The Gospel in Brief (Unabridged)

The Gospel in Brief is a 1902 synthesis of the four gospels of the New Testament into one narrative of the life of Jesus by Russian author Leo Tolstoy. The work focuses on Jesus's teachings to his followers, presumably those which Tolstoy found most compelling. The Gospel in Brief is thought by some to be deeply reflective of Tolstoy's own interpretation of Christianity. The account presented in Tolstoy's gospel is also notable in its sharp contrast with the contemporaneous views of the Russian Orthodox Church. Tolstoy was a fierce critic of the Russian Orthodox Church, which went so far as to excommunicate him for his writings on Christianity in 1901.