Memorial Day Sonnet
If Liberty means anything to me,
I will remember what my freedom cost,
By those who gave their all to keep me free,
Whose lives were sacrificed, but never lost.
I will remind myself of what they did,
And keep them dearly cherished in my heart;
Their honor never from me shall be hid
And I will know they always did their part
To save our nation and its people here,
To pledge their lives in defense of our ways,
To show that freedom always outlives fear,
And sacrifice is hallowed all our days.
If Liberty means anything to me,
I will remember those who kept me free.
Audio for Sonnet here
© John Stuart 2008
Pastor at Erin Presbyterian Church,
Knoxville, Tennessee
Sunday, May 25, 2008
Memorial Day Sonnet
Friday, May 23, 2008
Have you ever dreaped a wall? Dreap is an old Irish word which means to climb, and the action required by dreaping is to run as fast as you can towards a wall, leap high into the air, and try to catch the top of the ledge with your fingers. You then hold as hard as you can and pull yourself up over the wall. It takes a great deal of effort and if you miss holding onto the wall, your fingertips end up with friction burns.
Podcast version here
Dreaping walls was a summer sport for Scottish children. Gangs of kids roamed the streets looking for a high brick wall, where the bigger kids delighted in showing off their dreaping skills. Shorter kids like me had to put up with ridicule and scorn, humiliation and sore fingers until we grew taller.
The best dreaping walls were usually situated next to churches and the biggest one where I lived was a high wall attached to St. Monica’s Chapel. It was a beautiful whitewashed wall, which was pebbled from top to bottom. This meant that it was a double agony wall – if you missed the dreap, then as you slid down the wall, the pebbles would cut across your fingers and face. Dreaping the chapel wall was always considered to be a double-double dare. Failing the dreap would be embarrassing; leaping the dreap brought a whole lot of honors.
In all of my boyhood, I only once managed to dreap the chapel wall and I sat upon it triumphantly, gloating at my friends who couldn’t do it. But my success was short lived. The old Irish priest at St. Monica’s spotted me on the wall and he shouted with enough papal authority to knock me off my perch. He might have scared the living daylights out of me, but he could not dent my pride. I had dreaped the chapel wall and no one could ever take that from me.
Psalm 18:29 With your help I can advance against a troop; with my God I can scale a wall.
I guess that the writer of Psalm 18 was also used to dreaping walls, although in this case I think he’s poetically talking about obstacles in life. His faith is such that he knows God will help him to overcome his problems and get through his worst experiences. It’s that kind of simple faith in God which helps many of us through the crises in our lives. Things may appear to be insurmountable and we wonder how we will get over them, but God is willing to reach down and help us, to carry us over the obstacles that come our way.
Prayer: Lord God, we depend upon Your grace each and every day of our lives. We especially need You in distressing times and those moments when our problems seem to overshadow everything that we try to do. During those worrying times, we ask that You will help us to overcome our troubles and lift us out of despair. In Christ’s Holy Name, we pray. Amen.
Thursday, May 22, 2008
4 Minute Devotions: How Long Will this Go On?
We all go through troubling times and sometimes we feel abandoned by God. During those moments of fear and despair, God is always with us, waiting for the right time to save and deliver us, comfort and embrace us.
Psalm 13:2 How long must I wrestle with my thoughts and every day have sorrow in my heart? How long will my enemy triumph over me?
About two years ago, our wee church went through a time of turmoil that caused me a lot of worry and sleepless nights. The issue affected the well-being of the whole congregation and there seemed to be a heavy atmosphere of gloom and doom amongst us. Worship attendance declined and offerings went down. We lost a handful of members and found it tough to recruit new ones.
The trouble seemed to be never-ending and we couldn’t move forward for a while. All our plans were put on hold and we felt as though we were sliding back. It was a terrible time and most of my prayers included a “How long, O Lord” section in them each day.
But God is good and He works in wonderful ways. Instead of dividing the church, the incident caused us to depend more on God and each other. After two long years, our worship attendance is bigger than what is was before and our offerings are up by 20%. There’s a better atmosphere across the church and we’re spiritually healthier than we ever have been. It took a lot of hard work, wrestling, and patience, but God has worked wonders and empowered us to be more faithful. It has been a hard lesson to learn, but in the end, it is an extremely important one.
Some of the old psalms are about similar times and experiences. God’s faithful people are constantly being spiritually challenged and go through some seriously turbulent times. During those moments of unrest and unease, the people cry out to God for deliverance. They complain about their troubles and bemoan the fact that God does not appear to be doing anything to help them.
