on over a decade of research. Taut and richly told,   Thomas the Apostle, by new author, Barbara Bode Snyder, is based on Bible scriptures, the Gospel of Thomas, and on numerous stories learned when she lived in India. Much of this oral tradition is not found in print but lives on in stories passed down over 20 centuries.      

The novel, Thomas the Apostle, tells the tale of Thomas, beginning with his family's life in  the small town of Cana near the Sea of Galilee in Israel. The adventure gets under way  the day before the bar mitzvah celebration of   Thomas and his twin brother, and leads the reader down a long path scattered   with tragedy, betrayal, and the beautiful love of Jesus.   

The week after the Pentecost where he received the gift of tongues, Thomas started on his journey from Jerusalem to Parthia as an indentured servant. He established numerous Christian communities during his ten years in Parthia. Then he moved on to India, where he continued to establish numerous Christian communities. Thomas spent his time and energy fanning  the fires of Christianity into a powerful ministry, the results of which are still very much in evidence today. 

Thomas's resounding voice and passion is immortalized in the Bible and remains strong in India, but is greatly misunderstood by most of the world. Now, for the first time, readers are allowed a vivid and moving portrait of an apostle who did so much more than doubt. 

Christian fiction has a strong new voice.  

The novel, Thomas the Apostle, is available from Amazon.com 

in both paper version and in Kindle format.