'Mind' at The Oasis

Writings of Early Christianity

2012-01-28T12:56:00.000-08:00

http://www.earlychristianwritings.com/index.html
http://www.gnosis.org/library.html
http://www.sacred-texts.com/chr/index.htm
http://virtualreligion.net/vri/xnity3.html#Fathers

Q:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Q_source
http://www.earlychristianwritings.com/q.html

The Gospels in parallel:
http://www.utoronto.ca/religion/synopsis/

Progressive Christianity

2012-01-10T04:22:00.000-08:00

www.tcpc.org
http://www.tcpc.org/about/8points.cfm
http://www.tcpc.org/about/mission.cfm

Beyond Belief: The Secret Gospel of Thomas

2011-12-27T12:10:00.000-08:00

Some resources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gospel_of_Thomas
http://www.gnosis.org/naghamm/nhl_thomas.htm
http://www.earlychristianwritings.com/thomas.html

http://www.pbs.org/wnet/religionandethics/week706/profile.html
http://www.readinggroupguides.com/guides3/beyond_belief1.asp
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=1463453
The Gnostic Gospels by Elaine Pagels.

Mary Magdalene (continued)

2011-12-03T11:48:00.000-08:00

The Gospel of Mary of Magdala by Karen L. King.
The Gospel of the Beloved Companion by Jehanne de Quillan.
The Everything Gnostic Gospels Book by Meera Lester.

Mary Magdalene

2011-12-03T11:47:00.000-08:00

The Woman with the Alabaster Jar by Margaret Starbird.
The Meaning of Mary Magdalene by Cynthia Bourgeault.

Visions and Visitors

2011-11-01T03:39:00.001-07:00

Recommended reading:
When the Dying Speak by Ron Wooten-Green.
Visions, Trips, and Crowded Rooms by David Kessler.
Into the Light by John Lerma, MD.

Sacred Sexuality

2011-10-25T13:56:00.001-07:00

Some recommended reading:
Embodiment: An Approach to Sexuality and Christian Theology by James B. Nelson
Between Two Gardens: Reflections on Sexuality and Religious Experience by James B. Nelson
God and the Rhetoric of Sexuality by Phyllis Trible
Touching Our Strength: the Erotic as Power and the Love of God by Carter Heyward
Sensuous Spirituality by Virginia Ramey Mollenkott

See our denominational material:
http://www.ucc.org/justice/sexuality-education/

Sacred Spouse

2011-10-25T13:52:00.000-07:00

Passages used:

Hosea, Jeremiah 31:31-33; Isaiah 54:5-7; 61:10; 62:3-5; Song of Songs

Resources:

The Prophets by Abraham J. Heschel

Proverbs, Ecclesiastes and the Song of Songs by Ellen F. Davis.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Book_of_Hosea

http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/7895-hosea-book-of

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Song_of_Songs

http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/13916-song-of-songs-the

Nag Hammadi et al

2011-10-10T05:11:00.000-07:00

http://www.nag-hammadi.com/history.html

http://www.gnosis.org/naghamm/nhl.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nag_Hammadi
The Nag Hammadi Scriptures, Marvin Meyer, ed. Intro by Elaine Pagels.

The Gnostic Gospels by Elaine Pagels.
The Gnostic Bible, Willis Barnstone & Marvin Meyer, trans.
The Everything Gnostic Gospels Book by Meera Lest
er.
http://www.earlychristianwritings.com/thomas.html
Beyond Belief: The Secret Gospel of Thomas by Elaine Pagels.
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/religion/story/thomas.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gospel_of_thomas
http://www.utoronto.ca/religion/synopsis/

Reading Judas: The Gospel of Judas and the Shaping of Christianity by Elaine Pagels and Karen L. King
The Secrets of Judas: The Story of the Misunderstood Disciple and His Lost Gospel by James M. Robinson
http://www.nationalgeographic.com/lostgospel/
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5327692

Translation Errors

2011-10-07T05:09:00.000-07:00

Resources:
Misquoting Jesus: The Story behind Who Changed the Bible and Why by Bart D. Ehrman.
The Text of the New Testament: Its Transmission, Corruption, and Restoration by Bruce Manning Metzger.

Dead Sea Scrolls

2011-10-07T04:59:00.000-07:00

Thank you, Eileen, for leading this one!

Resources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dead_Sea_Scrolls
http://www.gnosis.org/library/scroll.htm
http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/History/deadsea.html
http://dss.collections.imj.org.il/

Schedule for Summer Book Study

2011-06-22T05:13:00.001-07:00

Book: The Year of Living Biblically by A.J. Jacobs.

June 19: Intro & Month 1 (Sept)
June 26: Months 2 & 3 (Oct & Nov)
July 4: No gathering
July 10: Months 4 & 5 (Dec & Jan)
July 17: Months 6 & 7 (Feb & Mar)
July 24: Months 8 & 9 (Apr & May)
July 31: Months 10 & 11 (June & July)
Aug 7: No gathering
Aug 14: Month 12 (Aug)
Aug 21: Quarterly Meeting
Aug 26-28: Amish Country Retreat

Rethinking food

2011-05-16T11:22:00.000-07:00

Thanks to Lauren from Local Matters for sharing with us!

General info:
http://www.local-matters.org/
http://www.sustainabletable.org/home.php

Magazines:
http://www.urbanfarmonline.com/
http://www.yesmagazine.org/
http://www.ediblecommunities.com/columbus/

Buy local:
http://www.localharvest.org/
(Search for Farmers' Markets)

Buy fair trade:
http://www.groundsforchange.com
http://www.transfairusa.org

Grow your own:
Grow Great Grub: Organic Food From Small Spaces by Gayla Trail.
Square Foot Gardening by Mel Bartholomew

Keeping the harvest:
Root Cellaring by Mike & Nancy Bubel.
Put 'em Up! by Sherri Brooks Vinton.
The Big Book of Preserving the Harvest by Carol W. Costenbader

Supplies:
http://www.gardeners.com
http://www.lehmans.com

Food Inc.

2011-05-16T11:06:00.000-07:00

For more on Food Inc.:
http://www.foodincmovie.com/
(Check out the Study Guide in the Educational Materials and the Reading List.)

If you were intrigued by the movie Food, Inc. you might want to also watch Food Matters and Fast Food Nation.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1528734/
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0460792/

Books:
Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver.
http://www.animalvegetablemiracle.com/

Resurrection

2011-04-26T16:25:00.000-07:00

From more info on the stories that influenced how the early Christians expressed the Resurrection:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Life-death-rebirth_deity

See also Ba'al (Hadad); Isis, Osiris, and Horus; Tammuz and Inanna; Adonis; Dionysus and Dionysian Mysteries.

Simplicity

2011-03-07T17:19:00.001-08:00

Some websites we mentioned relative to last night's discussion on simplicity:

Lenten Carbon Fast: http://www.macucc.org/pages/detail/2410

I-House: http://www.claytonihouse.com

'Stuff' video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gLBE5QAYXp8
See also http://www.storyofstuff.com

Amish

2011-03-06T08:02:00.000-08:00

Some recommended reading on the Amish:

Amish Peace: Simple Wisdom for a Complicated World by Suzanne Woods Fisher. (Values)

Plain and Simple: A Woman's Journey to the Amish by Sue Bender.

Amish Grace: How Forgiveness Transcended Tragedy by Donald B. Kraybill, Steven M. Nolt, and David L. Weaver-Zercher. (On the Amish response to the Nickel Mines, PA school massacre)

The Amish Way: Patient Faith in a Perilous World by Donald B. Kraybill, Steven M. Nolt, and David L. Weaver-Zercher. (Faith and spiritual practices)

Amish Society by John A. Hostetler. (History and culture)

Mary

2010-12-14T15:41:00.000-08:00

Luke 1
Beyond God the Father by Mary Daly.
The Chalice & the Blade by Riane Eisler.
Goddesses and the Divine Feminine by Rosemary Radford Ruether.
Crossing to Avalon by Jean Shinoda Bolen.

