A New Earth: Chapter Five

I find it difficult to continue to read this book - there are so many untruths about Christ and christianity that I can hardly go on.
(new Pages have been added)

Page 129 Tolle refers to the voice in his head again. I’m beginning to think this guy is schizoid. He also refers to karma on this page, which is a Buddhist/Hinduistic term. There is no such thing as karma in Christianity.

Page 130 Nothing of consequence.

Page 131 Tolle writes about ‘phonies.’ Is this a subliminal fear that Oprah has? Is she afraid of her work being ‘superficial?’

Tolle talks about modern people ‘always trying to get home, but never reach it.’ Perhaps if Tolle and his readers were to read John 14, they might suddenly find it!

Tolle writes about modern writers writing about the modern human dilemma, but never offering a solution. He doesn’t seem to understand that this comes about because most of them lacked faith.

Page 132 Tolle expresses emotions in a holistic sense. His material on this page could have been written from a manual of the Christian Scientists.

Page 133 Tolle refers to Gaia…the complex being that is planet earth. This is definitely New Age stuff.

Refers to primordial fear and anger…fight or flight…nothing new here.

Tolle suggest that emotion is the body’s respond to thought. An inward reaction to an outward circumstance.

Page 134 Tolle suggests that toxic energy in our system is built up through anxious thoughts. This is New Age hooey. There is no scientific evidence for any of this. Tolle is waffling here and wallowing in his own thoughts. Is he suffering from the same self-promulgated narcissism that he talks about through like his own suppositions and thoughts, rather than the ones he can actually prove?

Page 135 The voice in the head tells the story that the body believes…this is what he calls emotional storytelling. Is Tolle making a negative inference about the Church and its teaching?

“Life always lets you down”…is this a great part of Tolle’s personal reality?

He talks about self-esteem being low…is he empathizing with his women readers????

Page 136 Tolle lists a whole lot of negative qualities/experiences and claims that they all disrupt the energy flow through the body, heart, and immune system. Almost same kind of list of sins against the Spirit. Galatians.

All negative emotions equals unhappiness to Tolle. But is a lack of happiness really unhappiness?

Page 137 Love is a possessiveness and addiction that can turn to hatred…is Tolle reaching out to his readers who have bad relationships???? Clever, very clever…

There is not good without bad, no high without low. This is dualism, which is not Christian. God is good – He was when bad did not exist, and He will continue to be when bad ceases to exist.

States of Being positively emanate from love joy, peace…Tolle almost lists the fruits of the Spirit found in Galatians.

Page 138 We are a species that has lost its way…which is why Jesus came into the world – to show us the way back through Him.

Page 139 the present moment is where we find power…the experience of now. This is Buddhist teaching. In Christianity, the only real now is God…I AM WHO I AM. Tolle is once again displacing God for our own existential experience.

Relates story about two monks – Tanzan and Ekido. Old story…good point.

Page 140 memories become our emotional prisons. If we don’t let go of the past, our past won’t let go of us. Is Tolle talking about the past, or is he surreptitiously meaning ‘tradition?’

We hang on to our old emotions and they become our identity…which is why Christ invites us to come to Him…to liberate us from the past and find our new identity in Him.

Page 141 …nothing ever happened in the past etc….this is sophistry. He’s trying to sound clever, but as Ecclesiastes might say…it’s just vanity.

Tolle talks about children growing up with negative emotions…he’s linking to mothers who worry about their kids…clever reader prospecting here.

Page 142…nobody can go through childhood without suffering emotional pain. This is true.

Remnants of pain and negative emotion forms an energy field…this is Star Trekking again. Perhaps Tolle has accumulated most of his ideas through the imagination of Gene Roddenberry.

Page 143 … the collective pain-body is probably encoded within every human’s DNA…although it hasn’t been discovered yet….WOW! This is mythical, NEW AGE stuff…

Emotional pain-body is carried by every new born….is Tolle equating this with original sin??? Human pain…isn’t this what we Christians call separation or alienation from God?

People with pain bodies are better equipped to awaken spiritually…clever, Tolle, clever. He’s sympathizing with his readers.

Page 144…WOW! Tolle refers to Jesus as CHRIST. …with regard to His suffering…Tolle sees Christ as the archetypal human, embodying pain and the possibility of transcendence. In other words, Tolle is equating Christ’s pain with our own and nothing more. There’s no sacrifice for the world to redeem it for God.

Pain body is a semi-autonomous energy form…this is absolute baloney…talks about this needing to be fed…and vibrating at a certain frequency. This is some wild stuff, although some forms of Buddhism talk about vibrations drawing forth dark evil forces…

Page 145 The pain body is an addiction to unhappiness…misery loves company??

Pain body, negativity, and depression…is Tolle relating to a lot of women???

Page 146: Pain body feeds on thought energy…thoughts operate and vibrate at a higher frequency…there is no scientific evidence of this. This sounds like something from Reno:The Excutioner stories…

Page 147: A lot of this page is like an episode of Deep Space Nine where a character (Jake) is taken over by the MUSE.

Voice in head tells sad, anxious or angry stories about self, other people, and situations…This is schizoid…this makes me very wary about Tolle and his own mental stability.

Pain body devours negative thoughts…this is absolute garbage…

Page 148 Pain body – a psychic parasite….emotional vampirism.

Pain body pushes other people’s buttons…in other words, no responsibility…I can hear it now: It wasn’t me, it was my pain body that did it!