Yet in the end, God always shines through. His timing is different from our own, but His timing is always best. We may wrestle with our worries and be afflicted with our concerns; we may feel abandoned by God and outside of His grace; but more often as not, He delivers us; He rescues us; He saves us from despair. We may go through a “how long” experience, and then discover that God is with us every second, every hour, and every day of our troubles. We may let go of Him at times, but God never lets go of us.
About two years ago, our wee church went through a time of turmoil that caused me a lot of worry and sleepless nights. The issue affected the well-being of the whole congregation and there seemed to be a heavy atmosphere of gloom and doom amongst us. Worship attendance declined and offerings went down. We lost a handful of members and found it tough to recruit new ones.
The trouble seemed to be never-ending and we couldn’t move forward for a while. All our plans were put on hold and we felt as though we were sliding back. It was a terrible time and most of my prayers included a “How long, O Lord” section in them each day.
But God is good and He works in wonderful ways. Instead of dividing the church, the incident caused us to depend more on God and each other. After two long years, our worship attendance is bigger than what is was before and our offerings are up by 20%. There’s a better atmosphere across the church and we’re spiritually healthier than we ever have been. It took a lot of hard work, wrestling, and patience, but God has worked wonders and empowered us to be more faithful. It has been a hard lesson to learn, but in the end, it is an extremely important one.
Some of the old psalms are about similar times and experiences. God’s faithful people are constantly being spiritually challenged and go through some seriously turbulent times. During those moments of unrest and unease, the people cry out to God for deliverance. They complain about their troubles and bemoan the fact that God does not appear to be doing anything to help them.
Yet in the end, God always shines through. His timing is different from our own, but His timing is always best. We may wrestle with our worries and be afflicted with our concerns; we may feel abandoned by God and outside of His grace; but more often as not, He delivers us; He rescues us; He saves us from despair. We may go through a “how long” experience, and then discover that God is with us every second, every hour, and every day of our troubles. We may let go of Him at times, but God never lets go of us.
Prayer: Lord God, there are times in our lives when we feel impatient, insecure, and anxious. We feel isolated and vulnerable, abandoned and alone. Teach us to depend upon You in ways that will make us better comprehend Your ways. Grant us faith to overcome fear and strength to defeat our sorrow. In Christ’s Name, we pray. Amen.
Prince Caspian Caption Contest: Please Vote for Me!
Hi Folks, the last time I sent out this request for your help, it all came in too late.
I'm in the top ten again for a caption contest based on Prince Caspian. Most of the other jokers are have a hard time accepting that a pastor from Tennessee actually has a sense of humor.
Could you all visit the following webpage and vote for me? I'm the one called Stushie on the voting board.
So here's your chance to show them that Bible Belt has what it takes to beat the competition.
Go to the following webpage and vote for me, Stushiehttp://www.mattresspolice.com/2008/05/vote_20.htm
Tuesday, May 20, 2008
Pray Today - Pass Tomorrow?
So long as students have to take exams, there will always be prayer in our schools. But how effective are those prayers? And what if a special written prayer could reduce stress, bring calmness, and help a student focus during the hours of an exam? Would it help the student to pass the test?
The Church of England has come with a novel idea of internet prayers for high school, college, and university students to recite before they enter exam rooms. The prayers are also available for teachers who tend to worry about their students during exams. After all, the outcome of the final grades is also used to measure the effectiveness of a teacher’s ability.
The Rev Janina Ainsworth, chief education officer for the Church of England has stated that the prayers were initially written for student gatherings or school assemblies. With a little tweaking, the prayers could be altered to suit an individual’s needs.
Leaving prayer to the last minute is more like wishful thinking, but taking time to sit down and really pray may help stressed out students calm down and give themselves a better opportunity of making their grades. The peace that passes all understanding may soon become the peace that passes every testing.
The prayers can be found at www.cofe.anglican.org/prayers
4 Minute Devotionals: Living with Lions
Nature can be a terrifying and destructive force. Our faith is in God, who is above nature. When we seek Him, God enables us to find what we need. A devotional about he lions of Serengeti and my daughter's upcoming mission trip to Tanzania.
Podcast version here
Psalm 34:10 The lions may grow weak and hungry, but those who seek the LORD lack no good thing.
I was watching a nature program on the Discovery channel the other night. It was about a super pride of lions in the Serengeti Park of East Africa. The savagery of these big cats is awesome and their strength is absolutely amazing. When I watched them pull down their prey and feast on the corpses, it made me shudder and revere the lions at the same time. I was quite thankful to be viewing them in the comfort of my home and not somewhere on the great plains of Africa.