In http://en.wikipedia.org look up: Virgin goddesses, Theotokos, Immaculate Conception, Dormition of the Theotokos, Assumption of Mary, Triple Goddess, Black Madonna, Queen of Heaven, Queen of Heaven (Antiquity), Isis, and Stella Maris.

Ruth & Bathsheba

2010-12-14T15:37:00.000-08:00

The book of Ruth; 2 Samuel 11-12

The Sins of King David by Gary Greenburg
Out of the Garden edited by Christina Buchmann and Celina Spiegel.
Jonathan Loved David by Tom Horner.
The Uncensored Bible: The Bawdy and Naughty Bits of the Good Book by John Kaltner, Steven L. McKenzie, & Joel Kirkpatrick.
See also books use last week.

Tamar & Rahab

2010-12-14T15:31:00.000-08:00

Genesis 38; Joshua 2, 6

I Am...:Biblical Women Tell their Own Stories by Athalya Brenner.
The Harlot by the Side of the Road: Forbidden Tales of the Bible by Jonathan Kirsch.
Helpmates, Harlots, & Heroes by Alice Ogden Bellis

Bridegroom of Blood

2010-11-22T05:31:00.000-08:00

Exodus 4: 24-26; Genesis 34

http://www.cirp.org/pages/cultural/glass3/

http://www.i-amfaithweb.net/god_kill_moses.htm

http://faculty.gordon.edu/hu/bi/Ted_Hildebrandt/OTLit/Week3/Allen-Ex4-Bloody-BSac.pdf

http://www.beth-elsa.org/abv121203.htm

The Red Tent by Anita Diamant.

See also the books listed from last week.

Sodom and Gibeah

2010-11-20T11:36:00.001-08:00

Judges 19-21
Genesis 18-19

The Five Books of Miriam by Ellen Frankel.
I Am...:biblical WOmen Tell their Own Stories by Athalya Brenner.
The Harlot by the Side of the Road: Forbidden Tales of the Bible by Jonathan Kirsch.

Sacrificing Children

2010-11-09T17:01:00.000-08:00

Abraham & Isaac:
Genesis by Bill Moyer.
Abraham: A Journey to the Heart of Three Faiths by Bruce Feiler.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Binding_of_Isaac

Jephthah and his daughter:
The Harlot by the Side of the Road by Jonathan Kirsch.
Texts of Terror by Phyllis Trible.
Clothed with the Sun by Joyce Hollyday.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jephthah

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Child_sacrifice

Bewitched

2010-10-30T15:33:00.000-07:00

The Crone: Woman of Age, Wisdom, and Power by Barbara G. Walker.
Pagans & Christians by Gus Dizerga.
A Witch's Halloween by Yerina Dunwich.

The Flood

2010-10-23T10:14:00.000-07:00

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Noah%27s_Ark

http://nwcreation.net/noahlegends.html

http://energion.com/rpp/flood.shtml

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deucalion

http://www.pbs.org/wnet/genesis/pdf/CHAPTER4.PDF

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Searches_for_Noah%27s_Ark

Books: Genesis: A Living Conversation by Bill Moyers.
The Bible Tells Me So: Uses and Abuses of Holy Scriptures by Jim Hill and Rand Cheadle.
In the Beginning by Karen Armstrong.

Adam & Eve

2010-10-15T08:56:00.000-07:00

Adam, Eve, and the Serpent by Elaine Pagels.
In the Beginning: A New Interpretation of Genesis by Karen Armstrong.
When God Was a Woman by Merlin Stone.
The Chalice & The Blade by Riane Eisler.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adam_%26_Eve
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Original_sin
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pomegranate
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Serpent_%28symbolism%29
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golden_apple
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lilith
http://jewishchristianlit.com/Topics/Lilith/
http://www.textweek.com/pentateuch/gen2a.htm
http://www.textweek.com/pentateuch/gen2_3.htm

See the Spirit blog for material used during the meditation.

Odd Stories in the Bible

2010-10-06T16:36:00.000-07:00

The Uncensored Bible: The Bawdy and Naughty Bits of the Good Book by John Kaltner, Steven L. McKenzie, & Joel Kirkpatrick.
Beyond Words: Daily Readings in the ABC's of Faith by frederick Buechner.

And Adam Knew Eve: A Dictionary of Sex in the Bible: http://www.ronaldecker.com/and.htm

The Bible Says?

2010-09-21T04:11:00.000-07:00

http://www.bibleornot.org/
http://www.scribd.com/doc/30829805/Non-Biblical-Sayings
http://www.blueletterbible.org/faq/sayings.cfm#eye
http://www.phrases.org.uk/meanings/bible-phrases-sayings.html

Time

2010-08-22T17:16:00.000-07:00

Resources:
Sacred Time and the Search for Meaning by Gary Eberle.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_timekeeping_devices
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greenwich_Mean_Time
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Time_zone
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Time
http://wwp.greenwichmeantime.com/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daylight_saving_time

Augustine of Hippo:
The City of God: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_City_of_God_%28book%29
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St._Augustine

The Mission

2010-07-14T17:11:00.000-07:00

For more on the history behind the movie The Mission:
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/07045a.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suppression_of_the_Society_of_Jesus
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Portugal_%281578%E2%80%931777%29
http://www.bergonia.org/History/History-Colonial.htm
http://justus.anglican.org/resources/bio/44.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guaran%C3%AD
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guarani_War
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jesuit_Reduction
http://www.catholic.org/saints/saint.php?saint_id=317
http://assets.survivalinternational.org/static/files/related_material/46_63_145_emberabg.pdf

The Resurrection

2010-04-11T14:58:00.000-07:00

Some resources:
Saving Jesus from the Church: How to Stop Worshiping Christ and Start Following Jesus by Robin R. Meyers.
Liberating the Gospels: Reading the Bible with Jewish Eyes by John Shelby Spong.
resurrection: Myth of Reality? A Bishop's Search for the Origins of Christianity by John Shelby Spong.
Jesus: A Revolutionsry Biography by John Dominic Crossan.
The Last Week:What the Gospel's Really teach about Jesus' Final Days in Jerusalem by Marcus J. Borg and John Dominic Crossan.

History of the Cross as Symbol

2010-03-29T04:39:00.000-07:00

Some websites with info:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christian_cross

http://www.lutheransonline.com/servlet/lo_ProcServ/dbpage=page&mode=display&gid=20052995655655607101111555&pg=20053040942236960101111555

http://www.designboom.com/history/cross_2.html

http://www.seiyaku.com/

http://www.celtarts.com/celtic.htm

http://www.religioustolerance.org/chr_symb.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dispute_about_the_shape_of_the_gibbet_of_Jesus

You can also look up the individual names of different crosses: Sun Cross, Swastika, Ankh, Celtic, Bridgit's, Tau, Greek, Latin, Chi Rho, Maltese, Sign of the Cross, etc.

Sunday, March 14th

2010-03-07T17:34:00.000-08:00

Our discussion for next week is Physician Assisted Suicide. Please read study guide at http://www.ucc.org/justice/health/faithfully-facing-dying/Faithfully-Facing-Dying-A-Lenten-Study-Guide-Session-4.pdf. Also http://www.ucc.org/justice/health/faithfully-facing-dying/Faithfully-Facing-Dying-A-Lenten-Study-Guide-Session-5.pdf.

