tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-111981702012-02-17T02:12:14.061-08:00The Camel Translationspostnoreply@blogger.comBlogger471100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198170.post-32052546349806235482009-08-09T11:58:00.001-07:002009-08-09T11:58:48.152-07:00

It is extremely cliché to say, "Love conquers all" or "Anything is possible with love". It is also cliché to say, "What the world needs is love". Of course, there's the ever popular, "God is love". Are these just slogans? Or is there at least an element of truth behind it? The assumption is that love is unconditional, which means that if you feel and express love in its authentic form, then it

postnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198170.post-1426480361105085452007-02-14T10:38:00.000-08:002007-02-14T11:12:58.467-08:00

The word that we know as "Hell" was first used in Joshua 15:8 in the Hebrew Scriptures... "Then the border went up the valley of Ben-hinnom to the slope of the Jebusite on the south (that is, Jerusalem); and the border went up to the top of the mountain which is before the valley of Hinnom to the west, which is at the end of the valley of Rephaim toward the north."The Greek word Gehenna (or

postnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198170.post-60987761570652284232007-02-01T17:08:00.001-08:002007-02-01T17:08:33.672-08:00

The belief that only writers of "scripture" (as selected by a series of Church leaders and councils) who lived 2,000 years ago have exclusive right to inspiration from God and thus to God's truth is amazing. God-inspired writers, theologians and scholars have continued throughout history and fill the world today. If one chooses to accept that the Bible is the inerrant and complete Word of God

postnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198170.post-16894773956746235512007-01-31T17:00:00.000-08:002007-01-31T17:08:48.556-08:00

When Moses heard the voice coming from the burning bush and asked for identification, the answer came back, "I Am Who I Am" or Ehyeh asher ehyeh, which according to Karen Armstong is a "Hebrew idiom to express a deliberate vagueness. In her book, A History of God, Armstrong says that when the Bible uses a phrase like "they went where they went," it means: "I haven't the faintest idea where they

postnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198170.post-82582218810751356502007-01-31T12:08:00.000-08:002007-01-31T12:09:03.309-08:00

The Christian Bible was written by a bunch of guys (maybe an occasional gal taking on a guy's name or be willing to let a guy take credit for her writing). So what's the big deal? Why is this book worshipped as the Word of God? Why is it considered to be more sacred than any other well written book?No doubt there is a tremendous tradition behind the Bible. The book (in one form or another) has

postnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198170.post-1151533566235960652006-06-28T15:24:00.000-07:002007-01-31T12:50:43.743-08:00

I truly think that the place to start is to focus on what creates peace. Thus, before you think, speak, or act, ask your SELF if what you are about to do is going to bring peace. Ask your SELF, for example, if what you are about to do is out of love and compassion, as opposed to being right or seeking fairness (which is based on the ego). Love and compassion always lead to peace, and thus Oneness

postnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198170.post-1150480705531641582006-06-16T10:57:00.000-07:002007-01-31T12:11:13.468-08:00

I tend to feel that the Bible contains the inspired wisdom of the Source of creation. I believe that this collection of writings contains the Way of attaining Oneness with God and all of God's creation... as taught to us by Jesus of Nazareth.But I do not believe that the Bible is the inerrant Word of God. I see this body of work as written and assembled by human beings. I think that much of

postnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198170.post-1150167389100027192006-06-12T19:54:00.000-07:002007-01-31T12:11:31.151-08:00

I have been reading a lot about the "cleansing of the Temple" story and trying to understand its significance, its meaning. Note that in the synoptic Gospels (Mark, Matthew and Luke), the incident comes at the end of Jesus' ministry and is usually considered the action by Jesus that led to his arrest and ultimate execution. In the Gospel of John, the incident comes at the beginning of Jesus'

postnoreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198170.post-1149083499033052192006-05-31T06:49:00.000-07:002007-01-31T12:12:26.349-08:00

I continue to be fascinated with the Church's traditional view of "sin". My view has changed a fair amount, so that I no longer view it as a specific set "do not do's" that somewhow "offend" an egocentric God if you happen to do them.I have just started to read an exceptional book by Eckhart Tolle titled, "A New Earth". Tolle is also the author of the book, "The Power of Now", which I have

postnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198170.post-1141652270694459692006-03-06T05:32:00.000-08:002007-01-31T12:12:53.109-08:00