I also watched the program because it was based in the Tanzanian part of the Serengeti. My youngest daughter Lauren will be going on mission there for thirteen weeks, starting on the 1st June. She’s already left the United States and is enjoying a week with her family and friends in Scotland. She’s also preparing herself physically, mentally, and spiritually for what I call her ‘African adventure’. I hope that she also gets to see some of the wildlife in Tanzania and maybe a few lions, but at a safe distance.
The Discovery program showed some of the lean times that the super pride endured. When prey was scarce, some of the younger cubs starved and the older lions grew very weak. It’s part of the process of living in the jungle, where the survival of the fittest is always the law of the land. It was distressing to watch some of the weaker cubs die, but it also made me thankful for the bounty of blessings that God has given to my family and me.
I guess that’s why I like this verse from Psalm 34. It reminds all of us about the forces of nature which cause hardship at times to wildlife, but it also describes our dependency upon God’s favor and blessings. He is above the powers of nature – which is the meaning of the word ‘supernatural’ – so when we truly seek Him, He enables us to meet our needs.
I hope and pray that when Lauren works with the orphaned children in Tanzania that her world view will change and her dependency upon God will be stronger than ever. And when she returns at the end of August, I look forward to learning new aspects of faith from her.
Prayer: Lord God, we thank You for the bounty of blessings in our lives, especially in these troubled times where thousands of others have lost everything due to the ravaging and terrifying power of Nature. With our resources, help us to share the blessings of what we have with those who have not. Teach us to depend upon the riches of Your grace, so that we, in turn, can give of our lives to those in most need. In Christ’s Holy Name, we pray. Amen.
Feedback Question: When have you experienced God’s bounty and then used it as a blessing to share with others?
John Stuart is the pastor of Erin Presbyterian Church in Knoxville, Tennessee. Send your feedback answers to him at pastor@erinpresbyterian.org.
Monday, May 19, 2008
A New Earth - Part 3
Continuing the page by page critique of Eckhart Tolle's book "A New Earth." Why Christians should be aware of the heretical implications of Tolle's message.
P 59: Tolle identifies the egoic mind with the inner voice we use for thinking and reading. Funny how this is a bad thing and yet it is absolutely necessary to read his book.
He tries to make thinking out to be something un-natural which possesses us, stopping us from being ‘aware.’ This unconsciousness (Jung) blocks out the true spiritual awareness. Hans Christian Andersen could have written a better plot.
P60: Tolle tries to separate ourselves from the I (ego) that we are. He insists that we are not the “I” that we refer to in the first person. This will dissolve any personal responsibility for mistakes that we make. If we are separate from the egoic “I,” then how can we be held accountable?
This egoic “I” is the source for us being opinionated – Tolle is doing 2 things here: he’s trying to diminish other opinions and secondly, he is expressing his own opinion! This gets crazier and crazier. Instead of “A New Earth”, he should have called his book, “A New Wonderland for Alice.”
Egos deep down are all the same – this echoes some Jungian psychology.
“Others are most other when I see them as my enemies” – Tolle has just dismissed his opposition in egoic terms…
P61: He quotes Christ’s lesson about the speck and log in the eye, equating Christ’s message with Tolle’s philosophy. Jesus is talking about hypocrisy, not opposition. (Matthew 7:3-5).
Tolle writes that name calling is the crudest form of labeling and the ego’s need to be right…and yet he is going to use this process when condemning religion, especially Christianity.
P62 Tolle gets it right when he talks about resentment – it does cause bitterness and offense.
Focusing on other’s faults only amplifies resentment – also true.
Tolle proscribe a ‘state of nonreaction’ to overcome dysfunction of resentment – Buddhist & Christian teaching.
P63: Nonreaction equals forgiveness in Tolle’s book – but forgiveness is a very proactive event. He sees it as a means of not reacting to the injury, insult, or offense. But that is being passive, not forgiving.
P64: Tolle urges his readers to try to catch the voice inside their heads and suddenly realize that you are not the voice. But you can no more separate the voice from self as you can the heart from the body. Is Tolle schizoid?? Also, by disassociating oneself from the “voice in the head” you once again avoid any responsibility for wrong thinking, wrong choices, and wrong deeds.
The old mind pattern is the ego…the new one is awareness.
P65: People can become addicted to resentment and anger as other are to a drug. This is absolutely true. Ask marriage guidance counselors…
Collective grievances can survive for centuries and fuel cycle of violence…this is true, but is Tolle going to use this against the institutionalized church?
Grievances contaminate other areas of life. Tolle is making some very good psychological points here.
P66: Tolle writes that Christ’s teaching to “Forgive your Enemies” is about undoing the egoic structure in the mind. This is bunkum! Jesus was relating to His culture and the hatred that His people espoused against the Gentiles, and in particular, the Roman occupiers of Judea.