For Sunday March 7th

2010-03-01T07:54:00.000-08:00

Please read study guide at:
http://www.ucc.org/justice/health/faithfully-facing-dying/Faithfully-Facing-Dying-A-Lenten-Study-Guide-Session-3.pdf

Funeral Planning, Sunday March 21st

2010-03-01T07:40:00.001-08:00

Please read:
http://www.funeralplanning101.com/funeral-costs/traditional-funeral-costs.aspx
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Green_burial
http://www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/Presence-of-Mind-Which-Way-out.html?c=y&page=4

Websites to check out:
http://www.crossings.net/
http://www.naturaltransitions.org/naturaltranstions/Home.html
http://greenburialcouncil.org/
http://www.funeralplan.com/
http://www.funeralplanning101.com/

Palliative Care

2010-02-22T05:01:00.000-08:00

Our discussion on Sunday, Feb. 28th will be on palliative care. Please review study guide at http://www.ucc.org/justice/health/faithfully-facing-dying/Faithfully-Facing-Dying-Lenten-Study-Guide-Session-2.pdf.

Advanced Directives

2010-02-10T16:31:00.000-08:00

For Sunday, Feb. 21st please read the study guide at http://www.ucc.org/justice/health/faithfully-facing-dying/Faithfully-Facing-Dying-A-Lenten-Study-Guide-Session-1.pdf

More resources can be found at http://www.ucc.org/justice/health/faithfully-facing-dying/

For Ohio: http://www.caringinfo.org/UserFiles/File/Ohio.pdf

The Early Church

2010-02-09T04:22:00.000-08:00

http://www.bib-arch.org/online-exclusives/oldest-church-01.asp
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dura-Europos

Saving Paradise: How Christianity Traded Love of This World for Crucifixion and Empire by Rita Nakashima Brock and Rebecca Ann Parker

Also see church history books listed earlier.

Paul

2010-01-17T15:05:00.000-08:00

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_of_Tarsus

“Reading Paul Again” in Reading the Bible Again for the First Time by Marcus Borg.

The First Paul: Reclaiming the Radical Visionary Behind the Church's Conservative Icon by Marcus Borg and John Dominic Crossan.

Paul's Letters

2010-01-17T14:59:00.000-08:00

A Beginner's Guide to the Books of the Bible
by Diane L. Jacobson & Robert Kysar.
The Letters of Paul: Conversations in Context by Calvin J. Roetzel

From this site you can link to info on specific letters.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pauline_epistles

Development of Apocalypticism in Scripture

2009-12-22T05:08:00.000-08:00

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/apocalypse/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cyrus_in_the_Judeo-Christian_tradition

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apocalyptic_literature

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Testament_apocrypha

On Wikipedia.com you can look up terms such as Book of Ezekiel, Zoroastrianism, Ahura Mazda, Angra Mainyu, Alexander the Great, Book of Enoch, Jewish Revolt, Book of Daniel, Herod's Temple, Essenes, Dead Sea Scrolls, Apocalypse of Peter, Revelation of John, etc. and follow links to more info.

End-of-the-World Predictions

2009-12-13T15:03:00.000-08:00

http://www.religioustolerance.org/end_wrld.htm

http://www.bible.ca/pre-date-setters.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theudas

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Montanism

http://www.earlychurch.org.uk/article_montanists_wright.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irenaeus

Second Coming

2009-12-06T16:48:00.000-08:00

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http://www.religioustolerance.org/millenni.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eschatology

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apocalyptic_literature

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parousia

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christian_eschatology

http://www.religioustolerance.org/millenni.htm

http://reformed.org/eschaton/index.html

http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/05528b.htm

"A Circle of Sensibility"

2009-11-23T04:41:00.000-08:00

Last night we used yet another tool to identify our spiritualities and understand those whose differ from our own. Some resources:

Gospel-Centered Spirituality: An Introduction to our Spiritual Journey by Allan H. Sager.
A History of Christian Spirituality by Urban Holmes III.

http://74.125.95.132/search?q=cache:CoZp2MGhoh4J:images.marikitt.multiply.multiplycontent.com/attachment/0/Sb5uhQoKCE4AAGdu2G41/The%2520Spirituality%2520Wheel.doc%3Fnmid%3D219712725+kataphatic+spirituality&cd=23&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us&client=firefox-a
http://quakerspeak.blogspot.com/2005/11/shared-experience.html
http://www.spiritualitytoday.org/spir2day/863815mcleod.html
http://www.jflory.org/contemplative_quaker/apophatic.htm
http://ignatianspirituality.com/2026/kataphatic-or-apophatic-prayer/
http://www.emptybell.org/articles/christian%20contemplation.pdf
http://www.liturgy.co.nz/reflection/627c.html

Myers-Briggs

2009-10-18T17:21:00.000-07:00

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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Myers-Briggs_Type_Indicator

http://www.myersbriggs.org/

http://www.typelogic.com/

http://www.campbell.edu/faculty/hatcher/DocStorage/MBTI%20and%20Spirit.pdf

Test: http://www.humanmetrics.com/cgi-win/JTypes2.asp

Books:

TypeTalk: The 16 Personality Types that Determine How We Live, Love, and Work by Otto Kroeger and Janet M. Thuesen.

What Type Am I? by Renee Baron.

More Faith Development

2009-10-11T17:23:00.000-07:00

We just finished discussing The Critical Journey: Stages in the Life of Faith by Janet o. Hagberg and Rev. Dr. Robert A. Guelich. (We will need to come back to this for a book study sometime!) For more info:
www.janethagberg.com

Reflection

2009-10-06T15:51:00.000-07:00

Here is the link for the reflection on spiritual growth:
http://www.care2.com/greenliving/seeking-your-own-essence.html

Stages of Faith

2009-09-30T12:58:00.001-07:00

For more info on Fowler's theory:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stages_of_faith_development
http://psychology.wikia.com/wiki/Stages_of_faith_development
http://smudge77.multiply.com/journal/item/201/Stages_of_Faith_by_James_Fowler

Spiritual Maturity

2009-09-14T06:51:00.000-07:00

Some websites I referred to last night:
http://www.barna.org/barna-update/article/12-faithspirituality/264-many-churchgoers-and-faith-leaders-struggle-to-define-spiritual-maturity
http://www.thegracetabernacle.org/quotes/Spiritual-Maturity.htm
http://spirituality.ucla.edu/spirituality/reports/FINAL%20REPORT.pdf
http://www.onespiritproject.com/Shelly/maturity_a02.html

Optional reading

2009-06-10T06:20:00.000-07:00

Another book to give you insight on dynamics in Afghanistan/Pakistan:
Three Cups of Tea: One Man's Mission to Promote Peace . . . One School at a Time by Greg Mortenson.
He also has a website at http://www.threecupsoftea.com/

5/31/09 discussion

2009-06-01T10:02:00.001-07:00

For more info on the different Jewish cultures:
http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/Judaism/Ashkenazim.html
http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/Judaism/Sephardim.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ashkenazi
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sephardic_Jews

For more info on the religious movments of Judaism:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jewish_denominations
http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/Judaism/movements.html
Follow links and highlights to specific information about each group: orthodox, conservative, and reform.

