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Shortly after Elaine Pagels' two-and-half-year-old son was diagnosed with a rare lung disease, the religion professor found herself drawn to a Christian church again for the first time in many years. In Beyond Belief: The Secret Gospel of Thomas Pagels, best know for her National Book Award-winning The Gnostic Gospels, wrestles with her own faith as she struggles to understand when--and why--Christianity became associated almost exclusively with the ideas codified in the fourth-century Nicene Creed and in the canonical texts of the New Testament. In her exploration, she uncovers the richness and diversity of Christian philosophy that has only become available since the discovery of the Nag Hammadi texts.
At the center of Beyond Belief is what Pagels identifies as a textual battle between The Gospel of Thomas (rediscovered in Egypt in 1945) and The Gospel of John. While these gospels have many superficial similarities, Pagels demonstrates that John, unlike Thomas, declares that Jesus is equivalent to "God the Father" as identified in the Old Testament. Thomas, in contrast, shares with other supposed secret teachings a belief that Jesus is not God but, rather, is a teacher who seeks to uncover the divine light in all human beings. Pagels then shows how the Gospel of John was used by Bishop Irenaeus of Lyon and others to define orthodoxy during the second and third centuries. The secret teachings were literally driven underground, disappearing until the Twentieth Century. As Pagels argues this process "not only impoverished the churches that remained but also impoverished those [Irenaeus] expelled."
Beyond Belief offers a profound framework with which to examine Christian history and contemporary Christian faith, and Pagels renders her scholarship in a highly readable narrative. The one deficiency in Pagels' examination of Thomas, if there is one, is that she never fully returns in the end to her own struggles with religion that so poignantly open the book. How has the mysticism of the Gnostic Gospels affected her? While she hints that she and others have found new pathways to faith through Thomas, the impact of Pagels' work on contemporary Christianity may not be understood for years to come. --Patrick O'Kelley
Book Description
Special edition including the complete text of the Gospel of Thomas
Elaine Pagels, one of the world’s most important writers and thinkers on religion and history, and winner of the National Book Award for her groundbreaking work The Gnostic Gospels, now reflects on what matters most about spiritual and religious exploration in the twenty-first century. This bold new book explores how Christianity began by tracing its earliest texts, including the secret Gospel of Thomas, rediscovered in Egypt in 1945.
When her infant son was diagnosed with fatal pulmonary hypertension, Elaine Pagels’s spiritual and intellectual quest took on a new urgency, leading her to explore historical and archeological sources and to investigate what Jesus and his teachings meant to his followers before the invention of doctrine–and before the invention of Christianity as we know it.
The astonishing discovery of the Gospel of Thomas, along with more than fifty other early Christian texts unknown since antiquity, offers startling clues. Pagels compares such sources as Thomas’s gospel (which claims to give Jesus’ secret teaching, and finds its closest affinities with kabbalah) with the canonic texts to show how Christian leaders chose to include some gospels and exclude others from the collection we have come to know as the New Testament. To stabilize the emerging Christian church in times of devastating persecution, the church fathers constructed the canon, creed, and hierarchy–and, in the process, suppressed many of its spiritual resources.
Drawing on new scholarship–her own, and that of an international group of scholars–that has come to light since the publication in 1979 of The Gnostic Gospels, Pagels shows that what matters about Christianity involves much more than any one set of beliefs. Traditions embodied in Judaism and Christianity can powerfully affect us in heart, mind, and spirit, inspire visions of a new society based on practicing justice and love, even heal and transform us.
Provocative, beautifully written, and moving, Beyond Belief, the most personal of Pagels’s books to date, shows how “the impulse to seek God overflows the narrow banks of a single tradition.” Pagels writes, “What I have come to love in the wealth and diversity of our religious traditions–and the communities that sustain them–is that they offer the testimony of innumerable people to spiritual discovery, encouraging us, in Jesus’ words, to ‘seek, and you shall find.’”
Customer Reviews:
She writes convincing material, but.......2007-08-27
WOW! She really writes convincing material and writes it well! She made me scared to study Gnostic writings, I was afraid they'd be right and I'd have to rework my faith of almost 40 years. As another reviewer pointed out, she does not really explore the Gospel of Thomas in this book...instead she trashes the Gospel of John. I found this curious. If the Gnostic writings are so great, then let's study them! But I have come to understand that the modern Gnostic movement is not about believing in Gnosticism...it is about NOT believing in the books of the New Testament. For after reading her book, I went on a journey of studying Gnostic writings as well as how the New Testament Canon was formed. Some of the major themes that are ascribed to Gnosticism by Pagels and others today are simply incorrect. The Gnostics did not believe in tolerance, they were a 'holier than thou' elistest group. And they also believed that salvation was only for men (Jesus is quoted as saying that he would turn Mary into a man so she would reach her spiritual path). The Gnostics were also strongly antisemitic. But Pagels doesn't share this information. And all this was the opposite in the teachings and actions of the apostles and early church, who were open,tolerant, and believed all were equal in Christ-including women.