Tolle lays on a guilt trip for unstable parents when he writes about millions of children going through upheaval because of their parents’ agitated pain bodies…This guy piles on guilt like an old Irish priest, which is a method of gaining control. If Tolle can make his readers feel guilty, then he can also hold out the carrot of absolution, salvation, etc…

Page 149: Pain body is the reason for alcoholism and violence in men…The person who is talking and making promises, however, is not the entity that commits the violence…This is transference. Tolle is condoning violence by suggesting it is not a personal choice but an activation of the pain body…

People think they fall in love, but actually their pain-bodies compliment each other…Tolle must have had some bad relationship experiences. This sounds more like sour grapes to me.

Page 150: Pain bodies keep dormant and then jump into action when triggered….Tolle writes a stereotypical page about honeymoon arguments. This is not good psychology…this is pseudo-psychology…Tolle appears to blame all conflicts on pain bodies, instead of blaming it on people themselves.

Page 151: Pain body distorts reality with fear, hostility, and anger…blinded by emotions. All of a sudden the person you love has a different face…the pain-body has taken possession. Choose someone as your partner whose pain body is not excessively dense.???

The only excessively dense people are the ones who think this book will transform them.

(Still to be finalized)

A New Earth - Part 4

(Continuing a page by page critique of Tolle's book "A New Earth.")

This chapter is long and tedious - I'll post the critique in stages...honestly folks, there's only so much of this stuff that I can take in...

P85: Tolle refers to the ego as psychic energy – that will please some New Agers.
The ego does not seek the formless attention which is presence – Buddhism.

P86 Tolle writes about the fear of not being good enough. Paul would talk about this as falling short of God’s glory.

He also writes about the ego’s constant need of feeling superior – so why does this book attack and dismiss religion, especially the church?

P87 Eckhart writes about children wanting attention – he’s writing to his readership. Very clever. He’s identifying with their identity – which goes against what he is supposed to be proclaiming.

Talks about victimization which leads to complaining, being offended, and outraged. Somehow I get the feeling he is going to strap this one onto the Church.

P88 – Complainers feel they are being treated unfairly by life, fate, or God – this is interesting. Perhaps Tolle should have quoted some psalms of complaint, or verses from the Book of Job.

Talks about role play in relationships and how partnerships fail – this makes me wonder about Tolle’s failed relationships – is he making general observations, or is this coming from his own egoic experiences?

P89 Finishes with absurd argument about the Spanish form of “te quiero”, as opposed to “te amo”. True love is rare according to Tolle…in his life?

He suggests that Jesus saw the ultimate irrelevance of caste or social class – so how does this explain Jesus saying that soldiers should not complain about their pay, or how people should pay their taxes to Caesar, etc.

People are confused about who they are and how they fit in today’s world – this is true…but it always has been.

P90 Tolle rambles on about confusion and comes up with the idea that if we accept that we don’t know who we are, we will find peace – this is sophistry – it sounds mysterious and enlightened, but it’s really just a delusion. It kind of reminds me about a James Thurber story…

Tolle says our roles are unimportant and we should resist becoming identified with this – what about doctors, surgeons, paramedics, etc…what about Oprah? Talk show host?

P91 Don’t take ourselves seriously, if we want to be free of our roles. Which begs the question: if you are seriously ill, do you want a surgeon who is serious about his skills, or one that couldn’t care less?

Tolle insists that authentic human relationships can exist when we adopt role identities. Yes they can…doctor – patient, teacher – student; shopkeeper – customer…

Social archetypes…Tolle uses these to connect with his readers…which is another relationship…writer – readers!

P92 Playing roles leads to less spontaneity, light-heartedness, and joy – (Tolle is hitting upon the main heartfelt wishes of housewives…)

Talks about hippies as refusing to play stereotypical roles…but they became rebels…Talks about collective insanity of 1950s society…but wasn’t the hippie movement based upon insane collectives??? (Charles Manson…) Hippie movement degenerates because they had to feed their drug ridden habits…Eastern wisdom introduced by hippy culture…but it was mainly the Beatles who did that.

P93 We speak to people in different ways – Tolle suggests this is inauthentic….but most of the situations are perfectly natural. He suggests that we are playing roles, but he misses the point: we are communicating and sometimes deference to someone in authority is the only way to accomplish this.

P94 Tolle suggests that we are not relating to people when we play roles; here’ a key question: how is Tolle writing/relating to his readers???? Is it inauthentic?

A lot of what Tolle is teaching in the part of the chapter is borrowed from Martin Buber’s I-Thou theories.

He tells the tale of Kasan’s sweaty palms, in deference to his superiors. In the end though, Kasan still becomes master to his students…

P95 “Just Fine” – a lot of people live in denial with their unhappiness…true.

Tolle writes that unhappiness has nothing to do with who you are. This is absurd. Unhappiness has everything to do with how you feel, therefore it has everything to do with who you are at any given time.

P96 Separate yourself from unhappy thoughts – this is a bit like Tinkerbelle in Peter Pan.

Don’t seek happiness – if you do, you wont’ find it. This is Tolle’s opinion…What does he think about the Declaration of Independence…life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness…

P97 Tolle writes about parents and their roles. He’s reaching out to mothers stuck in their role…this is very clever targeting.

Tolle cautions parents about being overbearing and controlling…this obstructs kids from exploring and finding out for themselves. But parenting is about setting safe boundaries, as well as ethical ones for our children.