Explanation of an imam: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Imam

Interfaith resources

2009-05-27T10:35:00.000-07:00

Resource lists available at:
http://www.iaco.org/iaco-resource-links/o-resource-links/
http://www.nain.org/interfaith.html
Judaism:
http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/
http://jewishencyclopedia.com/
Jewish-Muslim:
http://www.usc.edu/schools/college/crcc/engagement/ (link to 'Resources' and then 'Religious Texts' for the Qur'an and Tanakh.)
Islam:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Islam
http://www.ediscoverislam.com/
Books:
Armstrong, Karen.
Muhammad: A Biography of the Prophet.
A History of God: The 4,000-Year Quest of Judaism, Christianity and Islam.
Islam: A Short History
The Battle for God
Chittiester, Joan, et al. The Tent of Abraham: Stories of Hope and Peace for Jews, Christians, and Muslims.
Feiler, Bruce.
Abraham: A Journey to the Heart of Three Faiths

Sin

2009-05-04T15:18:00.001-07:00

During our conversation about Jesus' healing miracles, we talked about the relation between healing and wholeness, with an understanding of sin as not fulfilling our destiny, our potential. In light of that conversation, this passage in a book I'm currently reading caught my attention:

"And sin to me is denying or cutting out a part of of who I am. it is any act that is against the natural unfolding of our Divine Self. I believe that each of us needs to discover our own soul story and find the strength to live it. Selling out to someone else's story is a waste of who we are and prevents us from completing the sacred tasks for which we were created."

'Margaret' in The Feminine Face of God: The Unfolding of the Sacred in Women by Sherry Ruth Anderson and Patricia Hopkins. (http://www.amazon.com/Feminine-Face-God-Unfolding-Sacred/dp/0553352660/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1241476449&sr=8-1)

Resurrection

2009-04-13T13:47:00.000-07:00

What can progressive Christians say about resurrection?
http://www.tcpc.org/library/article.cfm?library_id=139
A general overview of the different endings in Mark:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_16#The_Longer_Ending
Sabbath/Sunday:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lord%27s_Day

Book:
Liberating the Gospels: Reading the Bible with Jewish Eyes by John Shelby Spong.
Resurrection: Myth or Reality? by John Shelby Spong
The Last Week: What the Gospels Really Teach About Jesus's Final Days in Jerusalem by Marcus J. Borg and John Dominic Crossan

Influence of the Exile of Messianic Expectations

2009-03-30T07:41:00.000-07:00

For further reading:
http://www.journeywithjesus.net/Essays/20071105JJ.shtml
http://www.journeywithjesus.net/Essays/20020819JJ.shtml
http://www.journeywithjesus.net/Essays/20080630JJ.shtml
http://www.journeywithjesus.net/Essays/20020715JJ.shtml
http://www.journeywithjesus.net/Essays/20080310JJ.shtml
http://www.journeywithjesus.net/Essays/20071008JJ.shtml

The Historical Jesus

2009-03-01T09:06:00.000-08:00

Websites:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quest_for_the_historical_Jesus
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jesus_Seminar
http://www.westarinstitute.org/Seminars/seminars.html

Books:
Marcus Borg: Meeting Jesus Again for the First Time; Jesus: A New Vision
John Dominic Crossan: Jesus: a Revolutionary Biography
John Shelby Spong: This Hebrew Lord;Jesus for the Non-Religious

Re-imaging Jesus

2009-03-01T09:04:00.000-08:00

Articles:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Race_of_Jesus
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Images_of_Jesus
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Depiction_of_Jesus
http://www.ijfm.org/PDFs_IJFM/25_3_PDFs/chandler.pdf
http://www.religioustolerance.org/chr_jcfa.htm

Art Books:
Christ on the Margins by Robert Lentz and Edwina Gately
The Faces of Jesus by Frederick Buechner

Art on web:
Sallman image: http://www.godweb.org/sallman.htm
Misc.: http://www.bridgebuilding.com/catalog/christ1.html
http://www.trinitystores.com/
http://picturesofjesus4you.com/
http://www.religionfacts.com/jesus/image_gallery.htm
African American images: http://itsablackthang.com/African-American-Art-Religious.html
African: http://www.jesusmafa.com/anglais/accueil.htm
Native American: http://www.bridgebuilding.com/catalog/jg1.html
Asian: http://www.asianchristianart.org/galleries/galleries.htm

Group Discernment

2009-02-09T17:45:00.001-08:00

Consensus:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Consensus_decision-making http://seedsforchange.org.uk/free/consens http://www.consensus.net/
Quaker Clearness Committee:
http://www.fgcquaker.org/library/fosteringmeetings/0208.html http://www.couragerenewal.org/parker/writings/clearness-committee

Spiritual Direction

2009-01-19T15:49:00.000-08:00

Thanks to Amanda from the Spirituality Network for her presentation last evening.
For more info on the Network: www. spiritualitynetwork.org.

Spiritual Direction:
http://www.sdiworld.org/what_is_spiritual_direction2.html http://www.spiritualitynetwork.org/spiritualdirection.html

Misc.

2009-01-18T17:53:00.000-08:00

We touched on an interesting variety of topics in the course of tonight's conversation!
Fibonacci number:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fibonacci_number#The_bee_ancestry_code
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Logarithmic_spiral
Mayan Calendar:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maya_calendar
http://mayanmajix.com/
http://www.mayacalendar.com/mayacalendar.html
Movie:
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-8689261981090121097&sourceid=docidfeed&hl=undefined
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-567329528148516232&hl=un

Virgin Birth

2008-12-21T17:40:00.001-08:00

Did I challenge your thinking tonight? Some more to digest:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isaiah_7:14
http://www.religioustolerance.org/virgin_b5.htm http://www.beliefnet.com/Entertainment/Movies/The-Nativity-Story/A-Religious-Santa-Claus-Tale.aspx http://www.religioustolerance.org/chr_jcpa.htm http://englishatheist.org/indexd.shtml http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/15448a.htm http://islam.about.com/cs/jesus/f/jesus_birth.htm http://www.beingjewish.com/toshuv/virgin.html

Book:
Born of a Woman: A Bishop Rethinks the Virgin Birth and the Treament of Women by a Male-Dominated Church by John Shelby Spong.

Mathew & Luke's Nativities

2008-12-07T21:00:00.000-08:00

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nativity_of_Jesus
http://www.beliefnet.com/entertainment/movies/the-nativity-story/a-religious-santa-claus-tale.aspx
http://www.beliefnet.com/Faiths/Christianity/2000/12/Matthew-And-Lukes-Nativity-Accounts-Symbolism-Or-Fact.aspx?p=1
http://www.beliefnet.com/Faiths/Christianity/2000/12/Not-How-He-Was-Born-But-Who-Was-Born.aspx
http://www.beliefnet.com/Faiths/Christianity/2000/12/The-Christmas-Story-Whats-Real-And-Whats-Not.aspx

For more info on midrashic interpretation:
http://www.myjewishlearning.com/texts/Midrash/MidrashAggadah/FillingGaps.htm
ht tp://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/view.jsp?artid=586&letter=M
http://www.messiahtruth.com/midrash.html

Matthew vs. Luke:
http://www.stjohnadulted.org/BirthMessiah2.PDF
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nativity_of_Jesus

Genealogy: http://www.bcbsr.com/survey/sgosp1.html

Advent & Christmas

2008-11-26T05:09:00.000-08:00

Advent
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Advent
http://www.americancatholic.org/Features/Advent/faqs.asp#whatis
http://www.spirithome.com/advent.html
http://www.stpaulskingsville.org/advent.htm
http://www.creighton.edu/CollaborativeMinistry/Advent/

Christmas
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christmas
http://www.religioustolerance.org/xmas_dir.htm
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/03724b.htm
http://www.history.com/minisite.do?content_type=Minisite_Generic&content_type_id=1252&display_order=1&mini_id=1290
http://masstraveljournal.com/features/1101chrisban.html
http://thehistoryofchristmas.com/
http://www.allthingschristmas.com/traditions.html

Heaven & Hell - A Contemporary View

2008-11-19T05:06:00.001-08:00

Sunday evening we watched clips from the movie What Dreams May Come and discussed its images of heaven and hell.
For more info on the movie: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/What_Dreams_May_Come_(film)
For info on the book: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/What_Dreams_May_Come
You can rent it at most video stores or buy it through our Amazon link.
You can also search the title for a myriad of reviews!