However, in accepting books as being holy and to be used for doctrine, the early church followed some basic rules. The book had to be written by an apostle or someone who had been with an apostle, and the book had to agree with the teachings the apostles had given. Paul's letters are the earliest documents, and the doctrines he taught are the basis of Christianity, and these doctrines agree with writings of the other apostles. These works were written while people who knew the apostles were still alive. The Gnostics writings came later and were recognized as forgeries. They completely disagreed with the earlier teachings of the apostles: they were not like a different denomination of Christianity, they were a different religion altogether. The early church was tolerant, except when it came to untruth, and therefore the early church leaders tried to expose the hoax of Gnosticism. George Washington worked to prove the letters which were supposedly from him as a spy to the English govenment were forged letters. He did not do this for power or in order to suppress some secret. He did it because the letters were forgeries. In the same way the early church denounced the writings of the Gnostics: they did so because the writings were forgeries.
But I as said at the beginning, Pagels writes very well and very convincingly. I'm glad I read the book, for it sparked an indepth study of the early church which I am still pursuing.
Well written.......2007-07-19
I found this book well written and compelling , but not over the top. A good work to introduce and explain the relevance and works discovered known as the Gospel of Thomas.
An Argument for Gnosticism.......2007-04-27
Raised within the confines of fundamentalist religion, we found that asking Biblical questions could be extremely hazardous to our religious existence. After being excommunicated for numerous such affronts to the sanctity of the written word, we are especially appreciative of Ms. Pagels and her untiring efforts to shed light on so many of the lesser known aspects of early Christianity. Some readers have expressed their disappointment, feeling the book devotes too much attention to the formation of orthodoxy, the evolution of the Gospel of John and the suppression of many books labeled Gnostic. But, as pointed out by Pagels, these events still play a role in our cultural history and untangling these, ". . .complex strands have practical consequences as well as intellectual ones." We may not be aware of the cultural wallpaper we have assimilated until it is pointed out that it is indeed wallpaper, and it may be in need of refurbishing. As noted in the book, "orthodoxy tends to distrust our capacity to make such discriminations and insists on making them for us." It would be difficult to fully appreciate the radical differences contained in the Gospel of Thomas if we did not examine the thought processes involved in suppressing it.
As Pagels develops her arguments, she demonstrates how orthodoxy created an ever widening chasm that placed God, His only-begotten son and the church fathers on one side, and the congregation of sinners on the other. The increased value bestowed on Jesus by the church, equaled the speedy demotion of a flock whose only hope lay in their unquestioning belief in him. The writer of the Gospel of Thomas had the effrontery to suggest that Jesus' real message lay in his knowledge that all men, including him, were one with God. And, "Thomas' Jesus directs each disciple to discover the light within" through gnosis, an experiential knowing gained through a connection with higher consciousness. Shockingly, this message took church fathers out of the loop by suggesting that each person had an equal opportunity to save themselves. It is not surprising then that heresy was originally defined as "the act of choice!"
Orthodoxy attempted to control the people through selective information and the lack of choice. We, on the other hand, can easily miss the gifts offered by the Gospel of Thomas because we are inundated with information and choke on the multitude of choices offered to us on a daily basis. If we dismiss the Gospel of Thomas as another curiosity, we will miss the invitation Thomas' Jesus extends," If you bring forth what is within you, what you bring forth will save you." Books such as Pagels' "Beyond Belief" and Ehrman's "Misquoting Jesus" offer proof that there is little reason to take a literalist view of the Bible. This does not mean that Jesus' teachings are inaccessible. It does mean that we must each choose whether we will be one who accepts what is found outside us, or one who searches for the answers within. Pagels' book offers a great platform for exploration.
Lee & Steven Hager are the authors of Quantum Prodigal Son: Revisiting Jesus' Parable of the Prodigal Son from the Perspective of Quantum Mechanics
Orthodoxy vs. Gnosticism.......2007-03-19
My primary interest in reading this book was to better understand and appreciate the evolution of Christian thought and belief in the early church. On this score, Elaine Pagels definitely does not disappoint.