P67: Tolle suggests that when we complain we are egoically implying that we are right and someone else is wrong – this is too general…usually we complain when something is wrong, not necessarily someone.
Being right makes us morally superior and highly judgmental. Tolle does not therefore seem to believe in boundaries, which makes his philosophy morally ambivalent or even amoral. He’s going to develop this argument of being morally superior against the boundaries and standards set by the Church.
P 68: ‘Ego takes everything personally.’ – Amen, so why do Tolle and Oprah get so defensive about their new earth philosophy? Why are their followers so visceral in their attacks?
The truth needs no defense – yet Tolle is not going to accept that Christ is the Truth.
P 69: ‘Only through awareness are you able to see’ – yet you need to think through to that awareness level. If it was all natural as Tolle suggests, you wouldn’t need a book to describe the process.
‘I am right and you are wrong is a dangerous thing in personal relationships’ – this may have been Tolle’s partnership experience, but a healthy marriage is willing to compromise and let each partner be right at different times.
Tolle is advocating his no boundaries, no absolutes again…calling right a mental dysfunction. He then starts to talk about moral relativism seen as a great evil by Christian teachings…but he never finishes the thought.
P70: Tolle begins to question, attack and diminish the Church. He talks about people being killed in the past – yet we’re more enlightened today. He talks about the truth being a story you had to believe in – he is calling the Gospel a story, rather than the word of God.
He suggests that we cannot find absolute truth in doctrines, ideologies, sets of rules or stories…in other words the Bible, ten commandments, the Gospels and teachings of the Church.
“All religions are equally false and equally true, depending how you use them” – this is universalism…in other words, anything goes.
P71: To believe in your religion as the truth is to use it to build up your ego and make yourself superior. He’s missed the point entirely. Believing in Christ’s words is to worship God faithfully.
There is one absolute truth according to Tolle, but it is not Jesus Christ.
The truth is inseparable from who you are. Yes, you are the truth. This is new Age narcissism. It points us away from Christ and puts ourselves in the place of God This is exactly why Christians should not embrace the teachings of this book.
Tolle even suggests that this is what Christ was teaching when He said “I am the way and the truth and the life.” He’s making Jesus conform to his philosophy. This truth is about the I Am within us all according to Tolle. THIS IS ABSOLUTELY WRONG!
Jesus was referring to the way in which people come to God. Again Tolle only half quotes the verse:
John 14:6 Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.
It’s about the exclusivity of Christ being the True way to God, not an inner awareness of our own existence.
P72: Love is above the Law, etc…this is true. Quotes Augustine, who is referring to 1 John.
He writes about both sides believing to be in possession of the truth – which is egoic. But Tolle, Oprah, and their followers do this all of the time…not practicing what they preach.
P 73: Talks about religious and ideological conflicts inflicting suffering upon humanity, ‘even on children.’
Them and us mentality = insanity to Tolle. Normal equals insane on planet earth…this is Tolle’s opinion. (Did someone steal his candy when he was a baby????)
Sin is insanity, thus there is no accountability. John & Augustine however would agree, “If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us.” 1 John 1:8
P74: TYPICAL NEW AGE STATEMENT: our common divinity is rooted in the one Life – in other words, we are all gods.
Mission to eradicate evil – you are likely to turn into what you are fighting against…the story of Dune comes to mind again…Paul.
P75: Whatever you fight, you strengthen, and whatever you resist, persists. Psychology of addiction. Also echoes Paul’s own words - Romans 7:19 For what I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do-this I keep on doing.
The war against – Tolle : I know that it is condemned to failure…Tolle applying his egoic mind…believe me, I know, etc…he going against his own philosophy again. Being judgmental before issue is experienced.
P 75/76: Tolle talks about diseases re-emerging and new ones evolving because of modern day medicine. He goes on to say that Homeopathy and Chinese medicine do not create new diseases…this is his opinion and not based upon facts at all.
Ego is a collective dysfunction, the insanity of the human mind. Once again, no responsibility for our actions. Tolle than states that “Nobody is wrong.” – this is moral relativism – so Hitler wasn’t wrong when he gassed 6 million Jews?? This is a dangerous, fascist type of philosophy that could go horribly wrong if adapted and adopted by our society – which is why the Church needs to counter it.
P77: Tolle talks about the enormous surge moving through during times of fear, anger or hostility. This is ego…but it is also adrenalin!
Can you feel something within you driving this fear or hostility?
P78: Presence will overcome ego and bring about peace. Awareness is the power concealed in the present moment. This is Buddhist teaching.