Paradise

2008-11-11T16:56:00.000-08:00

We explored some innovative ideas Sunday evening! Here are some resources:

Books discussed:
Proverbs of Ashes: Violence, Redemptive Suffering and the Search for What Saves Us by Rita Nakashima Brock & Rebecca Ann Parker.
Saving Paradise: How Christianity Traded Love of This World for Crucifixion and Empire by Rita Nakashima Brock & Rebecca Ann Parker.

Websites:
http://savingparadise.net/
http://www.faithvoices.org/programs/savingparadise.html
http://progressivechurchplanting.blogspot.com/2008/07/saving-paradise-by-rebecca-parker-rita.html
http://www.boston.com/bostonglobe/editorial_opinion/oped/articles/2008/09/10/us_iran_and_the_axis_of_friendship/
http://www.uuworld.org/ideas/articles/3290.shtml

The Book of Revelation

2008-10-31T15:03:00.000-07:00

This is one of the most debated books of the Bible. Some suggested reading:

Breaking the Code: Understanding the Book of Revelation by Bruce M. Metzger.
Reversed Thunder: The Revelation of John & the Praying Imagination by Eugene H. Peterson.
Comfort and Protest: The Apocalypse from a South African Perspective by Allan A. Boesak.

Evil

2008-10-12T13:00:00.000-07:00

Satan

2008-10-07T17:40:00.000-07:00

Websites:
http://www.pseudepigrapha.com/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biblical_apocrypha
http://www.thatreligiousstudieswebsite.com/Articles/Theology/Satan/satan_brief_history.html
http://www.thatreligiousstudieswebsite.com/Articles/Theology/Satan/satan_brief_history2.html
http://www.thatreligiousstudieswebsite.com/Articles/Theology/Satan/satan_brief_history3.html
http://www.philipharland.com/Blog/category/history-of-christianity/history-of-satan/
http://www.philipharland.com/Blog/2005/12/29/a-history-of-satan-hist-satan-1/

Non-fiction:
The Origin of Satan by Elaine Pagels
Breaking the Code: Understanding the Book of Revelation by Bruce Metzger

Fiction:
The Screwtape Letters by C. S. Lewis
Dialogues With the Devil by Taylor Caldwell.
The Devil and Miss Prym by Paulo Coehlo
Faust by Goethe (http://www.gutenberg.org/etext/14591)

Other classics on the battle of Good & Evil:
The Chronicles of Narnia by CS Lewis
The Lord of the Rings by JRR Tolkien

Post-biblical Influences on Concept of Hell

2008-09-30T10:51:00.000-07:00

Manicheism: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manicheism
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/09591a.htm
http://www.cais-soas.com/CAIS/Religions/iranian/Manichaeism/comp_manich_christ_evil.htm
http://www.gnosis.org/library/manis.htm
Plato: http://www.iep.utm.edu/p/plato.htm
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/12159a.htm
Anselm:
Cur Deus Homo: http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/basis/anselm-curdeus.html
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/01546a.htm
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/02055a.htm
http://www.utm.edu/research/iep/a/anselm.htm
Augustine:
http://www.ccel.org/a/augustine/
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/02084a.htm
http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/augustine/
John Milton:
http://www.dartmouth.edu/~milton/
http://www.luminarium.org/sevenlit/milton/
Paradise Lost: www.dartmouth.edu/~milton/reading_room/pl/book_1/index.shtml
William Blake:
http://www.vu.union.edu/~blake/life.html
http://www.blakearchive.org/blake/main.html
The Marriage of Heaven & Hell: Text: http://www.levity.com/alchemy/blake_ma.html
Dante:
http://www.worldofdante.org/
http://www.greatdante.net/
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/04628a.htm
Book: The Inferno (Part 1 of the Divine Comedy)
C.S. Lewis:
http://www.cslewis.org/
http://www.cslewisinstitute.org/
Book: The Great Divorce

Intertestamental Influences On Concepts Of Hell:

2008-09-30T10:46:00.000-07:00

Erishkigal: http://etcsl.orinst.ox.ac.uk/cgi-bin/etcsl.cgi?text=t.1.4.1&display=Crit&charenc=gcirc#
Zoroastriansim:
http://www.religioustolerance.org/zoroastr.htm
http://www.religionfacts.com/zoroastrianism/index.htm
http://www.beliefnet.com/index/index_10035.html
http://www.sacred-texts.com/zor/
Hades:
http://www.theoi.com/Khthonios/Haides.html
http://www.monstropedia.org/index.php?title=Hades
Tartarus:
http://www.pantheon.org/articles/t/tartarus.html
http://www.ufaqs.com/wiki/en/ta/Tartarus.htm
Gnosticism:
http://www.gnosticwisdom.org/
http://www.religioustolerance.org/gnostic.htm
http://gnosis.org/welcome.html
http://www.religioustolerance.org/gnostic.htm
http://www.iep.utm.edu/g/gnostic.htm
Jewish sects:
http://judaism.about.com/library/uc/uc_sects_b.htm
http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/view.jsp?artid=252&letter=P&search=pharisees
http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/view.jsp?artid=40&letter=S&search=pharisees
http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/view.jsp?artid=478&letter=E&search=essenes
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sadduccees
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pharisees
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Essenes
Other:
http://www.hell-on-line.org/index.html
http://www.near-death.com/religion.html

Hell

2008-09-10T14:43:00.000-07:00

Books:
The Hell Jesus Never Intended by Keith Wright.
The Origin of Satan by Elaine Pagels.
Good Goats: Healing Our Image of God by Dennis Linn, Sheila Fabricant Linn, Matthew Linn, and Francisco Miranda.

Hebrew Scriptures

2008-08-26T16:31:00.000-07:00

The Hebrew translation of what Christians call the Old Testament is the Tanakh (aka Jewish English Bible Translations.)
The name "Tanakh" is a Hebrew acronym formed from the initial Hebrew letters of the Tanakh's three traditional subdivisions: The Torah ("Teaching," also known as the Five Books of Moses), Nevi'im ("Prophets") and Ketuvim ("Writings") - hence TaNaKh.
Jewish translations often reflect traditional Jewish exegesis of the Bible; all such translations eschew the Christological interpretations present in many non-Jewish translations.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tanakh
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jewish_English_Bible_translations

EPL #21-30

2008-06-18T06:52:00.000-07:00

For reflection, discussion, journaling:

21a. How does guilt limit your pleasure?
21b. How do you define pleasure?
22a. What pleasures get in the way of Pleasure?
22b. Have you befriended loneliness?
22c. How are you with Boundaries?
23. Reflect on how expectations of masculine (macho) and feminine vary from culture.
24. What is your favorite word? Why?
25. What ‘incarnations’ have you held in this ‘chaotic life’?
26. Scripture defines time in two ways: kairos is defined by moments; chronos is defined by minutes. How do these interplay in your life? In which do you live more?
28. How have your choices affected your journey?
29. Which of the two sisters – Catherine or Elizabeth – are you more like? Are you structured, practical and detail-oriented or spontaneous and looking for the story?
30a. Why did you choose to (not) have children?
30b. Reflect on “It is better to live your own destiny imperfectly than to live an imitation of somebody else’s life with perfection.”

