The Fourth Gospel: Tales of a Jewish Mystic

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Author :
Publisher : Harper Collins
ISBN 13 : 0062198165
Total Pages : 368 pages
Book Rating : 4.0/5 (621 download)

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Book Synopsis The Fourth Gospel: Tales of a Jewish Mystic by : John Shelby Spong

Download or read book The Fourth Gospel: Tales of a Jewish Mystic written by John Shelby Spong and published by Harper Collins. This book was released on 2013-06-11 with total page 368 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: John Shelby Spong, bestselling author and popular proponent of a modern, scholarly and authentic Christianity, argues that this last gospel to be written was misinterpreted by the framers of the fourth-century creeds to be a literal account of the life of Jesus when in fact it is a literary, interpretive retelling of the events in Jesus' life through the medium of fictional characters, from Nicodemus and Lazarus to the "Beloved Disciple." The Fourth Gospel was designed first to place Jesus into the context of the Jewish scriptures, then to place him into the worship patterns of the synagogue and finally to allow him to be viewed through the lens of a popular form of first-century Jewish mysticism. The result of this intriguing study is not only to recapture the original message of this gospel, but also to provide us today with a radical new dimension to the claim that in the humanity of Jesus the reality of God has been met and engaged.

The Mystical Way in the Fourth Gospel

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Author :
Publisher : Bloomsbury T&T Clark
ISBN 13 : 9781563381034
Total Pages : 176 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (81 download)

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Book Synopsis The Mystical Way in the Fourth Gospel by : L. William Countryman

Download or read book The Mystical Way in the Fourth Gospel written by L. William Countryman and published by Bloomsbury T&T Clark. This book was released on 1995-01-01 with total page 176 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Here is a sustained literary-critical reading of John's Gospel in terms of mystical theology. Arguing that John "is guiding, perhaps at times impelling, the reader along a path that leads from conversion through Christian initiation to mystical enlightenment and union," Professor Countryman suggests that this concern controls the Gospel's literary structure and unity. He demonstrates this argument through a fresh and readable translation of the Fourth Gospel, offering a new way of reading John that has direct relevance to Christian life today. The chapters in the book follow the progress of the would-be mystic from initial conversion through baptism and Eucharist to mystical enlightenment. In addition to this mystical program, and integrated with the narrative of the Gospel, is a theological interpretation of Jesus which explains why he is centrally important for the mystic. "An appealing and attractive interpretation that deserves close attention." Adris Newsletter L.William Countryman is Professor of New Testament at the Church Divinity School of the Pacific and the author of many books, including Good News of Jesus, The Language of Ordination, and Biblical Authority or Biblical Tyranny all published by Trinity Press International.

Why Christianity Must Change or Die

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Author :
Publisher : Harper Collins
ISBN 13 : 0061756121
Total Pages : 292 pages
Book Rating : 4.0/5 (617 download)

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Book Synopsis Why Christianity Must Change or Die by : John Shelby Spong

Download or read book Why Christianity Must Change or Die written by John Shelby Spong and published by Harper Collins. This book was released on 2009-10-13 with total page 292 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An important and respected voice for liberal American Christianity for the past twenty years, Bishop John Shelby Spong integrates his often controversial stands on the Bible, Jesus, theism, and morality into an intelligible creed that speaks to today's thinking Christian. In this compelling and heartfelt book, he sounds a rousing call for a Christianity based on critical thought rather than blind faith, on love rather than judgment, and that focuses on life more than religion.

This Hebrew Lord

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Publisher : Harper Collins
ISBN 13 : 0061966010
Total Pages : 208 pages
Book Rating : 4.0/5 (619 download)

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Book Synopsis This Hebrew Lord by : John Shelby Spong

Download or read book This Hebrew Lord written by John Shelby Spong and published by Harper Collins. This book was released on 2014-07-08 with total page 208 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: From the bestselling author of Rescuing the Bible from Fundamentalism: John Shelby Spong's original groundbreaking classic, now newly revised, reveals the Jesus "behind the language of myth, magic, and superstition." "In this study I found a Lord, a center for my being. Behind the supernatural framework of the first century . . . I discovered a life I wanted to know; a life that possessed a power I wanted to possess; a freedom, a wholeness for which I had yearned for years." Illuminating the "figure who stands at the center of all the Christina Church is," John Shelby Spong explores Jesus under the light of the Hebrew tradition into which he was born. Candid, personal, and soundly argued, this is Spong's spiritual and intellectual pilgrimage to the Christ he discovered in Jesus of Nazareth.