By Neely TuckerWashington Post Staff WriterSunday, March 5, 2006CHAPEL HILL, N.C. Where does faith reside? In the soul? The mind, the marrow of the bones?In the long hours of the night, the voices of the evangelical preachers on the AM dial seem to know. Believe, they say. Then daylight comes and the listeners' questions fade.Bart Ehrman is a sermon, a parable, but of what? He's a best-selling

postnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198170.post-1140625879716942772006-02-22T08:30:00.000-08:002007-01-31T12:13:07.185-08:00

As I was walking in the snow to work, the thought popped into my head... "Was Jesus a fair man?" I thought of the things he taught and asked of his followers, and frankly I've come to the conclusion (... perhaps belatedly in life) that in fact Jesus was NOT a fair man!Jesus preached justice throughout his ministry. I think he taught us how to implement justice in our world. I think Jesus is the

postnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198170.post-1133312105341187392005-11-29T16:53:00.000-08:002007-01-31T12:13:26.259-08:00

Deborah Caldwell of Beliefnet interviewed Marcus Borg about a year ago regarding his book, "The Heart of Christianity". I found Borg's response to Caldwell's question on salvation to be very interesting because it really shows the relation between salvation and establishing the Kingdom of God in the here and now through mission and peace & justice efforts. I very much like Borg's view

postnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198170.post-1132613367033630272005-11-21T14:47:00.000-08:002007-01-31T17:11:45.448-08:00

I recently attended a forum in which one of themes had to do with the question… Why are our youth not embracing Christianity more than that they are? Why do we not see more people in their teens, 20s and early-30s in church on Sundays? The first thought that came to my mind in response was… “They’re just not buying what the Church is selling.”Frankly, I’m not sure that young people have ever

postnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198170.post-1132350408971336052005-11-18T13:46:00.000-08:002007-01-31T17:11:22.009-08:00

I think one way for Christians to overcome the hesitation of becoming missional and venturing "out there" versus remaining overly content staying within the boundaries of the Church is to move away from the traditional dualistic view of salvation... the sense that it's "us versus them".When we believe that ours is the only way to attain eternal Oneness with God, then we automatically create

postnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198170.post-1132166654737557912005-11-16T10:40:00.000-08:002007-01-31T17:11:56.965-08:00

I just read a recent interview with New Testament scholar John Dominic Crossan, which I found very interesting. However, it is the part that deals with the attaining of peace that mostly caught my attention.Traditionally, movements, governments, individuals seeking to attain peace in the world have tried to do so through winning. Unfortunately, victory usually means that someone wins and someone

postnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198170.post-1131992044295527022005-11-14T10:08:00.000-08:002005-11-14T10:14:04.316-08:00

"I am theway, the truth, and the life. No man comes to the Father but through Me." (John 14:6)This verse has always nagged at me because it is so often used to"prove" that Jesus Christ is the ONLY way to God. Instinctively, I've disagreed with this for as along as I can remember. In my opinion, itis one of the most destructive verses in the Bible because it has beenused throughout the ages to

postnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198170.post-1125086706810247842005-08-26T12:33:00.000-07:002007-01-31T17:12:13.521-08:00

The other day when Pat Robertson made his rather bizarre comments about killing Venezuela's president, I immediately thought... "What would Jesus say?" Rather than debating whether something is biblical or not (which often depends on one's interpretation or personal biases), I usually go the more direct route and try to visualize Jesus of Nazareth either shaking his head forcefully and frowning

postnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198170.post-1125073519713327742005-08-26T09:24:00.000-07:002007-01-31T17:12:27.591-08:00

I am currently reading Matthew Fox's book, Original Blessing. I like Fox's exploration of the myth of "original sin", on which so much of Christian doctrine is based. Probably the guy that has harmed Christianity is Augustine with this invention of his. So much of Christian thinking is based on the inherent sinfulness of humanity, based on original sin, and the need for atonement. This whole

postnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198170.post-1124841816225877312005-08-23T16:55:00.000-07:002007-01-31T17:12:45.630-08:00

