Great Lion of God

A Novel About Saint Paul

By: Taylor Caldwell

Narrated by: Braden Wright

New York Times Bestseller: A "beautifully written" and "truly outstanding" novel based on the life of Paul the Apostle (The Cincinnati Enquirer).

Born a veritable great lion of God to a devout Jewish family, Saul of Tarsus is raised by his parents to embrace their love of humanity. Dogged by what he perceives as a lack of true faith, he embarks on a journey to save his people from sacrilege. But on the road to Damascus a vision of the resurrected Jesus changes the course of his life. Converting to Christianity, the newly christened Paul transforms from persecutor of blasphemers into apostle to the gentiles, becoming one of the supreme influences on the Catholic Church and the Western world.

Great Lion of God paints a unique and very human portrait of Saint Paul, one of the most passionate, dauntless, and complex figures of early Christianity - Pharisee, lawyer, theologian, and above all, a "man like ourselves with our own despairs, doubts, anxieties and angers and intolerances, and ‘lusts of the flesh.'"

The central novel in author Taylor Caldwell's biblical trilogy, which also includes Dear and Glorious Physician and I, Judas, Great Lion of God is both "sheer entertainment" and a moving tribute to the majesty and power of the Christian faith (Fort Worth Star-Telegram).

©1970 Taylor Caldwell (P)2019 Brilliance Publishing, Inc., all rights reserved.

Critic reviews

"…[Braden] Wright keeps listeners engaged with his powerful and often emotional delivery." —AudioFile Magazine

Paul was human like you and me!

I know this is a work of historical fiction but it really brought the apostle Paul to life as a human being, flaws and all!

The Inner Soul of the Lion

St. Paul as we probably never would have envisioned him…except for the incredibly colorful writing of t Caldwell. Beautifully read. One of my favorites of her books

Taylor Caldwell Never Did Fail to Deliver

I’ve been a Taylor Caldwell fan since first reading “Great Lion of God” in print.

In her Biblical accounts of the two apostles, Paul in this narrative, and Luke in “Dear and Glorious Physician,” Taylor takes us back into Israel and through many of the gentile lands of the Middle East.

She develops complex and compassionate biographies of these two troubled men and offers insights into the many other sages that influenced them, leading to their ultimate destinies, their awakening to Christ as the promised Messiah and their personal savior, and then their individual transformations.

Using the backdrops of faltering Roman rulership, the lingering influences of the earlier Hellenistic Period, and strict ancient protocols of the Jews, we see glimpses into the superstitions, mysticism and culture of the period we know now to be when Jesus of Nazareth changed the world.

Taylor Caldwell was gifted. Her writings are filled with the love of God and humanity, but never sugar-coated. They were researched well by her own quests in the Holy Lands.

My only complaint with this audiobook was the narrator fell short in comparison with others who have narrated her writings. He simply did not have the acting skills that her writings demand. This was disappointing to me for such a classic piece of literature, but I didn’t let it destroy my interest in the book.

I recommend either book to any who want to dig deeper beyond the Scriptures.

Author makes story come alive. Narrator delivers a living story.

Characters and psychology develope from action and dialogue. Caldwell is a master.Compelling writing, splendid story telling.

Very interesting and entertaining - But:

I found this selection to be very interesting and entertaining. However many times I felt that the author was straying a bit too far from verifieable facts. She does present many of the scenes of Paul's life accurately according to the Bible, but I had to question and even disagree with many of the scenes as either quite false or as straying far into fiction. Still, if you read it with that in mind and careflly sift fact and fiction there are many insights to be gained.