In one of the most unique parlays in human history, Lew Wallace was not only a significant Union General during the Civil War, he also wrote one of the best selling novels in all of literature.   After the war, posted to a deadly dull Western fort, Wallace began writing to fill the empty hours.  Prompted by a casual discussion about the life and times of Jesus, he set this great story of revenge against the backdrop of Christ's mission.

Judah Ben-Hur is a Jew of Jerusalem.  Arriving at manhood, he has become estranged from his childhood friend Messala, a Roman noble.  The two exchange bitter words and when Ben-Hur later accidentally dislodges a roof tile which strikes a Roman official, Messala has him sent to the galleys and his mother and sister, Tirzah, sent to a leprosy infested prison cell.    As he is being led to the ship on which he will be enslaved, Ben-Hur is offered a drink of water by an unforgettable stranger.  Onboard ship, Ben-Hur befriends the Roman admiral Arrius and, after saving his life, is made his heir and a citizen of Rome.

Several years later, wealthy and well educated, Ben-Hur returns to Judea to look for his mother and sister and wreak his revenge on Messala.  Vengeance comes when he vanquishes Messala in a chariot race, but his family, freed from their squalid cell and suffering from leprosy, hide from him.  Meanwhile, Christ has come to Jerusalem preaching to increasing crowds and Ben-Hur, recognizing the kindly stranger who once helped him, becomes a leader of a group of armed guards bent on protecting him.  His devotion becomes all the more complete after Christ heals Tirzah and his mother.  But when the time comes, Ben-Hur heeds Christ's wishes and does not intervene.   He does manage to return the long ago favor and give Christ a drink and remains to bear witness to the crucifixion.  The story concludes with the increasingly wealthy Ben-Hur using his riches to fund the catacombs of Rome from which Christianity would emerge to conquer the Empire.

It is no mystery why this is one of the most beloved of all American novels.  The savage revenge theme, worthy of The Count of Monte Cristo, intertwines with the story of Christ to produce a story that is thrilling, uplifting and timeless.

(Reviewed:12-Apr-00)

Grade: (A+) Orrin C. Judd

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