A few days ago, I ran across a quote from Pope Benedict that disturbed me. It was taken from a speech he gave before the World Youth Day festival in Cologne, Germany. The Pope acknowledged growing frustration and dissatisfaction with the institution of the Church, and the phenomenon of a growing interest in "religion". His problem is that the religion people are increasingly turning to has little

postnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198170.post-1124471911932498462005-08-19T10:17:00.000-07:002007-01-31T17:13:06.747-08:00

There's no question that most of what I know about Jesus originates in the Bible, although I've read much about him within the noncanonical Scriptures as well. Of course, much of what I "sense" is true about Jesus also comes from my observations, discussions, meditations, and readings of works by dozens of theologians and scholars. The totality of this is the core of my "Faith".I have no problem

postnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198170.post-1124471420008483572005-08-19T10:07:00.000-07:002007-01-31T17:14:00.066-08:00

There are choices to be made with regard to Scripture and with regard to one's life. With regard to Scripture, there are many choices to be made because "in my view" it is inconsistent and just plain misguided (... okay okay, wrong) in so many cases. I do not adhere to the concept of Bible inerrancy. One can use Scripture to support any cause. Unfortunately, this has been the case throughout

postnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198170.post-1124471062748536082005-08-19T10:01:00.000-07:002007-01-31T17:13:41.214-08:00

I think we as human beings should be able to disagree on issues without turning against each other. Obviously, this has usually not been the case throughout human history, which is why there continue to be wars and conflicts... and which is why religious institutions/communities continue to divide and go their separate ways.One would think that institutions whose primary focus is supposed to be

postnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198170.post-1124409070357623792005-08-18T16:49:00.000-07:002005-08-25T11:10:46.050-07:00

I am still relatively new to the missions field, and thus I am still trying to grasp why it is that mission is so important... "Why are we engaged in this activity?"I for one am not in it to convert anyone to Christianity. That's just not my thing. Besides, the people we help through our mission work are already Episcopalians. We'd be preaching to the choir. No sense in that.I certainly

postnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198170.post-1119829010365128362005-06-26T16:35:00.000-07:002005-06-26T19:05:06.016-07:00

Leviticus (lĬvĬt´ekes) is the third book of the Hebrew Scriptures. It is believed to have been written by Moses betwee 1440 and 1400 BC, but this authorship continues to be a source of debate between liberal and conservative scholars. Note that in the 27 chapters of Leviticus, there are 56 references to Moses' authorship (e.g., 1:1; 4:1; 6:1, 24; 8:1). Leviticus probably reached its final

postnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198170.post-1119103076379702782005-06-18T06:51:00.000-07:002005-06-18T09:30:30.616-07:00

There is a 1st century tombstone in Bingerbrück, Germany for a Roman centurion named Tiberius Julius Abdes Pantera (Pantera being the Latin form of Pantheras; Abdes means "Servant of Isis".), who served in the 1st cohort of archers for 40 years during the beginning of the Roman Empire's Imperial Period (25 BC - 197 AD). Tiberius Julius died when he was 62 years old.Tiberius Julius was from Sidon

postnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198170.post-1118159181098145552005-06-07T08:39:00.000-07:002007-01-31T17:14:16.692-08:00

I no longer call myself a Catholic. That was not as hard as I thought it would be.I have little trouble referring to myself as an Episcopalian. But the thing is that that really is not my "culture". I am not tied to the Episcopal Church... although I have a found a comfortable home at one of its churches. It is the particular Episcopal community to which I belong that makes sense to me. So I'll

postnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198170.post-1118083356632354732005-06-06T11:29:00.000-07:002005-06-06T13:19:53.806-07:00

It is a shame that Augustine of Hippo (354-430 AD) won out over Pelagius (354-418 AD), also known as Morien. Christianity would have turned out differently (... and better, in my view) had the Briton won out over the north African.Mr. Augustine taught that humankind sinful by nature, and that without the grace of the Creator that sinfulness could only earn one eternal damnation. It is a totally

postnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198170.post-1114611412033352332005-04-27T07:15:00.000-07:002007-01-31T17:14:50.976-08:00

"Then God said, 'Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.' So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them." (Genesis 1:26-27) When I read these verses, the two words

postnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198170.post-1112371420263261492005-04-01T08:03:00.000-08:002007-01-31T17:21:07.788-08:00

