Petra: An Unbroken Legacy by Lisa L. Dorsey (Book Review)

Petra: An Unbroken Legacy is ideal for Christians who love seeing the Holy Spirit active today, interacting with believers, healing, guiding and helping us. I bought this paperback from the author, Dr. Lisa L. Dorsey, at a conference for Christian creatives. I respect the author, a woman with a doctorate in theology who has been a pastor for many years. The novel attracted my interest because I like to read about the early church, and it imagines Saul during his three years in Arabia, about which historical records are lost. It is a gripping story of how the Holy Spirit works in our lives and how Americans and Arabs can be united by their Christian faith.

Petra: An Unbroken Legacy

Author: Lisa L. Dorsey

Publisher: Hope Books

Published: June 7, 2024

Genre: Biblical Fiction

This is a dual timeline story, told entirely in first-person, with subtitles where the point of view changes. The characters of ancient times are the focus of the first several pages. I appreciated how Saul suggested to the Arabs that they learn together; he taught from his expertise about the Scriptures and prophecies, and they taught from their first-hand experiences with Jesus and the Last Supper. I loved thinking about how Arabs were baptized by the Spirit at Pentecost, and there have been Arab Christians from the earliest times. The novel shows Joel’s prophecy fulfilled, and the Spirit empowering both women and men believers, yet it follows today’s evangelical policy that men may teach everyone, while a woman speaks only to women.

The current-day characters are introduced next and become the main focus, with the plot largely a romance and an archaeological dig. The adventures in the novel become more harrowing with twists and turns as the risks increase, both from people who oppose Kasim’s family and from the archaeological digs. An exciting conclusion!

Issa and Kasim are both widowed and meet with maturity, mutual respect and concern for one another. I loved learning about Arab culture, traditions, food, clothing, and celebrations. The female main character, Issa, is a very accomplished American professional in her 40s who feels imposter syndrome.

Spoilers ahead:

Woman Without Agency: A Prize

The male main character, Kasim, is a wealthy, charismatic man who assumes she will jump at the chance to be with him. Issa quickly forgives Kasim for ignoring her for decades, and she is impressed by his power and wealth. I'm not sure what else she likes about him. Kasim says he treasures Issa, yet he withholds information in order to gain personal power, he secretly investigates her family history, calls her a stupid woman, and restricts some of her professional archaeological activities and limits her discussions with some people. Kasim isolates Issa so that she dresses and acts Arabian and is grafted into his (superior) family legacy. Kasim's family values their pure lineage, and Issa is of mixed-race, but Kasim confronts his father and explains, 'Issa is the gift God has given.' While this scenario shows God's affirmation of mixed-race marriages, it also seems to objectify Issa and remove her agency, making her a trophy or prize from God for Kasim. I prefer to think of a marriage where each spouse is a gift to the other.

Priority on Male Heir over a Woman

My personal experience with infertility and with smaller inheritances for daughters than sons makes me somewhat offended that Kasim discounts his daughter as an eligible heir. Kasim's twenty-something daughter is smart, capable, and works in her father's business, but Kasim is desperate for a male heir. He insists that whoever he marries must bear him a male heir. Kasim seems to prioritize a potential son over his wife's life, being willing to risk Issa's life with a geriatric pregnancy. It makes me feel like daughters, girls, and women are less valued. Women are permitted to be heirs in the Quran (Ayah an-Nisa 4:7) and the Bible (Numbers 27:2-7, Joshua 17:4, Romans 8:17, 1 Peter 3:7). 

Exclusive Power for Christians in Jordan

The goal of the archaeological dig is to find the lost scrolls that will prove Kasim's family’s unbroken legacy of Christianity from Apostle Paul to Kasim. It suggests that proving Kasim had Christian ancestors will provide Kasim's family with religious rights and protections. I am excited to imagine that Paul wrote letters to the Arabian Christians in the first century. It is exciting to think that Christianity was present in present-day Jordan even before Islam became a religion.

The plot suggests that proof of an early Christian presence might be a basis to claim that Christians are rightful heirs to the land and Muslims are not. I am not excited that proof of ancient scrolls will mean more protection only for those families who have an unbroken relationship with Christians of the first century. Jordan is an Islamic nation admired for tolerance and permitting Christians to worship freely. I am thankful for freedom of religion, whether a person's belief is new or shared by their ancestors, whether it is the religion of the first peoples of a land or more recent settlers. I would not want one version of any religion to control the government.

Conclusion:

An exciting cross-cultural adventure as people of today discover truths about Christians in ancient Arabia. It affirms beliefs common among charismatic Christians today.

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Elaine Ricker Kelly Author is empowering women with historical fiction about women in the Bible and early church and Christian blogs about women in leadership, church history and doctrine. Her books include:

• Forgotten Followers from Broken to Bold, Book 1, A Novel (2022)

• The Sword: A Fun Way to Engage in Healthy Debate on What the Bible Says About a Woman's Role (2023)

• Because She Was Called from Broken to Bold, Book 2, A Novel of the Early Church (2024)

• Walk with Mara on Her Healing Journey: 21 Steps to Emotional Resilience (2024)

• Finding Her Voice from Broken to Bold, Book 3, Acts of Early Female Apostles: A Novel (2025)