Revelation

Revelation

Author:

Publisher: Canongate Books

Published: 1999-01-01

Total Pages: 60

ISBN-13: 0857861018

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The final book of the Bible, Revelation prophesies the ultimate judgement of mankind in a series of allegorical visions, grisly images and numerological predictions. According to these, empires will fall, the "Beast" will be destroyed and Christ will rule a new Jerusalem. With an introduction by Will Self.


Systematic Theology

Systematic Theology

Author: Paul Tillich

Publisher: University of Chicago Press

Published: 2011-07-07

Total Pages: 447

ISBN-13: 022616263X

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In this volume, the third and last of his Systematic Theology, Paul Tillich sets forth his ideas of the meaning of human life, the doctrine of the Spirit and the church, the trinitarian symbols, the relation of history to the Kingdom of God, and the eschatological symbols. He handles this subject matter with powerful conceptual ability and intellectual grace. The problem of life is ambiguity. Every process of life has its contrast within itself, thus driving man to the quest for unambiguous life or life under the impact of the Spritual Presence. The Spritual Presence conquers the negativities of religion, culture, and morality, and the symbols anticipating Eternal Life present the answer to the problem of life.


How Jesus Became God

How Jesus Became God

Author: Bart D. Ehrman

Publisher: Harper Collins

Published: 2014-03-25

Total Pages: 297

ISBN-13: 0062252194

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New York Times bestselling author and Bible expert Bart Ehrman reveals how Jesus’s divinity became dogma in the first few centuries of the early church. The claim at the heart of the Christian faith is that Jesus of Nazareth was, and is, God. But this is not what the original disciples believed during Jesus’s lifetime—and it is not what Jesus claimed about himself. How Jesus Became God tells the story of an idea that shaped Christianity, and of the evolution of a belief that looked very different in the fourth century than it did in the first. A master explainer of Christian history, texts, and traditions, Ehrman reveals how an apocalyptic prophet from the backwaters of rural Galilee crucified for crimes against the state came to be thought of as equal with the one God Almighty, Creator of all things. But how did he move from being a Jewish prophet to being God? In a book that took eight years to research and write, Ehrman sketches Jesus’s transformation from a human prophet to the Son of God exalted to divine status at his resurrection. Only when some of Jesus’s followers had visions of him after his death—alive again—did anyone come to think that he, the prophet from Galilee, had become God. And what they meant by that was not at all what people mean today. Written for secular historians of religion and believers alike, How Jesus Became God will engage anyone interested in the historical developments that led to the affirmation at the heart of Christianity: Jesus was, and is, God.


Reading Revelation in Context

Reading Revelation in Context

Author: Zondervan,

Publisher: Zondervan Academic

Published: 2019-09-10

Total Pages: 208

ISBN-13: 031056624X

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Reading Revelation in Context brings together short, accessible essays that compare and contrast the visions and apocalyptic imagery of the book of Revelation with various texts from Second Temple Jewish literature. Going beyond an introduction that merely surveys historical events and theological themes, Reading Revelation in Context examines individual passages in Second Temple Jewish literature in order to illuminate the context of Revelation's theology and the meaning and potency of John's visions. Following the narrative progression of Revelation, each chapter (1) pairs a major unit of the Apocalypse with one or more sections of a thematically related Jewish text, (2) introduces and explores the historical and theological nuances of the comparator text, and (3) shows how the ideas in the comparator text illuminate those expressed in Revelation. In addition to the focused comparison provided in the essays, the book contains other student-friendly features that will help them engage broader discussions, including an introductory chapter that familiarizes students with the world and texts of Second Temple Judaism, a glossary of important terms, and a brief appendix suggesting what tools students might use to undertake their own comparative studies. At the end of each chapter there a list of other thematically relevant Second Temple Jewish texts recommended for additional study and a focused bibliography pointing students to critical editions and higher-level discussions in scholarly literature. Reading Revelation in Context brings together an international team of over 20 New Testament experts including Jamie Davies, David A. deSilva, Michael J. Gorman, Dana M. Harris, Ronald Herms, Edith M. Humphrey, Jonathan A. Moo, Elizabeth E. Shively, Cynthia Long Westfall, Archie T. Wright, and more.