P98 Role of parent can become compulsive and ruins relationship with child. This section makes me wonder if Tolle has ever been a parent. Is he speaking from theory or practice?

The ego motivates itself to enhance itself and look after its self interest. This used to be called ambition. Is Oprah not one of the most ambitious women in the world?

P99 Tolle writes about manipulative parents using guilt trips to get what they want. Did Tolle have a bad childhood?
Awareness is the greatest agent for change – but change for what?

He also suggests that egoic patterns miraculously dissolve when you don’t oppose them. What does he mean by miraculous?
P100 Tolle describes the generational conflict between parent & child. He writes about old thoughts and old ways…is he subtly using this as a continuing argument of breaking from the past?

4 Minute Devotions: Dealing with Anti-Christians

Throughout history, pro-active forces have sought to diminish Christianity and eradicate its influence. Today, Christians need to be able to express and defend their faith, especially with those who are anti-Christian.

1 John 4:3 …but every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you have heard is coming and even now is already in the world.

Podcast version here

For just over nineteen hundred years, the words of the Apostle John have alerted Christians to the fact that there are forces in the world which pro-actively work to diminish Christ and eradicate Christianity. In John’s time, it was the Roman emperors who tried to eliminate the faith. Four centuries later, barbarians tried to do the same. And in the sixteenth century, Islamic jihadists all but destroyed the Byzantine Empire and tried take over all of Europe. If they had succeeded, the Pilgrim Fathers would never have set sail and all of our succeeding history would have been wiped out forever.

Throughout the twentieth century, evangelicals declared that the Anti-Christ was manifested in the Kaiser, Mussolini, Hitler, and Stalin. Latterly, Saddam Hussein was meant to be the Anti-Christ and now whoever wins the Whitehouse in November may be given that same dubious title by religious fanatics.

But John doesn’t necessarily mean a person in this scripture. He is writing about a spirit, a movement, perhaps even a cultural change. If his words could be applied today, then perhaps militant atheists, secular humanists, and New Age gurus may be considered anti-Christian spirits. And because they are becoming culturally popular, we have to be prepared to explain, express, and even defend our beliefs on a regular basis. The old days of resting in our Christian comfort zones are coming to an end. The world wants to set Christ aside and make His followers ineffective and redundant. We are in danger of becoming antiquated and archaic, especially in Western society.

So the challenge for us today is this: let’s make our faith relevant in our daily activities and show others that Christ matters to us and to our culture.

Prayer: Lord Jesus, there are so many distractions in our world that it is getting harder to remain focused and committed to You. As Christians, we are often pressured to let go of our faith and show to others that we are just like them. Remind us that the purpose of our faith is to try to be like You, which is why we are called Christ-ians. In Your Holy Name, we pray. Amen.

A New Earth - Part 1

Oprah is pitching a new book called "A New Earth" by Eckhart Tolle. Her advocacy is causing millions of viewers to buy into Tolle's philosophy. He presents his ideas as a necessary spiritual transformation that will take place this century, whether we like it or not. He also uses the Bible and teachings of Jesus to validate his points.

But Tolle's book is not Christianity and in many ways, it opposes Christ's teaching, diminishes His divinity, and replaces God with our spiritual selves. Our church is studying the book on Monday nights and Sunday mornings. This blog will reflect the teaching that Tolle presents and how it differs from actual Christian beliefs. I hope that readers of the blog will use these page by page reflections as a means to teach their own people about this new movement.

Chapter One

Page 1: Tolle begins with his opinion about what happened on earth 114 million years ago. Obviously because he wasn’t there, this is just his fanciful opinion. This sets the tone for the whole book: he is making up his own reality about the world.

Tolle suggests that there was no perceiving consciousness to witness the flowering of the world: in other words, God was not there and doesn’t seem to exist for Tolle.

Page 2: Tolle writes that flowers were the first things that human beings were drawn and fascinated to, outside of themselves – but where did that facility to be fascinated originate? From the flowers? From human beings? Or endowed by the Creator in our DNA?

He also states that Jesus told us to contemplate the flowers and learn from them how to live. When Jesus taught His “Consider the Lilies” lesson, He was using it to express our dependency on the providence and mercy of God. The parable is not about us – it’s about God.

(Note: Tolle will often use Christ’s teachings to express his own opinions, and not those of Jesus Himself.)

Flowers lead us to an appreciation of our own inner beauty. This will be a common theme throughout the book. This is spiritual narcissism – the love of ourselves as the source of our spirituality. This seriously opposes our love, wonder, and fascination with God.

Page 3: Flowers are messengers from another realm…and fragrance comes from the realm of the spirit. This sounds like New Age stuff.

He widens the conventional accepted meaning of ‘enlightenment’ to incorporate his own ideas…and yet his teaching is unconventional.

Tolle: enlightenment brings about discontinuity with the old, helping us leap beyond the past into experiencing a new evolved level of Being and Self Awareness .

Christian teaching ( Calvin) would suggest that enlighten is the process by which we are over-awed with the wonder of God and attracted to Him. Tolle is substituting our own self-awareness in place of becoming truly aware of God.

Page 4: Tolle talks about One Life, One Consciousness. This is not original. This is more Jungian (Carl Jung) than Tollian.

Tolle emphasizes “Presence” – Hebrews would call this shekinah – the glory of God, the sacredness of His presence. Tolle believes that we recognize this Presence within us and love it as ourselves. Once again, God is being displaced in favor of narcissism.

