Growing up in Queens New York in the 1930s, Thomas Fisher felt he should trust in the "real" world of science and technology rather than in the "unreality" of religion and the Bible, unless he or his brother was in a foxhole. But prior to World War II, church attendance depended primarily on the custom of one's parents. Thomas attended Brooklyn Technical High School, and after two years of service in the Army during the Korean War he chose Radio and Television broadcasting for his career.
After he courted and married Rosemary, a New Jersey girl who had a liberal arts degree at NYU, they settled down in a new home in New Jersey. Soon afterward they had a daughter, Nancy. Thomas found he couldn't improve his earning ability by acquiring an engineering degree, so he studied eight years part-time for a bachelor's degree at Fairleigh Dickinson University, majoring in world history.
In the 1970s the church they attended and their pastor, The Reverend Frederick R. Gutekunst, were caught up in the Charismatic Renewal; that traditional Episcopal church became less obsessed with sin and guilt, and joyfully embraced the doctrine: "we are sinners, we are not perfect but we are saved by the blood of Christ." Fred Gutekunst then led Thomas along with other parish members on two Christian pilgrimages to the Holy Land in 1978 and 1985; that inspired Thomas to do forty years of history research and to write this book.