EPL #11-20

2008-06-12T18:28:00.000-07:00

For discussion, reflection, journaling:

15. Dante not only influenced the Italian language, but also our images of heaven and hell.
16. The American Heritage Dictionary defines demon as “A persistently tormenting person, force, or passion. (from Latin, spirit, from Greek daimōn, divine power.)”[i] In this sense, what ‘demon(s)’ haunt you? If you were to personify them as Gilbert did, how would you describe them?
See The Book of Qualities by J. Ruth Gendler.
18. Gilbert uses a journaling technique to cope with her crisis.
http://www.journalinginward.com/
http://www.journalforyou.com/
http://edge.net/~dphillip/Journal.html
http://www.coachingsolutionsforwomen.com/subpage16.html1.html
http://www.explorefaith.org/lent04/index.html

Books:
Julia Cameron: The Writing Diet, The Artist’s Way, The Right to Write
Ira Progroff: At a Journal Workshop

[i] "demon." The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition. Houghton Mifflin Company, 2004. Answers.com 05 Jun. 2008. http://www.answers.com/topic/demon

Eat, Pray, Love: Intro - #10

2008-06-03T18:11:00.000-07:00

Great discussion last Sunday night. To follow up:
My friend's blog about traveling the world with her husband is http://veryitchyfeet.blogspot.com/.
The book Robert referred to is A New Earth: Awakening Your Life's Purpose by Eckhart Tolle.
The video about the women who had a stroke is http://www.ted.com/talks/view/id/229.

Some discussion (journaling) questions: (Numbers refer to section.)
2a. What have been your ‘bathroom floor’ experiences? (aka ‘hitting bottom,’ ‘burning out,’ 'crashing')
2b. What expectations suffocate your spirit?
3. What name(s) do you use for the Divine? Why? Which do you not like? Why not?
4a. What is prayer? How do you pray? Is there a set formula? Why or why not?
(cf. Romans 8: 26-27)
5. How do we balance graciousness and boundaries? How do we be loving and peaceful without becoming passive?
6a. “God never slams a door in your face without opening a box of Girl Scout cookies.” What “wonderful things…happen to [you] in the shadow of sorrow.”?
6b. Liz describes her apartment as “a hospice clinic for my own recovery.” Do you have such a space? What makes it sacred?
6c. “What do you want to do?”
7. Do you have, or desire, a spiritual discipline? Which one(s) speak to you, empower you?
9. If you wrote a petition to God, what would you ask for? Who would sign it?

Eat, Pray, Love

2008-05-27T18:12:00.000-07:00

We start our book discussion this Sunday. Some links to explore:

http://www.elizabethgilbert.com
http://www.oprah.com/presents/2007/eatpraylove/eatpraylove_main.jhtml

A Sacred Conversation on Race

2008-05-16T05:25:00.000-07:00

The UCC has called us to a Sacred Conversation on Race.

For resources:
http://www.ucc.org/sacred-conversation/

For more UCC history:
http://www.ucc.org/about-us/firsts.html
http://www.ucc.org/about-us/short-course/
http://www.ucc.org/about-us/hidden-histories/

La Amistad: http://www.amistadamerica.org/
Wilmington Ten: http://www.lib.unc.edu/ncc/ref/nchistory/feb2005/index.html

Mothering Spirit

2008-05-16T05:21:00.000-07:00

For more info on the feminine Spirit:
Websites:

Feminine-Maternal Images of the Spirit in Early Syriac Tradition:
http://www.letterandspirit.org/archive/9%20Kani%20low.pdf

http://www.pistissophia.org/The_Holy_Spirit/the_holy_spirit.html

http://theologytoday.ptsem.edu/apr1984/v41-1-article1.htm

http://www.spiritualitytoday.org/spir2day/884044osiek.html

Feminine images of God (artwork): http://www.dorisklein.com/feminine.html

Books:
The Divine Feminine by Virginia Ramey Mollenkott. Crossroad: New York, 1983.

The Only Way?

2008-05-04T08:06:00.000-07:00

Tonight we discussed exclusivism in Christianity, especially focusing on John 14: 6: I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except by me.

For further thought:
Websites:
How Do I Love Thee? http://www.theolog.org/blog/2008/04/blogging-towa-1.html
Is Christianity a Sublime Bigotry? http://www.journeywithjesus.net/Essays/20080414JJ.shtml
Exegesis: http://www.crossmarks.com/brian/john14x1.htm
Many Mansions or One Way? http://www.religion-online.org/showarticle.asp?title=150
Marcus Borg: http://www.beliefnet.com/story/39/story_3972_1.html
Pluralism: http://www.pluralism.org/pluralism/what_is_pluralism.php
Gospel of Thomas: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gospel_of_thomas

Books:
The Hidden Gospel: Decoding the Spiritual Message of the Aramaic Jesus by Neil Douglas Klotz.
The Heart of Christianity: Rediscovering a Life of Faith by Marcus Borg.
A New Christianity for a New World by John Shelby Spong.
The Sins of Scripture by John Shelby Spong
(Luann's) The Third Jesus: The Christ We Cannot Ignore by Deepak Chopra.

Nicaragua

2008-04-28T16:58:00.000-07:00

Thank you, Janet & Justin, for sharing your mission trip to Nicaragua with us!
For more info on Project Chacocente, go to : www.OutoftheDump.org.

Go to our 'Spirit' blog for info on Solentiname.

Forgiveness

2008-04-14T07:26:00.000-07:00

More resources on Forgiveness:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Forgiveness
http://www.forgivenessweb.com/
http://www.positive-way.com/forgiven.htm

The book I’ve been using:
Don't Forgive Too Soon: Extending the Two Hands That Heal by Dennis Linn, Sheila Fabricant Linn, and Matthew Linn.

They also wrote:
Healing Life's Hurts: Healing Memories through the Five Stages of Forgiveness by Dennis Linn and Matthew Linn

If you use the link to Amazon.com from our website, a portion of the proceeds benefits The Oasis. Thanks!

Atonement

2008-03-23T09:21:00.000-07:00

For more info on various Christian theories of the Atonement: www.religioustolerance.org/chr_atone5.htm This site contains inks to many other articles on Atonement theories.

Another interesting article is: The Transformational Power of Yom Kippur found at: www.beliefnet.com/story/176/story_17675_1.html

Grace

2008-02-29T12:38:00.000-08:00

Grace is more than the name of your neighbor's kid or that prayer you learned to say before meals. It's significance in the Divine Mystery is attested to by the myriad of theological writings and debates through the centuries that have tried to explain it .

To get you started:

http://www.explorefaith.org/grace.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Divine_grace
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prevenient_Grace
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irresistible_grace
http://www.americancatholic.org/Newsletters/CU/ac1000.asp
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/06689a.htm
http://www.catholic.com/library/Grace_What_It_Is.asp
http://www.umc.org/site/c.lwL4KnN1LtH/b.2310047/k.4669/Our_Wesleyan_Theological_Heritage.htm http://www.darchenoam.org/discussion/chesed1.htm

Recommended Resource

2008-02-24T08:31:00.001-08:00

For a fresh look at traditional theological language, try:
Beyond Words: Daily Readings in the ABC's of Faith by Frederick Buechner.
This is a compilation of 3 earlier works: Wishful Thinking, Peculiar Treasures, and Whistling in the Dark.
I've always appreciated the way Buechner can give me new insights simply because he doesn't use archaic language.

Sin

2008-02-24T07:14:00.001-08:00

Care to explore sin further?

http://www.beliefnet.com/story/110/story_11007_1.html
http://mb-soft.com/believe/text/sin.htm
http://faithcommons.org/what_is_sin
http://www.godweb.org/sin.htm
http://www.religion-online.org/showarticle.asp?title=1314
http://www.religioustolerance.org/chr_sin.htm

The Seven Deadly Sins:

http://www.deadlysins.com/index.html
http://www.whitestonejournal.com/seven_deadly_sins/
http://www.beliefnet.com/story/110/story_11007_1.html
http://cslewis.drzeus.net/papers/7sins.html

There’s a lot out there on ‘sin’ – some are pretty good; some make you think; some, I think, are sinful. Use discernment as you explore.