I found her choice of beginning this work with an intensely personal description of the spiritual journey she faced during her young son's fatal illness to be surprising at first, but through her book I came to understand why she introduced this work in such a way: all spiritual journeys are intensely personal. The authors of the "Secret Gospel of Thomas", the Gospel of John, and the later Church Fathers who built upon these writings, all faced challenging times. In seeking answers to the challenges they faced, they engaged in their own personal spiritual journeys, which resulted in their recording what they learned and believed in the texts that have been passed down to us.
Elaine Pagels engages us in the challenges and spiritual journeys of these early Christian writers, both known (mostly proponents of what became the roots of Christianity as we know it today); and unknown (mostly the authors of the Gnostic books found in the Nag Hammadi library, such as the Gospel of Thomas; and other works).
The Gnostic authors and their adherents found themselves marginalized if not actively persecuted as the well-organized and controlled universal Church took hold in the ancient world. Gnosticism is an intensely personal form of faith, where one seeks to find Spiritual truth for oneself instead of unquestioningly adopting an external authority's view.
Dr. Pagels referees for us the centuries-long debate between early Christian Fathers and their Gnostic counterparts - helping us see how the debate between control of doctrine vs. freedom of exploration changed and grew over time. She seeks to help us understand the complexities of the central question for us: What is truth, and what is lies? In making our spiritual journeys, how can we tell them apart? How do we find that truth for ourselves without falling into error?
The roots of that debate reach far back into Jewish history: centuries before Jesus started teaching. Therefore, Dr. Pagels knows she cannot answer the question. Instead, she seeks to help us understand the issues and the context within which we, as Christians, make our own journeys in search of spiritual truth.
The great authors of Orthodoxy - Tertullian, Athanaeus and Irenaeus, among others, all saw that allowing too much freedom of exploration often led to spiritual error and excess. On the other hand, they appreciated the importance of needing to explore one's own faith for oneself, and did not want to create a rigid and inflexible Christian faith that could not tolerate such journeys of faith. They understood that a balance between the two extremes must be found.
Ultimately, and as Dr. Pagels says in her book, it is not right, or wise, to accept spiritual authority without question, or to seek to eliminate the rich spiritual diversity found throughout the Christian world. Diversity brings strength and vitality, but too much diversity brings conflict and destruction. There is no simple answer to the question: we must each find an answer for ourselves.
Dr. Pagels' work is easy to read, well researched, well footnoted, and thought provoking. While I highly recommend this book, I would have to agree with what others here have said: that the title is misleading. This book focuses more on the evolution of orthodox Christianity than it does on the Gnostic tradition, or on the Gospel of Thomas itself. I give it a four star recommendation.
The Gospel of St John is more accurate.......2007-02-09
If you want a review of the gospel of Thomas look to the references cited in this book. The end notes are an excellent source of research in early Christian texts. This book is about the gospel of St John, how the politics of the time shaped what was written and how the work of Origen and the Emperor Constantine decided what gospels would constitute the New Testament. The writing is uneven or perhaps it needed tighter editing to have the work flow in a more even pace.
This mis-naming and awkward, read as uneven, pace seems to be characteristic of Pagels, her origin of Satan had similar problems. What she clearly possesses is the desire to ferret out the details and offer a plausible explanation.
Book Description
Millions of readers have turned to Elaine Pagels for her clear and insightful books about the Gnostic Gospels—the teachings of Jesus that have been lost for centuries. Sounds True is proud to present the first widely available audio recording of this extraordinary scholar as she explores the text that has changed the way many of us think about the message of Christ: The Gospel of Thomas. The stunning archaeological discovery of these lost scriptures of early Christianity in 1945 has revealed exciting new dimensions to the wisdom passed on from Jesus to his disciples. In her analysis of this revived gospel, Dr. Pagels reveals that Thomas was not a "doubter" of Christ—rather, his thoughtful inquiries reflected and brought out the deepest truths that Jesus had to offer. Thomas' account depicts a Jesus who taught us that the "Kingdom of Heaven" is not a separate realm, but a state of divinity that we all can reach. He is even called the "twin" of Jesus—a metaphor for the possibility that all of us can achieve the same state of divine grace embodied by Jesus. Elaine Pagels has riveted readers and audiences everywhere with her clear and provocative explorations of the testaments of early Christianity. The Gospel of Thomas gives listeners a first opportunity to join her in charting "a wider horizon" of Christian spirituality.