Re-Claiming The Bible For A Non-Religious World

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Author :
Publisher : Harper Collins
ISBN 13 : 1443407887
Total Pages : 473 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (434 download)

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Book Synopsis Re-Claiming The Bible For A Non-Religious World by : John Shelby Spong

Download or read book Re-Claiming The Bible For A Non-Religious World written by John Shelby Spong and published by Harper Collins. This book was released on 2013-11-26 with total page 473 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: For over 200 years, scholars have been debating, analyzing and exploring one of the most important books ever written—The Bible—and overturning much of what we know about this sacred library of books. However, a large group of people who actually use this book, mainly lay Christians, aren’t aware of this larger, deeper conversation. It is for these people that Spong writes Re-Claiming the Bible for a Non-Religious World, a primer on the history and significance of the Bible. In this informal and accessible survey, Spong moves book by book through the Scriptures, introducing their themes and messages by examining the sweep of history in which these books were originally written. What has history taught us? How should we read these stories today? What does it mean for how we live our lives? And why do people tenaciously hold on to so many myths associated with The Bible? There is a vast audience of religiously hungry people eager to explore a meaningful journey into the Bible, and Spong is leading the way with this book.

The Fourth Gospel

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Author :
Publisher : Harper Collins
ISBN 13 : 1443424013
Total Pages : 323 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (434 download)

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Book Synopsis The Fourth Gospel by : John Shelby Spong

Download or read book The Fourth Gospel written by John Shelby Spong and published by Harper Collins. This book was released on 2013-06-11 with total page 323 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Bestselling and controversial bishop and teacher John Shelby Spong reveals the subversive, mystical wisdom of the writer of the Gospel of John and how his teachings point us forward in the twenty-first century In The Fourth Gospel: Tales of a Jewish Mystic, Spong turns his attention to the Gospel of John, the fourth Gospel in the Bible. Contrary to what is most often believed, he writes that this gospel was misinterpreted by the framers of the fourth-century creeds to be a literal account of the life of Jesus. In fact, it is a literary, interpretive retelling of the events in Jesus’ life through the medium of Jewish worship traditions and fictional characters, from Nicodemus and Lazarus to the “Beloved Disciple.” The Fourth Gospel not only recaptures the original message of this gospel, but also provides us with a radical new dimension to the claim that in the humanity of Jesus the reality of God has been met and engaged. This book offers a fresh way to read the Gospel of John and a unique primer about how to be a Christian in the post-Christian twenty-first century.

Resurrection

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Author :
Publisher : Harper Collins
ISBN 13 : 0061753106
Total Pages : 356 pages
Book Rating : 4.0/5 (617 download)

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Book Synopsis Resurrection by : John Shelby Spong

Download or read book Resurrection written by John Shelby Spong and published by Harper Collins. This book was released on 2009-10-13 with total page 356 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Using approaches from the Hebrew interpretive tradition to discern the actual events surrounging Jesus' death, Bishop Spong questions the hitorical validity of literal narrative concerned the Ressurection. He asserts that the resurrection story was born in an experience that opened the disciples' eyes to the reality of God and the meaning of Jesus of Nazareth. Spong traces the Christian origins of anti-Semitism to the Church's fabrication of the ultimate Jewish scapegoat, Judas Iscariot. He affirms the inclusiveness of the Christian message and emphasizes the necessity of mutual integrity and respect among Christians and Jews.

The Sins of Scripture

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Author :
Publisher : Harper Collins
ISBN 13 : 0061835609
Total Pages : 340 pages
Book Rating : 4.0/5 (618 download)

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Book Synopsis The Sins of Scripture by : John Shelby Spong

Download or read book The Sins of Scripture written by John Shelby Spong and published by Harper Collins. This book was released on 2009-10-13 with total page 340 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In the history of the Western World, the Bible has been a perpetual source of inspiration and guidance for countless Christians. However, this Bible has also left a trail of pain. It is undeniable that the Bible is not always used for good. Sometimes the Bible can seem overtly evil. Sometimes its texts are terrible. Bishop John Shelby Spong boldly approaches those texts that have been used through history to justify the denigration or persecution of others while carrying with them the implied and imposed authority of the claim that they were the "Word of God." As he exposes and challenges what he calls the "terrible texts of the Bible", laying bare the evil done by these texts in the name of God, he also seeks to redeem these texts, hoping to recover their ultimate depth and purpose. Spong looks specifically at texts used to justify homophobia, anti-Semitism, treating women as second-class humans, corporal punishment, and environmental degradation, but he also delivers a new picture of how Christians can use the Bible today. As Spong battles against the way the Bible has been used throughout history, he provides a new framework, introducing people to a proper way to engage this holy book of the Judeo-Christian tradition.

