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Time-lapse History of Europe and the Middle East in the Last 1000 Years, Emergence, and Divine Sovereignty
I came across this rather interesting time-lapse map of Europe, Western Russia, and present-day Turkey, where you see the dynamic evolution of human history over the course of a millennia which is still going on right now.
(Also, history is so much more kick-ass with music from the movie “Inception” in the background.)
For a little over a year now we have been studying the history of the Christian Church and delving quite a bit into the history of Europe from ancient times, through the Roman Empire, the Middle Ages, the Byzantine Empire, and now into the Reformation, so the vast movements in this map should be familiar to those in our group.
I was never much into history, but if you want to be a serious student of theology, a solid knowledge and foundation in history is invaluable to see how ideas and beliefs began and evolved over time, and how everything fits together. Studying history may radically alter your beliefs even.
Also, in my spare time, I’ve been delving into the science of emergence by reading Emergence: The Connected Lives of Ants, Brains, Cities, and Software by Steven Johnson. Here’s an excerpt of the book that I read today that directly relates to history and the map shown above, specifically in terms of information and energy flow as cities, civilizations, and countries grow more and more complex over time.
The Hebrew Bible: A Critical Edition – “Controversy Lurks as Scholars Try to Work Out Bible’s Original Text”
As some may or may not know, the biblical text (including the New Testament, although this article focuses on the Old Testament) has gone through multiple edits and revisions over the centuries; therefore it has been subject to errors not only in terms of grammar but also content as well. The Bible that we read today is what it is in its “final form”.
For the past 14 years, a team of scholars have been trying to piece together what the very original Torah or Old Testament was like, but not without some controversy.
From the article:
The difficulties in the project stem from the Bible’s long history of transmission from scribe to scribe through the centuries. HBCE is trying to reverse engineer that process, to sift through the various extant texts of the Bible and — by analyzing grammatical glitches, stylistic hitches and contradictions of the texts — establish a reading closer to if not the original, then at least the archetype on which the subsequent copies were based.
The goal is to rewind the clock as far as possible toward the time when the various biblical texts attained their canonical form, around the start of the Common Era.
The Hebrew Bible: A Critical Edition will be published later this year.
To learn more, go to the project’s main website here.
Do Animals Believe in God? Animal Spirituality
The Entry of the Animals into Noah’s Ark (1613) Jan Brueghel the Elder (1568-1625)
“But ask the beasts, and they will teach you;
the birds of the heavens, and they will tell you;
or the bushes of the earth, and they will teach you;
and the fish of the sea will declare to you.
Who among all these does not know
that the hand of the Lord has done this?
In his hand is the life of every living thing
and the breath of all mankind.”
– Job 12: 7 – 10
Came across a brief yet interesting article about the possibility of animals having a religion or a sense of God or the divine.
Although this might be highly speculative, I do not find it would be surprising at all if some animals had some rudimentary form of religion. Also, I have no problems at all with God communicating with animals in ways that only they can understand but we cannot. Just as animals cannot understand our ways of spirituality, it might just well be the case that we cannot understand their specific ways of worshiping God.
If it is proven that animals have a true sense of the divine (a sensus divinitatis), what would that mean for human spirituality and religion?
How would our ideas and theologies about God, creation, and our (human beings’) place in the universe change in light of this? How would we treat animals – particularly those that we eat as food – in light of this? Would it make a difference? How would it impact the theories of how religion came about in mankind or in general?
I haven’t seen much writing or studies on animal spirituality or religiosity, but I’m intrigued to find out more about it.
Abstract on “Do Animals Have Religion? Interdisciplinary Perspectives on Religion and Embodiment”.
The Tenets of Reformed Theology/Calvinsim
John Calvin (1509 – 1564)
For our next meeting next Sunday, May 18, we’ll focus on the theology of John Calvin.
Please write a one page summary of one doctrine of Calvinism or Reformed Theology that you are familiar with and state your reasons for or against that particular doctrine (or one that you might have strong questions about).
In your summary, see if you spot any logical, philosophical, or even biblical inconsistencies or contradictions within Reformed theology. Or defend your position against any criticisms against Reformed theology- do you agree with a particular Reformed doctrine and state your reasons as to why.
