The Tumultuous Times of Jesus in the 21st Century
by Luke Breit is the satiric tale of a God grown angry and impatient with modern day moneylenders who have made Christianity unrecognizable and turned it into the indispensable component of the Republican Party's extreme rightwing. You won't believe what God and His Son decide to do about it.This "wholly engaging romp through the Second Coming" is part adventure, part religious thriller, part political mystery and lots of dark comedy. Its hero is a Camel-smoking and Jack Daniels-drinking Jesus whose disciples include a beautiful Asian massage parlor girl, an agnostic political consultant, the world's former top supermodel and the nation's first woman/Latina/Native American presidential candidate. Their adversaries? Only the world's richest televangelist and his henchman, an ex-marine assassin. It's funny, it's sexy and it will make you think.
Cover art by Patrick Grizzell
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About The Tumultuous Times of Jesus in the 21st Century, these writers say:
"I think the book is going to do very well. Liberals are going to love it." --Pulitzer Prize winner Norman Mailer
"A fun read. I cheered all the way. Picaresque form and so always on the go and with the attendant lessons, ironic but broad." --Dennis Schmitz, Sacramento's first Poet Laureate
"God's word has been misinterpreted in a corrupt world and He's not happy about it, so He sends His only son to steer people back toward the right track. Except it's not 33 A.D. any longer, it's 2003 and Jesus is still - gasp! - hanging out with hookers. Luke Breit has pulled off a wholly engaging romp through the Second Coming - only this time instead of a hardened tax collector, His best buddy is an agnostic political consultant. With a great deal of sly humor that the author uses well to serve his very serious observations, and some unexpectedly moving sweetness, the story moves along at a crisp clip to an end that is thoroughly satisfying to those of us who object to a certain political party's self-defined stranglehold on the approval of the Almighty." --Lynn Vannucci, author of Coyote and Revolution in the Garden (with Dell Williams)
"The retelling of the story of Jesus is not an easy undertaking. In his first novel, The Tumultuous Times of Jesus in the 21st Century, Luke Breit delivers an oddly reverent tale about the preeminent figure of western civilization, placing Him firmly in the 21st Century and telling an oddly reverent tale of the impact of Jesus on the lives of a few other central characters, as well as the America in which they live. The moneylenders, Philistines and power mongers in this story have much to worry about. In this poignant, political and still somehow lighthearted story, Jesus offers an opportunity to the real evildoers and hypocrites of our days to get right with him. He opens the hearts of some in the compassionate ways one would expect, but with a few twists. This is a good tale, blending scriptural history and fiction in surprising ways, and it's enormously enjoyable writing." --Patrick Grizzell, author of Dark Music and Minotaure Into Night (with Jimi Suzuki).Jesus is Coming to a Political Party in Mendocino
a review by John Fremont
The question is raised on billboards and bumper stickers: "What would Jesus do?" Were Jesus to manifest suddenly, would he succor the survivors of natural disasters, stave the AIDS epidemic, feed the starving children, or perhaps mediate the conflicts in the Middle East? Well, no, not according to Luke Breit, the former coastal resident, popular poet and political strategist who now calls Sacramento home. In The Tumultuous Times of Jesus in the 21st Century, a delightfully exuberant first novel, Luke has Jesus tread the political waters of Northern California and challenge the status quo in Washington.
Having labored for many years in the vineyards of Democratic politics, it is not surprising that local and national politics informs this funny and insightful novel by a man better known for fine poetry and campaign literature than religious acumen. Here, however, is a tasty melange of politics, religion, drunken brawls, and riproaring sexual encounters.
Mark Grady is the first-person protagonist of the novel and shares Luke's predilections for wine, women, and song. An erstwhile poet and political consultant, Grady encounters the gentle, shaggy Jesus at a poetry reading in a Russian River bar. A Hell's Angel lover of literature tries to steal Mark's books, and Jesus gently but firmly intercedes. In appreciation, campaign consultant Grady enlists the putative son of god in gathering signatures on behalf of a local Democratic candidate. From such small beginnings to the battle for the presidency, Jesus and an entourage that includes a hooker, a model, and a growing number of witnesses to miracles, vie with a know-nothing candidate backed by a billionaire televangelist for the electoral attention of the tabloid-reading public.
The Jesus that Luke evokes drinks, smokes, and engages in licentious activities when he's not busy performing miracles, but he's a shining exemplar compared to Gil Rich who combines the character traits of Pat Robertson, Karl Rove, and Charlie Manson. Rich sends his hitman, Oliver Ingot, reminiscent of Oliver North (and, as an aside, one of the joys of the novel is figuring out who the various characters are modeled after), to stop the Democratic version of Jesus. Luke's Jesus is nothing like the GOP version as promoted by the television preacher. The Republican Jesus hates homosexuals, welfare recipients, and people of color, and Gil Rich and his flunkies are hellbent to repudiate the hippie peace-monger who cures AIDS patients and supports a Hispanic woman for president.
As the campaign for the presidency heats up, the action is non-stop. There's much humorous bible-thumping, along with romping sex, undeleted expletives, and midwestern revival meetings as Jesus and Democratic stalwarts drive across the country, discussing political philosophy, eating, drinking and performing the occasional miracle.
Underlying the fun is a primer on political campaigning as Mark Grady engages the public relations team backing the white bread Republican candidate for president. Direct mail and sly sound bites give way to lethal action as the tension mounts. The race is too close to call, and both candidates claim God is on their side. Whatever side you're on, The Tumultuous Times of Jesus in the 21st Century will keep you turning pages well past your bedtime to find out who will prevail and to discover Jesus' real motives and aspirations.
Politics and religion make lusty bedfellows in this reverent, irreverent romp through the bedrooms and boardrooms of contemporary America while making a compelling argument that evangelical Christianity subverts Christ's teachings.
Wednesday, Jan. 16, 2008, 2:00 p.m.
Interview by Jeffrey Callison on Insight, Capital Public Radio KXJZ 90.9, Sacramento
Also on the internet at http://www.capradio.org/programs/insight/
Friday, Jan. 18, 2008, 7:30 p.m.
Reading with Patrick Grizzell
La Raza Galeria Posada, 1022 22nd St., Sacramento
Saturday, Jan.19, 2008, 5-7 p.m.
Book Signing
Luna´s Cafe, 1414 16th St., Sacramento
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