Lee Harmon's Blog, page 24
June 6, 2014
Book review: Healing Marks
by Bruce Epperly
★★★★
Reverend Bruce Epperly, Ph.D., is more than an ordained minister: he is also a reiki practitioner and teacher. He has published many times, including abook about Process Theology that I found very intriguing.
Healing Marks is far from a fringe journey into alternative medicine; it is an examination of Jesus’ purpose and healing practices, and how they can relate to today’s world. Says Epperly, “I am a firm believer in prayer and Prozac and meditation and medication as instr...
June 5, 2014
Leviticus 26:29, Driven to Cannibalism
And ye shall eat the flesh of your sons, and the flesh of your daughters shall ye eat.
//The book of Leviticus predicts that if Israel isn’t obedient, they will be put under siege, and the famine caused by the war will be so bad they they will be forced to eat their own children. Impossible, you say?
It happened … not once, not twice, but three times.
2 Kings 6 tells about a famine during the time of Elisha, when a woman is robbed of a meal. She appeals to the king:
And the king said unto her, Wh...
June 4, 2014
Revelation 12:5-6, Israel as a Woman in Labor, Part II of II
And she brought forth a man child, who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron: and her child was caught up unto God, and to his throne. And the woman fled into the wilderness, where she hath a place prepared of God, that they should feed her there a thousand two hundred and threescore days.
//Yesterday, I pointed out that Revelation’s “great wonder,” a woman in heaven in labor, surely refers to Israel. I pointed out other scriptural passages which speak of Israel as a woman in labor.
Today,...
June 3, 2014
Revelation 12:1-2, Israel as a Woman in Labor, Part I of II
A great and wondrous sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet and a crown of twelve stars on her head. She was pregnant and cried out in pain as she was about to give birth.
//Who is this mysterious woman in heaven? In my book about Revelation, I wrote the following:
“Some have prematurely compared the woman to Mary, the mother of Jesus. But Mary’s status within the Christian story grew over time; at the writing of Revelation, she played a part nowhere...
June 1, 2014
Book review: Make Christmas Real
by John Henson
★★★★★
I loved it! The first Christmas comes alive in this book, in typical John Henson form. Throw what you thought you knew about Christmas out the window. The really, really humble birth of our Lord is even more precious than the manger scenes portray. The first half of the book is a story to be treasured.
Henson and Ray Vincent then collaborate on a few practical Christmas-themed sermons in the second half of the book. If you find the holiday season to be too commercial and exh...
May 31, 2014
Book Excerpt: John’s Gospel: The Way It Happened
“You misunderstand something, Matthew,” John insisted. “Jesus came not to banish sin by force. ‘He was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth.’”
“A little sheep?” Matthew sneered. “Then what happened to the mighty lamb of your vision? A proud horned ram, sitting with God on the throne, commanding worship? Able to remove the seven seals and open the scroll of war?”
“Yes, that’s what I wrote, but now I want to show you a differ...
May 30, 2014
James 2:14, The Ebionite Church and the Judaizers, Part II of II
What doth it profit, my brethren, though a man say he hath faith, and have not works? can faith save him?
//Yesterday, I introduced an offshoot of Christianity called the Ebionites. This church did not ascribe divinity to Jesus, nor did they believe in the virgin birth. They focused on a works-based mission, like today’s verse from the epistle of James. Who were these guys, really, and how did they stray so far from Christianity?
We have no writings from them–we have only later writings rejecti...
May 29, 2014
Galatians 2:14, The Ebionite Church and the Judaizers, Part I of II
But when I saw that they are not walking uprightly to the truth of the good news, I said to Peter before all, `If thou, being a Jew, in the manner of the nations dost live, and not in the manner of the Jews, how the nations dost thou compel to Judaize? –Young’s Literal Translation
//These are the words of Paul, criticizing Peter for spreading a Judaic version of Christianity.
You may have noticed in my writings, including my books about Revelation and John’s Gospel, that I appear sympathetic to...
May 28, 2014
1 Corinthians 1:10, Division in the Church
Now I beseech you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you; but that ye be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment.
//Many people seem to have the mistaken idea that there was only one form of Christianity in the first century. That the apostles themselves took the words of Jesus straight to the rest of the world, so that there would be no discrepancy.
The common opinion is that diverg...
May 27, 2014
Book review: Convictions: How I Learned What Matters Most
by Marcus J. Borg
★★★★★
Yes, I’ve read most of this before, since I’ve devoured most of Borg’s books. A number of the topics in What Matters Most are rehashes, yet as Borg looks back on his life (he just turned seventy) and recounts the lessons he learned of greatest importance, these topics seem to take on new life. This is a personal, friend-to-friend, heart-felt discussion, as Borg tries to share his wisdom without being an “opinionated old fool.” Marcus, it’s wonderful … thank you.
We live i...