What is it that they say... "Hindsight is 20/20"?Throughout the New Testament, the writers seek to give authority to their work by providing specific references from the Old Testament (the Hebrew Scriptures) that support the stories they've told. By connecting events described within the Gospels or Epistles to prophecies from books in the Old Testament and showing how these prophecies were

postnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198170.post-1112217055866633872005-03-30T13:10:00.000-08:002007-01-31T17:19:12.536-08:00

Jesus had at least four brothers and two sisters. The names of the brothers are James, Joses (or Joseph), Jude (or Juda, Judas), and Simon). They can be found in the Gospels of Matthew and Mark."Is not this the carpenter's son? is not his mother called Mary? and his brethren, James, and Joses, and Simon, and Judas? And his sisters, are they not all with us? Whence then hath this man all these

postnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198170.post-1112205715641756872005-03-30T09:47:00.000-08:002007-01-31T17:20:36.624-08:00

From about 80 CE, Christianity has taught that Jesus was conceived by his mother, Mary, when she was still a virgin. This was believed to have happened through the power of the Holy Spirit, without an act of sexual intercourse. This phenomenon is known as the "virgin birth", although "virgin conception" would be more accurate.This is the way it was supposed to have happened... At the critical

postnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198170.post-1112034951919045312005-03-28T10:34:00.000-08:002005-03-28T11:10:00.206-08:00

The Hebrew word for "justification" is sadeq, which means "to do justice, vindicate, acquit, prove right". Another Hebrew word, zakah, also means justification, but in the sense of "to be clear, clean or pure".Justification seems to be the focus of Pauline doctrine. Justification by atonement was the preferred theology of the Catholic Church. During the Reformation, the Protestants rejected

postnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198170.post-1112034210386706352005-03-28T10:23:00.000-08:002005-03-28T10:31:20.823-08:00

I must admit that I have not been a fan of Paul. However, I am willing to give him a more focused evaluation, particularly since I've learned recently that there seem to be different Pauls, depending on which epistle you read and how you choose to interpret his words (... not to mention which translation of the scriptures you have at hand).One of the insights I received from Jerome

postnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198170.post-1111783344193866472005-03-25T12:34:00.000-08:002007-01-31T17:20:17.375-08:00

If someone were to have asked me this week what were Jesus' final words, I would've replied... "Well, everybody knows that... 'It's Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani from Matthew 27:46!' or My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" I practiced those Aramaic words over and over again so I wouldn't get all tongue-tied and mess up in front of everybody at the 9 am service last Sunday.While indeed those

postnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198170.post-1111775605353961122005-03-25T10:27:00.000-08:002007-01-31T17:19:57.080-08:00

The primary source of Biblical authority for the condemnation of homosexuality is in the Old Testament's Book of Leviticus 18:22."You shall not lie with a man as with a woman; it is abomination."The next verse prescribes death as the punishment for violation of the Law.This is the single unambiguous condemnation of homosexuality in the Bible. Other claimed references are inferential or

postnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198170.post-1111446638907156702005-03-21T15:02:00.000-08:002005-03-21T15:25:00.130-08:00

Barabbas (Aramaic: Bar-abbâ, "son of the father") was the name of insurrectionary murderer whom Pontius Pilate freed at the end of the Passover feast in Jerusalem. (Matthew 27:16, Mark 15:7, Luke 23:18-19, and John 18:40).Barabbas was most likely a member of the Sicarii, a military Jewish group that sought to overthrow the Roman occupation.It is interesting to note that some early texts of the

postnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198170.post-1111170218255152502005-03-18T10:17:00.000-08:002007-01-31T17:19:44.333-08:00

Right before he died, Jesus, after having been on the cross for about nine hours, is reported to have cried out with a loud voice, saying (in Aramaic), "Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani!" (Matthew 27:46)The translation of Jesus' final words in the Gospel of Matthew is... "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?"The Gospel of Matthew's account is similar to the one found in the Gospel of Mark 15:34...

postnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198170.post-1110398656876808502005-03-09T11:53:00.000-08:002007-01-31T17:19:27.961-08:00

