It takes a brave man to publish "a radical new translation" of the New Testament Gospels of Mark and John when the market is literally awash with new versions by scholars with every possible aim in mind.

My aim was simply to reconstruct the original texts just before these texts left the hands of both Mark and John and fell into the grasp of numerous editors and copyists.

In fact, I've gone one better with Mark. I've tried to set down the words of Saint Peter, just as he himself told them to Mark,

And with John, I've had to separate the reminiscences of John, the "Beloved Disciple", from the interpolations of his editor, John, the Elder. No mean task, that, but I hope my efforts have not been in vain.

At least I've restored the original Foreword to its original position (and the Afterword as well), and for that I'm sure, every Bible reader will thank me.

John's opening words in his Foreword (or Preface) are so beautiful, I can quote them by heart: "Our theme is Wisdom--Wisdom to live by. For Wisdom is the Word, the Concept, the Substance, the very wholeness of Life!" 

How true! How very, very true! Yet although I've sat through at least 7,000 sermons in my life, I've never heard a preacher say a single word about these wonderful opening lines of John's Gospel!