Page 5: Mainly deals with enlightenment in a Buddhist way of thinking.

Tolle states that the Holy Spirit is preparing the ground for a planetary shift of consciousness. This is very serious because this is blasphemy. The purpose of the Holy Spirit is to reveal Christ to the world, not to bring about an evolutionary consciousness.

Page 6: Tolle references Jesus as a great teacher and messenger. He will very rarely use the term Christ and never refer to Jesus as the Son of God.

Tolle also infers that Christ’s ministry was a failure because of the opposition to Him. His teachings did not transform many lives…and yet there are about 2 billion followers of Christ in today’s world.

Tolle describes his book as a ‘transformational device’ => he is trying to canonize his own text.

Reading the book will transform you….this is a frequent mantra in the book. Subliminal message and auto suggestion…also known as brainwashing.

Page 7: This book is about you. Tolle stroking the ego of his readers to gain their patronage and appreciation. Narcissism. In contrast, the Bible is not about you…it’s about God.

Tolle states that the book can only awaken those who are ready….this is the old Emperor’s New Clothes argument.

Begins to write about ego – becoming Freudian and will start to apply pseudo-psychology here.

Tolle states that the ego tricks the mind into identifying with it with no flexibility…this is going to morph into an argument against absolutes and Truth.

Page 8: Author suggests that when we triumph over ego, we become the light of consciousness – in other words, we are the light that we are looking for.

In contrast, Jesus would say that we are the Light of the world and that he is the Light we are looking for.

Tolle begins to reference religions as ancient…by implication, he is suggesting that they are outdated, instead of timelessly relevant.

He also begins to reference his idea that sin is a madness, a dysfunction of who we truly are.

Page 9: Equates sin with dysfunction => it is not a selfish choice.

He also interprets the NT Greek word “sin” as something that means missing the point of our human existence. This shows his shallowness of New Testament knowledge. The word for sin actually means to miss the mark – standard or expectation – that God has set for us. It’s not about our human existence; it’s about disappointing God.

Page 10: SIN = MADNESS…which will mean that we are not personally accountable for our sinful actions. This is New Age Narcissism.

Tolle begins the old argument that religion breeds violence and conflicts.

Page 11: Talks about the horrors of Stalin, Hitler and Pol Phot – Agreed. He also emphasizes the environmental wreckage of the planet that is brought about by our greed.

Page 12: Fear, greed, and the desire for power are the psychological forces that cause most conflicts. Tolle believes that they cause a misconception and distortion of our true human perception.

Dysfunction entirely replaces sin. Tolle suggests that we cannot get rid of this dysfunction without a shift in our consciousness. This means that there is no room for Christ as our Savior.

Page 13: We cannot be good by trying to be good; we can only do this by finding the good within ourselves.
This opposes Christ’s teaching: only God is good. For Tolle, there is no source of good outside of us…therefore Man replaces God.

Tolle: Good News – radical transformation of human consciousness. He is deliberately using the Gospel term to proclaim his own philosophy. This is in direct contrast to Christian teaching and promotes a false gospel.

Tolle suggests that Jesus called enlightenment ‘salvation.’ Tolle: salvation is truly understanding yourself….but for Christ salvation is the realization of needing to be rescued from God’s wrath and the process through Christ’s sacrifice in which it is done.

Page 14: Self-recognition is the greatest human achievement --- narcissism all over again.

Recognizing our insanity/dysfunction is the beginning of healing and transcendence….Jesus is kicked into the gutter and the Cross is absolutely useless.

Page 15: Tolle writes about the original teachings of religious leaders being changed through the generations and were not part of the original ministry. He is subtly attacking the veracity of the Gospels. He furthers expresses his own opinion that the unpopularity of the teachers’ teaching got them killed, which made others worship them as gods.

This is an attack on Christ’s ministry of atonement through sacrifice and His divinity as the Son of God.

Tolle also states that religions are more divisive than unifying – that’s an old argument which doesn’t hold water. Religions unify millions upon millions of people.

Tolle then expresses his rejection of some being right and others wrong. This is the modern non-absolutionists’ argument…there are no rights or wrongs…Goes against Gospel teaching.

Tolle suggests that Man made God in his image. Humanism. This is a direct attack on our Creator. He suggests that we have reduced the infinite and un-nameable to a mental idol. Christians, however, worship God as Christ’s Father.

Page 16: Tolle writes that the real message is the truth that lies within us…narcissism again. As opposed to Christ being The Truth.

Tolle references Gnosticism as a rediscovery of the real truth and intensification of the light. Obviously, he has not read the texts and is caught up in a false Da Vinci Code moment.

Gnosticism is emphasized as a true realization and inner transformation of self…and yet they rejected the physical self and believed that the body is bad.

Page 17: Tolle belabors the point that only a small minority had access to these truths because the Church oppressed and suppressed them. Obviously he hasn’t read the history of Gnosticism and its cultic practices.

Tolle extols the differences between spirituality and religion. This is what Christ also taught, BUT Jesus did not abandon His religion – He still went to synagogue to teach and to worship on the Sabbath.

Tolle suggests that our religious beliefs systems separate us from the spiritual dimensions within ourselves…Tolle is subtly enticing people away from God…our spiritual navels are more important that our relationship with God.

Page 18: Tolle writes about new spirituality movements arising out of the existing religious structures…for example, the New Emergent Church in Christianity.