Symbolic Meaning of Numbers

2008-01-28T18:29:00.001-08:00

Last night we explored the symbolic meaning of numbers. In the process I mentioned gematria, an ancient numerology which explores this symbolism. There are a variety of sites out there on this topic -- use discernment as you explore them.

Some you may want to start with:
for a simple overview: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gematria
for more depth: http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/view.jsp?artid=128&letter=G
http://www.religioustolerance.org/biblcode1.htm

If this interests you, you might enjoy Magdalene's Lost Legacy: Symbolic Numbers and Sacred Union in Christianity by Margaret Starbird.

The Synoptic Gospels

2008-01-17T11:22:00.000-08:00

Some websites on the gospel parallels:

http://www.gospelparallels.com/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Synoptic_Gospels
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Synoptic_Problem
http://virtualreligion.net/primer/
http://www.ntgateway.com/synoptic/

Keeping Track

2008-01-13T07:57:00.001-08:00

As we read and study the Bible, it is important to realize that many words have multiple meanings or can easily be confused with another word. Knowing which word or which use of a word is intended helps us follow the material more clearly.

Jew can mean a) a follower of the religion of Judaism or b) a person of Jewish heritage (just as some Americans define themselves as ‘Irish’ or ‘German.’) In the Hebrew Scriptures these are often the same, but in the New Testament there are folk who are Jewish heritage, but Christian belief.

Ark may refer to a) the boat built by Noah (Genesis 6: 13-16) or b) the box which held the tablets of Law given to Moses (Exodus 25: 10-22).

Israel may refer to a) Jacob, the son of Isaac (Genesis 32: 28 or b) the nation of people who are his descendants (Exodus 3: 16) or c) the nation they became (2 Samuel 5: 3) or d) the northern territory when the kingdom divided after Solomon’s death (1 Kings 16: 29). Likewise, the twelve tribes of Israel are named for each of Jacob’s sons, so each of their names can refer to the person, the tribe, or the section of land allotted to them. For example, Judah can refer to a) the fourth son of Jacob (Genesis 29: 35), b) tribe of his descendents (Numbers 1: 27), c) their territory (Joshua 21: 11), or d) the southern kingdom during the divided reign (Isaiah 2: 1).

Names create a lot of confusion as we read the Bible. Many people share a common first name and last names aren’t used to distinguish them as they are in our culture. Joseph may be the son of Jacob (Gen 37: 1-11) or the husband of Mary in the New Testament (Matthew 1: 18-25 & 2: 13-23), both of whom are known for their dreams! Or it may mean Joseph of Arimathea (Mark 15:43) or Joseph the kin of Jesus (Mark 6: 23). All in all, there are 16 Joseph’s in the Bible! Likewise, there are six Mary’s in the New Testament and numerous men named John. There are two Saul’s – the first king of Israel (1 Samuel 9) and the Hebrew version of Paul’s name (Acts 13:(9). There are also two Noah’s—the man who built the Ark (Genesis 6) and the woman who was the daughter of Zelophehad (Numbers 27: 1-11).

Any others have names that are similar: Belteshazzar, Daniel’s Babylonian name, and Belshazzar, the king he served (Daniel 5); Simeon, who circumcised Jesus (Luke 2: 25-35), and Simon who was also known as Peter (Matthew 16: 16-19), as well as many other Simons (cf., Acts 9: 43, Matthew 27: 32, Mark 3: 18); Onesimus (Philemon 10) and Onesiphorus (2 Timothy 1: 16), both of whom were assistants to Paul; Mattathias (Luke 3:25), Matthias (Acts 1: 23-26), and Matthew (Matthew 9:9); Julias (Acts 27:1) and Junias (Romans 16:7);

We can also confuse people and places. Jezebel is King Ahab’s notorious wife (1 Kings 16:31); Jezreel is either of two cities (Joshua 15: 56; Joshua 19: 18). Many other places share a common name, such as Antioch in Syria (Acts 15: 23) and Antioch in Pisidia (Acts 13: 14).Some people and places share a name. An example is Schechem (Genesis 33: 18, 19). Some place names are similar, such as Shiloh (Joshua 18:1) and Shiloah (Isaiah 8:6). Caesarea Philippi is named for Caesar and for tetrarch Herod Philip.

To confuse things even more, people can undergo a name change. Abram and Sarai become Abraham and Sarah when they receive God’s promise (Genesis 17: 5, 15). As we have seen, Jacob becomes Israel, Saul becomes Paul, Daniel is Belteshazzar in captivity; Simon is nicknamed Peter, which is Cephas in Aramaic, and Joseph is known as Zaphenah-Paneah when he comes into power in Egypt (Genesis 41: 45). Nebuchadrezzar and Nebuchadnezzar are one and the same.

The are other words which are similar in appearance and/or pronunciation, but differ in meaning. For example, the Apocrypha, those books included in the Septuagint but not the Hebrew canon, and Apocalyptic, a genre of literature which uses symbolic language to describe the coming of God’s reign. Ecclesiastes is a book in the Hebrew Scriptures, but Ecclesiasticus is a book in the Apocrypha. A Nazarene is a person from the village of Nazareth (Matthew 2: 23). In the New Testament this term can refer to Jesus in particular (Mark 14: 67). A Nazarite is someone who has taken a specific vow to God (Judges 13: 4-5).

Over time, some of these words have been adopted as church names. The Nazarene Church is a denomination. When we chant the traditional ‘Kyrie,’ praying “for the well-being of the church of God,” we are praying for the whole Church, not just the denomination called the Church of God. Likewise, when the Nicene Creed says “we believe in one holy catholic and apostolic Church,” it is referring to the universal body of believers not just the denominations known as the Roman Catholic or Apostolic churches.

These examples help us see how easily things can become confused as we study the Bible, other religious writings, and church history. It is important to clearly know which person, place, or definition is intended in a particular passage. A commentary, Bible dictionary, ‘Who’s Who,’ or other resources can help determine who is who, which is which, and where is what.

The Lord's Prayer in Aramaic

2008-01-09T16:59:00.001-08:00

Sunday evening Robert mentioned learning the Lord's Prayer in Aramaic. The book we referred to is Prayers of the Cosmos: Meditations on the Aramaic Words of Jesus by Neil Douglas-Klotz (HarperSanFrancisco 1990).

An Introduction to the Bible

2008-01-05T10:28:00.000-08:00

The Good Book
Some call the Bible, ‘The Good Book.’ For others, though, it doesn’t seem such a good book. In fact it can be a formidable obstacle in our journey of faith. It’s often thick and black and written in archaic language with names our tongues just won’t wrap around. It seems full of ‘shoulds’ and ‘should nots’ and legalism that rubs our conscience raw with guilt and fear. It’s full of ‘begats’ and other details that seem dry and dull and stiffly formal.

Yet it is the book that people turn to time and again—for comfort, for hope, even for challenges as they seek to grow in their faith. Why? Because it is real. Strip away the veneer of holiness with which years of religion have coated biblical characters and you will find people who are very human. As Frederick Buechner tells us:

“Because it is a book about both the sublime and the unspeakable, it is a book also about life the way it really is. It is a book about people who at one and the same time can be both believing and unbelieving, innocent and guilty, crusaders and crooks, full of hope and full of despair. In other words, it is a book about us.”[1]

And because their stories are our stories, their doubts our doubts, their shortcomings our own, because who they are as persons is who we are as persons, we can find comfort and hope and even confrontation in their stories. Their stories plant the seeds of faith within us which then the Holy Spirit can awaken and strengthen in to new life.

