Interesting article...but heretical and blasphemous

Hat Tip: Stand Firm

I read an article--no, make it two articles that happened to be in the Diocese of Olympia's Diocesan Newsletter. One was titled Is Jesus the only way to God? Hmm... my answer is, of course He s, and in the Gospel of John, chapter 14, verse 6, it reads, "I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life, no one can come to the Father except through Me."(KJV) The author of the first article, The Rev. Ann Holmes Redding, PhD., believes that participating in the religions of our "Abrahamic cousins can illumine our blind spots, even as it sharpens our vision."

First of all, there are some stark differences between Islam and Christianity. And that one of the misconceptions is that we serve the same God. First, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and the one whom came to save the world from sin is a triune God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Allah, the "god" of Islam, is not triune. Next, in Christianity, Jesus is divine, and is the Son of God. In Islam, Jesus is just a mere prophet, and is just a man. They deny the deity and divinity of Christ.

The second article is an interview with Dr. Redding. The title? Well, it gets even better: On Being Christian and Muslim. Yes, you read that right. Interesting. It says in the scriptures that one cannot serve God and mammon. Choose today whom you will serve. (Matthew 6:24, NKJV) She serves as a priest in the Episcopal Church, and THEN turns around and goes to the mosque and worships there!!!!! By doing that, she is DESECRATING the Lord's table. I know enough Sacramental Theology to be dangerous, and that is blasphemous, and downright wrong. She should renounce her orders; by doing this, she is showing that she is not a christian. One cannot serve two masters; allah and God are not the same God.

Erik

What version of the Bible?

A VERY interesting thread on Titus 1:9 about versions of the Bible is on-going, and needless to say, it is very interesting and refreshing. I would like comment a bit on what versions I have and what I use them for:

KJV(King James Version): The most authoritative; I use this version for my deep studies.

NKJV(New King James Version): I use this if I am just reading just to read the scriptures. The fluidity of the scriptures in this version are AMAZING.

NIV(New International Version): This version I NEVER use. It is just too choppy, and it renders the verses that one goes to the most(John 3:16, Romans 8:37) either unreadable or indistinguishable to what a person remembers the scriptures were.

NRSV(New Revised Standard Version): This version is okay. Since I go to a Catholic university and I am a Theology major, the professors frown on the KJV. I bring my NRSV w/ the apocrypha.

NJB(New Jerusalem Bible): The translation I don't really like, but there is one thing I do like about it; the footnotes. They give Greek, Hebrew, Aramaic, and other words, as well as other texts. I will probably go back to it for that reason to see what it says about certain verses.

NAB(New American Bible): The translation is okay, but not like the NRSV or NKJV.

Anyway, I wanted to give an overview of what I have. I would like to get my hands on an RSV(Revised Standard Version). I have heard good things about that translation.

Erik

It's Hurricane Season!

My wife and I often wonder about Florida(and this is just speculation). Is it God punishing them for their sin and wretchedness? It seems that every hurricane season not a year goes by that a hurricane hits Florida. My wife thinks this more than me; I think that it is more of the Ecclesiates "chance happens to the good and the bad..." etc... Just a thought...

Erik