Ultimate purpose of human existence is to bring that awareness/presence into the world. This leaves it to us to take the initiative, instead of allowing God to usher in his presence and Kingdom. It also makes us the ones who bring salvation into the world, instead of Christ. THIS IS WHY THIS TEACHING IS HERETICAL.
P79: Tolle uses Jesus again to strengthen his argument. He quotes Christ’s saying “Deny Thyself,” but once again Tolle half quotes the statement. Tolle uses Christ’s words to deny ego and find awareness. Christ uses His own words to have people deny themselves and follow Him. It’s about sacrificial discipleship, not spiritual navel gazing.
Matthew 16:24 Then Jesus said to his disciples, "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.
Tolle calls the essential beingness the “I Am that I Am” – this is blasphemy. Whether he intends it or not, Tolle is equating himself and devotees with God – this is the sacred name of God.
Exodus 3:14 And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM : and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you.
Tolle writes about the phantom self that comes into existence when thought takes over. I think he is drinking to much kool aid and watching too many episodes of Star Trek here.
P80: Ego uses people to get what it wants – underlying emotion that governs ego is fear – the fear of being nobody, nonexistence and of death. I get the funny feeling that Tolle is going to use this line of argument against Church control.
“Only the truth of who you are, if realized, will set you free.” – This goes against Christ’s own statement, only the truth will set you free meaning Himself. (When talking to the Jews about His teaching)
John 8:31-32 To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, "If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free."
P81: DANGER: ALL STRUCTURES ARE UNSTABLE - a sutra – Buddhist word for sacred lesson – but this is also anti-disestablishmentarianism
Tolle equates formlessness – NIRVANA – with Jesus’ teaching on eternal life. But this is what Christ Himself had to say: John 17:3 Now this is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent. Faith and devotion to God in Jesus Christ is the key to eternal life, not Tolle’s formlessness.
P82: Tolle talks about the egoic superiority that people feel when they pass on gossip. This is true.
P83: This page may contain why the book is so appealing to Oprah – the bane of being famous…people believe that through celebrities and famous personalities, they can become more than what they are. It’s called idolization in the Bible.
Famous people become more alienated from themselves and others – also become more unhappy and more dependent on their popularity – is Tolle speaking to Oprah here????
Calls Albert Einstein superhuman and humble…does Tolle idolize Einstein here…like everyone else, Einstein was quite conceited…and Einstein’s fame was based upon his thinking…seems like an unusual choice for Tolle to make, because his book seems to want to avoid thinking altogether.
P84: Genuine relationship – outward flow of open, alert attention with no wanting in between. Tolle is describing what Martin Buber called “I-Thou” relationship.
Egoic relationships are predominantly – wanting, thwarted wanting and indifference. Gluttony, lust and sloth – three of the seven deadly sins.
A New Earth - Part 2
He tries to make thinking out to be something un-natural which possesses us, stopping us from being ‘aware.’ This unconsciousness (Jung) blocks out the true spiritual awareness. Hans Christian Andersen could have written a better plot.
P60: Tolle tries to separate ourselves from the I (ego) that we are. He insists that we are not the “I” that we refer to in the first person. This will dissolve any personal responsibility for mistakes that we make. If we are separate from the egoic “I,” then how can we be held accountable?
This egoic “I” is the source for us being opinionated – Tolle is doing 2 things here: he’s trying to diminish other opinions and secondly, he is expressing his own opinion! This gets crazier and crazier. Instead of “A New Earth”, he should have called his book, “A New Wonderland for Alice.”
Egos deep down are all the same – this echoes some Jungian psychology.
“Others are most other when I see them as my enemies” – Tolle has just dismissed his opposition in egoic terms…
P61: He quotes Christ’s lesson about the speck and log in the eye, equating Christ’s message with Tolle’s philosophy. Jesus is talking about hypocrisy, not opposition. (Matthew 7:3-5).
Tolle writes that name calling is the crudest form of labeling and the ego’s need to be right…and yet he is going to use this process when condemning religion, especially Christianity.
P62 Tolle gets it right when he talks about resentment – it does cause bitterness and offense.
Focusing on other’s faults only amplifies resentment – also true.
Tolle proscribe a ‘state of nonreaction’ to overcome dysfunction of resentment – Buddhist & Christian teaching.
P63: Nonreaction equals forgiveness in Tolle’s book – but forgiveness is a very proactive event. He sees it as a means of not reacting to the injury, insult, or offense. But that is being passive, not forgiving.
P64: Tolle urges his readers to try to catch the voice inside their heads and suddenly realize that you are not the voice. But you can no more separate the voice from self as you can the heart from the body. Is Tolle schizoid?? Also, by disassociating oneself from the “voice in the head” you once again avoid any responsibility for wrong thinking, wrong choices, and wrong deeds.