Customer Reviews:
Thomas vs John.......2006-11-06
The CD is absolutely worth listening to! The discoveries and points of view given by E. Pagels are fascinating. Nevertheless, my feeling is that both THOMAS and JOHN can be both read as gnostic texts, without them being antagonistic. In fact, I really enjoy THOMAS and JOHN and I read them both as beautiful gnostic creations, but I know they can have been manipulated to serve egoistic purposes. JOHN is quite anti-semitic in form, if read with very catholic eyes, but at the same time it is very gnostic and dualistic in essence if read with a higher and more spiritual level of understanding. Anyway, I believe we have to read those texts with a MENTAL and HERMENEUTICAL FILTER, and with caution. After applying the filter with our minds and hearts, it is a delight to read those seemingly antagonistic texts as THOMAS and JOHN.
Divine Light.......2006-09-13
Jesus said, "I am the light that is over all things. I am all: From me all has come forth, and to me all has reached. Split a piece of wood; I am there. Lift up the stone, and you will find me there." (as recorded on page 14)
Dr. Elaine Pagels presents an intriguing introduction for the Gospel of Thomas. She is the best-selling author of The Gnostic Gospels. Do these new teachings shed new light on the words of Christ from the Bible? An English translation is included in an 18-page supplement along with two CDs.
In the first CD, Elaine Pagels introduces us to:
The History of Early Christianity
The Gospel of Thomas
The Secret Words of Jesus
The Good News: Knowing Who You Are
Jesus as the Only Son of God
Who Was Thomas?
Question and Answer Session
Elaine Pagel's Personal and Spiritual Journey
On the second CD, she presents ideas about the possible Eastern influences of the Gospel of Thomas, the different levels of Jesus' teachings and how we date the Scriptures. Audience participation becomes intriguing when they answer some of the questions.
This CD set sheds an especially interesting light on the topic of Jesus as the original light. Is the light in Genesis an ordinary light? This is explained as the divine light or source of divine energy.
The irony of listening to this CD set is that you may come away with less doubts and more enlightenment. Dr. Elaine Pagels presents a topic that not only expands our knowledge about Jesus Christ, it also creates a greater curiosity and understanding about the Kingdom of Heaven. I now understand the Kingdom of Heaven as an invisible dimension, where we experience an enlightened state of kindness and peace when we follow the commandments of Christ.
~The Rebecca Review
Dr. Pagels is great, as usual.......2006-09-01
Dr. Pagels addresses an audience, discussing her view of the Gospel of Thomas, one of the earliest non-canonical gospels. Thomas is not a story of Jesus, rather it is a collection of sayings atttributed to him. Several are familiar and/or similar to sayings in the canonical gospels, while others are not. Many are a bit puzzling, for even Dr. Pagels. However, they are truly powerful upon reading them, and accompanying the CD is a compilation of Thomas, which really needs to be read prior to listening to the CD. Mark the ones that are puzzling to you and you will find them probably addressed on the CD! She also makes some interesting contrasts between the Gospel of John and Thomas, indicating perhaps an early rivalry in spiritual points of view. There is a concern I have regarding the quality of a portion of the second CD. It is very hard to hear the questions from the audience, and it sounds extremely "tinny" when someone in the audience is speaking. It is rather distracting and not of the quality that other Sounds True recordings are. The previous reviewer must not have listened to all the second CD, so just be aware of this should you purchase. You will love Dr. Pagels' voice and the way she interacts with her audience. Enjoy!
An informative perspective with respect to the attributes and teachings of Jesus Christ.......2006-07-04
The audio-book edition of The Gospel Of Thomas: New Perspectives On Jesus' Message as written and read by Elaine Pagels (Professor of Religion, Princeton University, New Jersey) offers an informed and informative perspective with respect to the attributes and teachings of Jesus Christ as presented through the interpretive ideals of Apostle Thomas as revealed in his apocryphal gospel. Deftly covering a vast array of theological inquiries and historical scholarship relevant to the its original rejection from the approved canon of scriptures that were to become the New Testament, The Gospel Of Thomas offers readers an insightful grasp of Thomas' writings including his concept of "the light within us all", the influence of Eastern thought in the teachings of Jesus, who Mary Magdalene was in the Gospel attributed to the apostle Thomas, the gnostic scriptures interpretation, and perspectives into some of the most puzzling Christian koans from both the canonical and gnostic texts. This flawlessly recorded 2 CD audiobook edition of The Gospel Of Thomas includes an 18-page study guide, has a running time of 1 2/4 hours, and is very strongly recommended for anyone with an interest in gnostic literature in general, and the Gospel of Thomas in particular.