Tolle describes the Western Church as the most mind dominated faith on the planet…he is going to equate this with egotism. He does not however, suggest that the Church’s domination saved civilization and actually engendered enlightenment.

Begins to state the old New Age argument that ancient Eastern wisdom is beginning to influence the West, as if the Eastern ways were better….but look at the state of most countries with Eastern wisdom…they are practically the poorest and most oppressed on earth! Did Eastern wisdom spawn documents like the Magna Carta or Declaration of Independence? Liberty and life are more valued in Western Church countries than in Eastern wisdom nations.

Tolle suggests that we let go of dogma in order to discover the true spiritual depth within ourselves…in other words experience spiritual narcissism over the teachings of the Church.

Page 19: Any opposition to Tolle new transformational conscious is called the ‘entrenchment of ego.’ He is stating that institutionalized religion is about idolizing the institution, but he has missed the point altogether. Religious institutions normally exist to serve God, not the believer.

Tolle writes that the collective ego will fight back…in other words, churches will oppose his philosophy.

They will be mentally closed to his ideas…no, we disagree with them. It comes down to this: whom do we trust? Tolle and Oprah, or Christ and God?

Tolle declares that religious institutions will disintegrate from within…but we’ve heard this all before – Voltaire & the French Revolution, as well as Soviet Communism (which lasted 100 years), but the Church still survives and thrives. Atheism & New Age keep declaring the death of God and the Church…but the fact is this: the Church is still growing worldwide.

Page 20: Tolle argues that through the process of evolution, species & life forms will either become extinct or rise above their limitations…to survive requires an evolutionary leap.

He writes about evolutionary processes…but these are physical changes, not spiritual ones.

Page 21: Tolle’s controversial statement about spiritually evolving or dying – This is fascism…submit or die…spiritual eugenics. He then claims that he is not promoting a new belief system…but that is precisely what he and Oprah are establishing.

Page 22: Tolle urges his readers not to take their identity from the old ways of consciousness. Yet Christians belong to Christ. Our spiritual identity is established in Him. Tolle is subtly arguing that we ditch Christ for ourselves.

Tolle then questions the reality of evil. It’s a matter of dysfunction and madness for him. If evil is not real according to Tolle, then Christ is the Savior of nothing and His death is meaningless.

Page 23: Tolle states that he took the title of his book from scriptural references…Isaiah 65:17 and Revelation 21:1. He argues that the new heaven and new earth represent his transformational consciousness as reflected in the physical realm. He believes that this is what Christ taught…that the new heaven and new earth are not places, but new transformational ideas.

However, both scriptures emphasize places…

Isaiah 65:17-18 "Behold, I will create new heavens and a new earth. The former things will not be remembered, nor will they come to mind. But be glad and rejoice forever in what I will create, for I will create Jerusalem to be a delight and its people a joy.

Revelation 21:1-2
21:1 Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea.

Tolle is falsely advocating his view as being the same as Christ’s.

He ends the chapter with a suggestion that human life and human consciousness are intrinsically one with the planet…but this is not what Genesis teaches.

Tolle suggestion is perhaps borrowed more from the movie “Excalibur,” when the secret of the Holy Grail is discovered…that Arthur and the Land are one.

4 Minute Devotions: A New Oprah - why Christians should be wary.

In the next couple of weeks, our church will be studying a book that has been highly recommended by Oprah Winfrey. It’s called “A New Earth” and is written by Eckhart Tolle. He writes about a new evolutionary spiritual transformation that he believes will take place this century amongst enlightened people. He draws from the teachings of Christ and Buddha, as well as the theories of Carl Jung. It’s a typical new age type of book, but his hope is that it becomes sacred scripture in the years to come.

Podcast version here

I’ve read the first chapter and already I’ve come across several areas where Tolle’s teaching misinterprets Christ. He relies upon his own feelings about Jesus as a great teacher and messenger to make his points. He does not proclaim Christ as the Son of God or Lord of all creation. Tolle also avoids calling our mistakes sinful; instead he declares them to be a form of madness which, in effect, does two things: it takes away personal accountability and it discards the need for Jesus to die for our sins.

John 16:33 "I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world."

The book troubles me and I am sincerely sorry that Oprah has become involved and infatuated with this false teaching. It is countering Christ’s message and duping many women into believing the old heresy that salvation comes from within us.

I will be leading a ten week discussion about the book to show people where it dangerously digresses from Christian teaching, in order to help them avoid the pitfall of accepting popular superficial spirituality, as opposed to the deep meaning of Christ’s Gospel.

The discussions will take place at the church on Monday nights beginning May 5 and on Sunday mornings on May 11. I’ll also be starting a new online study class during the week of May 5 -11, so if you would like to be included, please send me an email at pastor@erinpresbyterian.org. Put “A New Earth” in the subject line of your email.

Some people may wonder why I am tackling this. It’s because in every generation, we have to defend our faith from misconceptions, mistaken beliefs, and misleading spiritual teachers. It’s properly called Apologetics, and has been in existence ever since the New Testament was written down.

Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are our Holy Teacher and Sacred Guide. You are the Prophet and Messenger of the Gospel. But You are also much more than these – You are the Christ, the Messiah, the Son of the Living God, and the Only One with the words of eternal life. Keep us focused on Your ways and keep us away from false teachers and superficial celebrities, whose teachings are not Your own. In Your Holy Name, we pray. Amen.