The old mind pattern is the ego…the new one is awareness.
P65: People can become addicted to resentment and anger as other are to a drug. This is absolutely true. Ask marriage guidance counselors…
Collective grievances can survive for centuries and fuel cycle of violence…this is true, but is Tolle going to use this against the institutionalized church?
Grievances contaminate other areas of life. Tolle is making some very good psychological points here.
P66: Tolle writes that Christ’s teaching to “Forgive your Enemies” is about undoing the egoic structure in the mind. This is bunkum! Jesus was relating to His culture and the hatred that His people espoused against the Gentiles, and in particular, the Roman occupiers of Judea.
P67: Tolle suggests that when we complain we are egoically implying that we are right and someone else is wrong – this is too general…usually we complain when something is wrong, not necessarily someone.
Being right makes us morally superior and highly judgmental. Tolle does not therefore seem to believe in boundaries, which makes his philosophy morally ambivalent or even amoral. He’s going to develop this argument of being morally superior against the boundaries and standards set by the Church.
P 68: ‘Ego takes everything personally.’ – Amen, so why do Tolle and Oprah get so defensive about their new earth philosophy? Why are their followers so visceral in their attacks?
The truth needs no defense – yet Tolle is not going to accept that Christ is the Truth.
P 69: ‘Only through awareness are you able to see’ – yet you need to think through to that awareness level. If it was all natural as Tolle suggests, you wouldn’t need a book to describe the process.
‘I am right and you are wrong is a dangerous thing in personal relationships’ – this may have been Tolle’s partnership experience, but a healthy marriage is willing to compromise and let each partner be right at different times.
Tolle is advocating his no boundaries, no absolutes again…calling right a mental dysfunction. He then starts to talk about moral relativism seen as a great evil by Christian teachings…but he never finishes the thought.
P70: Tolle begins to question, attack and diminish the Church. He talks about people being killed in the past – yet we’re more enlightened today. He talks about the truth being a story you had to believe in – he is calling the Gospel a story, rather than the word of God.
He suggests that we cannot find absolute truth in doctrines, ideologies, sets of rules or stories…in other words the Bible, ten commandments, the Gospels and teachings of the Church.
“All religions are equally false and equally true, depending how you use them” – this is universalism…in other words, anything goes.
P71: To believe in your religion as the truth is to use it to build up your ego and make yourself superior. He’s missed the point entirely. Believing in Christ’s words is to worship God faithfully.
There is one absolute truth according to Tolle, but it is not Jesus Christ.
The truth is inseparable from who you are. Yes, you are the truth. This is new Age narcissism. It points us away from Christ and puts ourselves in the place of God This is exactly why Christians should not embrace the teachings of this book.
Tolle even suggests that this is what Christ was teaching when He said “I am the way and the truth and the life.” He’s making Jesus conform to his philosophy. This truth is about the I Am within us all according to Tolle. THIS IS ABSOLUTELY WRONG!
Jesus was referring to the way in which people come to God. Again Tolle only half quotes the verse:
John 14:6 Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.
It’s about the exclusivity of Christ being the True way to God, not an inner awareness of our own existence.
P72: Love is above the Law, etc…this is true. Quotes Augustine, who is referring to 1 John.
He writes about both sides believing to be in possession of the truth – which is egoic. But Tolle, Oprah, and their followers do this all of the time…not practicing what they preach.
P 73: Talks about religious and ideological conflicts inflicting suffering upon humanity, ‘even on children.’
Them and us mentality = insanity to Tolle. Normal equals insane on planet earth…this is Tolle’s opinion. (Did someone steal his candy when he was a baby????)
Sin is insanity, thus there is no accountability. John & Augustine however would agree, “If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us.” 1 John 1:8
P74: TYPICAL NEW AGE STATEMENT: our common divinity is rooted in the one Life – in other words, we are all gods.
Mission to eradicate evil – you are likely to turn into what you are fighting against…the story of Dune comes to mind again…Paul.
P75: Whatever you fight, you strengthen, and whatever you resist, persists. Psychology of addiction. Also echoes Paul’s own words - Romans 7:19 For what I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do-this I keep on doing.
The war against – Tolle : I know that it is condemned to failure…Tolle applying his egoic mind…believe me, I know, etc…he going against his own philosophy again. Being judgmental before issue is experienced.
P 75/76: Tolle talks about diseases re-emerging and new ones evolving because of modern day medicine. He goes on to say that Homeopathy and Chinese medicine do not create new diseases…this is his opinion and not based upon facts at all.
