Syracuse, NY — The Bible contains few verses about the time Jesus and his family spent in Egypt—fleeing King Herod’s murderous vow to kill all baby boys, to the family’s weary journey through the Sinai Desert and eventual return to Palestine (Mat. 2:14).
But what really happened during Jesus’ five years in Egypt? Can evidence separate fact from speculation?What stories of Jesus in Egypt exist?
Jesus: The Lost Years, a documentary film based on the book Jesus in Egypt by New York Times bestselling author Paul Perry, seeks the answers, and unveils fascinating insights to “the greatest story never told.” Intrigued that only three years of Jesus’ life are presented in the Bible, the plight of the Holy Family in Egypt became Perry’s obsession—he interviewed hundreds of people from numerous religions, from document specialists, priests and bishops to Egypt’s Coptic Pope—and began studying ancient texts to piece together the unknown. “There are no stories in the Bible about what Jesus did in the five years he was in Egypt, but I knew that such stories existed in the form of oral tradition and stories written outside of the Bible,” says Perry.
Perry teamed with internationally acclaimed Historical Researcher John de Bry and filmmaker Marlin Darrah to traverse the sands of Egypt, following the Holy Family’s actual route, stretching nearly 1,000 miles, across the burning sands of the Sinai Desert to a dizzying path down the Nile. It was on the Holy Family Trail, a route outlined by Egyptian Coptic Orthodox Christians and officially certified as authentic in 2000, where Perry heard of medical miracles, visions and a powerful faith. “Jesus left a trail of miracles that were followed like bread crumbs by King Herod’s soldiers in hot pursuit,” Perry says.
Pressing Questions Encountered in Jesus: The Lost Years
- How did Egypt change Jesus’ life and influence his teachings?
- Can the ancient oral stories become a part of history?Why or why not?
- Did Jesus perform miracles in Egypt?
- Where did Jesus go while in Egypt?Who did he meet?What did he see?
“This extraordinary film shows sites and tells stories about Jesus which are virtually unknown outside of Egypt,” says Executive Producer Norman A. Miles, who formed Bent Pyramid Productions to create the documentary. “It reveals the secret childhood of Jesus.”
Jesus: The Lost Years combines adventure, spirituality and a modern-day pilgrimage into the ancient and often baffling land of Egypt. Shot in HD and filmed deep in the recesses of ancient church catacombs, the teeming back streets of Cairo, in shrines thronged by worshipers and desert wastes haunted by saints, Perry turns up shards of the past and recounts recent stories passed down through countless generations, to reveal a very different side of Jesus.