Book Description
Christians do not trust freedom. As author Steve Brown explains in this brave new book, they prefer the security of rules and self-imposed boundaries, which they tend to inflict on other Christians. Brown asserts that real freedom means the freedom to be wrong as well as right. Christianity often calls us to live beyond the boundaries, bolstered by the assurance that we cannot fall beyond God's love. Freedom is dangerous, but the alternative is worse -- boxing ourselves up where we cannot celebrate our unique gifts and express our joy in Christ. Each of the book's eleven chapters explores a common pharisaic, freedom-stifling tendency, then opens the door to the fresh air of a remedial liberty. A reader's delight, A Scandalous Freedom sometimes shocks with challenges to prevailing wisdom, but it follows up with compelling validations of our need to celebrate real, unstinted freedom in Christ.
Customer Reviews:
A Scandalous Freemdom.......2007-09-07
I enjoyed the book vey much, I learned alot about the Gospel.
I now look at life and peopole in a better way.
You will love this book!.......2007-08-21
Steve Brown is quite an amazing author of a great deal of publications. He is also a pastor who teaches on radio broadcasts (which I listen to found at his website) and a Bible teacher at a reformed seminary.
What makes this book so unique and such a worthwhile read for every Christian is really the depth of Brown's understanding of what the Bible actually teaches. I believe the main point of this book is that if you are a Christian, God is no longer angry with you. It's a fundamental truth of Christianity that is too good to be true for many Christians. But it is true, and Steve will help you to see this truth as it is presented in the Bible.
What else is really great about this pastor is the sharp wit and a complete honesty that is oftentimes surprising that's used to convey each and every message given whether on a broadcast, in an article, or in a book, etc.
Steve Brown has helped many people break free from the chains of legalistic religion, which instead of honoring God, honors man's attempts to please God. Legalism is often in the form of a blind religion and is a breeding ground for false teaching and false teachers who slip in unnoticed, etc. Steve will help you to see clearly that Christianity is all about Jesus, who was resurrected from this earth so that our heart and minds would be on "things above, not on earthly things" (Colossians 3:2).
"A Scandalous Freedom" is just such an amazing read, chock full of wisdom and insight from a masterful teacher of the Bible! Here is just one example of the many of Steve's insights and his style of presentation (which is often very humorous): "The only people who get better are people who know that, if they never get better, God will love them anyway. The corollary to that principle is this: God will not only love you if you don't get better; he will teach you that getting better isn't the issue. His love is the issue. Out of the love, kindness, and presence of God, you will find yourself getting better" (p. 69). So if you want the honest truth from a teacher who has been gifted by God, then you ought to read this book and can also visit his website for the radio broadcast series.
Scandalous alright.......2007-08-04
The beginning of the book goes in the right direction - towards freedom (Christians really aren't free), and I was smiling as I read it. Then my smile turned to concern, and a definite frown by the time I got to the end. He sets you free, then very deftly wraps the chains back around you - tighter than before - it becomes the same old fundamentalist rhetoric. Once a fundamentalist, always a fundamentalist. A very disappointing read. Book went in the trash - didn't have it in me to give it away.
A Must-Read!.......2007-05-13
I was handed a copy of Steve Brown's A Scandalous Freedom by a colleague during a conference. I already had a couple books I planned on reading that week. My colleague mentioned that I could skim it if I preferred. I read one page, and realized that this was far more important than anything I was reading at the time. The whole book was finished in three days.
What made this such fascinating reading? A hint can be found in the subtitle of the book: "The Radical Nature of the Gospel".
You see, Brown's basic premise is that the Grace of God sets us free. Of course all orthodox Christians would agree with that. Where many will find Brown's book hard to swallow (if not downright disturbing) is that he defines freedom as...well...freedom. Not freedom from, nor freedom to...simply freedom.
Now before we get into calls of heresy, Brown is no antinomian. Perhaps one of his most vivid illustrations in a book full of vivid illustrations is his description of the Law of God as a map to guide us through a minefield. He is just tired (as am I) of God's people being burdened by man-made laws. The following quote from the book puts it quite succinctly:
"I fear too often the church has become an organization of guilty people with a guilty preacher standing in the pulpit, telling guilty people that they should feel guiltier"
I'm afraid that this small review is not doing Brown (a professor at Reformed Theological Seminary) justice. I just know that, upon reading this book, I came away with a much greater desire to really know Jesus. Perhaps people in ministry are expected to have that base covered, but I confess readily that I do not.