Ego is a collective dysfunction, the insanity of the human mind. Once again, no responsibility for our actions. Tolle than states that “Nobody is wrong.” – this is moral relativism – so Hitler wasn’t wrong when he gassed 6 million Jews?? This is a dangerous, fascist type of philosophy that could go horribly wrong if adapted and adopted by our society – which is why the Church needs to counter it.
P77: Tolle talks about the enormous surge moving through during times of fear, anger or hostility. This is ego…but it is also adrenalin!
Can you feel something within you driving this fear or hostility?
P78: Presence will overcome ego and bring about peace. Awareness is the power concealed in the present moment. This is Buddhist teaching.
Ultimate purpose of human existence is to bring that awareness/presence into the world. This leaves it to us to take the initiative, instead of allowing God to usher in his presence and Kingdom. It also makes us the ones who bring salvation into the world, instead of Christ. THIS IS WHY THIS TEACHING IS HERETICAL.
P79: Tolle uses Jesus again to strengthen his argument. He quotes Christ’s saying “Deny Thyself,” but once again Tolle half quotes the statement. Tolle uses Christ’s words to deny ego and find awareness. Christ uses His own words to have people deny themselves and follow Him. It’s about sacrificial discipleship, not spiritual navel gazing.
Matthew 16:24 Then Jesus said to his disciples, "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.
Tolle calls the essential beingness the “I Am that I Am” – this is blasphemy. Whether he intends it or not, Tolle is equating himself and devotees with God – this is the sacred name of God.
Exodus 3:14 And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM : and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you.
Tolle writes about the phantom self that comes into existence when thought takes over. I think he is drinking to much kool aid and watching too many episodes of Star Trek here.
P80: Ego uses people to get what it wants – underlying emotion that governs ego is fear – the fear of being nobody, nonexistence and of death. I get the funny feeling that Tolle is going to use this line of argument against Church control.
“Only the truth of who you are, if realized, will set you free.” – This goes against Christ’s own statement, only the truth will set you free meaning Himself. (When talking to the Jews about His teaching)
John 8:31-32 To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, "If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free."
P81: DANGER: ALL STRUCTURES ARE UNSTABLE - a sutra – Buddhist word for sacred lesson – but this is also anti-disestablishmentarianism
Tolle equates formlessness – NIRVANA – with Jesus’ teaching on eternal life. But this is what Christ Himself had to say: John 17:3 Now this is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent. Faith and devotion to God in Jesus Christ is the key to eternal life, not Tolle’s formlessness.
P82: Tolle talks about the egoic superiority that people feel when they pass on gossip. This is true.
P83: This page may contain why the book is so appealing to Oprah – the bane of being famous…people believe that through celebrities and famous personalities, they can become more than what they are. It’s called idolization in the Bible.
Famous people become more alienated from themselves and others – also become more unhappy and more dependent on their popularity – is Tolle speaking to Oprah here????
Calls Albert Einstein superhuman and humble…does Tolle idolize Einstein here…like everyone else, Einstein was quite conceited…and Einstein’s fame was based upon his thinking…seems like an unusual choice for Tolle to make, because his book seems to want to avoid thinking altogether.
P84: Genuine relationship – outward flow of open, alert attention with no wanting in between. Tolle is describing what Martin Buber called “I-Thou” relationship.
Egoic relationships are predominantly – wanting, thwarted wanting and indifference. Gluttony, lust and sloth – three of the seven deadly sins.
A New Earth - Part 2
Friday, May 16, 2008
4 Minute Devotions: Testing the Faith
I only failed one test when I was at university. It happened in my first semester and of all things to fail, I failed New Testament. The professor and I didn’t see eye to eye, so I think I was marked out for a humbling experience. I missed the pass grade by half a point and he wouldn’t round it up. There were no do-overs or extra credits at the Divinity Faculty, so I had to live the next semester with my failure. I guess if I had studied more, been better prepared, and had gone unnoticed in the class, I might have squeaked through a pass. Whatever the case, it was my own fault, but I learned my lesson. Throughout the next six years at the Faculty, I never failed a class again and finished up with an Honors degree.
2 Corinthians 13:5 Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you-unless, of course, you fail the test?
Testing our faith is something that we don’t pay a great deal of attention to these days, but in Paul’s time, it was very important. People had to truly know within their hearts if their faith was real because Christians were being persecuted at the time. When believers put their trust in Jesus, they were also laying their lives on the line. To call Jesus “Lord” was a capital offense against Caesar and the Roman Empire, so followers of Christ had to be sure they wanted to be Christians. If they didn’t test their faith from time to time, then they may have been found wanting when a real trial came their way.