Born of a Woman

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Publisher : Harper Collins
ISBN 13 : 006173960X
Total Pages : 276 pages
Book Rating : 4.0/5 (617 download)

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Book Synopsis Born of a Woman by : John Shelby Spong

Download or read book Born of a Woman written by John Shelby Spong and published by Harper Collins. This book was released on 2009-03-17 with total page 276 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: John Shelby Spong, bestselling author and Episcopal bishop of Newark, NJ, challenges the doctrine of the virgin birth, tracing its development in the early Christian church and revealing its legacy in our contemporary attitudes toward women and female sexuality.

Biblical Literalism: A Gentile Heresy

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Publisher : HarperCollins
ISBN 13 : 006236233X
Total Pages : 416 pages
Book Rating : 4.0/5 (623 download)

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Book Synopsis Biblical Literalism: A Gentile Heresy by : John Shelby Spong

Download or read book Biblical Literalism: A Gentile Heresy written by John Shelby Spong and published by HarperCollins. This book was released on 2016-02-16 with total page 416 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A global and pioneering leader of progressive Christianity and the bestselling author of Why Christianity Must Change or Die and Eternal Life explains why a literal reading of the Gospels is actually heretical, and how this mistaken notion only entered the church once Gentiles had pushed out all the Jewish followers of Jesus. A man who has consciously and deliberately walked the path of Christ, John Shelby Spong has lived his entire life inside the Christian Church. In this profound and considered work, he offers a radical new way to look at the gospels today as he shows just how deeply Jewish the Christian Gospels are and how much they reflect the Jewish scriptures, history, and patterns of worship. Pulling back the layers of a long-standing Gentile ignorance, he reveals how the church’s literal reading of the Bible is so far removed from these original Jewish authors’ intent that it is an act of heresy. Using the Gospel of Matthew as a guide, Spong explores the Bible’s literary and liturgical roots—its grounding in Jewish culture, symbols, icons, and storytelling tradition—to explain how the events of Jesus’ life, including the virgin birth, the miracles, the details of the passion story, and the resurrection and ascension, would have been understood by both the Jewish authors of the various gospels and by the Jewish audiences for which they were originally written. Spong makes clear that it was only after the church became fully Gentile that readers of the Gospels took these stories to be factual, distorting their original meaning. In Biblical Literalism: A Gentile Heresy, Spong illuminates the gospels as never before and provides a better blueprint for the future than where the church’s leaden and heretical reading of the story of Jesus has led us—one that allows the faithful to live inside the Christian story in the modern world.

Mystical Christianity

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Author :
Publisher : Crossroad
ISBN 13 : 9780824514129
Total Pages : 0 pages
Book Rating : 4.5/5 (141 download)

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Book Synopsis Mystical Christianity by : John A. Sanford

Download or read book Mystical Christianity written by John A. Sanford and published by Crossroad. This book was released on 1994 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: John Sanford opens a new door to the Gospel of John and discovers a treasure-house of psychological wisdom. The Fourth Gospel is the most mystic of all the gospels. And Mystical Christianity sheds light on its myriad meanings. It is a book that John Sanford was meant to write.

The Big Book of Christian Mysticism

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Author :
Publisher : Broadleaf Books
ISBN 13 : 1506485766
Total Pages : 322 pages
Book Rating : 4.5/5 (64 download)

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Book Synopsis The Big Book of Christian Mysticism by : Carl McColman

Download or read book The Big Book of Christian Mysticism written by Carl McColman and published by Broadleaf Books . This book was released on 2021-11-16 with total page 322 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In popular usage, "mysticism" typically refers to New Age or Eastern forms of spirituality. However, the mystical tradition is also an important component of the Christian tradition. At its heart--and much like its expression in other faith traditions--Christian mysticism is an ancient practice that incorporates meditation, contemplation, worship, philosophy, the quest for personal enlightenment, and the experience of Divine presence. This volume is a comprehensive introduction and guide to Christian mysticism. It is a big book about a big possibility: the hope of achieving real, blissful, experiential unison with God. Among the topics covered here are a general introduction to mysticism, the Bible and mysticism, the history and types of Christian mysticism, biographical sketches of leading Christian mystics, and practical instructions about practicing mysticism today. This is a breathtaking work that explores a form of spirituality that has changed lives over the course of 2,000 years. Learning about Christian mysticism and how it has been articulated through the centuries will prove inspirational for today's seekers, regardless of the faith tradition. "The mystic is not a special kind of person; every person is a special kind of mytic." --William McNamara