Those of you who have followed these reviews know that when I believe a book is less than quality, I say so. Take that into account, then, when I say YOU NEED TO READ THIS BOOK. I am not saying I agree with the author on everything (after all, nobody has achieved the level of spirituality it takes to totally agree with me!). I am saying your walk with God will be greatly benefited by it.
NOT GUILTY!!!!!.......2007-04-28
Because of Christ, we are declared "not guilty!" The freedom that is in Christ is so amazing and actually quite hard to believe. This book allowed me to release years of guilt and begin a fresh, new and exciting relationship with God. I couldn't put the book down. It is a "must read!"
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CCEL Classics CD: works by Saint Augustine, John Calvin, John Donne, Julian of Norwich, Brother Lawrence, Martin Luther, Saint Teresa of Avila, Thomas Aquinas, Thomas a Kempis, John Wesley, and more!
Dr. W. Harry Plantinga
Manufacturer: Christian Classics Ethereal Library
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: CD-ROM
 Mariology
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ASIN: 1931848076
Release Date: 2006-12-15 |
Product Description
The most important spiritual writings of Christian history are available on this Classics CD by the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (CCEL) at Calvin College. It contains 118 Christian classics, including three versions of the Bible, several commentaries, Bible dictionaries, readings, spiritual guides, sermons, poems and journals -- all in a convenient, searchable form. Books are available in HTML and PDF formats. The easy-to-use CCEL Desktop software powering the CD enables users to browse and print books and install additional books from the Web. The top-of-class search engine can search for words or phrases in books, in authors works or in the whole library. In addition, it can search for dictionary definitions of words and commentary or references to scripture passages. The interface is a Web browser. The CD is compatible with Windows 2000+, Macintosh 10.3+, and most Linux versions.
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- Cognitive disorientation
- Horsley Did It Better
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The Social Gospel of Jesus
Bruce, J Malina
Manufacturer: Augsburg Fortress Publishers
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Binding: Paperback
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ASIN: 0800632478 |
Customer Reviews:
Cognitive disorientation.......2004-05-28
Malina's first premise is this: language and other forms of behavior derive their meaning from social systems. Therefore, to understand Jesus' words and actions, we must understand the social setting in which he lived. The only way we can apply Jesus' message to the present day is if we understand what it meant back then. Otherwise, our readings of the Gospels will be anachronistic and ethnocentric. Moreover, this is a conceptually difficult task for us, since ours is a fundamentally different social world than the New Testament setting.
Each chapter is similar in this respect: Malina spends a majority of the time explaining some concept from the social sciences, and then at the end of the chapter, he applies that concept to the biblical issue at hand. The application is usually evident in advance.
The book begins with a discussion of social institutions. One of the main things that distinguishes different societies is how the four major social institutions (politics, religion, economics, kinship) interrelate. In modern-day America, all four institutions are considered freestanding, i.e., they are each meaningful without reference to the other three. In first century Palestine, and more generally, in all Mediterranean cultures at that time, politics and kinship were the only two freestanding social institutions. Economics and religion were embedded in politics and kinship. Political religion, for example, involved deities that sanctioned the existing regime and temples that offered sacrifices for the "common good." Domestic (kinship-based) religion, on the other hand, sought meaning through belonging (e.g., to a chosen people), and placed considerable emphasis on the legitimacy of heirs.
Even if Jesus' proclamation of the kingdom of God appears to be religious, it must have to do with either politics or kinship. Kingdom is clearly a political word, so Jesus was saying something about political religion. What needed to be changed about the current political situation? The patron-client system, on which peasants depended, was not functioning properly. The Israelite aristocrats were neglecting their duties to their clients, preferring instead to enhance their own status. The kingdom of God refers to a new patron-client system, where God is the patron.
Other social issues addressed include establishment violence, dissident speech ("cognitive disorientation of true believers"), modes of social interaction (face-to-face, face-to-grace, etc.), who are the poor, what does self-denial mean in group-oriented societies, what are the dynamics of group formation and development. After explaining each of these, Malina applies them to some aspect of Biblical interpretation to explain, for example, what it meant to deny oneself and follow Jesus.
A major theme of this book is that, as citizens of the United States living in the 21st century, our life experiences are basically useless for the purpose of understanding the Bible. Words and behaviors derive their meaning from social systems, and our society today is drastically different from society back then. This books does a great job of illuminating some of these differences. The writing style is choppy at times, though, so be prepared to think.