Good News/Bad News
And so, it is a good book—good because it is real; good because it tells us that even in our most unlovable moments God loves us anyway; good because it tells us that God can use some pretty unholy lives (like our own) for holy ends; good because God not only uses those lives but transforms then and, if we are willing, will transform us as well.

It is this transformation, this process of being made holy, that St. Paul called sanctification. It is not an event, but a process and, in all truth, a rather painful one. In our humanness we rather prefer our unholy side. Not that we like it, of course, but it is rather well entrenched and often seems the better way to come out on top in this world. When we have to give up this unholy part of ourselves it feels like a death and, in a sense, it is.

Consequently, we grieve and, in that grieving, the good news feels like bad news. It convicts us. It confronts us. It challenges us to be more than we are, stretches us to new limits, prunes the parts of our lives that are a tangled briar and, in that pruning, makes way for new life.

When we encounter the Good News in this way, we call it the Law. It is not meant as a threat, but is a statement of reality that holds us in right relationship with one another and with God, much as the law of gravity holds things in right relationship to the earth’s surface. The Law is a guide directing our lives to holiness and wholeness. (So much so that the word for lay in Hebrew is taken from the name of the guide feathers on the shaft of an arrow.) The Law is the discipline of a loving Parent who sets rules and structure for the children, not as a means of power over them, but out of love for their well-being.

It is this Love that loves enough to discipline, loves no matter what the child says or does, loves regardless of abilities or disabilities. It is this Love that believes in the unbelievable, hopes in the hopeless, and forgives the unforgiveable. It is this Love that seeks wholeness for the broken. It is this Love that we know as Good News – what the Old English called ‘the godde spell’—what we call the gospel.

Jesus as the Word
We see this gospel, this Good News of an unconditional, disciplining Love most fully expressed in the biblical books of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John – called the Gospels because they tell of God’s love embodied in the life of Jesus of Nazareth. Though we heard about God through the lives of the patriarchs and matriarchs, judges and kings; though we heard God’s word from the prophets and rabbis; it is only through Jesus that we experienced the very essence of God.

Jesus lived out the love of God not only in his teaching, but in his actions – welcoming the outcast, healing the sick, forgiving the sinners. Because of this, the writer of the Gospel of John called him the Word of God. (John 1:1)[2] In Jewish understanding, a word is not just letters on a page or sounds in the air, but expresses the very Being of what is named. When you hear someone’s name, you not only picture their physical features, but you also think of their values, interests, opinions, habits, etc. When we call Jesus ‘The Word,' we are saying he is everything God is (a concept theologians have debated for centuries!)

We all know it is not enough to hear someone say “I love you;” we must also experience that love through their actions if we are to trust it. So it is that we not only hear of God’s love through the passages of scripture, but we also experience that love through Jesus.

The Authority of the Bible
Because we experience the love of God in our lives and because the message of that love is communicated to us through the Bible, we recognize the authority of those scriptures. This authority is based not on any theory or logical deduction – that would be merely philosophy – but on faith. Faith takes us beyond proof and belief to acceptance and trust. Though study can help us learn more about our religion, faith comes by opening ourselves up to God. Buechner compares the relationship we have with God to that which we have with a friend:

“I can’t prove the friendship of my friend. When I experience it, I don’t need to prove it. When I don’t experience it, no proof will do. If I tried to put his friendship to the test somehow, the test itself would queer the friendship I was testing. So it is with the Godness of God.”[3]

We give meaning to the Bible because it has given meaning to our lives.

On the basis of faith, most Christians accept the authority of the Bible, understanding it to be the inspired word of God. However, there are different understandings as to how that inspiration took place. Some claim that each word was dictated by God to the writer. Others believe that the writers were inspired as to the message, but the wording is their own. This debate divides the Church and causes harm.

The temptation of literalism and inerrancy is its false sense of security. If I believe I know all the answers, you can’t challenge me. However, Life will bring its challenges and a rigid faith is often brittle enough to break. Likewise, if I follow my check list of ‘right & wrong,’ I think I know who gets in and who doesn’t. Such an attitude allows little room for us to be in relationship with God or each other, for we tend to be unforgiving, ungracious, and unaccepting of ourselves and others when we fail to live up to our ‘lists.’

As we read through the Bible, we begin to recognize that there are a variety of writing styles and types of literature – poetry, laws, letters, history, songs, sayings, genealogies, narratives, and even design. Thought he Bible is generally published as one book, it is actually a collection of many different books, by a variety of authors, compiled over centuries. (The word Bible comes from the Greek word biblia, which means books or writings). These writings have been spoken by orators and storytellers, written down by scribes and authors, and edited and redacted by other scribes and monks. As we study the scriptures, we can detect the nuances of style, language, and theology of the different writers. In A Beginner’s Guide to Reading the Bible, Craig R. Koester writes:

“When you read the sentence, ‘In the fourteenth year of King Hezekiah, King Sennacherib of Assyria came up against all of the fortified cities of Judah and captured them’ (2 Kings 18:13), you assume you are reading history. When you read ‘Let the floods clap their hands: let the hills sing together for joy’ (Psalm 98:8), you quickly realize you are reading poetry that uses figurative language. Both history and poetry can convey truth, but they do so in quite different ways.”[4]

Each of the authors had their own style, their own historical context, their own experience of God and it is out of this perspective that each wrote their understanding of how God was at work. Though some translations blend the material into one style for ease of reading (for example, the King James Version), it is important to retain their distinctions in order to sort out their human influence on the passage.

How often, in our everyday lives, is there a misunderstanding because people use words or phrases differently? Or because someone only caught part of the conversation and assumed what it was about? Or a comment is repeated out of context and causes hard feelings? We are familiar with these situations and we learn how to clarify before we get caught up in an incorrect meaning. It shouldn’t surprise us, then, that the same came happen as we read the Bible. We need to understand the situation of the writer as well as the audience. We need to understand how that person and culture used certain words and phrases, keeping in mind that words change over time (consider the term gay). We need to understand a verse within its overall context. By doing this we can better understand the truth of their message.

Likewise, we need to consider how we define Truth. In Modernism, Truth is defined as an absolute. Scientific inquiry gave us concrete date to prove or disprove something. Over time, science has learned that data is not so concrete. Outcomes can be influenced by the mere presence of the observer. Exceptions to ‘laws’ are found; for example, an object can be in two places at the same time. This has given rise to Post-Modernism, in which truth is seen to be more fluid.

We have also learned that what is right and true for one group of people is not so for others. Men tend to value logic; women tend to value emotion. Right and left- brain thinkers perceive the world differently. Cultures have a myriad of ways of defining family. All these, and many more, have enriched our world, but also made us aware that there is more than one way to see that world. What is True for one person in one time and place is not necessarily true for another.
As we broaden our thinking, we are opened to the complexity of Divine Mystery. We tell our children, ‘Don’t talk to strangers,’ which keeps them safe. But over time they must learn to talk to a store clerk if they are lost or to make new friends when they move. We teach them the story of George Washington chopping down the cherry tree. Is it historical fact? Probably not. But our children learn the Truth of honesty. We are teaching our children the skills to discern, to assess life in ways that are helpful. So too must we learn to discern the truth in scripture, moving from that which is safe to that which has Life.

[1] Buechner, Frederick. Wishful Thinking: A Theological ABC. San Francisco: HarperSanFrancisco, 1973. p. 9)
[2] Biblical references are read as ‘Book, chapter, verses’ so this passage would be found in the book of John, chapter 1, the first verse.
[3] Buechner, p. 26.)
[4] Koester, Craig R. A Beginner’s Guide to Reading the Bible. Minneapolis: Augsburg fortress, 1991. p. 15.