Tertullian Revisited: Chapter 7: Modern Heresy is only paganism revisited.

Chapter 7: Heresy is paganism revisited.

The world is wise in its own eyes. It has always chosen to be blinded by its own reason and to shut out God. The world is man’s attempt to build for himself a Garden of Eden. If he can shut out God, he thinks he can be happy; but all that he will become is isolated and deluded – in other words, man’s Eden becomes a living hell.

Man uses his mind to sever himself from God. He concocts words and makes mighty manuscripts to rid himself of God’s penetrating presence. Sadly, he forgets that God is both the Original Spirit and the Progenitor of the Living Word. No matter how excellently man crafts his words and creates his ideas, he can never separate himself from the One, True and Living God, for man’s existence and thought is dependent upon the benevolent sovereignty and favor of God.

Each generation produces its unholy band of heretics. Today’s world is not protected from the foolish prognostications of false prophets and deluded philosophers. As each century passes, the attempts of universalists and atheists to attack the Church become more puerile, belligerent, and bellicose. They attempt to lure the masses away from Church by talking of the death of God, the decline of Christianity, and the irrelevance of Christ. But this is the mere buzzing of flies and biting of gnats. Their personal philosophies will not outlive them by more than a few decades. The Church, however, will grow stronger each day until the promised end of Time.

Rational modern and post-modern men are both the same: existentialists who dream that their own generation is the finest and most able to pull apart the Church. They do not believe that the soul can be eternal and that death extinguishes everything. Were they to admit to the immortality of their souls, they would have to accept that a Higher Being exists. Were they to accept a Higher Being, then they would have to admit that their own reasoning is limited. Thus they opt to believe that the soul dies, but they cannot say how it decays unless the soul is actually the mind, in which case it dies with the brain, but where and when does the soul begin or end, they do not know.

Heretics deal with the same questions that the Church provides answers: why is there evil in the world? Why is it permitted by God? Where did Man originate? What is His purpose? What is the meaning of Life?

Rather than accept the Church’s teaching on these matters, the heretic pursues his own answers. He does not ask for discernment, but expects enlightenment. He does not seek God’s guidance, but believes he is following a godly path. He rejects the wisdom of the Church and the ancient wisdom of God; instead he embraces popular myths, superstitions, and philosophies in order to be embraced by the world in return. In other words, the heretic is no prophet; he is a populist.

Heretics are stimulated by debate and seek to glorify words and phrases, ideas and opinions that enhance their reputations. Modern heretics of prosperity gospel reject humility gospel and squander their talents on gaining gain and making more. Any who confront them are treated as idiots and any who contest their sincerity are vehemently attacked. The Christian who stands up to these enemies of the Church may experience hatred and venom, especially from those heretics who abide within the Church.

Using sweet words and respected research, heretics maintain that their ideas and interpretations of scripture are the ones that current man should adopt. The past is treated as being non-essential and traditional history is meaningless. They seek to find the historical Christ, bleeding Him dry of His words and diminishing His ministry. They reinterpret scripture to fit their own lifestyle choices and brand Christ the Great Universalist, whose toleration and compassion knew no exclusivity. In other words, they reinvent the Gospel by becoming modern day Marcionites and Theological termites.

To the heretic, truth is no longer absolute and Christ’s words have no absolute meaning. Christ’s ministry is localized to those who believe Him in certain areas of the world. Salvation is found all over the earth in the purity of religious fervor. Whoever believes sincerely in what he or she sincerely believes is saved by their sincere desire to believe in their own god. This is not Gospel, for in Gospel Christ says “Believe in me and also in God.”

What is there that separates Christians from heretics? Both believe in truth: for the Christian, truth is found in Christ; for the heretic, truth is found inside himself.

Christianity is too simplistic for the heretic. He wants to rationalize, complicate, and complement his faith and uses his own mind to do so. He does not realize that he is idolizing his own insights, instead of Christ’s teachings.

The Church’s role is to remain true to Christ: all others goals are incidental.

To be possessed by Christ is to know His endearing and eternal love. To be possessed by heresy is to callously reject Christ’s embrace, and instead, to choose to be seduced by spiritual narcissism.

Our faith in Christ should be enough. If it isn’t, then we haven’t faith in Him, only in ourselves.

Tertullian Revisited: Chapter 6: Heresy is sinfully chosen over the will of Christ.

To reject a heretic is to disarm him of any credibility. The task of the Church is not only to neutralize the ideas and opinions of heretics, but also to enhance and edify orthodox beliefs. The unity of the Church across the centuries depends upon its ability to confront heresy and maintain the authority of Christ’s message at the same time. Too harsh a condemnation will result in people rooting for the underdog and taking up with heresy. Too much indifference and heresy will grow like a theological tumor on the body of Christ.

A person chooses to be heretical and accepts false teachings because of the power, esteem and assurance it gives him. The teachings of Christ are diminished and His sovereignty is questioned. A typical heretic will not be able to give Christ the proper respect and authority that He has. Christ’s sovereignty is denigrated by the heretic through not being able to express Christ’s absolute power of salvation. The heretic chooses to not believe that Christ is the Only Savior of the world, despite what the Bible reveals to us. Rather than accept the traditions of scripture and the historical authority of the Church, the heretic chooses to accept the false utterances of his teachers, or his own voice.