Horsley Did It Better.......2003-06-04
Expanding the 1999 Rauschenbusch Lectures into a book, Professor Malina does little except demonstrate that (1) he knows how to use a thesaurus, (2) he can survive in the "publish or perish" environment of modern academia, and (3) he has an uncanny knack for remembering minute and meaningless details. This is the worst type of publishing to issue forth from the ivory covered towers of our institutions of higher education. With his concern for social justice, this effete academic snobbery would have made Walter Rauschenbusch ill. While it may amuse the academic, it does nothing to educate the general public, because the author goes out of his way to be obtuse and frighten away the lay reader.
Professor Malina succeeds at painting a picture of Jesus, and the early Jesus movements, in context. However, he does so at a terrible price.
Professor Richard A. Horsley has also done much to paint a portrait of Jesus and the early Jesus movements in their first century context. The difference is that Professor Horsley's works are, generally, accessible to the lay reader. Unless you are a doctoral student and interested in the most minute of details, read Horsley instead of Malina.
Book Description
The relevance and importance of Samuel P. Hay's book, Conservation and the Gospel of Efficiency, has only increased over time. Written almost half a century ago, it offers an invaluable history of the conservation movement's origins, and provides an excellent context for understanding contemporary enviromental problems and possible solutions. Against a background of rivers, forests, ranges, and public lands, this book defines two conflicting political processes: the demand for an integrated, controlled development guided by an elite group of scientists and technicians and the demand for a looser system allowing grassroots impulses to have a voice through elected government representatives.
Amazon.com
Drawing upon the work of John Muir, Henry David Thoreau, St. Francis of Assisi, and even the Dalai Lama and Pope John Paul II, activist Tom Hayden writes that religion is the answer to today's environmental crisis. Though he berates many religions for perpetuating man's dominance of earth, he cites a growing awareness of the sanctity of all creation. He calls for the unification of increasing numbers of eco-spiritualists and a revamping of traditional religious doctrines--including the Ten Commandments--to include guidelines for taking care of the earth and to acknowledge the dependency of our own lives on its healthful existence.
Book Description
More timely and necessary than ever in the wake of recent calamities like Hurricane Katrina and the Republican war against the environment,
The Lost Gospel of the Earth is legendary activist Tom Hayden's eco-spiritual call for revamping traditional religious doctrine to reflect a greater environmental consciousness, which he believes is the only way to save the planet from catastrophe. Drawing upon the historical seeds of the major world religions-Christianity, Judaism, Buddhism, Islam, as well as Native American traditions-Hayden shows how only an enlightened partnership between religion, politics and the natural world can reverse the environmental disaster we have heaped upon the planet and lead to a rediscovery of the lost gospel of the earth.
This all-new edition of
The Lost Gospel of the Earth has been completely revised and updated to reflect the major developments of the past decade.
Praise for the original edition of
The Lost Gospel of the Earth
"... a lucid analysis of how the errant path we have taken [has] led us to a state of fundamental alienation from the elemental world."-
San Francisco Chronicle
"... beautifully argued and well-written..."-
Publishers Weekly
"... provocative, well-researched, and well-argued..."-
Library Journal
"Such a book is urgently needed. Tom Hayden is precisely the person to do it."-Thomas Berry
Customer Reviews:
Kinship with Nature.......2005-12-01
This book deserves 5 stars based solely on the importance of the subject. Tom Hayden describes three types of relationship that we as humans can have with Nature: dominion, stewardship, or kinship. He correctly concludes that only reestablishing a kinship relationship with Nature offers humans and Earth's other inhabitants any kind of future. In 1982 Paul Shepard published "Nature and Madness" (also Sierra Club)which also pointed a finger at mainstream religion's role in the enviromental crisis. So Hayden's basic thesis in not entirely new.
Addressing previous criticism on this page.......2004-09-09
Tom Hayden's work in this text, while not perfect, illustrates some legitimate concerns about religion's role in the environmental crisis. To discredit this work based on his background or denounce the writing as "sophistry" would be a poor evaluation.
The work is worth reading, and if necessary, refuting based on the content.