Holy Scripture

Holy Scripture

Author: Donald G. Bloesch

Publisher: InterVarsity Press

Published: 2010-08-21

Total Pages: 4

ISBN-13: 0830863753

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Voted one of Christianity Today's 1995 Books of the Year! In Holy Scripture, Donald G. Bloesch sets out the pivotal evangelical doctrines of the Bible's revelation, inspiration and interpretation. Striving to "defend the orthodox evangelical faith from its friends as well as its enemies," he provocatively argues against both evangelical rationalism and liberal experientialism. And he proposes the alternative of biblical evangelicalism--which sees Scripture as the written Word of God but stresses that it becomes the living Word of God only through the illumination of the Holy Spirit. In dialogue with Martin Luther, John Calvin, P. T. Forsyth, Karl Barth and Emil Brunner, Bloesch's Holy Scripture examines the implications of biblical authority for the 21st century. It surveys the role of the Bible as seen within the Bible itself and as that role has unfolded through centuries of Christian tradition. It also explains and critiques many highly contested issues, such as the value of biblical criticism, the meaning of myth, the plethora of hermeneutical options and the nature of truth.


Revelations

Revelations

Author: Elaine Pagels

Publisher: Penguin

Published: 2012-03-06

Total Pages: 253

ISBN-13: 110157707X

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A startling exploration of the history of the most controversial book of the Bible, by the bestselling author of Beyond Belief. Through the bestselling books of Elaine Pagels, thousands of readers have come to know and treasure the suppressed biblical texts known as the Gnostic Gospels. As one of the world's foremost religion scholars, she has been a pioneer in interpreting these books and illuminating their place in the early history of Christianity. Her new book, however, tackles a text that is firmly, dramatically within the New Testament canon: The Book of Revelation, the surreal apocalyptic vision of the end of the world . . . or is it? In this startling and timely book, Pagels returns The Book of Revelation to its historical origin, written as its author John of Patmos took aim at the Roman Empire after what is now known as "the Jewish War," in 66 CE. Militant Jews in Jerusalem, fired with religious fervor, waged an all-out war against Rome's occupation of Judea and their defeat resulted in the desecration of Jerusalem and its Great Temple. Pagels persuasively interprets Revelation as a scathing attack on the decadence of Rome. Soon after, however, a new sect known as "Christians" seized on John's text as a weapon against heresy and infidels of all kinds-Jews, even Christians who dissented from their increasingly rigid doctrines and hierarchies. In a time when global religious violence surges, Revelations explores how often those in power throughout history have sought to force "God's enemies" to submit or be killed. It is sure to appeal to Pagels's committed readers and bring her a whole new audience who want to understand the roots of dissent, violence, and division in the world's religions, and to appreciate the lasting appeal of this extraordinary text.


The Qur'an and Its Message Versus the Three Major Monotheistic Religions

The Qur'an and Its Message Versus the Three Major Monotheistic Religions

Author: Joseph The Monotheist

Publisher: Joseph The Monotheist

Published: 2024-09-22

Total Pages: 320

ISBN-13: 3907677005

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Both the curious and the believer alike find themselves pondering the same question: What is the Qur’an, and what is so special about the Qur’an that drives almost one-quarter of the world’s population to believe in it? The Qur’an is not what one would consider an easy read, whether talking about Arabic speaking peoples reading the Arabic Qur’an or non-Arabic speaking peoples reading translations of the text in other languages. Most people think that reading the Qur’an once or even several times readily enables them to understand what the Qur’an is saying. That surely would be true if one were a native Arabic speaker living in the space-time of the revelation fourteen hundred years ago. However, for us living in other space-time, the present author assures the reader that that is not the case. This book is part of a series. It is the first volume of “The Qur’anic Revelation: A Reformed Understanding”—published concurrently with the second and third volumes. In this book the author argues that the religion of Islam is an unacceptable representation of the Qur’anic revelation. Furthermore, that the religions based on God’s revealed scriptures, as we know them today, including but not limited to the religion of Islam, deviate from the essence of God’s revelations—mainly bringing Judaism and Christianity into the discussion. The author puts forward his own interpretation of the Qur’anic revelation and, in this volume, primarily addresses its inclusiveness aspect by exploring how the Qur’an understands both inclusiveness and religion. What Islam is the book talking about? Is it one Islam that around one-fourth of the world’s population follows? Are all of the commands in the Qur’an of eternal applicability? Did the Qur’an come with a new religion and how did the Qur’an define membership in the religion? What impact did the Qur’an have on the beliefs and practices of those who accepted the revelation from the peoples of previous scriptures in the space-time of the Prophet, yet as argued, who at the same time maintained their religious identities? This volume addresses these questions and a multitude of others. This book is self-contained. It does not require the reader to have previous knowledge in any of the topics discussed. The book discusses topics you do not find in your typical book about the Qur’an or Islam. It would interest those who want to learn about the Qur’an and its message. Among this group would be those searching for a reformed understanding of the Qur’an and how it applies today; those curious to learn how the Qur’anic message affects followers of the previous revealed scriptures; and those interested in monotheistic religions in general.