Heretics are therefore self-condemned because they individually choose to defy God’s Word and accept their own understanding. They allow the secular culture to mold their views and will not accept the unchangeable truths of the Gospel values. Heretics contend with the church and advocate on behalf of the world. They have forgotten once again that the Church is not empowered by their wishes, beliefs or ideas. The Church is established and rooted in the total word of God.

Our example comes from the words of the first disciples and apostles of the Church. They chose to simply accept Christ’s words and ways. Their devotion to Him after the resurrection was absolute. Their words are witnesses to who Christ was and what He still is today. Heretics put themselves above the witness of the disciples. They believe that their own life experiences are more relevant to their beliefs today. They refuse to accept the simple truth – that the first apostles expressed an absolute confidence in the message of the Gospel and pledged their total allegiance to Jesus Christ.

Any gospel which is contrary to the true Gospel is heresy. Religious Universalism, prosperity gospel, divine entitlement and pluralistic salvation are common heresies in the Church today. And remember, heresy exists in the Church, not outside of it!

The purpose of the Holy Spirit is to reveal to us the truth of Christ’s Gospel. When we spurn the Living Words of Christ and denigrate His sovereignty, we oppose the work of the Holy Spirit. Thus heresy is a direct confrontation with God. The Bride of Christ needs to appear before Christ as worthy and unblemished. The rooting out of heresy has to come from within the Church.

Tertullian Revisted: Chapter 2: Heresy is a Virus that Attacks the Church in Every Generation

Chapter 2: Heresy is a Virus that Attacks the Church from Within.

Heresy’s existence in the church is not a cause for alarm, but of pity. Just like a computer virus, the heretic has been contaminated with bad theology and wayward faith. He or she has supplanted humility with pride, faith with arrogance, and belief with obstinacy. The heretic believes that he or she is expressing their freedom and free will. The trouble is this: they become ensnared by their own folly; they become captive to their own confused hearts.

Heresy’s power lies in its ability to intrigue the dilapidated soul into thinking it has discovered a mysterious secret. It entwines the spirit by seducing thought, suppressing doubt, and casting God aside. All answers to life’s mysteries are found from within and each time a spiritual solution is uncovered, Christ is diminished whilst the heretic is glorified. It is a pleasant process of self-idolization and personal enlightenment. The soul is hypnotized by the merest flicker of light from within. The utter grandeur of God is forgotten and the obsession to fuel the heretical spirit with spiritual self-devotion is no longer a temptation. The heretic, therefore, cannibalizes his or her own spirit, not realizing that he or she is emptying their precious soul.

Christian heresy, if there is such a thing, is not to be admired nor accepted. Its power to deceive is subtle and over the years a gradual loss of traditional Gospel values gives way to a flood of inconsistent standards and self-deceptive doctrine. To guard against it, the Christian believer needs to daily bathe his or her spirit in prayer, meditation, thanksgiving, and supplication. Surrendering to God’s authority and reminding oneself of being a creature, guards against a multitude of heresies and protects the believer from wandering off the true path.

Curiosity and a morbid fascination with heresy, disrespect for boundaries and an over indulgent self can lead one down the path to heresy. What begins as an intriguing journey ends up in an entangled wilderness of abandoned faith and lost hope. The heretic deludes her or himself that everyone else is wrong and that they are ultimately right, forgetting that the Only One who is completely right is God.

To counter heresy, the believer has to avoid its charms. All heresies begin with a kernel of truth that becomes warped and worms its way into the heart and soul of a spiritually shallow person. Most heretics are unaware that they are toying with heresy or that their spirits are endangered. They spurn all help to set them on the right path and end up down a blind alley. What begins as a journey to discover the secret of truth and light becomes a pathway to self-delusion and an inward darkness of the soul.

Heresies have no power of their own. Like the demons of the past, they are only empowered by what credence or acceptance we give to them. Superficiality, superstition, and slothfulness are key ingredients in perpetuating heretical myths, theories, and doctrine. Short cut theology and cultic behavior attract infantile spirits and shallow souls.

Heresies abound where dogmatic confrontation is avoided. Heresies slowly smother traditional values by displacing long held components of the Gospels and Christian beliefs. Heretics bully people into adopting their ways and attack the Church in order to create disorder. A Church divided is easily invaded. A Church that is weary is easily won over.

Heresy worms its way into the Church through the weakest walls and over broken boundaries. The Church must ever be vigilant in every generation, for without having sentinels, the sacred will be usurped, faith will be depleted, and the people will be dispersed.

Erin Church Daily Devotional: Tertullian - A Braveheart Warrior in Heretical Times

Romans 2:8 But for those who are self-seeking and who reject the truth and follow evil, there will be wrath and anger. (NIV)

For a long time, I have wanted to read the works of an ancient presbyter called Tertullian. He lived during the second century AD and spent most of his life fighting the heresies that were prevalent in the Early Church. His writings laid the foundation of much that we believe in the church today. He was a warrior for the faith and he influenced a whole new generation of church leaders, who went on to strengthen Christianity and protect it from the false teachings of the Gnostics.

In my heart, I feel that there is something gravely wrong with the Western Church today. We have gone down a path that leads to a dead end. For decades, I have heard people say that the church needs to be more inclusive, politically correct, and tolerant of other people’s life styles in order to be accepted by the world. But if this is the case, then why is Western Christianity dying?

Even in our own denomination, the PCUSA, diversity is worshipped and glorified as the best way to keep us relevant in society. But if this is true, then why has our denomination declined by over 15% in the last ten years? If embracing the new culture is meant to be the panacea to keep us strong, then why are PCUSA congregations diminishing in size, influence, and relevance?