Extraordinary--If You Read One Book This Year, Read This One.......1998-10-11
This is one of the most remarkable books I have ever read. It addresses a fundamental question now facing humanity: will we continue to delude ourselves that we are lords of the universe, that the Earth is ours to do with as we please, or will we come to understand and acknowledge our kinship with nature and the Earth, and our utter dependence upon them for our survival? There is a great spiritual division in our society today. One man or woman walks through a redwood forest, and sees the hand of God at work; another walks through the same forest and sees only board-feet. Which viewpoint ultimately wins over the hearts, minds, and allegiance of our species will determine whether or not we survive. Hayden realizes that if we come to understand the "immanence of the divine" in all creation, we can shape the future of politics to protect it. This is very heartening; "Lost Gospel" is not another hand-wringing book which offers us no guidance. By the way, the first reader review is a classic illustration of this chasm between viewpoints. How anyone at all familiar with the environmental record of the former Soviet bloc could confuse todays Greens with yesterday's Reds has me scratching both my green cover and my red, curly head! There is no need to look for an ulterior motive or hidden agenda to explain environmentalist passions. The goal is to save the Earth. Environmentalism is not a means to any other end, be it restriction of private property rights or anything else.
The Green Spiritual Manifesto.......1998-04-06
There has been a backlash against the environmental movement initiated by corporations that do not want to be regulated. By an immense stroke of luck, they have found allies in the Christian Right. Let's face it. The environmentalists are losing. Wilderness is on the verge of becoming a theme park. Because of pollution, the rates of various types of cancer are rising. Too many good people are silent, and those who are speaking out appeal almost exclusively to utilitarian and scientific reasoning. Unfortunately, this does not affect people at their deep emotional core--as religion can do. Hayden argues persuasively for the greening of Christianity, Buddhism and other religions. He cites St. Francis, Hildegard of Bingen, and the vow of the Bodhisattvas to protect all beings. He calls for a new Martin Luther to "nail a Green Spiritual Manifesto on the vaulted doors of the powerful." He says we should appeal to spirituality, because people ARE spiritual beings.
A thoughtful and well-written plea for Mother Earth!.......1998-03-28
...Well, I read this book and found it very rich ( although not exhaustive ) in its attempt to search out the religious/spiritual sources of our alienation from the earth. Hayden is looking in the right places here; the environmental problem is wholly a spiritual/moral issue. How can we honor the Creator whilst heaping contempt upon Creation? So clear to me; so impossible for others...to see. A great book, Tom!
Customer Reviews:
Just go to Sunday school, ok?.......2006-04-14
To quote E.M. Cioran:
It is difficult, it is impossible to believe that the Good Lord--'Our Father'--had a hand in the scandal of creation. Everything suggests that He took no part in it, that it proceeds from a god without scruples, a feculent god. Goodness does not create, lacking imagination; it takes imagination to put together a world, however botched. At the very least, there must be a mixture of good and evil in order to produce an action or a work. Or a universe. Considering ours, it is altogether easier to trace matters back to a suspect god than to an honorable one.
Average customer rating:
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The invading gospel
Jack R Clemo
Manufacturer: F. H. Revell Co
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding
General
| Christian Living
| Christianity
| Religion & Spirituality
| Subjects
| Books
ASIN: 0800705734 |
Average customer rating:
- Mediating Postion of Christian theology of religions
|
No Other Gospel!: Christianity Among the World's Religions
Carl E. Braaten
Manufacturer: Fortress Pr
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
Religious
| Philosophy
| Nonfiction
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Theology
| Christianity
| Religion & Spirituality
| Subjects
| Books
Apologetics
| Theology
| Christianity
| Religion & Spirituality
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Christianity
| Religion & Spirituality
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Religion & Spirituality
| Subjects
| Books
ASIN: 0800625390 |
Customer Reviews:
Mediating Postion of Christian theology of religions.......2001-02-28
Braaten answers Knitter's book "No Other Name?" by chaning the "?" to the "!."
He contends here against the prevailing univeralism, pluralism, etc. that the Christrocentric trinitarian confession is correct and viable. In essence all religions may have "god" but not "Christ." We only can know the real God in the incarnational-sacramental event of Jesus the Christ.
The other religions expose only the law to us. However, he leaves out discussion on some of the more troubling issues, e.g. why does God choose only to reveal Himself in Christ and His gospel?
While I would take issue with much of Braaten's confession, this is well worth the time and effort and reading and comparing with Knitter's et al.
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- CAPTIVATING LIFE
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- Cockatiels! Pets-Breeding-Showing
- Culture and Global Change: Social Perceptions of Deforestation in the Lacandona Rain Forest in Mexico (Linking Levels of Analysis)
- Dancing on the Shore
- Dark Life: Martian Nanobacteria, Rock-Eating Cave Bugs, and Other Extreme Organisms of Inner Earth and Outer Space
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