You may go into the historical background and development of a particular doctrine as well.
40 Maps that Explain the Middle East – vox.com
Map on how the Middle East gave Europe religion, three times
If you want a crash course on the history of the Middle East through maps from 9000 BC to the present day, then check out this site.
Highly informative in my opinion.
Update: Chapter 17 – Part II: A House Divided (1517 – 1660) – Book of Common Prayer, Thomas Cranmer, Anabaptists, Tyndale Bible
William Tyndale, before being strangled and burned at the stake, cries out, “Lord, open the King of England’s eyes”. woodcut from Foxe’s Book of Martyrs (1563).
So here are our submissions for today on the middle two sections of chapter 17: Reformations Radical and Magisterial: Anabaptists and Henry VIII and Strassburg, England and Geneva (1540 – 60)
Interestingly, there were no submissions about the gigantic elephant in the room, John Calvin. However, he was a big topic in our discussions today of course; most of the topic focusing heavily on the doctrines of predestination and limited atonement. In the course of our discussion, it seemed evident for the most part that we either flatly rejected those two doctrines or had serious questions about them. In the upcoming weeks, look for more extra thoughts on Reformed theology and Calvinism by others in the group.
Though I do like our approach in tackling topics that we weren’t that familiar with before like Anabaptists and the Book of Common Prayers. For the most part, we’ve been part of the Presbyterian Church and or surrounded by the Calvinism that is so prevalent in our church lives for so many years that we wanted to tackle other lesser known material. When you recycle stuff you already know well, things get somewhat stale or boring after a while.
We also explored the question on whether or not the Reformation was necessary. Most in the group agreed that it was necessary because of all the corruption by the Catholic Church. Although, it was at the expense of where there was no more centralized authority and bringing the Bible to the masses by translating it into the common vernacular, as Luther and Tyndale did, led to personal/private interpretations of the Bible, which of course led to gross misinterpretations of the Bible as well- then that produces misleading and overly complex and unnecessary doctrines as well. And of course, one of the major aftermaths of the Reformation was that it would spawn over 42,000 different Christian denominations worldwide. There are some who believe the Reformation should never have happened and others who say that it was inevitable and necessary happening for the benefit of Christendom overall.
Views on Propitiation and Universal vs. Limited Atonement
Some views on the Reformed theology of propitiation and questions about whether or not there are biblical justifications for universalism (i.e. that all will be saved).
Submitted by Michael.
Did Jesus Have a Wife? – The “Jesus’ Wife” Papyrus
Karen King of Harvard Divinity School holding up the “Jesus’ Wife” Papyrus
Be very cautious of sensationalist claims and findings on biblical archeology reported by the media firsthand.
How the ‘Jesus’ Wife’ Hoax Fell Apart – Wall Street Journal online – May 1, 2014
Chapter 17: A House Divided (1517 – 1660) – Part II: Anabaptists, Henry VIII, William Tyndale, Archbishop Cranmer, and John Calvin
King Henry VIII of England (1491 – 1547)
Hi everyone, we will meet this Sunday (new day), May 4 for our meeting.
For this week please read the next two sections of Chapter 17: Reformations Radical and Magisterial: Anabaptists and Henry VIII and Strassburg, England and Geneva (1540 – 60).
Predestination/Election – A Biblical Perspective
What does this mean? Is this interpretation even in the Bible?
Since the group will be encountering John Calvin very soon in MacCulloch’s book, I thought I’d get a head start and write about one of the most famous and also controversial doctrines of the Protestant/Reformed theology – predestination or election.
It’s definitely a hot potato topic and if you want to rile up a bunch of Christians and see some heated conversations, just introduce the topic of predestination, sit back, enjoy, and watch the sparks fly.
Well, here’s my entry into this eternal theological boxing ring for all its worth.
Also, as you’ll see, it’s listed on a new sub-menu called “Reformed Theology” under “Theology” at the top menu bar.
Though I know what I present won’t be a novel position by any means, it did give me pause to think when I first read it in Eugene Boring and Fred Cradock’s The People’s New Testament Commentary (Westminster John Knox Press, 2004).
I’d love to hear your thoughts about this topic as well, so please do share if you have any.
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