A total of 9 or 10 guys are credited with writing the New Testament. These include the apostles John, Levi Matthew, Paul and Peter. There was James, who was the brother (or half-brother) of Jesus.There was Luke, who is said to have been Paul's physician. There was Timothy, an associate of Paul. There was John Mark, an associate of Peter.There was Jude, who identified himself as the brother of

postnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198170.post-1110234050437570452005-03-07T14:18:00.000-08:002007-01-31T17:18:41.110-08:00

There are four canonical Gospels... The Gospel of Mark, Gospel of Matthew, Gospel of Luke and Gospel of John, written during 70 to 100 CE. I have always taken it for granted that these books were written by individiuals named Mark, Matthew, Luke and John. Why would I ever think otherwise? Many people agree with my assumption, including many scholars and theologians.John A. Tvedtness, resident

postnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198170.post-1110220856821818352005-03-07T10:34:00.000-08:002005-03-07T11:20:42.566-08:00

Paul of Tarsus was the self-proclaimed "13th Apostle". He alone wrote nearly half of the New Testament. His work consists of 13 letters (or "epistles") to various Christian communities during the middle part of the 1st century.The epistles are arranged into three parts in the New Testament canon.The first part consists of nine epistles to seven church congregations: 1. Romans; 2. First

postnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198170.post-1110058461788459752005-03-05T13:34:00.000-08:002007-01-31T17:18:58.284-08:00

The doctrine of Original Sin in Christianity is the cornerstone of a number of central beliefs, including the godship of Jesus and the linkage between the crucifixion and salvation.Amazingly, the core belief of Christianity, which is that Jesus died as a sacrifice for our sinful nature and was resurrected to show that through his blood the sin of Adam (Original Sin) has been forgiven by God,

postnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198170.post-1109992451172521312005-03-04T18:59:00.000-08:002007-01-31T17:18:02.745-08:00

I am a follower of Jesus of Nazareth not because he died, but because of how he lived and because of what he taught. The teachings of Jesus are powerful and revolutionary. It is hard to follow them, and it is precisely this difficulty that makes us humans want to interpret Jesus in ways that make him more palatable, easier to follow.We humans are extremely creative. We can take any text,

postnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198170.post-1109967009566829122005-03-04T12:09:00.000-08:002007-01-31T17:18:21.408-08:00

Isn't it amazing that the guy credited with creating the first Bible was considered a heretic and expelled by the early Christian Church of Rome?The first effort to assemble a New Testament canon was undertaken by Marcion (150 CE) of Sinope, Pontus (in Asia Minor). Marcion was the son of Philologus, who was the Christian bishop of Sinope.Marcion's canon consisted of the Gospel of Luke and 10

postnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198170.post-1109864847361656232005-03-03T07:37:00.000-08:002007-01-31T17:16:37.861-08:00

If you asked the question, "Who created the Bible?"... you would probably get a variety of answers. Some would say God created the Bible. Some would attribute the Bible to the writers of the scriptures. There is an element of truth to both responses.However, the most accurate answer is... "Those individuals who decided what text goes in and what text stays out. Those who determined what would

postnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198170.post-1109827635284768652005-03-02T20:33:00.000-08:002005-03-04T09:23:08.256-08:00

"I am the way, the truth, and the life. No man comes to the Father but through Me." (John 14:6)This is one of the most popular Jesus quotes in the Bible. It is this text that is used by some to "prove" that it is only through Jesus Christ that one can be saved and make it to heaven.The implication is that all "other ways" are wrong.You can argue forever about the meaning of these word that have

postnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198170.post-1109821358798064772005-03-02T19:12:00.000-08:002007-01-31T17:16:17.377-08:00

The belief that the Bible is consistent and inerrant is based on the belief that it is the Word of God. "If it is God's Word, then it must be consistent and inerrant". The logic would make sense if, in fact, the Creator of the Universe actually wrote the Bible and hand delivered to us. This did not happen. Rather, the Bible was written by human beings, who may or may not have been divinely

postnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198170.post-1109819458084881692005-03-02T19:10:00.000-08:002007-01-31T17:15:33.093-08:00

"It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God" (Matthew 19:24).This is a well-known Jesus saying. It has to do with the potential that wealth has for corrupting and the difficulty of attaining oneness with God when someone places too much value on earthly possessions.It is also fascinating example of Biblical mistranslation. If you

postnoreply@blogger.com0