This is why I am reading Tertullian. He was a man of his times who confronted the heretical threats to the church. In reading his works, I personally hope to find a way to counter our Christless culture and find the right path for the church to grow, be more influential, and make a positive impact in society.

I am working on an online study series of Tertullian’s works, as well as a parallel 21st century apologetic to confront the new heresies in the church today. If you would like to sign up for the online study, then send me an email at Traqair@aol.com . Write Tertullian in the subject line and I will get you signed up via the church’s webmail. If you would like to see what the apologetic looks like, then please visit my wordpress blog at

http://stushie.wordpress.com/

Prayer: Lord Jesus, these are confusing and conflicting days for Your Church. We are being crushed by society and ignored by our culture. We are trying to please everybody, forgetting that we should only please You. Forgive us for taking the wrong path and help us to return to Your Highway. In Your Holy Name, we pray. Amen.

Would Christianity survive without the Bible?

Audio version here

Colossians 2:17 These are a shadow of the things that were to come; the reality, however, is found in Christ. (NIV)

Someone recently posed the question: could Christianity survive without the Bible? That’s a tough question to answer. For three thousand years, God’s people have looked to the sacred scriptures to build a foundation of faith and tradition in order to give their lives meaning and purpose. The stories of the Bible have become timeless examples of how ordinary people overcome their troubles in extraordinary ways. How solid would our faith be without the heroic exploits of Noah and his ark; of Joseph and his brothers; of Daniel in the lions’ den? These ancient tales of faith have inspired generations of God’s people in every country and culture throughout the earth.

But what if the Bible suddenly disappeared from our world? What would happen if we as Christians could no longer read the Gospels? What would our faith become? Could it survive?

If we look back to the faith of the first Christians, we come across an amazing fact: they didn’t have any scriptures to sustain their beliefs. The Gospels were written thirty years after the Church was established. The Old Testament wasn’t canonized in its present form until AD93. This must mean that the first Christians established their faith on maintaining their relationship with Christ. Their reality of faith depended upon their connection to His Spirit and not to words written on a scroll of papyrus.

I’m not advocating that we do away with the Bible. It is very important as a guide book for how we ought to live our lives, but in the end it will not be our knowledge of scripture that will get us into heaven. It will be our living, day-to-day relationship with Christ that will secure our salvation. He is the Eternal Word of God – the true Word that is alive, dynamic, and everlasting. Jesus is not someone who is confined to the pages of history, nor is He a mere character in a holy book. Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God, in whom our faith abides and through whom Christianity survives. The scriptures are a shadow of the things that were to come, and as Paul would say, “the reality, however, is found in Christ.”

Books will one day turn to dust, and even our computers will become redundant and decay, but the Living Word of God, Jesus Christ, will never pass away.

Prayer: Lord Jesus, we thank You for the scriptures and for the many things with which they teach us about You, about Your messages, and about Your mighty deeds. These sacred words bring us closer to You, but they are not the source of our salvation. Only Your Spirit can connect us to God; only Your power can restore us to His favor. Enable us this day to grow closer to You in prayer, in devotion, and in service. In Your Holy Name, we pray. Amen.

Blogachute #4

It’s time to blogachute once again, folks! I’ve been real busy and haven’t had time to get this done for two weeks. Wowsers. I really need to float through cyberspace for a while!

8000 feet - The Naked Pastor - not what it sounds like, thank goodness! David Hayward bares his soul, asking awkward questions about faith, Christianity and church. He also draws some darn good cartoons.

Oh, and if you like his musings, as well as drawings, you can buy him a cyber beer!

7000 feet - Please Convince Me – did you hear the one about the minister who was a church planter as well as a detective? Then you must have visited this site before. Pastor Jim writes this blog as a tool for outreach to those who have questions about religious issues. He calls it sharing the Gospel of grace with those who have questions. Some clever graphics here and great use of space.

6000 feet - Delectatio Dei – written by Jared Coleman in Sparta, Ohio. He’s part of a house church, so his web has an emergent, postmodern feel to it. His writings and questions have got a unique ‘edge’ to them. Well worth visiting if you are wondering what people in house churches are thinking.

5000 feet - World Magazine – A weekly news source, with Christian viewpoints, about what’s happening in the world. Some highly informative articles here and a great source for pictures for any teaching or presentations. The latest disturbing headlines are about Pakistan, which is currently undergoing a potential Talibani-style revolution.

4000 feet - God’s World News – this site is a great resource for homeschoolers for Bible study, as well as current news items and other classroom topics. The Bible study has a Greek/Hebrew study tool with audio. Well laid out and easy to navigate. Always interesting to see what people consider important for hoemschooling.

3000 feet - …Thousands and millions… - written and compiled by a young preacher/teacher from Manchester, England. Has some great podcasts on the site, but also gives a different perspective to the emergent church movement as it occurs in Britain.

2000 feet - Sounds of Grace – I must admit, I’m a fan of John Piper. I like his style and content of preaching. This webpage is a scriptural doorway to his notes from most of his sermons. Valuable notes can be gleaned here for your sermon preparation.

1000 feet - Pushing the Envelope – unashamedly promoting my cartoon site on current issues, politics, entertainment, etc…I may develop some sort of lectionary connection to it. Just drawing what’s on my mind right now.

Zero feet - back to earth!