A New Christianity for a New World

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Author :
Publisher : Harper Collins
ISBN 13 : 0061750255
Total Pages : 308 pages
Book Rating : 4.0/5 (617 download)

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Book Synopsis A New Christianity for a New World by : John Shelby Spong

Download or read book A New Christianity for a New World written by John Shelby Spong and published by Harper Collins. This book was released on 2009-10-13 with total page 308 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In his bestselling book Why Christianity Must Change or Die, Bishop John Shelby Spong described the toxins that are poisoning the Church. Now he offers the antidote, calling Christians everywhere into a new and radical reformation for a new age. Spong looks beyond traditional boundaries to open new avenues and a new vocabulary into the Holy, proposing a Christianity premised upon justice, love, and the rise of a new humanity -- a vision of the power that might be.

Rescuing the Bible from Fundamentalism

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Author :
Publisher : Harper Collins
ISBN 13 : 006175319X
Total Pages : 291 pages
Book Rating : 4.0/5 (617 download)

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Book Synopsis Rescuing the Bible from Fundamentalism by : John Shelby Spong

Download or read book Rescuing the Bible from Fundamentalism written by John Shelby Spong and published by Harper Collins. This book was released on 2009-03-17 with total page 291 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: By popular demand—study guides to two of Bishop John Shelby Spong's bestselling and controversial works, including questions, reflections, and summaries for group and individual use.

Divine Scapegoats

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Author :
Publisher : SUNY Press
ISBN 13 : 1438455836
Total Pages : 354 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (384 download)

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Book Synopsis Divine Scapegoats by : Andrei A. Orlov

Download or read book Divine Scapegoats written by Andrei A. Orlov and published by SUNY Press. This book was released on 2015-02-10 with total page 354 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Explores the paradoxical symmetry between the divine and demonic in early Jewish mystical texts. Divine Scapegoats is a wide-ranging exploration of the parallels between the heavenly and the demonic in early Jewish apocalyptical accounts. In these materials, antagonists often mirror features of angelic figures, and even those of the Deity himself, an inverse correspondence that implies a belief that the demonic realm is maintained by imitating divine reality. Andrei A. Orlov examines the sacerdotal, messianic, and creational aspects of this mimetic imagery, focusing primarily on two texts from the Slavonic pseudepigrapha: 2 Enoch and the Apocalypse of Abraham. These two works are part of a very special cluster of Jewish apocalyptic texts that exhibit features not only of the apocalyptic worldview but also of the symbolic universe of early Jewish mysticism. The Yom Kippur ritual in the Apocalypse of Abraham, the divine light and darkness of 2 Enoch, and the similarity of mimetic motifs to later developments in the Zohar are of particular importance in Orlov’s consideration.

Honest to God

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Author :
Publisher : Westminster John Knox Press
ISBN 13 : 9780664224226
Total Pages : 188 pages
Book Rating : 4.2/5 (242 download)

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Book Synopsis Honest to God by : John Arthur Thomas Robinson

Download or read book Honest to God written by John Arthur Thomas Robinson and published by Westminster John Knox Press. This book was released on 2002-01-01 with total page 188 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This is the fortieth anniversary edition of John Robinson's classic text. Honest to God is a bracing and engaging call to re-examine outdated and troublesome images of God.

Liberating the Gospels

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Author :
Publisher : Harper Collins
ISBN 13 : 0061748420
Total Pages : 502 pages
Book Rating : 4.0/5 (617 download)

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Book Synopsis Liberating the Gospels by : John Shelby Spong

Download or read book Liberating the Gospels written by John Shelby Spong and published by Harper Collins. This book was released on 2009-10-13 with total page 502 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In this boldest book since Rescuing the Bible from Fundamentalism, Bishop John Shelby Spong offers a compelling view of the Gospels as thoroughly Jewish tests.Spong powerfully argues that many of the key Gospel accounts of events in the life of Jesus—from the stories of his birth to his physical resurrection—are not literally true. He offers convincing evidence that the Gospels are a collection of Jewish midrashic stories written to convey the significance of Jesus. This remarkable discovery brings us closer to how Jesus was really understood in his day and should be in ours.