But what about us today? How do we properly test our faith? I think we’ve got to ask ourselves if our faith is a leisure pursuit, a life style choice, or an everlasting commitment. We may never be asked to lay down our lives for Jesus, but we may feel pressured to worship on an irregular basis because of other commitments. Or we may hold back from giving our time and resources for Christ’s church because of insecurity or insensitivity. Or we may neglect growing our faith and be led astray by New Age teachers and prosperity Gospel preachers without realizing it.
I think the best way to test our faith in different situations is to honestly ask ourselves would Jesus approve or do this. If the honest answer is “No” and we ignore it, then we have tested our faith in Christ and failed. During those times, we need to seek His forgiveness and allow Him to help us start again. Christianity is not easy and it is not comfortable, but when we do the right thing and please the Lord, it is the most spiritually rewarding faith in the entire universe.
Prayer: O Lord Jesus, we fear failure in our lives and we don’t like to lose in our society. We forget that our faith competes with our decisions and choices every day. Help us to remain faithful to You, so that when we are deeply and sorely tested, we will not fail You. And if we do fail, enable us to sincerely and humbly come to You for forgiveness. In Your Holy Name, we pray. Amen.
Thursday, May 15, 2008
The Vision: Catching the Spirit
This took place at the Living Waters Retreat center in Maggie Valley, North Carolina. I went there for a couple of quiet days to be with God and ask Him for a vision of our church.
As I looked out of my window, I saw four tall elm trees. Everything was quiet and still. It was a prayerful moment of peace and tranquility, and yet I felt there was something mysterious in the air.
As I looked at the trees, I marveled at how the slender trunks had taken years to branch out into smaller limbs, twigs, and leaves. I thought about Christ’s Church being the largest tree and all the denominations becoming strong branches on the new limbs.
Where was Erin on this great tree? In 2000 years of Christianity and throughout the numerous denominations, and even amongst billions of Christians, what part did we represent of the great tree?
As I contemplated our size and history, I realized that we were just a mere leaf toward the top of the tree. Amongst myriads of leaves, we were just like any other – a tiny leaf, on a small twig, connected to a big branch, attached to a large limb, growing out of a giant trunk. We were the smallest of the small – insignificant, unimportant, and ineffectual.
In the stillness of the moment, I felt stung in realizing that we had only made such a tiny contribution to the Great tree of Faith. It was humiliating and hurtful, shocking and surprising. I came to the retreat center looking for an almighty vision, and all that I was given was a divine reality check.
And then God showed me something totally unexpected. Everything was quiet and somber. As I looked at the little leaf that I had chosen as Erin, it slowly began to flutter. Nothing else was happening to the whole tree. Somehow that little, unimportant and insignificant leaf was catching the wind. It seemed as though it was dancing.
Soon other little leaves around it began to flutter and dance. They were also catching the wind and, for a while, they all fluttered alone as a group. And then, all over the tree, other tiny leaves began to catch the wind, and they also fluttered and danced.
The twig that was Erin began to sway ever so slightly, and then it began to swing to the music of the wind. Very soon other twigs were swaying and then the bigger branches joined the dance. The wind was beginning to pick up and the tree was full of its energy. Leaves were fluttering swiftly, twigs and branches were swinging, boughs and limbs were swaying rhythmically in the breeze.
As the dance continued, the sound of the wind picked up and it choreographed the whole tree. I then wondered when the great trunk of the tree would move. I didn’t see it, but I heard it. Throughout this great orchestration of the wind and leaves, I suddenly heard the deep moaning sounds of the trunk creaking in the wind. The whole tree was alive to the movement of the air. I was watching a great symphony that began with the fluttering solo of a little leaf called Erin.
That’s when God struck me with the vision. Erin is just a little church, the tiniest of leaves on this great tree of the Christian faith. Our role is not to be great or grandiose, important or significant. Our purpose is simply to await the coming of the Holy Spirit, to catch its wind, to flutter and dance as the Spirit moves us, so that other little leaves around us may be encouraged and influenced to do the same.
We are here at Erin to catch the wind of the Holy Spirit. The earth may never know who we are or that we exist, but God knows and our role is to delightfully dance before Him. If we wait upon the Lord and catch the Spirit, then we will have fulfilled our purpose. When the Spirit comes, those little leaves that are ready will dance joyfully and flutter faithfully, pleasing God and delightfully serving Christ.
Erin, God is preparing us to catch the Wind? Are we ready to begin the dance?
Erin Presbyterian Church is situated in the Bearden area of Knoxville on Lockett Rd, diagonally across from where Papermill Drive meets Kingston Pike. Services are at 11.00AM on Sunday mornings.
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