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Ben-Hur

A Slip of the Hand

Lew Wallace originally wrote a novel and William Wyler brought a vision to Wallace’s literature to tell the epic tale of Judah Ben-Hur, a Jewish noblemen in Palestine whose heroic odyssey includes enslavement by the Romans, a bold escape from an embattled slave galley, vengeance against his tormentors during a furious arena chariot race and fateful encounters with Jesus Christ . Both Wallace’s novel and Wyler’s film are widely considered as masterpieces. This story is set at a critical time in world history, a time when the Romans were doing all they could to impose their values and beliefs on much of the Eastern world, including Jews. The Jews are intensely against the will of the Romans, and the story that a messiah will be born to save the Jews has begun circulating throughout Jerusalem. All this plays into the story of Judah Ben-Hur, whose life path is altered drastically by one unfortunate slip of the hand.
The lives of Jud...

Posted by: Tricia F. Doyle

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